S/V L'ORIENT

Did Kirstin run off with Barry Gibb? OK L'ORIENTals, we are sorry. August 20 until now and no news from us. Did we stop sailing? Did we sink? Has our early 1990s laptop given up the ghost? No, no, and no. We're back with another promise we won't likely keep (reminds me of election season). We will try harder to stay in touch. So, let's begin. We had been off the grid doing what we call "village life" for months. Small remote Fijian islands, lovely people, but little food, no stores, no boat parts. We needed to turn the page, but before that we needed to get L'ORIENT to Savusavu so that we could fly back to the USA for a visit. Savusavu was quite a slog, and when you are time pressured in sailing, bad things can happen. We were forced to motor more than was optimal but we arrived in one piece. L'ORIENT tucked away for a month; all seemed good. So America here we come! Until the shit hit the fan. Our Fijian friend Millie- entrepreneur with the energy of ...

One crazy trip- Annapolis to Fiji in 13 years (LORIENT in the distance) L'ORIENTals- we didn't forget you. We've been busy, busy, busy completing another 100 days off the grid. After bidding farewell to Jessie James, the James Gang (his family), and the other lovely residents of Matuku it was time to refuel and re-provision. Nine weeks in the "way off the grid" Lau group has a way of consuming all of your supplies. We pointed L'ORIENT towards Suva, the capital and major port of Fiji. At the risk of discouraging tourism in Suva, I'll just say it's an abrupt transition. The desolate beauty of Fulaga and Matuku vs. a working fishing and industrial port with hundreds of Chinese fishing boats, rusted sunken freighters recalling cyclones of years past, and a diesel fuel sheen on the water. Yuck. We enjoyed a few restaurants, did some shopping, and resolved to get out as fast as we could. We needed everything. Fuel, fruit, vegetables, you name it.  Cyclone ...