French Polynesian Islands 11/2023

A little bit of background….After we finished hiking the Arizona trail, we headed to Lake Powell where we took some down time to just relax and get our mind focused on the next 6 months. We had planned a rather adventurous agenda and as the time to depart grew closer we were intent to make our journey flow smoothly that is..as much as possible. When Ryan and Beth invited us to go sailing with them to Tahiti we were somewhat undecided, then we ordered a globe to improve our somewhat forgotten 7th grade geograpy. After looking at the globe the sense of adventure became real. Our thoughts began..after Tahiti we could fly to Tasmania, visit friends, do some iconic hikes and then head almost directly North to Jaapn. We had always wanted to go to Tasmania and after hearing about the 88 pilgrimage trail, it made sense to add that to our travels. The 88 Pilgrimage Route walks the perimeter of the island of Shikoku in Japan visiting 88 Buddhist temples. We purchased tickets to Australia and then Japan, we are committed. Trying to figure our logistics as well as working on a building projects made time flew by at a really fast pace.

Nov. 16

It was finally departure day. Our last trip with Ryan and Beth was heading off to sail to Antarctica. At that time our luggage was filled with cold weather gear. Going to Tahiti we had about the same amount of luggage, but now it is focused on warm weather and kite boarding. Don and I had a variety of gear, hoping that we covered all the bases of travel for the next 5 plus months. It is always a bit of adventure driving to the LA airport. We felt fortunate that there were not any major traffic jams and soon we were sitting at the gate waiting to board. Jeff, our other son flew in from Portland to join us on our trip. so far so good. We have texted with Jamie and Julia, our other crew members.(they were on the Antarctica trip with us) who are meeting us in Tahiti, their flight is on time as well.

Only 9 hours of flying time until we land on the island of Tahiti.

At the airport we are welcomed by native singers and dancers. All of our luggage is here which is always a good start to our trip. Our bodies begin adjusting to the hot and humid weather. Immigration goes smoothly and we are soon heading to our hotel the Sara Nui. As the taxi pulls into the hotel, Jamie and Julia arrive as well. So far all the logistics are working and we head downtown to find some food.

Nov 17

No one slept well last night so when the rooster started announcing morning we were ready to get up. Off to find some food for breakfast and to visit the well known market in Tahiti.

The market is filled with colorful rows of fabrics, fish, gifts, flowers and vegetables.

We headed back to our hotel to pick up our luggage and then back to the airport where we board a small plane to take us to the island of Raiatea, the second largest island after Tahiti. We will get our sailboat tomorrow!

The plane is small and provides us with good views of the ocean below us.

We make out the coral reefs which protect the island from the ocean swell. We are looking forward to snorkeling.

We fly over the area that contains the rental sailboats.

After landing and finding a taxi that will fill all of our gear we head to our house rental. The taxi driver only speaks French and none of us do. He understands the address, but as he heads out of town Jamie is not so sure. He shows him the location on his phone and wants him to go there. We turn around and arrive at an office building. Not what we were expecting. The driver turns around and heads back to where we had just come. He was right after all!. We rent a van that will be delivered to us.

Once the van arrives we load up and head to a botanical garden.

As we wander around the well maintained gardens, we are in awe of the variety of plants.

It is obvious we are in a tropical paradise!

We probably could have stayed longer but the sun is setting and we want to check out one more park before dinner.

We walk up a short path till we reach a deck that overlooks the valley. The sun setting adds to the ambience.

As well as some interesting rock formations.

Back to our house, but seeing a pineapple fruit stand causes us to stop there first.

Don and I are excited when we spot a papaya tree. No one else shares our enthusiasm .

We get take out for dinner and are hoping for a good nights sleep.

Nov. 18

The main objective of the day was to head to the marina where we will learn about the boat and receive chart and safety briefings. Our nights lodging will be on the boat.

We will be spending the next ten days on a 45 foot catamaran. There are 4 bedrooms, a very large kitchen dining area and spacious decks.

Jamie is the main captain with Julia, Beth and Ryan assisting.

We are given a boat briefing, followed by a safety briefing. Glad that there are sailors on board.

Checking out the options for island exploration.

Several of us went to the grocery store to buy supplies for the trip. Many carts were filled with food and alcohol!

The remainder of the day was spent organizing the boat and preparing for departing in the morning.

Nov. 19

We awoke to the boat being gently rocked by the wind. The forecast for the day was windy and rainy. November is known as the rainy season and the next several days are forecasted to be rainy. We decide that an early departure would be to our advantage. Coffee is required which means turning the stove on. Unfortunately no one could figure out the proper procedure and assumed that the stove was not functioning. Fortunately a staff person was in the office and soon showed us that the stove worked fine. So with coffee in hand we inch our way out to the open ocean. Glad that Jamie is at the helm, maneuvering a 45 foot boat nestled next to other 45 boats takes some experience.

With clouds building behind us we head out to our anchorage for the day.

I hope what ever they are looking at is not a problem.

We set the anchor and Ryan goes kiteboarding.

Next activity was to check out the undersea life. First we checked out the area around the boat, but the bottom was sandy and not many fish. We decided to head out in the dingy to a coral reef and were impressed with the variety of colorful fish. Back to the boat and on to the next activity. Don and I quickly realize that there is going to be non stop activities this week. A vanilla plantation is nearby that gives tours. Our dingy holds 5 easily, but 7 is a bit of a stretch, but the water is calm and putting us all onboard saves the need for making more trips. We make it to shore only to discover that the plantation is closed today. We take a short walk and then notice that the wind has picked up increasing the wave size. We see the need to return to the boat ASAP. We load up and turn the dingy into the waves. And then the fun begins. There is a bailer in the boat, but we quickly realize that one person bailing is not making a difference with all the water flowing into the dingy. We use hands, a shoe and finally our hats. At least we are not loosing ground as the boat takes on water. We are pretty sure we can make it back to the sailboat before we loose the battle with the waves. We arrive cold and wet and rethink how many people can we fit into the dingy in questionable weather.

With the wind still up. the kiteboarder decide that is an opportunity to get the kites. For the rest of the day we have a variety of hard wind and hard rain. This is why the island is so green.

Nov.20

Today we are moving to the island of Bora Bora, which is an iconic destination spot for tourists, It will be about a 5 hour trip depending on the conditions. The sunrise is awesome and it is quite calm in the lagoon, but we will be heading out into the ocean proper.

We pass by a church before heading out the passage to the ocean.

We are all up on deck and then we are thru the opening, and one by one except for the Captain of the boat we retreat to the bedroom. Not as bad as the Drake passage, but enough to be the the start of motion sickness. Jeff became the sickest and provided some fish food over the railing.

After about 5 hours we see the opening that will take us into the lagoon that surrounds Bora
Bora.

We pass by the resort built on stilts over the water. Some of the rooms are $2000 a night and come with a butler! we are happy to be on our boat and be able to pick up anchor and enjoy different scenery. As we are making our way to our anchor there is a paddler in a native style canoe. He seems to be heading towards us and we steer to get out of his way. When he keeps trying to cut us off , we realize that he is just trying to catch out wake.

Ryan does a quick kiteboard then we load into the kayaks and dingy to check out some recommended places for snorkeling.

Again we are mesmerized with all the fish swimming around the coral. We find the place that has some tidal current and paddle close to the top of the drift. then tying the kayak or dingy to ourselves we drift over many colorful coral and rocky formations filled with colorful reef fishes. We also saw eagle rays and sting rays. Jeff and Ryan cook dinner tonight.

Nov. 21

The evening hd cooled down some so we decided to not run the AC last night. Then a hard rain came and the window that was providing air was now providing us with a shower. Closing the window was a necessity but the rooms soon became stuffy.

Morning brought a beautiful day with calm seas. Don and I loaded up the kayak with our snorkeling gear and after doing a short paddle along the shore, we headed over to the spot that we had snorkeled yesterday.

We were blessed with different coral fish as well as the crown of thorns starfish. As we were carried by the current over the coral beds we had to be careful not to touch the coral. Some areas were quite shallow. After several hours we were ready to return to the boat where more activities of kiteboarding and kayaking were taking place.

It was fun to watch groups of young people practicing kayaking in an array of boats.

Easy to see why the development is only on the shore.

We had read about the Bora Bora Yacht club and decided to call them to see if we could make a reservation for the night. During the busy seasons, it would be unlikely to make one for the same day, but we were in the rainy season and the answer was yes. We decide to check out an area where Manna Rays tend to gather. There is a steep drop off and the rays will swim up from a deeper area. We were psyched when 4 large Manna rays were sighted.

Time to dress up and head over for the nights feast and entertainment.

It was quite the entertainment with drums drumming and dancers showing us native dances.

It had been a long day and we were ready for our berth as soon as we returned to the boat.

Nov.22

This day like the previous day is filled with activity. We are usually up to greet the sun rise….well in reality it is Donna that is usually the first one to rise and see the sun.

Not a bad background while exercising on the deck.

Each morning and evening the boat is surrounded by black tip sharks. They are known for not being aggressive but don’t want to trust that statement. We had dropped some meat juices over the sides of the boat and immediately there was a flurry of shark activity.

In the morning with the water being so calm I take a paddle board to go exploring.

It is great to be able to see the water from a good angle.

One touristy activity in the area is swimming with the sharks and sting rays. We were told in our briefing that if we see any tour boats congregating, we should go check it out and most likely they will have found where the sharks and sting rays are. When we see several boats heading to a nearby area, we load up with our snorkel gear and head in that direction. Sure enough we are soon surrounded by sharks. We jump in the water and are able to observe the sharks up close. One of the guides is feeding the sting rays. They soon are all over him. Feeding is not allowed but it does bring the rays in close. We get there when there is only a few boats, but soon the number of boats rapidly increases and so do the number of people. We decide it is time to leave and head off to another area.

This is not a photo that anyone in our group took, but it is a good photo of the black tip shark.

After checking out the sharks, we decide to head over to an underwater trail that is also known for good snorkeling. We anchor the dingy and are soon off following the underwater signs and learning about the area. Once again we see many beautiful coral fish. The following photos are not taken by us but give you and idea of what colorful fish we were seeing.

After the underwater trail, it was time to head back to the boat and take a break after eating some lunch. After lunch we decided to kayak or paddle board to another area that may have more manna rays. We came up empty handed, but did see a turtle and more reef fish. Some of us decided to swim back to the boat and that was a wise decision as swimming along the bottom was the largest Manna Ray that we had seen. It even circled us before swimming off in the distance.

Lots of swimming and exploring today. Ryan and Jeff cooked up a great meal that we ate on the back deck of the boat.

Nov. 23

Today the forecast was to be a wet one with wind. We decided that looking to the land for activities would be appropriate .

There was a recommended hike that had been written up in a guide book which sounded doable. We headed to the shore and found the start of the trailhead. so far so good. It was well marked and seemed to be just fine. it was nice to get up high and look at the water below.

As we continued on the trail, it became steeper and muddier. There were quite a few rocks and roots to maneuver around, the leisure hike was not that anymore. When we came to s steep drop off that perhaps one could do, but felt the risk was not worth taking. The young ones had to look out for their elders. No epics were needed on this vacation. We had passed by an intersection along the trail that would take us down to the town. Someone had written on the sign that one could die on the trail that we had taken. Guess it was good that we had turned back. The trail down wasn’t easy either. There were ropes that one could hold on to while descending. That didn’t prevent several muddy falls within the group. Finally we made it down to what we thought was the way out. It looked good till we came to a locked gate with no way around it.

Backtracking we found another path that enabled us to get to the paved road. By the time we finished this hike we were quite damp from sweating. Time to do laundry and find the ice cream store that Ryan had found on line. We had to almost run to the other side of town only to discover it had just closed. We checked out the grocery store and were able to purchase more items for the boat. In front of a school was a row of kayaks that we had seen students paddling yesterday.

We learned that there is kayaking races between the island by the different schools.

One restaurant that we were told couldn’t be missed was Bloody Mary’s. This again being the slow season we were able to get a reservation. The menu was minimal, but the selections that we ordered were good. On one of the signs going into the restaurant there was a list of famous people (although I didn’t recognize some of the names) that had eaten there. I don’t think that they are going to add our names to the list.

It was a beautiful evening with clear skies! We are heading to a different Island tomorrow.

Nov.24

At 5:30am there was movement on the deck. We hear Jamie and Beth start the engines and begin the crossing to Taha’a,

The wind is up and the boat rocks as we proceed. Other members of the crew stay below deck, hoping for a smoother journey. Jeff is sick and we try to isolate him in his bedroom. Quite the bummer! By the time we set anchor, the rain is pouring down. Not a good day to hike or kite board, at least in the morning hours. We decide to go check out a rum distillery. We also make a call to Fiscus, a small family run business that prepares native food and puts on a dancing and musical performances. There is enough of a demand that they agree to doing the banquet tonight.

We head to the rum distillery minus Jeff and learn about the process of making rum.

First the sugar cane is harvested.

Then the sugar is fermented , put into the distillery and finally aged in wooden kegs.

The final product.

The weather had cleared by the time we left the distillery so we decided to check out an area that you could drift snorkel.

First we anchored the boat, walked to shore and then found a trail that paralleled the water. When we got to the end of the trail, we put on our snorkeling gear and drifted quite rapidly to the bottom again. During the drift there were deep and shallow parts which made for an interesting ride.One could not swim against the current so once you entered the water you were committed to the ride. We did this several times before heading back to the boat.

Time to head to Fiscus. It is quite the family affair. We are handed flowers to put behind our ears and told about the meal that they have prepared for us. It is food that they have gotten from the sea and land. The recipes have been handed down from many generations.

While we were eating the musicians and dancers entertained us.

The group shot.

With very full stomachs, we head back to the boat. It is undecided if we leave the island tomorrow. The wind is forecasted to be strong.

Nov. 25

We awoke to a strong wind and decided not to do the crossing this morning to Ratafia. Beth and Ryan take advantage of the wind and put the kiteboards in the water.

Theo wind is strong but the lagoons are so protected that there isn’t much wave action.

With the kiters needing a rest, we head to shore to go visit a pearl farm. It was a free tour that described how pearls are harvested here and made into jewelry.

It seemed quite tropical nestled into an area next to the water. Lots of birds were singing and ducks were walking around,

There was a even a treehouse tree.

A woman gave us the tour and we learned a lot about how pearls are formed and harvested.

Interesting fact that the oysters that grow the pearls are from Mississippi.

And of course after taking the tour you are welcomed into the show room where pearls of all prices are available to buy.

After the tour we mentioned to the woman at the Pearl Farm, that we were interested in visiting a vanilla plantation. She told us about a small operation about a 20 minute walk away that gave tours. On the way we passed some interesting stone sculptures.

One could tell that these were very old. Tomorrow we plan to visit a Marae and to learn more about the Polynesian History.

We weren’t sure we were at the vanilla plantation, but a man working at a nearby house assured us that we were.

Behind this house is the vanilla plantation.

A young women gave us a presentation of how the process of making vanilla is accomplished. It is quite labor intensive.
This farm is mostly run by the family.

Each vanilla flower has to be pollinated by hand then the pods are picked to be dried.

Like the pearl farm, we could buy vanilla products.

We took the dingy back to the boat and after Ryan and Beth went kiteboarding, we decided to pull the anchor and head back to the island of Ratafia.

It was nice to actually sail and since we didn’t have to go outside of the breakers, it was a smooth ride.

Nov.26

I am enjoying the peacefulness of the early morning sunrises. Today’s activities include, kiteboarding, snorkeling, visiting a Marae and kayaking one of the only rivers on the island.

Jeff is miserable, Julia is starting to feel bad and Beth is trying to fight off whatever this virus is! Ryan and Beth put the boards in the water and they are off.

We can see why this place has a good reputation for kite boarding.

When kiteboarding is over for the morning. Don, Beth Ryan and I head to a small island near the breakers. Lots of new fish as well as a nursery for baby black tip sharks. The coral was active with polyps. We spent several hours there just observing the sea life. Back to the boat we went, pulled the anchor and headed to a marae. This is known for the place that the boats headed out in all directions to explore new territories. We saw the beach that the boats were launched. It is difficult to imagine what it was like to set up for an unknown world.

The voyages that were taken was like an octopus with the arms of the Octopus showing the directions that were traveled.

The foundation of the Marae was still there.

Various statues were around the rocky foundations.

This was the beach that the boats were launched.

Crabs with claws that seemed oversized added some humor to this place.

A well marked trail led us up to a great view point.

Ryan and Beth pose for a photo.

It is back to the boat for the last activity of the day. A paddle up the river. Don is now feeling sick so Jamie and I,Beth and Ryan head up the river. Beth and Ryan are on paddle boards.

There is a little current which makes for a fun ride back.
A flower bud floating on the river makes for a great photo.

Nov. 27

I convinced Don that he should get up and go paddling up the river. He doesn’t feel great, but manages to get ready to go. The river was so beautiful last night that I did not want him to not have the chance to see it. The wind has calmed and the light is perfect as we head towards the botanical gardens.

The midst and sun are a good combination.

We pull the kayak into the dock and head up to the gardens. A lot of the flowers are the same as the ones we saw the first day. There are numerous trails and one leads to this flower.

We get to take a good photo of the boat on our return.

The rest of the day is spent sailing, exploring an island and of course kiteboarding.

The skies blessed us with a reflective sunset.

We all enjoyed it!

We had motor sailed to another anchorage which is near the location where we are going to do another tour learning about the vanilla plant and the surrounding area.

Nov. 28

We head to shore and are greeted by Noah who is going to take us on a tour of the vanilla plantation as well as the town and give us a feel for what it is like to live there.

Noah’s parents were sailors and Noah and his sister basically grew up on the boat visiting ports around the world. Eventually his parents decided that French Polynesian was where they wanted to settle. They bought some land and cleared the foliage. They tried raising different crops as well as starting a tour business. Noah spent some time here and then headed to France to go to school and also ended working there. After about 5 years he decided that living here was a good plan so he returned to help his parents and take over their touring business. All the building that were on the property was built by his family. Originally all the roofs were made of natural thatching but now they buy a plastic material that lasts much longer and looks quite similar.

We begin our tour by passing by some ripe bananas.

Noah finds a vanilla flower and show us the technique for pollinating.

All the pollination is done by hand.

A red flower catches our eye.

Then it is time to do the drive around the island.

We squeeze into the back of the truck and stop at various locations to looks at views and hear some history.

There is one main paved road that encircles the island.

We stop at a road side market to buy some local grown fruit.

Then back to Noah’s house where he makes a plate out of leaves to put the fruit on for us to eat,

To quench our thirst we had coconut milk.

Back to the boat for the last evening on the boat. Ryan kite boards till evening and we try to eat most of the food. Tomorrow we will be returning the boat to the marina. Don is going down hill with a sinus headache. It has been a busy 10 days with a lot of activities!

Nov. 29

We are all hands on deck this morning as we start heading into the marina. We pack up and make a pile of the items that Ryan and Beth are going to take back to the states for us. It is hard to believe that we have just spent 10 days on the sailboat. So many activities with fun people. We head to the Marina where a pilot comes out to park our boat between two other sail boats. It is impressive. We unload out gear and store it in the room where we had a briefing. Just as we had unloaded the last gear the rain in tropical storm fashion come pouring down. One of the staff orders a taxi for us and we head into town to have lunch and do a little shopping.

There is a cruise ship in town and it is filled with tourists. We appreciate the quietness of our sailboat. Soon it is time to head to the airport and fly back to the island of Tahiti. Jamie and Julia are taking a ferry to a nearby island to do some diving. The plane is running behind so as soon as the plane lands at Papeete, they have grabbed a taxi and are headed to the ferry terminal. We barely have time to say goodby. Then it is time for Ryan and Beth to go get their rental car and head to an air B and B at the southern part of Tahiti.

We take a group shot minus Jamie and Julie.

Jeff, Don and I get a taxi to Tea Tahiti Lodge. It is located close to the down town area. We have a nice room and Don and Jeff head to bed to recover from whatever is effecting them. I do some laundry and afterwards we head down town to have burgers and ice cream for dinner. Don has never had such a big fish burger.

Nov. 30

Finally a day filled with not a lot of activities. Don and Jeff both sleep in. When they wake up we head to the colorful market to see the sights and find a bakery for breakfast.

Flowers and fabric add color to the building.

Jeff heads back to the room and Don and I check out some of the historical buildings.

The buildings are decorated for Christmas.

A cruise ship is in town and the streets are filled with people with name tags. Once again we appreciated that we were on a small sailboat enjoying the company of each other. Back at our lodging, Jeff has packed up and is being taken to the airport. He is glad to be going home as being sick on vacation is never great. Don and I walk to a meeting place that we are going to meet a guide that will take us on a tour of Tahiti tomorrow. It is early to bed. So far I am still feeling good and Don is on the mend.

Dec. 1

Don and I are alone and have become a team of two. The upcoming decisions will have just the input from the two of us.

Before we had left for Tahiti I began looking for options for the several days that we were in Tahiti before flying to Tasmania. One option was taking a day long tour with the company of Ora Na Tahiti. Our emails were somewhat vague with a man called Terry. In fact we weren’t sure that it was even going to happen. It almost seemed we would know for sure the day before it happened. We got an email telling us where to meet him the morning of the tour. I guess this might just happen.We would meet him at a supermarket so we showed up there, bought some lunch food and waited outside. The meeting time passed and we were again wondering what was going to happen. Then we got a text saying Terry was on his way. Shorty after the text Terry shows up in this vehicle.

The vehicle is filled with other folks who have signed up for the tour. Terry welcomes us and heads to pick up one more person.

We soon find out that this is a one man show and that we will discover as the tour proceeds to be a very good one. We are going from the east side of the island to the west side of the island on a road that is 4 wheel drive only. All of the clients sit in the back holding onto the supports when the road gets rough.

At a pull out along the road we stop and Terry starts explaining about the land and the native people.

He has a lot of information to share and we are intrigued.

He came from a large family and there was no money for store purchases. They lived off the land and had great respect for nature.

They used this leaf for shelter from the rain.

We learned about food that they found and how communication was used by pounding on a certain tree with a rock that sent sound waves. Terry also demonstrated how the conch shell was used for communication.

As we headed higher into the mountains we could see why a four wheel drive is needed.

Some of the many rivers are dammed providing water for the towns along the coast. Roads were built to access the rivers. There is also electric lines along the way. We stop near a river and we all hop out to learn more about this area.

Terry begins by showing a cloth his mother had made from the bark of the jack fruit. It takes many hours of pounding to get the pulp into a paper like cloth.

Next we learn about the many uses of the various stages of the coconut fruit. We drank from the coconut and had the white meat of the coconut and then learned that the last stage has a marshmallow consistency.

There were plenty of chickens here to eat any coconut that was thrown away.

Terry showed us twine and brushes that had been made from the fiber of the coconut.

We stopped several time just to soak in the scenery.

Our next stop was going to be at a marae where we were able to swim in one of the streams and eat fruits that Terry had brought.

Schools groups come here to learn about their heritage. It is also a place where Native Polynesians can meet.

After the swim and food we head back to the road and head to the hight point of the road which is about 800 meters high.

Terry pulls out some photos for us to looks at. We learn that the French used this area for atomic bombs both above and underground. It is suspected that the high rate of Thyroid cancer is due to the bombs. He also told us about the missionaries that came here and converted the natives and then would steal their carvinngs and statues.

Terry with others have written a book about the history of the area,

He hopes that it will soon be translated to English.

We come to a tunnel which once through will find us going down a very rough and steep road to the other side of the island.

Easy to see why rental cars are not allowed here.

After 9 hours of a very informative day we head back to town and our lodging for the night. We are tired from the rough roads and all the cold air blowing on Don has not made his sinus feel good. Today we have learned so much about the history of Tahiti. Terry leaves us with this thought...Give back to nature, respect her as she provides.

Dec. 2

We had a leisurely morning, then checked out of our lodging and headed to Tahiti Airport Hotel. We arrived before our check in time and at first the receptionist said that we could not check in or leave our luggage. Interesting because there was another couple there that was waiting in the lounge to check in. Then he changed his mind and said we could wait there till our room was ready. All is good and soon we were in our room and relaxing. Don now has a cough so plans are for him to just rest, I am getting a sore throat so will also be taking it easy today.

Dec. 3

It was another day of just hanging out. We took a walk to the grocery store and also to check out the path to the airport. At midnight we will be walking to the airport to catch our plane heading to Tasmania. A taxi will take us there at for 20.00 dollars, but figure that walking should’t be a problem. We go to bed early but sleep does not come.
I am glad when the watch says 11;00pm and I can get up and put the finishing touches on our packs.

Dec. 4 -5

We are in the air right on time. We are flying Air New Zealand and have gotten an upgrade for our flight. We may never go back to coach seating. We are given a little package that even includes soft socks and seats that recline. We both fall into a good sleep and wake up to a good breakfast before arriving in Aukland. We had to get a 24 hour visa to land here and are glad that we are not going to miss the daily flight to Hobart. It is now Dec. 5 after crossing the International dateline. Tasmania here we come.