It’s been a hard start for us to connect with other cruisers here in Nosy Be…another blog post to come…but in the mean time…. we were able to arrive in Russian Bay just in time to catch up with old friends on SV Ostrika, SV Dream Away, and SV Neptune’s Highway before they were leaving to head south down the west coast of Madagascar. We haven’t seen SV Ostrika or SV Dream Away since Chagos back in May! It made sense for us to have a get together on Slow Flight to keep their boats tidy for their trip south…though originally just a happy hour…turned into a very late night….they had plans to leave at first light the next morning….they did indeed headed off, hopefully not too “foggy” : )
One of the reasons why we are at Russian Bay again was to go sailing in a traditional pirogue and do some hiking. Our friends told us about Paul, who lives here, and will take you sailing and guide you through a hike to a village or beach. You had me at sailing in a pirogue!!!
Paul’s house is up on the hill and you can see it from the anchorage. The dinghy landing can be taken in front of his house but there are reefs and low tide can make it difficult.
So after a day of rest we headed over to Paul’s house to see about when he would be willing to give us a ride and a tour. He wasn’t there but was soon to be back. Sure enough when we started to head out Paul shows up with his kayak and 2 kids on it. Brilliant! He was a bit drunk…or something…but very kind and really wanted us to see his house…so up we go….
Paul in his pink kayak with 2 small children… 
Trevor peeking in Paul’s house…don’t hit your head in the doorway : ) 
Incredibly humble conditions. 
He had us choose where we wanted to go. We choose route #1 a 5 km hike round trip. Cost 30,000 Ariary per person and that inlcuded a ride in his boat and lunch when we got back.
We don’t mind doing things by ourselves…but there are plenty of cruisers around so we thought we would inquire if SV Beez Neez (Bear and Pepe) wanted to join us….they said yes!
Back story: We have “known” SV Beez Neez since Sri Lanka back in January!…However…we never physically met them until we arrived in Madagascar. Strange you say?….why yes! The story goes…we had dropped off some cookies to their boat while I was feeling domestic in Sri Lanka. They were not on their boat, as they were touring the country as we had done, so we wrapped them up tight and left our boat card with the cookies on their boat. A few weeks later, we get a sweet email thanking us for the cookies (or shall I say biscuits…they are from the UK) and ever since we have stayed in touch via email…until NOW! It was great to finally meet them here and let’s just say…it’s a good fit : )
I don’t know if you remember our Mauritius family (Olivier, Delphine, Florian, and Morgan) who also owned a custom printing shirt company….but they kindly donated a bunch of clothing for us to hand out in Madagascar. We took some clothes to Paul for him and his wife, and his grandson.
Paul’s pirogue is not for solo sailors…as you will see in the videos below. So we had a few extra hands of help…and his grandson came along for the ride : )
Just a note: Prepare to wade in about waist deep and stretch before going! To get up into the boat we had to place our foot on a small wood bar that was about waist high! Trust me…Trevor was the only one who could get up with grace (LOL) 
Aren’t they cute?! 
Trevor and the grandson walking where we landed for the start of the hike…. a mangrove cove…squishy mud sucked off our flip flops so deep we couldn’t get them out! But Paul got a bucket of salt water for us to rinse off our feet so we could put our proper hiking shoes on…what a guy!
And the hike begins!
First we go up…. 
to this really bare strip of land. All around us was green but this part looked like a desert?! 
just for fun… 
These rocks had crazy layers…. 
they would hollow out if you tapped on them… 
Looks like a honeycomb?! 
There was a layer of ground that had this type of rock but nowhere else did we see this. 
The color contrast was stunning! 
Paul showing us a vine that they use for tea…. 
It felt rubbery…if that’s actually a word?! 
The vine would cover entire trees and from a distance look like an orange blanket. 
Arriving at the village…grandson in the lead. 
I got a few smiles from this little one…it must be the crazy asian face (LOL) 
Paul’s wife is from this village so he knew lots of people. The homes were similar to Paul’s…very humble: no refrigeration, very little solar power. It seemed as if each family had many structures for each member to live in. There generally was a separate structure to cook in and a cimmunity structure for “bathrooming”. 
We thought this number painted on this door was strange…like an address? 
DUcks and chickens had their own pens 
A day time shelter from the sun… Strange to us, when we walked up, all the ladies pulled up their sarongs over their breasts…we were more embarrassed than they were 
Cashew nuts growing 
Pepe found this little guy…Good eye! 
The tail is magnificent…almost dragon like… 
Back to the boat…tide is in so we didn;t have to walk back through the mud…however we did have to get INTO the boat again (LOL)!
These two are just adorable!!!! 
Lunch of coconut rice, green mango salad, and chicken….Paul told us that it’s “fady” to fish on Thursdays. So chicken it is on Friday’s (LOL). You knew it was fresh…I should of counted his chickens yesterday (LOL). 
Paul and his wife…married for i think 33 years…could of gotten lost in translation!
What a great time with great people…adding to the memory book : ) Thanks Bear and Pepe for joining us…and enduring us!!!
If hiking 4 sweaty miles in a day, showing off our “bum” while getting into a traditional sailing boat isn’t enough to secure a new friendship…it seemed right to get a bit “saucy” to seal the deal with our new friends! The same night…we had Pepe and Bear from SV Beez Neez over for dinner..not that we were hungry from eating all the food at 2:30 pm…but it just made sense to wrap up the day with a meal and of course drinks!!! Let’s just say there are no photos this evening as I got completely “pissed”….I had to apologize to Bear and Pepe for anything I said or did…or didn’t say or didn’t do…that might of offended them (Opps)!
A day of recovery, a day of laundry, and a day to relax…we headed back to Crater Bay (home base) to get re-provision and see what’s what.
Up next: Crater Bay: Maria’s Birthday in true Slow Flight style!
Trevor – I am not sure what day it is where you are, so HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I hope you and all of your sailing friends can get together and enjoy your day. Love ya