As we continue to plug south the 185 miles to Luganville, the highlight of today would have to be the landing of a 10kg Wahoo, or MahiMahi. Read more…

And so when the Team broke into two – crew and medical team – today there were mixed feelings of regret, joy, and amazement. We had survived a busy 16-day program and achieved most, if not all, our goals. To visit as many island, enjoy the company of every one we met, and provide much needed dental, eye, and medical care has been a privilege. To work with such a great team is an unforgettable experience.

For all those going home – Barry, Graeme, Doug, Ruth, Nancy and David – airport transfers never looked like this before – a dinghy ride to a white sandy beach, over turquoise water, then a 3 minute walk to a very long grass paddock and a shed with a sign outside that read … “Loh Airport” Read more…

Oh, that’s the bell going many times … I think Cathy is impatient for the boys to bring down the crab, I’m not sure what 5 bells means … when I called out an explanation, Graeme called out “abandon ship” … but I’m sure he was joking, after all, that’s my department. Read more…

Cathy had breakfast ready for everyone, but the up and down, side to side motion of the boat didn’t lend itself to serving food, let alone eating it. After an hour, toast was attempted, which went down very well. Read more…

This is the fifteenth island visited so far, across the three missions, with probably another two islands to go … Hui in the north and Toga to our south. Read more…

During our first week aboard Chimere, while Rob and I were anchored off Santo, I had numerous people observe that I was the incoming ‘galley wench’. While not a term I find endearing in any way, I now understand where the unflattering nature and slave-like connotations come from!

Our welcoming committee consisted of two dugout kayaks and a traditional outrigger canoe, here to show us where to anchor and to learn more of who we were and where we’d come from. As is our custom, we invited all comers aboard and put the kettle on. Read more…

Our resident tut (tooth) doctor Barry is also in the cockpit, soaking up the lovely tropical sailing conditions. We need to keep him fit and well … particularly after the physical work and focus involved in pulling so many teeth. I was sitting next to Graeme as he plugged in the numbers and I think 4 teeth from the one patient was the record so far. With about 90 extractions so far from 120 patients. Read more…

Like Freman there are always interesting characters here in Vanautu, many of whom visit the clinics. For example, there was Marie who came for a simple check-up. At 72-years she was thin and aged with no substantial medical problems despite her 10 children and 26 grandchildren! She doesn’t have time to be unwell. Read more…