Fwd: Living the dream

"Banshee - Joy & Leslie" <bansheeboat@gmail.com>----- Original Message -----
To: "2XS - Peter & Marguerite" <margueriteharmsen@yahoo.com>
Subject: Living the dream
Date: 10 Mar 2015 04:01:43 -0000
From: zmq5985

We just had to repeat the subject line which has become a kind of bittersweet mantra ever since we stayed at Yacht Haven on Phuket. Nick, the marina manager, would cycle past of a morning and call out as he went by - "living the dream"!!!!
One could get a little cynical about these things because cruising on a yacht is not all beer and skittles. We are enjoying Rebak and especially the pool. And we have our air conditioner now which makes the boat interior during the day somewhat bearable. And we've met some great fellow cruisers - all taking various approaches to the cruising life. Some shipping their boats to Turkey, others sailing round S. Africa and others (like us) not sure what our next moves will be. Maybe pending visits to visit family and grandchildren will influence us in one direction or another.
In the meantime we are stuck at Rebak on Langkawi as our gearbox started making some unpleasant noises in reverse and so we contacted a local mechanic who removed it from the boat. If you'd seen him under the cockpit sole folded into a Yoga type pose you'd wonder how he was able to attach tools to all the right bits and extract the beast. The suppleness of these guys is mind blowing. If yours truly had tried that he would still have his legs folded under his chin!! Anyway, he took it away on a fishing boat, stripped it down and told us we needed some 5,000 Ringgits worth of spare parts!! That's around NZD1,900 plus labour! We subsequently saw it in bits in his workshop. Apparently it was a version of Borg Warner that was not intended for continuous marine use and should never have been installed in the boat without the correct modifications. Still, it brought us the 8,000 odd miles from NZ so not all bad. Just as well this did not happen in Indonesia. So, the correct parts are being fitted now and the gearbox will be re-installed tomorrow (11/03) and then, all being well we should be able to sail for Penang the day after. If that transpires we will arrive at Straits Quay Marina on Penang on the 15th. On the way we'll dive on the hull and clean the furry slime off as much as we can - not to mention the barnacles from the propellor. So it's not all G&T's in the cockpit.
While all this was happening Jean decided to go by ferry to Penang to have the cataracts in her eyes checked out. Never one for half measures, she decided to have them removed at the Island Hospital in Georgetown and now with new lenses fitted as part of the procedure her eyesight is hugely improved. She was advised not to have the multifocal lenses as they often give trouble so she has long sight lenses and can now read a book without glasses at night!! What with the hips and now the eyes she will truly be the bionic woman.
Time is running out though as Jean leaves for the US on the 25th. March and Jim for NZ on the 6th. April. Meantime, there are certainly worse places to be than Rebak. There is a free high speed ferry service to the mainland several times a day (10 mins.) and we can hire cars there for 50 Ringgits per day. We are always discovering new places to go for provisions and so with duty free wine, etc. we can live quite well!
Hope all is well with everyone and looking forward to seeing our respective families, grandchildren and friends....
Lotsaluv from us.........
Jim and Jean
----- End of Original Message -----

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