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Iva

Casting Call

This year has been all about trying new things.

On a visit to Kuala Lumpur a few months ago, we met up with Andy, a good friend to us both, my best friend’s boyfriend and coincidentally also the person responsible for introducing Phil and I to each other. All in all, a very important friend. In the midst of the usual exchange of news, he let slip that he had heard about an audition for a reality TV show. Though Philippe and I would have never considered ourselves Big Brother material, the more Andy told me about the show, the more interested I became. As soon as he finished saying the words “shopping, interior design, challenges” I had decided we would at least try out.

Convincing Phil was the next step.

It was the last round of KL auditions and we woke up on a Sunday, hungover and feeling less than camera ready. Despite the big night out, I managed to drag Phil out of bed and into the shower where he reluctantly agreed to get dressed to go. Our agreement that day was that he would go to the casting with me but never participate if called back. I shrugged off his averseness, and as we had little else to do that Sunday afternoon, my curiosity drove us to Subang.

Our Audition Photo

Auditions came and went and as months passed we accepted that as we had imagined, we were not reality TV material and went on with our routine. As Phil mentioned in the last post, it was after a month of non-stop work that the phone rang.

“Congratulations! You have been selected to participate in The Apartment, Style Edition! Can you fly in tomorrow?”

After five weeks of arduous work under the unexpected monsoon-like weather, the boat was just finally beginning to look habitable again when we were offered the chance to drop everything and participate in something far outside our normal realm of activities.

We didn’t have much time for decision-making. It was hard to think of leaving the boat in the marina after such hard work, but also a little disappointing to imagine passing up such a unique experience. Not to mention the possibility, however slight, that we may even win the Grand Prize: a brand new luxury apartment in KL!

After much deliberation over beers and peanuts, we decided that we had nothing to lose…

The Apartment: Style Edition will air October 18th on Star World at 8:55pm (UTC/GMT +8 hours).

Introducing All Teams

We will post more about this surreal experience soon. In the meantime, you can read more about the show here, or follow their Facebook page.

Wish us luck!

Team Dali

Dali in the News!

We were excited to be recently featured in a Travel article in the Phuket Gazette. Having spent so much time in Phuket, we are happy to see the boat in one of their main English-language publications! Thanks to Andrew for the article and his visit to Dali.

The Way Back Down

It’s been a while. Finally a new post. A month has gone by since we left Surin.

It was hard to leave. We were able to spend 6 days around and in between the two massive lush islands of the Surin archipelago. But we had to start heading back to Langkawi, where we were going to welcome friends and family at the end of March. On the way down we would be rewarded with a few more perfect anchorages before reaching murkier waters…

Koh Tachai, halfway between Surin and Similans, blessed us with one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever laid foot on… As usual, crystal clear water and a new shade of blue. And the sand. White as snow, soft and smooth as clean linens. What a lovely playground…

At the end of the beach, between the rocks, we spot a few baby reef sharks playing in the little waves.

We know we won’t be back in these waters for a while. It’s hard to leave. We have to constantly motivate each other to make a move the next day. We will sometime soon find another perfect spot and hopefully be able to spend a month or two there, getting into a routine, fishing, cooking, making small repairs on the boat, enjoying the time passing by too fast… But this time, we need to head down south. We have a deadline.

The Similans and Surins are home to crazy looking jellyfish

We can’t help ourselves and stop for a few hours in the Similans. We lose ourselves in it’s surreal waters again, enjoy the sunset on the beach one last time, and go to bed early.

Phil cleaning Iva’s wounds

We wake up at 2 AM. We want to make it to Phuket the next day, and it’s 70 miles away. With the little wind we usually get at this time a year, we will probably motor most of the way and reach Phuket before sunset. It’s Iva’s first night sail. I’m excited to share this unique feeling with her. The fisherman’s lights on the horizon, a marlin that greets us in the darkness, a strong coffee and nice music to carry us until the light appears out of a morning storm. We turn off the engine for a little while and enjoy the fresh, soothing wind…

Iva was amazed by the radar, “Just like in the movies!”

Phil raising the main sail at Sunrise

We make good progress and as we round the southern tip of Phuket, after 14 hours of motoring, a western sea breeze finally picks and pushes the boat in between the familiar islands of Chalong Bay. There’s no better feeling… We reach Ao Yon bay shortly before sunset, just in time to meet our friends at the beach bar. Our fridge had been leaking gas and not working properly for a week. The first cold beer is a delight.

We only spend two days in the crowds, just enough time to gather some fresh supplies, do our administrative exit, fix the fridge and pick up my friend Ben who will join us on the trip to Langkawi.

A picture for the curious few who asked what we eat on board

Ben is a good friend that had been sailing with me in the past year and helped me a lot to get the boat in shape again. It’s a real pleasure to have him on the boat for what will be his last sail before heading back to France after more than a year of traveling.

By now I have sailed between Langkawi and Phuket a number of times and have come to know the area quite well. It feels great to stop in beautiful anchorages we know, to enjoy our favorite spring rolls on a chill beach in Koh Lanta, and to sail a few hours to Koh Rok the next day. Koh Rok is probably my favorite spot in the region. It always welcomes us with epic colors, and a feeling of being at home. We enjoy a lovely sunset with cocktails and guitar…

The next day it’s a 10 hour sail to Koh Lipe, where Iva and Ben met for the first time a year ago. We love the place and have a lot of cherished memories here. We celebrate the reunion with a bit of dancing in the night.

And we are finally back in Langkawi. What a round trip.

Ben enjoying a great graphic novel : “Habibi” Thanks Julien !

Everything went well. Iva loved it and that’s a precious relief. She is really suited for this life, something we couldn’t have known without trying it. I feel so lucky. I think she does too.

Now with have 20 very full days in front of us. We have friends visiting from Hong Kong and KL. Both our parents are coming for their first time on the boat. What a change in rhythm it will be! We look forward to it.

Philippe

Surin Islands

Our first night in Surin was just as bumpy as our arrival. The wind and rain that sped us to our destination had some considerable consequences on the swell and despite our best efforts, we didn’t get much rest. As it was my first experience with such brusque movements, I quickly found the humour in clumsily climbing my way around the boat and feeling my stomach rise and fall with the water. Phil, not so much.

Captain Philippe et son ciré

The next day we moved from the West side, went around the Northern islands and anchored on the East. Though unfortunately we don’t have a lens that can do it justice, you can see parts of the large bay that encompasses the beautiful clear water. At the end of the bay and around small inlets on the sides, the low tide reveals some gorgeous beaches.

Our days on that side of Surin were spent relaxing, enjoying each other and some rest after the busy journey North, both of us very happy to have reached our destination. It’s a great feeling to wake up early naturally – no alarm clocks or hassling pressing matters – just the heat of the sun on the deck and a glimmer of it through the hatch is enough to wake you, rested, and invite you out. We spent the mornings snorkelling and spearfishing, had lunch while the sun was highest and wandered the beaches in the afternoon for new spots to enjoy our sundowners.

Varicose Wart Slug – yucky name but beautiful colours

On Monday we decided to take a day trip to the nearby Richelieu Rock. The description in the cruising guides spoke of whale sharks so it was hard not to be disappointed when we didn’t find any. Luckily though, we weren’t too let down as the spot provided the best snorkelling we’ve had on the trip. After a trying morning getting there (no wind and difficulty actually finding the rock under a few meters of water!) our frustrations quickly dissipated in the stunning blue. Richelieu Rock, as we saw it in high tide, was a few meters under the water and teeming with all sorts of marine life.

Lovely Pufferfish

The coral was bright and healthy and patches of bright green made it look like a beautiful underwater hillside. We saw a school of barracuda, which needless to say was more than slightly intimidating. While I left Phil to swim back and grab my camera – a group of them followed me and although I realise the ridiculous nature of my train of thought: I was convinced that they were only pretending to swim parallel to me while they carefully planned their collective attack! Naturally I was mistaken and made it back alive and with a few good pictures.

OoooOOooh,Barracuuuudaaa

J’ai l’appétit d’un barracuda !

Blue Sea Star

After our day at Richelieu Rock, we came back to Surin and decided to explore what is deemed the main beach of the National Park. Like Koh Rok and Koh Miang, the beach plays host to a campsite for tourists and in this case also includes some small bungalows in the jungle and a canteen of sorts. The atmosphere on the beach was peculiar to say the least, from the minute we pulled the dinghy up; we felt the blank and not altogether friendly stares following us. Odd-looking foreign tent-dwellers seemed displeased with our presence and even asked, “What are you going to do with the water?” when we inquired if there was a fresh water spring nearby. In short, we were much relieved to return to the boat after our quick dinner at the Dharma Initiative-inspired campground.*

Beach Bound

Iva’s new favourite activity – reading old French magazines before sunset..

We made the most of our days in Surin, knowing that as well as reaching our destination we have also come to the ‘end’ of our first trip together. As our families are visiting us soon, we need to make a speedy return to Phuket and finally Langkawi. Although we could have easily stayed around these islands for weeks, we know how lucky we are just to have caught such a beautiful glimpse.

Still in awe of the water…

*We gave the beach a second try on our last evening in Surin and as some boats carried away the white Others, we were greeted with a much friendlier atmosphere and had a lovely afternoon!

Pas facile de quitter un endroit aussi magique…après 6 jours aux Iles Surin, nous devons reprendre la mer, direction Phuket, puis Langkawi. La tête toute bleue et pleine de poissons, on repart vers le sud…quelques belles surprises devraient nous attendre sur la route. Nous prévoyons un arrêt a Koh Tachai, petite ile qu’il nous reste a explorer, puis a nouveau les Similans, avant de retrouver un mode plus urbain a Phuket… On rêve déjà d’un bon steak, d’une bonne douche a débit illimite et de soirées mémorables entre amis… A bientôt pour de nouvelles aventures…

Phil’s First Entry

Let’s BLOG then.

What more to say ? That I’m very lucky ? I’m grateful to admit that I live with my beautiful girlfriend on my beautiful boat…

The girlfriend is called Iva. She is 25 years old and from Mendoza in Argentina. She spent most her life living in Kuala Lumpur and Buenos Aires. We have been together for a year. I was giving my boat a nice refit in Phuket, 6 months out of the water, and Iva was working in KL. We have been living on the boat together since February.

The boat is called CHRIOD, soon to be renamed DALI. It was built in 1980 in France at the DUFOUR boatyard, designed by the architect Michel Dufour. It is 35 feet long. The Dufour 35 has become a classic over the years. It’s simple, it’s solid (in the early 80s the fiberglass boats were still strongly built) and for a cruising boat, it’s pretty fast.

We started in Langkawi, a large island NW of Malaysia. Iva already spent some time on the boat last year, but for very short periods of time. We are excited about this real test.
On a small sailboat like Dali you share all of your time. You are never apart, unless one person takes the dinghy alone to shore and leaves the other person on board.
Life on a boat is thrilling but most of the time it is not only pleasure. It’s always moving. There’s not much space. There’s a limited amount of energy and water that mainly depends on the elements : sun for power and rain for water. Things break. They need to be fixed. Most of the time nobody’s there to help. In this region, close to the equator, the weather is very unpredictable. Stuck in between the two tropics, it gets hot. Very hot. Most of the time there’s no wind. And then squalls out of nowhere brining 40 knots of wind followed by a incredible downpour of heavy drops.
And sometimes everything works. You are sailing on calm water with 15 knots of wind from the NE. You are going NW. All the sails are out. The scent of land not far away tickles your nose. And you breathe in. The boat is singing in the waves and you can even share the moment with another smiling individual…it’s almost hard to believe things can get that perfect. Over the years I have learned to recognize these moments of bliss, accept the short time they last, and live them throughout, like the wind momentarily filling the sails and pushing the boat a bit further…

Philippe