7th June 2016 - last day in Palau

Tuesday 7^th June 1016

Our adventurous bikes awaiting us outside Kim's

We have tried a few times to go to Kim’s Korean restaurant, down near Ace Hardware (Pete’s spiritual home in Palau.)  On Monday we gave it one last try – and it was open!  There were four customers, including us… We had a delicious meal - little plates of kimchi veggies, a beef dish for Pete, a seafood pancake for me.  And…only $6 each.  This is very cheap for Palau; it is a very expensive place.  So – Kim’s is highly recommended.

The decor is...eclectic!

This will be my last morning sitting at the tables in Sam’s Tours, cutely named Bottom Time.  (Bottom time is a diving term…not a toilet or sex term!!)

Tomorrow we will drop the mooring and head off into the open sea, after one whole month of R & R in Palau. We are full of fuel, have plenty of water, and yesterday I went shopping and bought lots of food and two new cutting boards to replace the very festy ones which have been on board 2XS since time immemorial. 

Last night I got a rare surge of energy – it is slightly cooler in the evenings – and I set to with pots and pans and ingredients.  We now have: two tuna mornay meals, three lasagne meals, and two chicken curries, waiting to be eaten on the passage.  even better – I managed to pack them into the fridge; this is no mean feat.   Our only functioning fridge is the Engel, a small but sturdy camping number.  Juggling our food and beer is a daily challenge.   But…some sailors don’t have any refrigeration at all on their boats.  They just don’t have anything which needs to be kept cold on board; I would find this very hard indeed.  (As for Pete…the thought of warm beer would make him go pale with dread!)

From Google - a bit of a small image, sorry about that!

It should take us about three days to get to Helen Reef (only a bit over 300 nautical miles away.)  We can stop there for a day or so; it is apparently very wonderful.  There are rangers there, from Palau, who lead a very isolated existence.  I have bought them rare treats: a tin of Spam each, and some chocolate biscuits.  This will apparently fill them with joy…

Helen Reef - it does look so pretty!

Next stop after that – Raja Ampat!  Probably another three days.  So…no emails or blogs for a week or so.

I am cautiously looking forward to the next leg of the journey.  I am SURE I won’t be sick this time…All will be well!