Let’s start with some numbers.

Grace weighs 17.5 tonnes before you add water, fuel, tins of beans, Dave’s T-shirt collection and enough matching crockery for a dinner party for 12. So about 20 tonnes we estimate in reality.
Since we installed the water-maker back in North Carolina in the States, we have made more water than Grace weighs. Substantial amounts.

The term water-maker is a bit of a misnomer in my book. We don’t actually make water. We start with water, sea water, and the water-maker cleverly removes the salt leaving us with drinking water which has salt in the ratio of 140 to 150 parts per million. A tad, a minuscule amount. You can’t taste it let’s put it like that. Every time we make water, about every 4 or 5 days, it still amazes me that with a couple of pumps, some filters and a high pressure membrane we end up with a great tasting potable safe water. Thanks again Doreen.

$45. (Or £36.50) That’s how much a Club Sandwich costs at one of the Bora Bora hotels with the posh huts over the water. We know this from talking to an American guy on holiday here. I think it comes on a bed of dollar bills and shavings of gold leaf. He said his credit card was taking the biggest hit ever. You say! And he had another 10 days here. There are no bargain basement items for purchase on Bora Bora.

Five. That’s the number of forms you need to fill in to apply to depart French Polynesia. And one of those imprints through to two others making 7 in truth. I collected the forms from the gendarmerie this morning and have just filled them in as best I can. They are photocopied from photocopies I think and a couple of the boxes are missing as the writing is a little askew. Maybe that information is deemed irrelevant by the authorities now.

The fact we’re submitting clearance forms means departure is imminent. After almost two years in French Polynesia, we are ready to say our goodbyes and head towards Fiji. Neither of us imagined we’d be here as official temporary residents for this length of time. Other than UK this is by the far the most time I’ve spent in another country. (We don’t count Welsh Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿)

It’s been a blast. Some ups and downs of course, but covid has not really impacted us. We’d already booked to fly back to the UK when the most recent lockdown happened last year so we missed it. And we got vaccinated here which we’re most grateful for. The Marquesas, Tuamotos, Society and Gambier Islands all offer contrasts from deserted remote coral surrounded atolls to holiday resorts to green verdant steep hills and blue blue blue blue water. Gambier was my favourite.

We’ve seen lots and swum with sharkies, fishies and corals, Dave learnt to kite surf, I learnt to wake board. We’ve walked hills and beaches. Next stop Fiji ……unless we call in at the Cook Islands which is unlikely but we have permission to go and stop there.

Two weeks ish at sea. Follow the red dot from Friday / Saturday when we will depart. 1800 miles or so to SavuSavu. Looking forward to fair-winds and moonlit night skies.

And one final afterthought which involves a kind Polynesian man and one coconut. I took myself off for a walk around the south of Huahine. Just along the road but there’s very little traffic and the road follows the ocean so it’s pretty pleasant.

A section was straight and I could see maybe half a mile ahead. As I walked past a property a man came out with a freshly cut coconut, the top removed so the coconut water was ready to drink. ‘For you. It’s hot today’ he said. He must have spied me, gone into his garden and there he was waiting. Random acts of kindness. 😀