USB GPS units

For quite some time now, we have been importing Electronics, mainly USB GPS units to use with navigation software on computers. It all began because a friend wanted one as a spare when they sailed off into the sunset on their next overseas trip, so we went hunting on the internet and found the greatest little unit. It's only the size of a memory stick. Everyone has one or two normal sized units and now it seems as though everyone wants at least one of these to toss in a drawer as a spare. They sell for $75 plus freight. We keep intending to keep one for Sokari but they disappear out the door as fast as they come in.

We started looking at what else was on offer and have bought, for ourselves, a data logger which is also a GPS. We use it when driving - it runs for 14 hours without charging - and it records our speed (great if booked for speeding), time, altitude etc. When we get home we plug it into the computer, maps come up and Google Earth if you wish, and shows your tracks. We were rapt and showed it to friends. One friend has bought two - one for him and one for his wife - and it seems that whenever anyone sees it, they want one as we are now getting orders for them.

With Christmas just around the corner, we decided to look for presents for each other and the grandkids. John found some great quadband phones - usable anywhere in the world, unlocked so NO CONTRACTS, with the ability to take 2 Sim cards. So along with his normal Sim he can also put in the cheapest prepaid available (he's using Woolies) to cut down the cost of his calls. It has a touch screen, scrolls through functions by touch, slimline and has an 8 megapixel camera. We have decided to market them as we are so impressed and will retail them for around $250.00. While we are talking about mobile phones, we also found a great "seniors phone". No bells and whistles which is what a lot of seniors want. They don't want the internet, or other fancy options. They just want to be able to make a phone call. But the great thing about this one is that there is an emergency button on the back that when activated will phone and/or SMS a nominated number. How good is that for an elderly relative? SEE BELOW FOR PHOTOS.

I chose a camcorder as my Crissy present. I can't believe that it actually has a 12 megapixel still camera in it. That's bigger than my expensive SLR Digital Canon! I've wanted a camcorder for a while as I have wanted to film Sokari sailing. Now that I have it, John seems to have quite a few months ahead with an arm in plaster so I doubt we'll be sailing in the short term. What a bummer!

We are really happy with the supplier of these electronics - with their reliability, the quality of their goods, so far we've had no returns (touch wood, and the variety of items we can purchase. I even bought a great set of binoculars for one of my young grandsons. It has a digital camera in it so he can look at things in the distance and photograph them. His Mum tells me he will be really happy with it.

Malaysian Magic

I love Malacca. There's no other way to put it. This town (or is it a city?) is simply the best. The colour, the history, there is just so much to see in this place. I couldn't believe the tombstones - some for pirates back in the 1600's. Wow! Chinatown. Incredible. We've been there twice but I would love to go back again. I can't get enough of it.

When we were in a town called Lumit, anchored outside the marina, we ran into a couple on a small catamaran. They had cruised the area for years and advised us where to anchor at Malacca. For monohulls it's not the greatest. There is no protection but for shallow draft vessels there is a great option. We were able to go between a little island, a jetty that was being refurbished as a shopping centre back in 2001 and 2002 and the mainland. We entered as the tide was dropping and, like idiots, didn't take notice of the operator of the little dredge working nearby when he indicated shallow water. Checking the depth sounder which showed plenty of depth, we just smiled at him but when he became insistent we took a look behind us and noticed two long black trails - left by our mini keels - as we ploughed through the soft mud. John immediately stopped at the end of the jetty, near the dredge as the tide dropped and we sat there for hours. We couldn't even use the dinghy. At low tide Sokari sat with mud up to her waterline. The surveyor on the jetty, a Malay-Thai called Bruno, radioed us to make sure we were okay and over the next couple of weeks we became friends. Our final anchoring spot, once the tide rose, was in a beaut protected spot. We were very comfortable.

Bruno introduced us to the greatest chocolates called Cloud Nines. Talk about yummy. He also took us to lunch one day at a satay "restaurant" that had been set up in an incomplete building. (Many building projects in Malaysia seemed to have stopped in mid-stride during the economic turndown in the 90's.) They were the best chicken satays I've ever tasted. We really enjoyed our time in Malacca and would recommend it to anyone travelling up that way.

It's Moments Like These ........

John and I have enjoyed our sailing trips into South East Asia; we love the people and especially their customs which to some must seem quaint. Customs in south-east Asian countries are, of course, very different to those in Australia and other western countries. For instance, there is a certain standard of dress that we are expected to adopt there - especially the women. We need to be dressed modestly with shoulders, elbows and knees covered. So, while we are sailing along with no-one within cooee of us, I may sit in the cockpit in swimmers, but as soon as a local boat comes towards us on goes a sarong and t-shirt. Not the most glamorous attire but acceptable to their sensibilities and customs. Mind you, I'm sure that most of the boats come close by on the off-chance they may see a western woman flaunting her body for them to oggle. There should certainly be no nudity but we have heard of some inconsiderate yachties who have showered on the decks of their boats in front of Muslim locals. This shows a total lack of consideration for their beliefs and allows the locals to go on believing that all western women are cheap and loose. It is also unacceptable for members of the opposite sexes to hold hands. Boys will hold hands with boys, and girls with girls - the former really seems strange to westerners but is common practice over there. There must be no contact whatsoever in public between even husband and wife. No hand-holding, no protective arm around the waist and certainly no kissing.

My husband, John, and I always tried to show respect for their beliefs and we are always very careful to dress appropriately and act with decorum in public. We walk together without touching and certainly show no affection in public. However, all my good intentions were for nought one day in Malaysia a few years ago.

The shopping in S.E. Asia can be fantastic. Singapore is great for hardware but if you want cheap software, Malaysia is the place to go looking. We haunted computer software shops always on the lookout for new programs that we or family were interested in. On this particular day we were browsing in a little shop in Johor Bahru, in southern mainland Malaysia. It was a narrow store with a central partition that displayed heaps of software on either side of the partition and also on the side walls. The partition created two narrow aisles about 1.5m wide at most, so it was a very tight squeeze. Not so bad for tiny framed Asians but for westerners it can be a bit narrow. John and I were standing reasonably close but facing opposite directions as we checked out the displays. We were absorbed in our search and time passed quickly. After a while a group of people entered the shop and I stepped back to allow them to pass in front of me. As I did, I bumped into John and lost my balance. And that’s when the word “decorum” abruptly disappeared from my vocabulary. To steady myself I put a hand out behind me and, coming into contact with John’s leg and totally without thinking, I grabbed hold and gave it a couple of pats and an affectionate squeeze while saying, “Sorry, love.” I turned to look at him and the smile froze on my face. That wasn’t John’s face looking back at me. I looked down at my hand which still had a firm grip and my worst fears were realised. I wasn't gripping John's leg. In fact I wasn't gripping anybody’s leg. John had obviously moved earlier and was standing a good two metres away from me. What I actually had in my hand was the plump left buttock of an elderly Malaysian gentleman. A range of emotions flashed across this poor man’s face. Disbelief, embarrassment ………who knows what he was thinking. I felt my face flame a bright red. I saw his face going as red as I think mine must have been then it went white.

Mortified, I ripped my hand back and stammered “Ma’af, ma’af” (Sorry, sorry). I bolted to John who was standing perfectly still, staring at me with a look of
amazement on his face. But was he sympathetic? Oh no. It was very obvious that he
was having trouble keeping the laughter in check. His lips were twitching and I’m
sure I could see tears starting to roll down his cheeks. But he did manage, with some small degree of control, to say “Boy, you must REALLY be embarrassed.” Then he obviously was unable to hold it in any more and the laughter exploded out of him. “How embarrassing”, he kept repeating between guffaws. The other customers looked on in bewilderment as John struggled to control himself and my “victim” fled from the store as fast as his legs could carry him.

We left the shop behind him, unable to face the shop attendants, and returned to Sokari without buying anything. For a long time, I would go cold whenever I thought of the incident. John, of course, continued to think it was the funniest thing he'd ever seen and over time I came to see the funny side of it. I continued to wonder how that poor little man coped that day. Even now, I still imagine him laying out his prayer mat at the Mosque later in the afternoon and whispering out of the corner of his mouth to his friends, “You won’t believe what happened to me today. One of those loose western women grabbed my bottom. They really are as bad as we’ve been warned.”

But try as I might, in my imagination I can’t decide whether he is complaining
or boasting.

Buying a yacht and need advice?

We've been around and on the water since the late 1970's and over that time we've owned boats ranging from 12 foot tinnies and windsurfers to off-the-beach catamarans, a small off-the-beach tri to three cruising boats - the first was 37 foot, the second 43 foot and our current boat is a 43'6 catamaran. During that time, through trial and error, we have learned a lot. We've made mistakes and learned from them. That's probably the best way to learn, don't you think? We've done our share of cruising, both coastal and overseas and loved it all but occasionally hated parts too. But that's the life we chose a long time ago and we're still happy with that decision. At the moment, though, fate would have us on land more than on the water while we build a home on the Tablelands. But we still enjoy getting out to the boat. Trouble is a lot of his time is taken up with advising friends and acquaintances on boat matters, so he decided to open a consultancy. At least hopefully he can make a few bucks for his time. Sounds good and seems to be working well. His main customers seem to be new or potential boaties who are unsure what to buy or how to understand a survey report. If you fit that description or even if you are more experienced but want advice on any boating related matter, give him a ring on 0418 886 794. With no axe to grind or barrow to push he can give an unbiased opinion.

Life on the water

John and I have been cruising since 1984 and I can't say I have loved every minute of it. In fact, when we bought our first yacht I can only say that I did it because I loved my husband and he really wanted to try it. I loved the lifestyle from the word go but wasn't too rapt in the sailing part. It was the A's and B's that intrigued me not the bit in between. But in the intervening years I have fallen totally in love with the life. It's not just the sailing, of course. That can be fantastic on a good day, and hell on a rough day. But we have made so many wonderful friends over the years - friends who have stuck with us through the good times and the bad. Cruising yachties are a different breed. But of course even those things change a little over the years. Today's cruiser is more affluent and life is a lot easier for them. They tend to travel more in groups which is something that we old-time cruisers can't always understand. That's not to say there's anything wrong with the new yachties. Not at all. We have met and made friends with a lot of fantastic people who have only recently joined our little family out here on the water. It's just that when we started, we were all looked upon as floating gypsies by the general public and authorities. Few of us had much money, we scraped by to live this life, but we always (still do) felt it was worth it. Our wealth came in our experiences. Now that so many people are wanting a lifestyle change and the words "sea change" have become popular, our lifestyle has become a little more glamorous. As I said in one of my recent magazine articles "This isn't a holiday, it's the way we live".

We've also seen some great places, learned about other countries and cultures, and made good friends out there too. So, while it's not the life for everyone it's the best one for us.