A sight for sore eyes! For land that is. After 5 days out at sea, surfing down waves with the wind pushing us along, at record speed, we have arrived… again, in Indonesia.
We knew what the weather conditions would be. We prepared the boat and crew to the best of our abilities and we did it! Sailing passages is not something any sailor likes doing, unless maybe your one of those around the world non-stop record breaking sailors who love every minute of it. I, on the other hand know it is something that needs to be achieved so we can discover new horizons and cultures. Our Dreamtime did an amazing job, for a 41 year old ketch, she sails like a youngster. The more and more we sail her the more and more we love her. The crew also handled it brilliantly, arriving tired but still with smiles on our faces, ready to explore all Indonesia has to offer.
Selamat Datang di Indonesia!
After our sail from Thursday Island to Indonesia we stir from a deep sleep as the 5am call to prayer drifts across the anchorage in Debut, it has been 2 hours since we hit the bunk. But it is this sound throughout the day that we will grow to love and relate to our time spent here.
Over 50 boats have entered the rally, which means the anchorage is crowded but all find enough swing room. Joining a rally isn’t what we seek, as we love to sail to remote areas and experience the destinations without organised entertainment, busy anchorages and crowds, yet just for the added ease of checking into the country we thought it was our best option. In hindsight we would now enter the country at the same time as the rally using an agent, without paying the exorbitant rally fees. You can still have all the added benefits of the rally if you choose to use the Indonesian rally organiser as your agent.
For the welcome ceremony, a tent was set up in the street with rows of chairs for us distinguished guests. There were a lot of government officials in attendance, and we had a short ceremony where coconut water was blessed and sprinkled on us. There were lots of speeches by the government people, some of which were translated and some were not. Two of our rally participants gave a speech on behalf of the cruisers. Michelle from Seahorse gave a beautiful speech spoken fully in her recently learnt Indonesian. Hit was a standout favourite with the crowd in attendance. Everything was filmed, and before we got too antsy a snack box was passed out, giving us a tasty snack of pastel goreng (fried pasties filled with rice noodles) and a slice of some kind of sweet loaf bread. All very yummy and welcome.
The entertainment was then front and centre it seemed as if the whole village had turned out for this very special occasion. The traditional dancing and music was exceptional and all of us had a wonderful time joining in on the activities. It was an honour to be welcomed in this beautiful country so warmly by all who attended.
 |
The people here are not shy, far from it. The children are always wanting to practice their English, though limited to a few sentences, if you take the time with them you find they are wanting to learn so much more.
This has been a wonderful start to our Indonesia journey. The people are so friendly and welcoming, they just want us to be happy, have a good time and take many photos with you, we have been treated like special VIPs. Our senses have been bombarded with the sights and sounds of this new culture. If we were excited to be sailing here from Australia, our time in Debut has only made us even more excited for what lays ahead in the Indonesian Archipelago.
You can enjoy the moving pictures of our arrival in Debut, Indonesia.
#landahoy #sailing #openoceansailing #sailorslife #indonesia #southeastasia #sailingadventure #dreamtimesail
No comments:
Post a Comment
We love to read your comments regarding our blog, what you enjoyed and what you might like to see more of. Please leave us your thoughts.