The question we heard the most often during these last months is: ‘And ? Have you settled in ?’ This question is asked without much thoght and unsuspecting that the answer might be a long and complicated one. Just as for the typical ‘How are you ?’: people expect a simple ‘Good/well/whatever.’ and definately not a lecture on the positive and negative sides of different lifestyles. So right now I could just write ‘Good.’ And all of you would be satisfied, wouldn’t you ?

Or do you really want to know how we are and what’s been going on these last months ? I guessed so…

The initial arrival was quite nice. Hugging old friends, knowing the surroundings and the neighborhood, meeting family and friends of our kids… All very lovely. But we also knew from other sailors’ returns that the actual arrival hits you after a few weeks and it’s not a nice one. It was just the same with us. It’s not that suddenly you realise that the journey and the free and wild life is over. It’s more subtle. The changes get you slowly.

One thing I miss the most are the intense, deep conversations we had with our sailing friends. It seems that the people on land are just too busy or too fearful to really dig in deeper. So the conversations stay on the surface and the essential parts of life mostly are kept out of focus. This is a thing that really makes me sad and it is something that one starts to accept after a while – although it really hurts.

Our kids took it the best, I would say. They really integrated themselves rather easy and fast and Viola had no problems at all to find heaps of friends and find herself to be one of the top students in her class. For Bruno it wasn’t that easy as he was rather slow when it came to reading and writing. He had done school on board in spanish and german but his new school was all english so this was a big step. But after a few months he also had settled in and is now gaining on the midfield in his class. His teachers are optimistic and tell us that by the end of the year he would be above average. Well at least that is no reason for concern anymore. Before arriving in Berlin we were quite nervous about school but it all seems to develop very well. The kids have lots of friends and frequent sleepovers and playdates and both are quite happy.

And how are the grownups ? Well we didn’t have it that easy so far. During the first weeks we had a lot to organize (appartment, insurance, school, taxes, furniture, jobs, etc.) but that was all settled quite fast. More difficult for me was the fact that during our absence the development in politics, economics and society are still in the wrong direction and even picking up speed. So rather than getting more independet from the axis of evil (the five eyes) we embrace them with TTIP and CETA and at home ‘our’ institutions ECB, European Comission and IMF do everything to make the situation worse, to play everything into the hands of a few rich people while the big part of the population in Spain, Portugal and Greece is driven into poverty and unemployment. The news regarding the global surveillance through the NSA are not publicly discussed and the rather shy comission of enquiry that the german parliament put into work was dissolved during the first hearing when a double agent was discovered on the team. Business has to continue. Business as usual with full speed towards the abyss. These developments make me rather nervous (a huge understatement) and I’m quite sceptic when I look into the future. But here comes one of the most important learnings of our journey into the picture: Even when the future looks rather grim, we still know that a different life is possible. And we HAVE lived that life for some years. That gives hope. As does the awakening of Podemos in Spain or Tsipras in Greece. Maybe all is not lost yet.

Well now I’ve disgressed completely into the political arena. But well. Politics is important and the developements right now will have a huge impact on all our future. So. What have Gui and me done during these last months ? Gui was busy with her clothes label Coquito and travelled to Argentina in January to create the new collection. On the side she works three to four days a week in a little french restaurant here in Berlin. I started to work with my old company again. Back at the computer instead of painting the deck or working on the engine. It’s not exactly better work but it pays better and that is quite important for us right now. But still it’s not what I would want to do forever. That’s why I’m currently trying to establish a new company together with a friend. We’re still quite at the beginning but it will have to do with conserving and monitoring energy, focussing on small businesses now but going towards private households in the end. This is really fun and involves a bunch of skills that I really like to work with. Mostly electronics, electricity, programming embedded and web and also installing the equipment on site which gets me away from the computer at least one day a week. But the best is that doing this work, we’ll improve the human impact on our planet just a little and that’s great.

That all means that we both ususally work six days a week while our kids are in a full-time school. We meet only shortly in the evening then everybody is really tired. During the weekends we usually work one day each so there is no time to do anything together as a family. We were prepared that re-entering the ‘normal’ life wouldn’t be easy but we really didn’t expect it to be that hard. But still: spring is in it’s starting blocks and slowly one thing fits to the next and the outlook get’s better and better.

Many friends also asked me whether I would be writing a book of our journey ? Yes. I want to. Definately ! It’s just – right now I have no time to do that. And with two jobs and a lot of chaos around us it’s quite difficult to organize my thoughts and put them on paper (or rather on hard disk). But I have tons of content, a lot of good ideas and slowly the story is developing in my head – despite all the crazyness around me. So don’t give up yet and bear with me. It’ll be worth it. Promised !

But the best thing right now is that in two weeks we’ll be sailing ! YES !! It’s not gonna be the tropics but a little trip in Flensburg with friends will really be good for us. And actually – speaking of the tropics: I will be back soon. In three weeks I’ll have to fly to Australia visit the Suvarov. We’ll have to move her to a cheaper marina and also there might be two potential new owners having a look or a testsail. So please keep your fingers crossed that we’ll sell the Suvarov. That would definately cheer me up !

So here we are. Back in Berlin, the city we left with the Rancho Relaxo of the Seas just a little over three years ago. We relocated six (!) times during these last weeks, moving from appartment to appartment and back and forth in between Austria and Germany. And to intensify that experience, Gui flew to Colombia to have her very first Fashion Show with Coquito, then visited Paris to have a look at the children’s clothes fair ‘Playtime‘ where hopefully Coquito will be present next year.

In the meantime I was working overtime to get back into ‘the machine’, getting registered as a citizen, getting insurance, enlisting and visiting the school of our children, organizing the transport of our few belongings that we left with my parents in Austria, meeting friends, finding a job, getting essential furniture and finding out why our stuff from the boat still didn’t arrive in Germany and and…. Believe me: the life in the south seas was a lot more relaxing.

But compared to my last visit of Berlin where I was quite shocked by the ‘western civilisation’ – coming just from French Polynesia, this time it’s different. It probably is mostly owed to the fact that we all were very looking forward to being in Europe again, having access, money, a smart phone, running water, a fridge and shops that are around the corner instead of a one hour dinghy ride away. Despite all the stress, we all enjoy ourselves, are quite relaxed and happy with the city life.

Still, when I hear the wind shake the leaves I immediately search the sky for signs of bad weather, we don’t really know what to do with all the space in our appartment and all my clothes still fit into a cabinet too small to even qualify as a bedside locker. We enjoy seeing so many old friends and connecting with new people. The kids started school last week and although it’s a little tough for Bruno starting school in 3rd grade and in english, he does very well. Viola’s classes will officially start on monday and she cannot wait to finally go to a ‘real’ school. Heh.

So on monday we’ll all leave home early in the morning… dropping the kids off at school and then I’ll be starting work in the office again. Funnily enough I also got a VERY interesting offer to deliver a yacht from Turkey to France. But I had to decline since all the other stuff going on didn’t make it seem clever to leave my family with all the chaos. But – hey – maybe again in spring ? Offers welcome !

Eigentlich wollte ich mir ein Posting zum Thema Proviant sparen, da ihr die Bilder bereits kennt: Ein Kleinwagen voller Lebensmittel wird quer ueber den Strand und ins Dinghy geschleppt, zum Schiff gepaddelt und verschwindet dann langsam aber sicher wieder in den schier endlosen Staufaechern der Suvarov. Der Grund fuer das heutige Posting ist eigentlich der neue Rekord. Ablauf-Rekord ! Und zwar haben wir ein Arnika Massageoel gefunden, dass im September 2003 abgelaufen ist. – Der letzte Rest wurde vor zwei Tagen in eine massiv heilende und wohltuenede Ruecken-Massage fuer’n Captain investiert. Das ist die Silber-Medaille. Gold geht an eine paar Knick-Lichter, die im Juni 1998 (!!) abgelaufen waren. Diese wurden in der Leuchtkraft sogar vom Plankton der Lagune uebertroffen. Aber vorwerfen kann man ihnen das nicht… -  im letzten Jahrtausend abgelaufen. Haha.

Ach ja und dann gibt’s da noch zwei Fotos aus dem wunderschoene Stoffladen, den Gui um ca. 80kg leichter gemacht hat. Diese Farben – einfach unglaublich. Und zu sehen wird’s die Stoffe dann wieder in zwei Jahren geben, in der Coquito Fruehling/Sommerkollektion 2015 !

During the ‘breaks’ I stiched up the Genoa, put UV protection spray on all our sunroof, tried to repair the handle of the stove twice (but proke off again), glued the floor of our Kayak three times (always to find yet another hole), installed the missing vents for the aft cabin, replaced completely corroded rivets that attach the boom to the mast, installed a new navigation light on the top of the mast, tested the shortwave antenna, etc etc.

Gui is working non-stop for Coquito as these are our last days with internet connection and the new collection is about to hit the stores in Europe.  Phew ! After all this, the sailing to Vanuatu will feel like a holiday…

Monday is work day: Gui, me and the kids march towards Fare Ute, Gui continues to the customs where she will negotiate the ‘Papeetisation’: If a ship changes owners here in french Polynesia, 26% of the value of the vessel have to be paid as a tax. But the Rancho Relaxo couldn’t be sold and we will give her as a present. Thanks to the persuasion of Gui and a very helpful agent we can lower the Papeetisation to next to nothing. It would be totally in Moitessier’s sense: We were extremely lucky when we had our crash landing and thanks to the help of so many friends and our families we got a second chance. Now we help somebody else and give our old ship without anything in return.

In the meantime I walk in that order to: ACE hardware 1, ACE hardware 2, dive shop, tool shop, Nautisport, Yamaha dealer, Sing Tun Hing Marine. At noon we meet for lunch as most shops and offices are closed. Afterwards we again visit: ACE1, ACE2, Nautisport, Sing Tun Hing, steel shop, AS Systems, Ocean 2000 und fully packed we get back to the ship. That’s really something. Marching the whole day in tropical heat with two children through the town without the little ones complaining even once ! At the ship we unload everything, put the new shortwave antenna on deck and only minutes later we’re on our way south towards the Taina Marina.

Tuesday, early in the morning I bring Gui ashore where she continues her oddysee: Papeete again to deliver papers to the agent, later to pick up my new sunglasses then all the way down to Taravao in the south of Tahiti where she orders new mast steps for the Suvarov, then to pick up seeds and two seedlings of the ‘Magic Tree’. In the mean time Christoph the new owner of the Rancho arrives and we show him the Rancho and start working. We have to repair the bilge pumps, replace the leaking stuffing box, check the fuel, start the engine, repair the steering and the kerosene stove and bend the sprayhood back to it’s original shape. We install a spare anchor at the bow and clear the deck, etc. At 18h the Rancho is ready and we’re all wrecked. We meet ashore to have a shower and a beer and call it a day.

Wednesday morning, Gui again travels to Papeete to finally pick up the fabrics for Coquito, while I get the Suvarov ready to leave and Christoph removes ten months worth of mussels and green stuff from the hull of the Rancho. At ten in the morning Gui arrives and we meet at the gas station where we get 120 liters of Diesel, Christoph brings the bottom part of Rancho’s old Mast on bord and we store about 50kg of fabrics. We set back out into the mooring field where we go alongside the Rancho and fill her tank with 20l Diesel and put the kayak on bord so Christoph has something that floats – just in case. At noon we’re ready and travel through the lagoon towards Papeete, followed by the Rancho. Christoph is at the steering and smiles like a child at christmas as we exit through the pass and find ourselves out on the Pacific again. For once the weather report was correct and indeed we have no wind and nearly no swell. We run under engine with five knots towards Moorea, the Rancho always 100m behind us. As we start dreaming of Tonga and Fiji and can’t think how it could get any better, a huge whale jumps out of the water just 200m in front of us ! Seconds later a younger whale follows and splashes back into the sea. We stand at the bow, shout ‘Uuuuh !!’ and ‘Aaaah !’, while we slowly pass the whales. What a crazy day ! Soon later two other whales follow us a bit towards the Cook’s Bay. At 16h we enter the Opunohu Bay and find ourselves surprised how much we think of this anchorage as our ‘home’ now. We throw the anchor while the Rancho is tied to the mooring that was prepard for her right in front of Christoph’s house.

The next months he will slowly restore the Rancho to her old beauty. And as both he and his wife are sailors the chances are quite good that soon the Rancho Relaxo of the Seas will set out for another amazing journey. Oh, wow. We’re sooo happy !!

That all happens while we’re doing eight knots going downwind towards the north-east corner of Moorea. Luckily we had our little test run a few days earlier, so nothing comes loose on the deck and also on the inside of the boat everything stays in it’s place. It even is dry inside as the deck vents don’t leak water anymore. But two breakers about half way through our journey bury the whole aft deck and cockpit in white water and a few liters find their way in through a broken seal in the back entrance. It was planned as a fast voyage with 25 knots downwind sailing and instead we get a ride in a storm: For the two hours that we are in between the islands, the wind establishes itself at 45 to 55 knots with gusts reaching over 65 knots. That’s where the beaufort scale ends – at force 12 !

Just after the NE-corner of Moorea we get some more choppy sea after which the waves quickly die down in the lee of the island. The wind also eases to 30-35 knots and we put a little more sail out. We continue sailing along the reef in close distance and finally tack through the pass into the Opunohu bay. The anchorage we enter under sails and Bruno receives cheers from the neighboring boats while he helps me anchoring the boat.
That really was an exciting trip and another good test for the Suvarov and her crew. Especially as we were without our capitana this time. She’s already landed in New Zealand and will continue her travel to Buenos Aires in a few days. – Odysee, LosLocos style. Now I’m gonna pack the wet mattress into the sun and relax for a while

This time we stayed at the pontoon in the city. Next morning at 06h Gui was already underway to get her carte de sejours – to extend her allowed time in the country. On the way back through the city we bought about 50 kilos of fabrics for Coquito and had to wrestle everything back to the ship. Right after we get everything on board, we leave towards the Marina Taina. It’s a few miles south and is closer to the airport in Tahaa. But I’m a bit nervous about the anchorage there as the wind is supposed to shift to the south on the next day and that can lead to a Maramu: a strong wind from the south that get’s accelerated in between the islands. We’ve seen it before and know that we could not get ashore in our dinghy in those conditions which means we might have to plan for a water taxi.

When sailing towards the marina we are amazed by the number of boats here. The main season really has arrived. No free mooring balls and plenty of yachts in the limited space there is to put an anchor. But we boldly throw the iron right in front of the dinghy dock into the 16m deep water of the lagoon. While Gui fights to fit 60kg of luggage into two bags a 23kg and her hand luggage, I take the kids to Carrefour where we get some good food for the coming days. While there I run into Lily from the SY Portal who contacted me earlier to talk about selling the windvane of the Rancho Relaxo. We agree to postpone the negotiations to dinnertime in the pizzeria. At sunset we’re in the restaurant and enjoy our last minutes together – and we also sell Wendy our windvane.
On wednesday at 04:50h in the morning the buzzing  of the alarm clock throws us out of bed and I take Gui and her luggage to the dinghy dock where the cab is already waiting. Later at about eight in the morning we see how the windvane is dismounted and transported to the SY Portal. That’s when we also see the dark clouds approach from the south. We quickly say good bye to our friends, get the dinghy up and leave before the Maramu hits…

The party started right in the morning with the setting up of the slack line, some weird rope game, putting baloons in the trees and while the kids were preparing these things, the skip sneaked out and buried a treasure deep under a coconut palm.

The gang had a lot of fun, searching the park for the hidden hints towards the treasure while the grown ups tried their balance on the slack line. But there was one thing that stole away the attention from the celebration: The puppies !

Somebody left seven little puppies under a tree in the park and they all found food and love with the kids that cuddled and carried them. When we left on monday all but two of the little dogs already had found a new home.

Next day we had to leave towards Tahiti. As usual, there’s not much wind and we were running under engine. Back in Tahiti, we dismounted and sold the windgenerator, the VHF and the fridge. Finally things get moving…

Oh ! And I nearly forgot to mention: I’m gonna fly to Europe !!!! Yessss !!! The Ackerman Foundation sponsored the flight to get Gui’s label Coquito started. So I’ll be in Berlin and Austria the first three weeks of may, starting a business and getting parts for the Suvarov. And of course visiting all my friends and my family – oh, I’m so happy. It’s been two years. I really am excited about that trip. Yay !!

Oh – and yes. We’re all happy together again. The first day after the LosLocos returned, we sailed back to Moorea again. And here we’re right now enjoying the beach, the palms and the beautiful water while being happy to be together again. Soon I’m gonna post some more pics and stories. – Yes, many things happened already….

The small, red ketch from Switzerland stops right between the Suvarov and the Domani. The anchor finally took hold after a 100m downwind ride. Luckily there is enough room in between the boats to stay like this until the wind eases. After the situation calms down a bit, I place myself at the desk again to edit CSS und Smarty templates.

What changed our mind in the end is that we would have no problem at all to accept hands-on help to work on the boat. But as we’re stuck here in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, this is not an option. So why would we refuse donations ?
We have created that little Paypal donate button on the side and right there you will also be able to find the details for our german bank account. The decision to write this really wasn’t easy. We are thankful for every cent that will help us to move on ! Thank you all for your support (monetary or otherwise) !

Since there is not much to do here in Golfito, exept for buying parts for the boat… well, we stayed inside quite almost the whole time. Every evening we had a little chat on the bench in the terrasse, wondering what do people actually do in this lost corner of the world, at the border between Costa Rica and Panama, with heavy humidity and heat the whole day and the whole night. But the good thing is, we worked a lot on my label Coquito the time we where together… we discussed new ideas for the coming collections and skyped a lot with Annette, our college in Berlin.

And of course, Bruno and Viola where extremely happy to have her near and spend 24h/24h with their “memé”. That made also the farewell a little sad, and they cryed a lot, saying they wanted to go back to Argentina with her – their plan was that we would come and pick up them a couple of days later-  :) So, mum, it was great to have you here, even you didn’t put a foot on the Rancho Relaxo this time !

Well, we had the most wonderful time in Argentina. Nice meat, saucages, cheese from the Barrilla, many hours in the pool, lots of nature and silence. Beautiful nights with a sky full of starts. During the day Campari Soda, building an Arcade Joystick for Gioco, Building little ships out of bamboo, etc.

Now that I’m back in Berlin and alone (until now), I’ll fokus on getting back into the Amateur Radio materials, reading some more books and updating this website. Some pics – the rest will be in the Gallery soon:

Und wer haette das gedacht – noch am selben Abend gibt’s die erste Anfrage eines Ladens, der gerne Coquito Sachen verkaufen moechte. Yay-woo !!

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