Finally free-ish in Hiva OA

Monday April 27^th, 2020

Hiva Oa, Marquesas

It’s been a while since my last post. The reason for the time in between posts is simply due to the fact that not much has happened. Although I am on a boat on the other side of the world from my home, I have still been working through quarantine and confinement and now social distancing. At this time we can now go to town, buy groceries, buy beer, walk and hike, so long as we have our “tags” on while were ashore. These 4” by 6” laminated cards have our names, boat name and explanation that we have been in extensive quarantine and are therefore not a threat to others. We must wear them around our necks. After more than a month of confinement on the boat and no ability to step foot on land, we’re happy to pay this price for a bit of freedom.

I am relieved to be regaining basic freedoms but the feeling that we need to move on gives me a small dose of anxiety. There are several factors keeping us in this harbor. We need to finalize visas for Australia, I’d like to sail and see more in French Polynesia on the way to Australia but navigation of private vessels isn’t permitted yet.  Zach needs to make it back to the boat somewhere, sometime, somehow. We need to simply sort out our plans for moving forward. Covid-19 has really thrown us a curve ball. It’s a challenge, but the best thing about a challenge is the opportunity they give us to overcome them and eventually relish and roll the sensation of sweet success. We are by no means throwing in the towel.

The most exciting news is we have been able to continue filming and interviews. The pause on our traveling has opened up a chance to take more time and dig deeper to learn much more about cultural, social and environmental changes in the Marquesas and French Polynesia as a whole. We’ve met with several people and I am excited to share their stories. The people living on these islands, far far away from the rest of the world, absolutely have a unique perspective on the world, changes they have witnessed, challenges they are faced with and thoughts of what is to come in the future. For me, current global state has added more intensity and more weight to our project. I feel incredibly fortunate to have the opportunity to take the pulse of people around the world at this time and share their stories with others.

I hope we will able to sail on soon. There are more places to see and people to hear from. We also know weather systems around the world are changing and therefore we’d like to avoid pushing the fringes of the weather windows we know of. Soon we need to sail on and continue west. Australia is in our cross hairs.