Saw My First Sperm Whales

Again no pictures, sorry!  But we had a group of charterers on board Alii Nui and headed out looking for some bottlenose dolphins we had heard one of the other boats had seen within the last hour.  We couldn't find them but noticed a couple of whale plumes and headed over for a closer view.  Great to see it was a couple of sperm whales swinging by Guam on their passage.  We stayed with one of them for about 40 minutes before heading out fishing.

100 Ton Upgrade

No, we are not adding on to Sari Timur.  But Mark did get his USCG License upgraded.  The USCG even remembered to give him the STCW endorsement he asked for last time.  It is still only half as good as his International License but hey we Mericans Do Thangs Differently Here!  Mark also learned the people he did his International training with in South Africa have taken over the Ft Lauderdale office.  Maybe once they are established they can help with some of the red tape with his GMDSS.

Back On Guam

Well we are back on Guam after our whirlwind trip to Singapore.  We managed to see most everyone, even though we were stretched for time.  We also managed to consume lots of food that we were missing.  Got half of the banking done as well as our passports, ICs, driver’s licenses etc. and Pauline got a wedding in.  Not bad by most standards but now it is time for us to be back at work and rest up.  The pace in Singapore is definitely faster than what we have gotten used to in Guam!  Anyway if we did miss you on this trip we apologize and hopefully we can catch up next year when we come back.

Almost on the plane

Well work is finally over for the day and most of the things are done.  The inside of the boat looks like a typhoon hit.  As I was tearing things out to get at all the extra lines and things to secure the boat in case a typhoon decides to hit the outside of the boat.  We have 12 lines down to 4 mooring blocks.  Which those blocks are tied to others.  I have put chaff guards on each line.  Moved most of the loose stuff below.  I left the sails on, except the big genoa, but I did lash them to their booms.  All in the weather looks good for the next 7 days but then this is Guam and 5h1t happens!  Will enjoy the break and it will be nice to see the flat now that it is finished off.

Singapore Beckons

There is a family wedding the weekend of May 25 and 26, which gives Pauline a really good excuse to take time off work and fly to Singapore to rejoin her family for a catch-up.  She will be there from May 24 to June 7.

Mark was going to stay behind and take care of Sari Timur.  However, he had forgotten to renew his Singapore Re-Entry Permit and therefore have to return to Singapore to renew it personally.  It was decided that he will join Pauline on June 1 and return to Guam together on June 8.

It will be the first time since June 2010 that Mark is in Singapore.  It would be fun catching up with our family and friends.  However, we realize it will be a very short trip.

In order to prepare Sari Timur for staying in Guam alone during typhoon season (a little early but you'll never know), we have to put down the typhoon lines and will keep our fingers crossed that none will form while we are away.

We will update more when we return to Guam.

Pygmy Killer Whales

Interesting day out on the water today.  The Spinner dolphins were back after a few days off.  And there were some young ones with them.  On the third trip we spotted a rather large pod of Pygmy Killer Whales that got up close and personal.  No pictures though, sorry I was driving.  Anyway one of the more interesting days out on the water, maybe on par with the time with the topless women.  Of course I got no pictures that day either!

Turning 55

Wow it has finally happened I have reached old age.  Last week was my birthday.  And it was number 55.  That is the age I can collect my CPF.  Of course that was a small enough amount we have decided to leave it  in place.  But the plus side here in Guam is I can go to the front of all the queues, which came in handy when I went to the DMV to register the car.  The actual birthday was fun we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant and they put on a cake for us.  After great food and a few margaritas we then ended up in the local brew pub for the Saturday night band.  Turned out to be an alright night.

                                                          The Cake

The Old Man

Our New Ride

We got the settlement check from the insurance company for our truck and we bought this. Our new 'old' ride is a 2002 Nissan Xterra. We hope we will be happy with it like we were with our truck.

We're Staying ....

..., but only for another year.

It is now coming to the end of March.   Mark is still happy with his job as captain of Alii Nui, the charter cat and  Pauline is still happy with her admin job.  The bank account is healthy again.

So, Guam, we are here to stay for another year!  Now, let's keep our fingers crossed that the "T" word will stay away while we're here.

Live Another Day

On February 20, 2013 Mark had the afternoon off.  So he took the truck and ran errands.  In the evening, he picked Pauline from work.  We were looking forward to getting home to the boat, where a couple of nice steaks were waiting to be eaten.

As we were driving in the middle lane going southbound, a blue Toyota sedan came screaming across the road, right in front of us.  Mark immediately applied the brakes but it was too late to stop and we crashed into the side of the other vehicle.  As usual, the airbags deployed but the speed at which the other vehicle was going caused both vehicles to the side of the road and we crashed again, into a huge tree.  By then the airbags had deflated.  Having never been in accidents where the airbags deployed, we smelled smoke and saw smoke.  First thing Pauline did was asked if Mark was ok.  He said "Yes, but I think the car is on fire".  So we both got out of the truck, real quickly.

We saw that the other vehicle had also crashed into a tree.  The miracle is that there is a house between the two trees.  What is also a miracle is that all four of the occupants in the vehicles got out alive.

The police arrived, together with the fire trucks and ambulances.  Even the tow trucks were there.  Mark had filled up 5 jerry jugs full of water and tied them to the back of the truck and these broke loose and crashed into and smashed the storage box in the back and fell onto the road.

The ambulance transported us to the hospital, where we had x-rays, blood tests and pee test to determine if we had broken bones, internal injuries, etc.  About 5 hours later, we received the good news that we didn't break anything and sent home.

The driver of the other vehicle is a 16-year old, pregnant girl with no license or permit to drive and the car was a rental.  It was alleged that she was having an argument with her boyfriend while driving and going at 55 mph.  She crossed the northbound lane, plus the 'suicide' lane and the left lane of the southbound lane, right across our path.  If we did not hit her vehicle, she would have driven right across 7 lanes of traffic and crashed into the house.  I don't think she would have thanked us for saving her life plus that of her unborn child.  She didn't even say sorry for causing the accident.

We are waiting for the police reports and insurance reports but we believe the truck is totaled.  We are planning on leaving Guam in a year's time and are a little upset about losing the truck.  We would now have to look for another truck.  Our trusty, rusty old truck was very reliable and took care of our needs to ferry water jugs and diesel and petrol jugs.  We also paid a really good, cheap price for it and it would be difficult finding another cheap and good conditioned truck.

We are badly bruised up and in pain, and we complain about it but we are very thankful that we are alive and not seriously hurt.  Through this accident, we also came to experience the kindness of the people of Guam.  The EMTs were reassuring and gentle, even if they had to put a neck brace on Pauline and strapped her onto a backboard and gurney, despite her protest.  One of the witnesses stayed till we left in the ambulance.  Pauline’s boss, Tim drove to the hospital to see us.  Our friend John also came down to the hospital and offered help.  Kerry was at the scene almost immediately and helped us take some of our stuff out of the truck.  Chris drove her car to the hospital and left it there for us to use.  The next day, when we returned Chris’s car to her, she invited us to their place for dinner (just so we didn’t have to deal with cooking).  Everyone was so concerned about us and we really felt the love.

Some photos of the truck and the car we hit.  We are still amazed that none of us were badly hurt or dead.  In her dreams, Pauline had wanted to buy a mini cooper but she has now changed her mind.  Now she is looking at armored vehicles!!