Squal on the way to Phuket

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Full Metal Jacket to Weather

Malacca Straits in white out squall conditions made us a bit nervous: What about ships?

But, funny as it sounds, we never saw any in these conditions.

We buddy boated with Full Metal Jacket and kept close together for three days.

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Great Crew

Brendon, Pierre and Judy

Tired of the Rain?

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Fred

After a night of squals and rain I got a bit pooped. Tired, wet, but I wasn't cold.

George of the Jungle

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George on Full Metal Jacket

We sailed together with Full Metal Jacket and George, the captain, was having a blast in the squall.

"What do you mean Come Up? we have a full yard to spare!

Enjoying the Shower

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Judy & Brendon

Brendon had to trim the jib and both he and Judy got a big laugh about the big run-off of rain water from the main which landed right on his head.

Fuzzy Logic

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Pierre
My recollection is a bit fuzzy about this but I think Pierre stayed below for a while during the storm.

Wings' Voyages-2007

Click on image to enlarge



We got a late start in 2007; it was Thanksgiving before we got on the move once again. Maybe that accounts for the short distance travelled.

On the other hand, in 2008 we might spend the whole year travelling and go nowhere.

Conversion

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Loaded

Compare this photo with the next one
Unloaded

Actually you can't see much difference in the unloaded waterline but that's because the boat is heeling slightly to starboard and burying the waterline. In the loaded photo above we have the boat better balanced. Believe me, the boat is much heavier and quite a bit lower in the water.

Ready to Go

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Wings in Cruising Mode

It took two days to convert Wings back into a cruiser, but two weeks to clean everything, fix all the stuff which needed fixing, and stow all the gear. Hope we can reverse the process faster in Phuket.

Reclamation Bay

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Wings

This quiet cove was built by the Singapore government during their land recalmation project to expand Singapore. We don't think they meant to make a harbor for pleasure boats and probably it will be filled in soon as their project contiues, but for now it serves as a great get-away.

One thing; it isn't on any chart! Here is the hot tip: 1 degree 13.86 N, 103 degree 36.25 E. Watch out of for shallows as the sand naturally shifts and fills the bay.

Party Time

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Charter Boats

Local charter boats like to bring their party-goers to Reclamation Bay for an afternoon of fun on the water and on the beach. By 9:00PM they were gone and we had the bay to ourselves again.

Andy's Handiwork

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Chairs

Andy Kung fashioned these chairs for us with stainless steel tubing instead of the steel frames which rust out immediately in the marine environment as a gift on our departure from Hong kong. They are great. We took them ashore for a beach party yesterday and they received lots of admiration.

At Anchor

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Relaxing with a good book

Cheers

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Whiskey

Congratulations, this is a great way to spend an afternoon.

Reclamation Bay

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Wings

Common Sight

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Lightning

A common sight around Singapore is the lightning. It is frequent and heavy in the squalls which come through often during the SW Monsoon season (April-November).

Notice that this strike originates above the cloud? Is it directly from God?

Another Strike

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More Lightning

Back Aboard

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Judy Checks Dinner

One of our favorite liveaboard activities on Wings is cooking outdoors using the BBQ on the stern railing.

What's Cooking?

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Kabob's on the new BBQ

Giving a woman a new cooker for her birthday doesn't seem politically correct, but Judy really wanted this shiney Magma BBQ. And anyhow I do most of the outdoor cooking; doesn't that make it OK?

Talking About the Passage

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Cruisers

In September and October the cruisers start to roll through Raffles on their way North from Australia and Indonesia.