Christmas in Raja Ampat - Making friends and Making Music

Christmas day was fast approaching and we were all getting into the Christmas spirit.  We made our way to Waisai for last minute Christmas shopping and a taste of the local street food which was a real treat. 

Our tour guides were our long-time friends Tristan and Weendy, Sv Pangaea.  They were old hands here and knew all the best places to stop.   With our taste buds satiated and our shopping bags filled with Fireworks (organized by Tristan for New Year’s) we all set sail for a well-protected anchorage a few miles west and since we saw no name on the charts we christened it Christmas Bay.

 Over the next couple of days the bay filled up with cruisers from all parts of the Globe.   We were all busy decorating our boats and Kaija baked her famous Double Bumpty Chocolate and Oatmeal Raisin cookies. 

We had fun on Christmas morning as we went from boat to boat caroling and delivering these tasty treats.  It was a full fun day shared with with Murry and Carol, Sv Jams (NZ), Matt & Annie Sv Cavalo (US) and Tristan and Weendy Sv Pangaea (SP) a number of other yachties arrived.   We enjoyed meeting new friends Jon & Sue & their daughter Amanda Sc Ocelot, (US) who have provided so much good information on their website for other cruisers and also kindly hosted a lovely Christmas Potluck dinner.  We also met Sc Indigo, Chris and Liz (Oz), Sv Berserk, Craig and Pam (NZ), Sven and Sarah and puppy Papeete (German vessel) and Mike & Liliane, Sv Meikyo (CAN). 

It was great to see Mike and Liliane who we first met in the Caribbean in 2007 and it was sure great to spend time with them and their new puppy Scupper.  They are a lovely couple who enjoy singing and playing music and we enjoyed hours making music together playing the old standards and hearing their latest compositions. 

We spent our final day hiking a local trail to the top for the million dollar view of the bay.  This is an ideal anchorage...soft water, protected from all sides, occasional wifi from neighboring Air Borek, and large enough to accommodate a crowd with feeling crowded.