Vanilla sky.

At times it feels like we are avatars in a virtual universe of emerald greens, turquoise seas, and vanilla skies. Viruses, wildfires, tanks, trials and tribulations seem to belong to an alien world far away in another galaxy. 

But of course, that is just an illusion. There is no escape from reality, as we realize all too well every time that we connect to the world which is also ours. And so, we worry in paradise. About planet earth’s predicament and about all the loved ones we left behind. In times of war and disease it doesn’t always feel right to feel lucky. But of course, we mostly do.

That’s one of the reasons why we are over the moon that friends will be joining us in our virtual reality once we have reached Hawaii. Which we haven’t reached yet. First, some serious hoops need to be jumped through. Hoops which we found out about just in the nick of time. Thanks to our friends aboard SV Catweazle who saved us from boat confiscation and deportation. They wanted to know how we had gotten hold of our B2 visa for Hawaii, being the 50th state of the USA. B2 visas are nearly impossible to get hold of in these covid times because of the personal interview that it entails. The US embassies struggle with tremendous backlogs that will take months and months to get resolved. 

“Oh, we don’t need the B2, we are proud owners of a 2-year valid ESTA. You know ESTA? The Electronic System for Travel Authorization? ESTA, the visa waiver program which grants you multiple entries into the USA as long as each period is no longer than 90 days? “

SV Catweazle knew all about ESTA. They also knew that it CANNOT be used as a FIRST entry when arriving by PRIVATE VESSEL into the states. SAY WHAT??!! They were absolutely right, and we had been absolutely ignorant. After first having banged our head against the wall for some time, we discovered the way through the hoop: “As long as a person’s FIRST entry into the USA or USA protectorates is by commercial carrier (ferry or plane) then the 90 days stamp obtained on arrival grants legitimate entry to subsequent re-entry on a private yacht within a 90-day period of time counting from the day of FIRST entry.” Pardon my legalese. 

And that’s why we will have to fly into San Diego before we can leave Mexico for Hawaii on our private vessel called O2. Thank god this cloud has a silver lining: we have visited San Diego twice already “by commercial carrier” and those first 90 days expired on January 31st. This means we will activate a brand new and full 90-day period when we fly in for the third time on March 11. (Our entry into Alaska coming from Hawaii, we will have to tackle next. The 90 days will have expired by then and another hoop will have formed.) 

Now with that sorted out, let’s play in Loreto Bay. At an average speed of 7,5 knots, we have been boogying down south on the wings of a well behaving butterfly, aka the parasailor (Getting it back into its cocoon was once again a struggle we barely survived, though.) Shearwater birds swooped along and ahead in graceful acrobatics.

The sea was quite agitated. O2 surfed down considerable waves and was then lifted again in one exhilarating flow. Far away in the distance, whales did spout. We were eager for another close encounter. So, the next day when waves and wind had calmed down, we anchored O2, launched the dinghy, forgot to take our cameras in our excitement and off we went in the general direction of 10-meter-high spouts. This time blue whales were cruising The Sea. Of all the species on earth – both land and marine animals- the blue whale is the biggest. It is 100 ton of pure magic. 

In our dinghy we kept a respectful distance, but we closed in enough to be awed by the roar of their exhaling spout. We cut our engine and we waited and watched and waited, peacefully bobbing amongst the pelicans. When suddenly, two enormous sleek backs arched up right in front of us. With a loud snort accompanied by my loud shriek they exhaled and their inhale sounded like air forced through a hollow metal pipe. And then they gracefully disappeared below the surface. The spray of their spouts was still lingering in the air as we were discussing whether we could stay or whether we’d better get out of there. That’s when 2 blue whales surfaced on either side of our dinghy in dreamlike slow motion. We had plenty of time to get over our initial shock and to admire the elegance of their enormous but streamlined bodies as they glided through the water. Their glistening skin looked smooth like top quality soft leather, totally free of barnacles and scars. Perfection. We felt transported to yet another world. Afterwards, My ever practical Captain wondered why the bio-mimicry scientists haven’t been taught yet by the blue whale’s intact skin how to create a sustainable anti-fouling material for boats. 

Perfect weather to stitch the zipper of the lazy bag (= canvas bag that keeps the lowered mainsail properly positioned on the boom and when zipped up it gives protection from the sun) with my special stitching tool. At first, I made a mistake by pushing the needle through the canvas from the inside out. Not neat. But the moment I realized I had to stitch from the outside in, I was proud of my work. And so was My Captain.

In between a head bashing session, hoop jumping, wave surfing and whale watching, we also continue with our preparations for our ocean passage to Hilo, Hawaii. Shopping lists are put together, specialty items are ordered and received, mails to powers that be are sent, tickets to San Diego are booked again, and last but not least, O2 is getting a thorough check-up. We are getting ready to go.