With the exception of a bee sting to my eye lid, and a quick scuba dive to
remove a plastic bag from the prop in front of the Palm Diera, the trip from
Dubai to Fujairah (about 200 N miles) went pretty smoothly. I don't believe
in fate, but surely all of my bad luck has been used up by now, simply in
leaving Dubai?
This was Helen and my first night passage together. We were a little
nervous about the two of us doing the night watches, but the only
miscalculation was in the amount of munchies on board for those long
watches. I've never drunk so much tea or munched on so many mc vities. I
guess it's a boredom relief thing. The last two hours were negotiating
through the mass of tankers and freighters anchored off Fujairah and Khor
Fakkan ports. That radar's paid for itself already! We tied up in Fujairah
International Marine Club and hit the sack to catch up on sleep.
Fujairah is where Helen got off, and my friends Laith and Bernard got on.
It's also where we meet up with Bernd and John, who're sailing Chimani to
The Maldives at the same time. Bernd and John were on good form, leaving
Fujairah a bit after us, requiring a few extra hours to stow a few tons of
extra 'stuff' on Chimani's deck.
A violent thunderstorm complete with hail stones (in UAE??! That's got to
be global warming!) remind us that we'll be at the mercy of the elements in
a big ocean. No major problems getting stamped out of the country with
FIMC's
help, and we leave at around 1pm.
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