A Christmas Greeting to All our Friends

Merry Christmas

From Kaija & Gary

 

Snapshot 2014 - We sailed the South Pacific.  Visited the Marquesas’, Tuamotos, French Polynesia, Raiatea, Tahiti, Bora Bora, Maupiti, Mopelia, Suwarrow Cook Islands, American and Western Samoa, Tonga and now the beautiful islands of Fiji.  We survived a plane crash and caught a Whale…it doesn’t get much better than this! Livin La Vida Grande!

As I write this it is raining pretty smart with a little lighting to brighten up the day.  Kaija is busy making Christmas wreaths and baking cookies for the marina staff and their families of the beautiful Vuda Point Marina where KaijaSong is safely planted in a Cyclone pit. 

 

2014 has given us many wonderful memories.  Meeting some of the most amazing individuals and incredible families who have shown us the simple Joy of Living.  On tiny isolated islands, often times having so little it confirms again for us that real Joy comes from your Head and Your Heart!

 

 

We take this opportunity to say Thank You for Your Kindness to us.  Your act of kindness made a difference.  A Wise man once said “if you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping in a room with a lone mosquito”.

2015 promises to be another terrific year.  With trips planned to Australia and Canada then “back to sheep” (ship) to continue our journey.  Those are the plans, but we know “Man plans, God laughs”.  We trust that Our Way is His Will.

 

 

We send our best wishes to you for a very Merry Christmas.  We hope that it is spent with those you Love and that you experience the true Joy of the Season and the true meaning of Christmas.  It is the celebration of the Birth of the Christ…the Greatest Miracle of All.  He is the Great Creator, the Maker of the Wind the Master of the Seas and the Director of All Our Dreams.

Dream your Life…AND LIVE YOUR DREAM!

 

Wishing you Peace to Rest,

Love to Share,

Happiness to lighten your way

An­d Abundant Joy,

                   

        

Kaija & Gary,
Sv KaijaSong

_/)

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Fiji - The Land of Mystery, History and Incredible Joie de Vie - October 15 - Present

Fiji - The Land of Mystery, History and Incredible Joie de Vie - October 15 2014 – Present

We arrived in Fiji after a wonderful three day passage from the Hapai Group of Tonga.  The winds were strong, the seas were fair and the fishing fantastic.  As we passed into Fijian Waters travelling thru the pass just north of the Lau Group we were carried along by swift moving current and strong winds aft the beam and KaijaSong danced over the waves with great delight.  As we came upon our first Fijian islands the sun was setting and we sailed into the sunset amidst the beautiful lush landscapes, tall and rugged reef rimmed islets that held so much history and mystery as a far away place long dreamed of and now so ever present in our view.

During that last night of passage we were aware of the many hidden reefs with breaking water abundant as we skipped between the islands.  When morning broke the fishing began in earnest and it wasn’t long before we landed our biggest yet Wahoo…a whopping 4 footer, full of life and fight and some of the tastiest eatin you can imagine.  Not long after that we hit and landed our biggest yet Mahi Mahi…another 4 footer…WOW…it don’t get much better than this folks…but wait…there’s more…moments later we hooked and landed a beautiful tuna…a Trifecta of Fishing…what a welcome to Fiji!

 

 

We arrived at Savu Savu late afternoon and were welcomed by Princess and Dolly…you think I’m making this up???  They are the contacts for the Copra Shed Marina and they were as pleasant as their names.  They made all the arrangements for customs, immigration, health and the Bio hazard folks (they are very careful of any food or plant material), but alas, they could not have been nicer and the paperwork was done within minutes…WELCOME TO FIJI!.

We spent our first week in Savu Savu getting caught up with friends we had not seen for some time…Mike and Liliane Sv Makeo whom we had not seen since the San Blas, and Richard and Fran Sv Red, last seen in the Marquases and Bev and crew Sv Kokoh who we saw last in Tonga.

Savu Savu is located on the island of Vanua Levu and is a great place for diving, shopping and safe little hurricane hole used by many a cruiser as an alternate to hauling their boats during cyclone season as we were about to do in Vuda Marina on the big island of Viti Levu.  One of the long standing residents/cruisers is Curly who provides a plethora of local knowledge of navigation to the newbies…like us…thank you Curly. 

We departed Savu Savu for Namena which is hailed as one of the top 10 diving locations on the planet.  We were not disappointed despite less than perfect weather and water conditions…diving/snorkelling Grand central station and the Pinnacle were outstanding. 

 

 

Next we travelled to Makogai to see the giant clams and again we were not disappointed.  They are regenerating the giant clam population in the islands and we look forward to going back.

This is year 10 for us in the cruising lifestyle which is a milestone and also a point when things start wearing out and breaking down on the boat.  This is the main reason we decided to haul KS for the season and effect as many refit repairs as are required to keep our home safe, comfortable and looking good.  It is also an excellent opportunity to purge the boat of so many things we have picked up and packed along the way…looking forward to having the waterline back where it belongs.

We are now sitting safe in a ‘cyclone pit’…a design quite unique in our sailing experience, but once you see how it works it makes perfect sense.

Our first month has been one of tearing things apart and working on the big jobs…we have the diesel tank repair behind us and glad of it.  Next is redoing all the canvas including sail repairs, new stackpack, new dodger/bimini blah blah blah…and I can tell you that the pockets are quickly ridding themselves of any loose change…hahaha…this will be an expensive time, with bottom painting, topside touch-ups…prop rebalancing…new cutlass bearings, new new new…WOW!...don’t laugh if you get one of those emails from us saying we are in FIJI and we don’t have any money please send us some hahahah….I’m laughing now but by about March It may not be quite so funny.

We have already made some great new friends and so far enjoying our time here in this beautiful paradise…altho..must admit…I can honestly say…it will be better  when we are back on the water and not just looking at it.

We keep you posted on our progress.  Till then,

Keep dreaming your life and living your dream…IT’S ALL POSSIBLE IF YOU ONLY BELIEVE!

KAIJA & GARY