Hi Everyone,
Luckily for us the monkey was aboard the boat next to ours. At least that’s where we saw him. I had gone out to hang laundry (risky if there are lots of curious monkeys!) and noticed the monkey on the sail boat next to ours. By the time I had gone back inside to get Randal, a mini-crowd had formed. A cruiser was yelling to the Sebana Cove security guards that the monkey had come into his boat and now was on his neighbor’s boat. (The boat between ours and his.) His suggestion was that they get a gun a shoot the monkey.Yuck bad!!! Hearing that must have scared the monkey who started to climb up the furled foresail and do what scared monkeys do. They poop! Yuck bad!!! I guess this monkey knew the longer he stayed the bigger trouble he’d be in, so off he went. Off the boat, onto the dock, past the guards and mini-crowd and back to land and the safety of roofs and trees. You don’t usually see monkeys alone. But this one may be the one several cruisers have spotted at the marina complex and watching cruisers play tennis. The thought was that he had been kicked out of the troop being a threat to the dominant male. I can’t help but think he is just lonely for company. The dock trash cans have heavy metal sliding tops that might or might not be monkey proof though you never see trash strewn about. I don’t know if he wanted company, food, or what. I did wonder about hanging out our laundry!

These monkeys are fun to watch, but they will bite and don’t seem so cute or cuddly like the gibbons or even the proboscis monkeys. And a monkey running amok in the boat, yuck bad!!!!

Just another morning at Sebana Cove.

Ru

Reading

I thought I struck it rich the other day when I found the May 2008 issue of Oprah’s magazine in the Sebana Cove Marina office. There are 3 shelves of books and a half shelf of magazines and cruisers may help themselves. Every few days I go to see what’s new. Sadly most of what’s new isn’t in English. It’s either German, Dutch, or Swedish reflecting the passports of many of the cruisers. But every now and then I do find some piece of fiction I think will entertain me. I read one of the Inspector Monk books by Ann Perry and started something called Move to Strike by Perri O’Shaughnessy. I never would have chosen the O’Shaughnessy book if there had been other choices; but there weren’t really. (After a few chapters I skipped to the end to see “who done it.” I don’t really like historical fiction and so left those for someone else. There were no biographies of autobiographies which I do like to read.

But back to Oprah’s magazine. A perk of having worked in a library is that I could take home magazines when the library closed at 9 pm and have them back next morning when we opened. So though I didn’t buy many glossy magazines, I did flip through them often enough to miss them out here in the cruising world. My Oprah magazine’s cover price in $4.50. In the Philippines where one could actually buy magazines, the magazines were even more expensive and just not worth the money. But I do miss them. Randal told me he couldn’t tell my hanging around the boat clothes from my go to town clothes. That’s not quite true, my go to town clothes don’t have cut off sleeves and shortened bottoms that roll up. And my go to town clothes are clean, or at least they are when I first put them on the first day I wear them. So it’s not like I want women’s/fashion magazines for the clothes. I want them for the company.

On the van to town the other day we started talking about books and one woman with a “BBC” accent just had read an amazing amount. We started talking books and have since gotten to know Elizabeth and her husband Patrick a bit. Elizabeth teaches English and History. I say teaches because every now and then they stop cruising and she teaches. Very interesting person with a wide range of knowledge and interests. Sadly she and Patrick will leave this week, but I will think of them when I read the half dozen 2007 New Yorker magazines she passed along to us. The New Yorker was not one of the magazines I took home at night, so old New Yorkers will be new to me.

Riding

Yes, it’s an elephant crossing sign.

Just before the Marina access road meets the main road into Sungai Rengit there is an elephant crossing sign. It isn’t just an example of the Marina owner’s sense of humor. At least I don’t think. Our van driver said there are “no more elephants.” What exactly does that mean? I’m taking it to mean once upon a time there were elephants because I like to think there were elephants here and maybe one day one will come walking out of the jungle that lines the road. Randal and I did see a family of wild boar one day. And of course there are monkeys by the dozens. You can see exactly where the expression, “monkey see, monkey do comes from.”

Look who finally got back onto their bikes! Randal and I got the bikes ready and did an hour test ride Friday night. There is a lovely back way to Sungai Rengit that is totally flat and goes through jungle and palm plantations towards the main road running along the coast. It is paved and FLAT!!! Perfect for riding. Inspired by our Friday afternoon ride, Saturday about 11 we rode all the way to Sungai Rengit for lunch. Occasionally a car or truck will passed by, but we pulled over and let them pass. It’s more the monkeys you need to keep an eye out for though we only heard them in the trees along the way. When we left the back road and joined the main coastal road cars were still courteous. They might be used to bikers. Many come from Singapore to ride and we chatted with several who were also riding to Sungai Rengit for lunch.
By the time we arrived in Sungai Rengit I was certain our 27 kilometer ride was more like 27 miles. For lunch we found a great seafood Chinese restaurant and ate a very filling pan fried sweet and sour fish with rice and veggies. Wisely we took the shorter, 12 kilometer but less flat way back to the marina. Hills, lycra and a full stomach are not a good combination for riding. Thankfully it was overcast and not blazing hot. When we arrived at the Marina entrance gate with 3 more miles to ride I told Randal that I was really out of condition for riding since we hadn’t ridden since the Philippines. But since it was flat I should have done better. “But you’re old,” said Randal. Hmm. Now being, 58 doesn’t mean you’re too old to ride. Our buddy Artie Levin was 75 when he and I rode up Bent Mountain in Virginia and he had to keep waiting for me. I was 30 something. But being 58 means that you can’t hop on your bike once every 4 months or so and ride. While we wait for boat parts, because it is such a tempting area for riding, I should hopefully get better.

November 11th 2:40 pm

Hi Everyone…I hope the wifi will send this…..I didn’t have photos my last few emails but finally took these.

Randal and I rode the Marina van to nearby Sengai Rengit yesterday. Randal lugged the alternator to take to the alternator fixit man. I lugged the cooler so I could buy chicken and pork from the blue station wagon meat shop. The alternator man was closed arbitrarily. The meat man never sells meat on Mondays. Now we know. So we went back today. The alternator man was still closed so Randal and I walked through town and finally found an alternator shop that was open. Trusting to intuition and faith, Randal left the alternator to be cleaned. Then we went back to the meat man and bought a whole chicken and more pork. We bought a baguette at the bakery and some veggies across the street at the small shop that’s our drop off and pick up spot. Then it poured while everyone huddled under the shop awning to wait for the van. During the return trip the van stops at a local small “supermarket.” Luckily by the time we returned to the Marina the downpour had lessened to a sprinkle. For the second day my laundry isn’t drying so I moved it into the engine room.

This is the shop where we meet the van. You can see our cooler to the right of the yellow bicycle. Another cruiser’s backpack is to the left of the bicycle. No one bothers our stuff as we walk around town shopping.

The blue station wagon and the meat man and our chicken. Last time I asked him to chop it into quarters. This time we left it whole so Randal could try our rotisserie. I did ask that he chop off the head and feet….

On the way back to the marina we stop at this little “supermarket’ which sells beer and soda and paper products and ice cream. Monday we bought kleenex and ice cream and squid balls (like gefilte fish) to put into soup. Today I bought chunky peanut butter and quick cooking oatmeal.

Then it was back to the boat and try to find somewhere in the frig for food and storage space for everything else.

Nov 9th, 2008 10:30 pm
Sebana Cove Marina, Johor, Indonesia
Hi Everyone,
Most mornings I walk from the boat, past the Marina buildings, and follow the paved path around and through the golf course. Some mornings Randal goes with me. So far on our walks we have seen:
a huge monitor lizard about 5 feet long swimming in one of the water holes and one smaller lizard
at least one Purple Heron; I’ve seen it more than once but it could be the same one
several Great Egrets
a whole family of wild boar who snorted and ran into the woods when they saw us
lots of monkeys
one scrawny squirrel
lots of small birds, one that sounded like it was chirruping, “it’s a lizard! It’s a lizard!

I think we were most amazed by the wild boars; and we’re so used to monkeys that it was the squirrel that looked out of place. This weekend there were actually golfers, usually there are not. When there are golfers we have to walk on the access road instead. It goes past the golf course but not through it. That’s less fun because you have to watch for cars and you see less. Lots of golfers from Singapore used to come here on golf weekends. But that was before the ferry fare between Singapore and Sebana Cove tripled; that and the fact it’s the rainy season. Now there are not so many golfers which is good for walking but not so good for the Marina.

This evening we had dinner with Terry and Brian and Ruth and Cliff, all Canadians. They knew all about Obama: I can’t tell you who is the current Prime Minister of Canada.
Everyone brought a dish. Terry and Brian made chili and rice. Ruth and Cliff brought a salad. We brought garlic bread and Randal’s fresh baked first ever apple pie which was a great success. Then we played a card game called Cadiver. That’s what you say when you want to pick up the card someone just discarded. The first person who says it gets to take the card, depending…. I have no clue how to spell it and it would take way too long to explain it. But for 6 people to play you really do need 3 decks of cards.

Tomorrow we’ll catch the Marina shuttle to town for fruit, veggies and whatever…. Just before you reach the end of the Marina drive there is a yellow and black elephants crossing sign. But unfortunately we’ve been told it’s been ages since there really were elephants. Too bad.

That’s all for now.
Ru

November 5th 2008 Sebana Cove Marina, Johor, Malaysia
7 am
Hi Everyone,
It’s November 5th here so it seems as if I should know who won the election, but we don’t. We just have to wait to find out.

Randal and I are at Sebana Cove Marina for the time being. www.sebanacove.com We have boat work to do and this is a good place to do it. It is a lovely protected setting. And it’s a good place to take our bikes from the flybridge and do some riding.

I been posting all of my emails only on our website www.mydoramac.com because sending multi-photo emails to more than one person hasn’t been possible. If you want to check it once a week there should be some updates posted. Sometimes I have no wifi access. Sometimes there is just not much to say. But you can still write back to me at sivahtur@yahoo.com

We are about 8 miles from the closest town, Sungai Ringgit. The marina provides a van 4 mornings during the week so everyone can do their small shopping. We are dropped off on the main street in front of a small shop that sells lots of canned goods and where there is a small table and chair. You go to the vegetable shops for veggies, fruit stands for fruit and the bakery for baked goods. Two shops sell a pretty good selection of canned goods. I bought chicken and pork from the man in the blue station wagon parked on a side street! He comes highly recommended by the marina and all of the other cruisers. The chicken comes with head and feet, but he chopped those off for me and quartered the chicken. The pork was sliced into 7 pieces. This all took about 5 minutes and cost 30 ringgits about $8 U.S. I cooked the chicken last night and it was very good. After each purchase you go back to the shop where we will be picked and leave your bags of purchases. No one touches them! They sit outside on the corner near the table and chair and they are there when you return. We have 2 hours to shop. It seems too little time, but once you know the routine it takes less than one hour. I go for the fruit and vegetables and Randal goes to the hardware shops or to look for a barber. Next trip we’ll find the fish man around the corner and I’ll take photos of the different shops. We hope to ride our bikes one day. The small town reminds me of a very uncrowded China.

Just one photo from our time in Belitung, Indonesia. Since there are no libraries or English Language book stores, cruisers swap books. There was a book exchange held on a tiny island at Belitung. I gave up Shipping News and Chez Panisse and Randal got a memoir by David Attenborough. Here at the marina they have a help yourself collection of books. I borrowed an Anne Perry Inspector Monk mystery.

So, though my Red Sox didn’t win, they gave it a great try and it was a good season. (Winning 2 World Series in 4 years makes losses bearable.) Now it’s “Wait till next year.” And there is now a Red Sox farm team in Salem, VA to follow.

This is a scene from the book swap. Our first cruising friends Terry in yellow and (headless) Brian with the wine. We met them at Rinca Island where we saw the Komodo dragons. The lady in brown, Anne I think is her name. had brought the David Attenborough book and wanted to “trade” but just let Randal have it since she didn’t want either of the 2 books I had brought. The next night they did the swap again and brought videos too. We couldn’t make that swap.

November 1st, 2008
Sebana Golf and Marina Resort (SGMR)
Kota Tinggi
Johor Darul Takzim
Malaysia

You couldn’t ask for a lovelier setting for a marina! We are in a cove off the mangrove lined Sebana and Santi Rivers about 3 miles from the Straits of Malacca. A huge stone building complete with verandah sits at the end of the docking area. One feels transported to an earlier time when life was slow and sitting by the pool was the order of the day. (Of course that time was when the British ruled their colonies in Asia and India so as a knee jerk Liberal Democrat I feel a bit odd about that.) But it just looks that way with huge open airy buildings and verandahs and palm trees and a golf course and sail boats…. We have boat work to do, and sitting by the pool isn’t really our thing, but it is such a lovely setting.

You can see DoraMac in slip A 44. The marina can hold about 100 boats and it seems pretty full right now. The building on the far right is the restaurant and just behind it is the lovely swimming pool.

The back side of the pool and restaurant. The pool is the light blue under the walkway. You can see the many boat docked here. The lobby, verandah and view of DoraMac.

The front entrance to Sebana Cove Marina

You get the idea. www.sebanacove.com is the web site.

The closest big city might be in Singapore. But Singapore is another country; the ferry is expensive, hotels are expensive; and exit and entrance fees are expensive. A cruising friend said she ordered a Singapore Sling and it was the most expensive drink she’d ever had. But we may go at some point. Monday we will take an hour bus ride to the city of Kota Tinggy. I really REALLY stupidly tripped over a cleat while running along the dock back in Nongsa Point Marina the day before we left. I fell: bam, scrape, chip!! Now I need to have my chipped front tooth fixed. And Randal and I have scratched up our glasses’ lenses so we need new glasses. The woman who works in the marina office as well as a cruising couple we met today all recommended Dr. Susse, so I will go to see her. My appointment is at 11 am. We will take the marina shuttle to the main gate and then flag down the bus that goes by about 8:40 am. When we get to Kota Tinggy we’ll probably catch a taxi to Dr. Susse’s office to make sure we find it.

Yesterday lots of the cruisers packed into two marina shuttle vans going to the nearby town Sungai Ringgit to buy fruit and vegetables. I was shown the best place to buy fruit, veggies, and where to find the fish man and the meat man. To find the fish you had to go around one corner. “Fresh pork and chicken is available everyday except Monday. This is bought out of the blue station wagon down the side road. Good meat.” (from the Sebana Marina handout.)

We had 2 hours to shop and then everyone packed back into the now overpacked vans for the quick stop at the Pasaraya supermarket. It wasn’t so quick and then there was even more stuff to pack into the over packed vans. But somehow it all fit in and we were back at the boat by about 1pm.

Since we will be here several weeks and since it is flat and the road to the main gate is far enough to make it worth it, we’ll probably take our bikes down from the flybirdge where they have been rusting since the Subic Bay. Even the main road to the small town of Sungai Ringgit might be a nice ride.

I am writing this email from the boat! It is such a nice change to have quite good wifi access. We can follow the Presidential election. Everyone here, no matter where they are from seem to be following the election. If all the cruisers we have met could vote, Obama would win in a landslide. And, of course, I can follow the hot stove season and see what the Red Sox do to get ready for next year.

So here’s a first look at Sebana Cove Marina