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Phuket, Thailand
31st
August - 23rd September 2006
Having departed
Heraclitus in Australia, we reunited in Phuket,
Thailand in the bay of Au Yong on board our new
home, Infinity. Layovers in Darwin and Singapore did
little to provide rest or space to mentally prepare
for the work ahead. But upon arriving the ship there
was no time for fatigue!
The Thai craftsmen that had been working with
Clemens (the owner of Infinity) to complete the
interior woodworking were in the final throes of
their whirlwind and we walked into the heat of the
chaos.
We joined in the moment and
picked up the necessary tools - sanders, grinders,
welders, paintbrushes, jigsaws and drills - to
tackle the challenges ahead to begin the
transformation from construction site to home. It
was a glorious moment waxing the pilothouse floor
after a week of sanding!
For almost three weeks the
floor sander belted out its rhythmic hum, revealing
beneath layers of epoxy a stunning floor in each
area of the ship. The woodwork needed finishing, the
portside railing needed installing, the engineering
systems needed attention, the storage needed to be
organized, the plumbing needed completing - the work
list appeared endless at times and yet the end of
every day brought a sense of great accomplishment
and a realization that soon we would be heading out
to sea on Infinity.
Our timeline with Infinity has interwoven since we
first met in Ensenada in Mexico, 2003. Since that
first encounter in the dry-dock during which the
Infinity crew joined the Heraclitus crew in cement
work, we again met Clemens and Areti, and their
family and friends, in Fiji, Vanuatu and Solomon
Islands. To be on board Infinity now feels like it
was always meant to be.
A week before departure we
held a party with many of Clemens' friends from the
village in the
bay. It was a beautiful night on the deck and inside
the enormous space of the salon - a boost to
prepare ourselves for the journey at sea ahead.
We stole moments during the weekends to hire mopeds
and drive around the island of Phuket although we
frequently never made it past Panwa, a local massage
centre where attentive Thai ladies would patiently
work out some of the knots in muscles strained by
the work on board the ship. We were fortunate to be
just around the corner of Wat Chalom, a Buddhist
temple in Phuket where we made a visit on the
weekend.
On Saturday 23rd September we weighed Infinity's
anchor for the first time, departing Phuket for Ko
Similan - islands we had first visited on board RV
Heraclitus.
We sailed for two
days, raising several sails, literally learning the
ropes. Michel mastered our first dinner at sea while
we experienced winds from force 1 to 5 and learned
how to sail close hauled to the wind. We put
Infinity and ourselves to the test, experiencing the
sheer pleasure of sailing this beautiful ship,
learning how she and we behave together at sea,
watching stars from the midnight helm and dreaming
of our futures together.
A
brief stop in Langkawi Malaysia provided us with a
top up of water and a few days to in a new country
before embarking onwards to Singapore and to Raffles
Marina who have graciously invited us to dock with
them. A great adventure on the high seas before
embarking towards more distant shores.
A Poem to Sea
People
Agile beautiful
bodies slide through hatches
Pull on ropes against gale force wind
Steer a course impossible to hold
Knife a fish in the head without a blink in the eye
Stand watch in cold polar winds and pouring rain
Ride the edge of the wave without fear
From strangers we became crew, sailors, friends,
lovers, ensemble
We danced a many nights through torments of
emotional storms
Never let each other down.
We built palaces, cities, non linear structures of
the mind
Which flared and disappeared
We sat on deck drunk on impressions
Ate the fruits of enchanted islands
Breathing the cleanest air
Our vision became clearer, our dreams vivid,
We could smell the land before we saw it
Circling high
above the ship I look down at my ever changing
kingdom
And I know that
All together
WE
Keep the voyage going
Against all odds
- Klaus
Eiberle |