Get Lost On Purpose

Category: Cheap Travel

  • Papeete, Roulottes, and the Quay

    Back in Tahiti now, I spent last night at the Quay (the main dock area in downtown).  I don’t mind being down here all that much.  A lot of other sailors hate it.  It does get hot and you can’t swim but at least stores and repairs facilities are in walking distance.  And the roulottes at night are a big plus.  A roulotte is a mobile food van.  Every evening at dusk, a bunch of these things converge on the main square at the head of the cruise ship docks.   Maybe 15-20 different vans set up open air restaurants with plastic tables and stools and the place gets packed with locals and tourists.  They serve all kinds of different cuisine from pizza to Chinese to salted crepes.  Roulottes are the only places to grab quality food in these islands on a budget.  I’m putting together a little youtube thing about them.  I hope to have it up soon.

    The reason I came down here was to work on the outboard engine for the dinghy in a place with a hose and access to some parts.  Also, the port captains don’t really care about charging you if you’re only staying a night.  I came here believing that the carb on the outboard needed cleaning (which it did). I’ve been cleaning all day and the thing still won’t start. I think I might have water in the gas I got on Raiatea. If it turns out to be that simple, gas quality could also explain why I can’t get my little honda generator running.   One can only hope.   Looks like I
    have to send the Katadyn Powersurvivor Watermaker back to Minnesota or somewhere for repair.   I’m positive the problem will end up being something stupid that I either messed up or missed in all my repair attempts.  I’ll pay a ton in shipping.  No, it’s not the best attitude to have but sometimes, living on a boat, I feel like buying one of these stickers and slapping it right on the transom.
    Honk
    This afternoon, I’m getting out of here regardless of what’s fixed.  It’ll be the weekend and most of the stores close anyways so the appeal of being “in the middle of it all” disappears.   I want to be somewhere I can swim and that certainly isn’t here in the middle of Papeete harbor.  I also think it’d be best to save some cash before Margie gets here.   I’ll head to the westside for the next few days.

  • Always something broken on a boat

    Last night I decided we need a logo. Not a crappy logo either. I don’t want it ending up on this site. I’m in the market for someone who can turn the pic you see to the right into a basic logo design. If you know any good graphic designers, send me an email.

    I measured the output of the watermaker yesterday. It’s supposed to make around 1.5 gallons an hour. I’m getting six cups an hour. Now I’m no expert but I’d say the thing is broke. The Katadyn Powersurvivor 40 is the purchase I regret most of anything on the boat. I’ve hated that thing since the first time I turned it on and saw it dribbling water like grandpa at the urinal. It doesn’t make sense to have a watermaker that produces that little amount when I could have bought one that makes 30 gallons an hour. Yes, the small Powersurvivor only uses a fraction of the electricity but I would rather run the engine for a couple of hours and almost fill up the tanks with a big power hog. Next time, next time. I took it apart for the fourth time in a year to see if I could fix it and once it was back together I was up to 6.5 cups per hour. That’s with the brand new membrane I brought back to Tahiti with me. I’ve checked and double checked everything so I sent off an email to Katadyn this morning.

    I did a few searches and there are barely any cruising boats using Twitter. Others ought to look into it. I set up an account that will allow us to email Tweets (updates) from anywhere, even the satellite phone. It’s a great way to follow a cruising yacht in real time as they move about the globe. Not to mention, I get constant updates from the marine industry on news, products, sales, etc. Yeah, it’s one more thing to monitor and take care of but it’s also one more way to stay in touch with family and friends. And I’ve yet to meet a boat where that wasn’t important.

    Almost one week has passed since I moved over to Moorea and the only cash missing from my pocket was spent on a horrible meal at a roulotte. I’m determined to eat all the Ecuadorian food on this boat before I buy anything new and the selection is getting sparse. The one thing from Ecuador I’m truly sad to see dwindling is the peanuts. The crunchy coated peanuts from there have become my favorite snack on board. I wish I would have bought 50 cans. I’m sure I could have found somewhere to store those and about 25 more rolls of paper towels. I need to sit down and write an article. “What to overload your boat with before you cross the Pacific.” Peanuts and paper towels. There. The article is finished. I would like some fresh meat though and I may have to wander over to the store today. That grill is dying to be cranked up. It is Easter so I’m sure the picking will be slim. Hopefully I don’t get over there and find a sign like this on the door.

    No meet