Moose

Moose is a dog. He lives by himself on Casey Island, Bay de Prony. He takes you for walks and has his own Moose tracks. He has a food bowl on the wharf and also catches sea slugs. He is very friendly.

Tjibaou centre

The Tjibaou centre's architecture is amazing. There was a whale exhibition and there was a whale woven from flax. There are traditional Kanak houses too.

Arrived in new Caledonia

Chicken Capture

This is a traditional Vanuatu chicken catcher. You get some bamboo and cut it into one long and two short bits to prop it up. Put some grain underneath and then the chicken is caught!

SURPRIZE

Toothpaste tube lure

                                                      =

          A mahimahi 90cm.

Dug outs

In Vanuatu lots of people make dug out canoes. Some you sail and some you paddle. They are made from tree logs.

Green Sea Turtles

I saw some baby green turtles. There were 21 turtles and they were only three months old. They were in an old water collecting tank. They grow up to 300kg and over one metre and live for 80 years or more. They are endangered.

Rapaki heads to Vanuatu and New Caledonia

Today we are clearing customs in Fiji to sail over to Vanuatu and then New Caledonia. The photo is us on the customs dock. It will take four days to get to Vanuatu. I will have limited internet from now on so not sure when I will be able to post again.

You can follow our progress at: yit.nz/yacht/rapaki

TOO HOT!!!

Today it is 33 degrees! The only way to cool down is to go for a swim. The water is 28 degrees.

Sailing

I have been doing a lot of sailing. Its been really fun.

Matuku farm

We visited this farm in our dingy (by motor (3.3hp) 45min by sail 30min). We went through mangrove's and up a muddy path to the farm.

Fijian fruit

Bananas grow in palms upside down.

Pineapples grow on the ground.

Papayas grow in bunches.

Fishing Boat Repair

We visited a village and got hooked into a boat repair. We used metal and fibreglass, I learnt a lot. The boat use to be the school boat to take the village kids across the bay to the school. Now its used for fishing. We also found a lizard.

The Navigator

We recently saw this 15 foot boat designed by kiwi John Welsford. It was shipped to the Fiji and then sailed through the Yasawas  about 15 years ago (you can check out this epic trip at...https://books.google.com.fj/books?id=jkM3nhtncxgC&pg=PA12&lpg=PA12&dq=john+welsford+navigator+yasawas+David+Perillo&source=bl&ots=QZRbpe_xCI&sig=-fe2zNPgC6uU-YGzAPSNxC9LKX8&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=john%20welsford%20navigator%20yasawas%20David%20Perillo&f=false It is now used to transport live goats and fruit and vegetables around Fiji.

wave riding

Yesterday I zoomed around on a sup we went super fast, I was not scared a little bit, it was awesome.

Flags

When we visit another country we fly the New Zealand flag from our stern (back). We fly the red ensign. While visiting Fiji we fly the Fijian flag on the starboard (right) side of our mast. If we had Fijian crew it would be on the port (left) side.

Submarine

Some people think of the weirdest things to make their boats look awesome. This superyacht has a submarine onboard, it is a two person submarine.

Cabin

This is me in my cabin.  You can only crawl into it but I can sit up on the bunk.  The pipe behind my head is safety stuff.

The market

The market in Lautoka is not like the Sunday farmers market because it is open every day except Sunday. You can buy kava, papaya and lots of other yummy fruit and vegetables.

Rapaki

Just if you are wondering what Rapaki looks like here's a picture.

Machete

I sailed back to the mainland. I wanted to get a machete to open coconuts. Now it is much easier to open coconuts. I hope to make a bowl

Power

Boats have to make power for themselves. Some boats use solar panels, some use wind generators, some use petrol or diesel generators. Solar panels use the sun to get power, it makes the least sound. Wind generators need alot of wind to get power, if it is just spinning slowly it does no work but they can work when it's dark. Petrol or diesel generators are very very noisy and can get annoying! We have solar panels.

Coconuts

I wanted a coconut but I couldn't climb up the coconut tree. Luckily one fell down so I sprinted to  grab it.  The coconut was old, brown and bumpey. Dad and I threw it up to knock down a green coconut.  We took both back to Rapaki. We hammered the green coconut open with an axe and knife. It tasted juicy and sweet, yum! The flesh was soft and white. We need to buy a machete for next time. 

NZ and Fijian Navy board Rapaki

We thought we might have been in trouble when the NZ and Fijian Navy boat came on board but they were just checking we had a cruising permit. We did!

Flying to Fiji

Dad has arrived in Fiji and is anchored onboard Rapaki.
I'm taking the easy way up to Fiji and fly up today - only 4 hours flying compared to Dad's 8 day sail!

Rapaki heads to Fiji

You can check out Rapaki’s progress from Tauranga to Fiji at:

www.yit.nz/yacht/rapaki

Rapaki left New Zealand on Monday 12 June with my Dad, Pete, as captain and my Uncle Steve and our friend Ailie on board.  Rapaki should get to Fiji early next week – it takes about 8 days.