Around the corner in Sumatra

Sailing here has been incredibly difficult. We had another
amazingly difficult sail down the coast and are now on the
north west side of the island. We are literally hiding from
it all in a great anchorage we found after bashing for 4
hours against 30 knots winds to cover 10 miles. Russ was not
happy needless to say. He was a pile of nerves, and thoughts
of home, our house, kept popping on my head (on his too he
confessed)... But once we got here, after Russ had a beer
and the beauty of the place (even after ravaged by the
tsunami - you can see the scars of the hills and all the
houses are brand new) sank in, he stated smiling again. Some
friendly locals came by and on board. They were delightful
and polite. They took Russ to see one of their new fishing
platforms, made on 2 hulls (yes, catamarans!) with wood
donated from the Singaporean Red Cross. All the local boats
have been done recently from donated materials as
everything, I truly mean everything, got wiped out. Haven't
seen a single kid around, or women... don't know, maybe a
sign there aren't any left. Apart from the sad history,
everyone smiles and we feel lucky to be here. Played the
doctor again, giving nurofen for one of the fishermen with a
toothache. We have such a huge stash from our sick days in
Phuket!

It's funny, this sailing thing is hard, we truly hate it,
but once we get to the destination, the hardship seems to
disappear. I can't quite explain it, but it's true, more so
to Russ than for me. So we soldier on. Russ thinks it's a
preparation for our Indian Ocean Crossing, which promises to
be downwind, but rather long. Enough babble... nice to share
though, heart feels lighter.

> ***

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