Fifth Workday in Raiatea

The days are running together now, as we work day after day in the yard. I know that it's only been a week, since last Monday, that we started, but it seems like longer.

We traveled into town looking for a Tonton burger on Friday, and although it was closed, we did find a great supermarket.

When Conni ascended the mast at the season's end last year, she noticed that these machine screws were loose. One of my feared tasks was fixing this problem. These are the damaged machine screws that I must replace. I've got to re-drill the holes, retap the threads, and replace them. All of this while hanging on the mast about 25 feet up. Drat! Conni took this photo on her 2-1/2 hour up the mast yesterday.

Conni took this photo from the same location, but aiming the camera past her foot toward the foredeck. Since the foredeck is another 10 feet off the ground, it's a long way down.

This is my contribution: re-lubricating the propeller. Each of the machine screws must be loosened so that the grease that I squeeze in can ooze out, replacing any water that has penetrated the housing. The strut behind the prop carries a "cutlass bearing" that centers the propeller shaft. A loose one causes many problems.

Ah, Wings.....as she sits in her cradle. She looks so much better with a paint job.

As we drove around Uturoa yesterday, we came upon this very popular hangout, the "Welcome Snack Bar", Maeva meaning, "welcome" in Tahitian.

Pamplemousse, a common fruit here, is similar to a grapefruit in flavor. The exchange rate is 105 FPF (French Polynesian Francs) for US$1, so these are inexpensive.

Boudin Noir, or blood sausage, is a favorite French food. Those odd, long sausages behind Conni's hand are merguez, a delicious lamb sausage.

Yep, fresh fish and crustaceans, and not inexpensive. I'm not sure of the source.

Thon rouge, or "red tuna", probably Blue Fin Tuna, is very common here. Most is caught locally and is inexpensive. Look at the size of these blocks!

US$97/bottle? Yikes! Transportation must be part of the price, but there must also be some very high taxes.

US$70 for gin? It's such a place for gin and tonic, but we'll remain sober, I'm afraid, at that price.

Not much here but the RHKYC logo. For the rest of us, that's the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. The boat is a Wauquiez, a French-made and expensive yacht.

We bought a nice bottle of rosé and enjoyed it for a few nights, but especially on Saturday night. We knocked off early, had a nice meal, and plan to sleep in tomorrow. Buddy and Susan, thanks for the goblets.