FROM THE LOG #92
Fernando de Noronha, Brazil
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Arriving in Fernando de Noronha |
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Our third Atlantic crossing is completed.
The trip from Ascension to Fernando de Noronha took 8 days and we had mostly favourable, but light winds and were able to sail most of the time. The following seas and swell combined with the slow speed made it a very rolly journey, quite uncomfortable at times. At night we had company from small black birds that refused to move away even when I tried top pull them of the rail by hand! One night I heard Malla screaming as half a dozen birds tried to get into the cockpit. Almost as from a sceen of Hitchcock's film. Every morning we found several dead flying fish on the deck.
Fernando de Noronha is an archipelago of 21 tropical islands and islets about 220 miles from the Brazilian mainland; a World Heritage Site and a protected marine park. It is probably our most expensive stop ever. We had to pay roughly 500 USD for the 3 nights we anchored here, out on the rolly roadstead, hanging to our own anchor, no services included. Everything was very complicated, my Visa card didn't work, the banks did not change money, practically nobody spoke English. We filled our fuel tanks using jerry jugs, making several trips with the dinghy, which was quite difficult in the rolly anchorage. After several years in countries with affordable prices, the cost of living at Fernando was a shocking experience - almost as expensive as French Polynesia. The people were extremely nice, however, and the nature extraordinary striking and we rented a beach buggy, which was fun, but also necessary for transporting the fuel jugs.
We finally convinced the guy at the fuel station to sell us a propane bottle (normally they only swap them), but as we couldn't find a regulator anywhere on the island, we first didn't buy the bottle. But then luck strike. At the restaurant seen in the photo below I found the first person on the island who spoke good English, one of the waitresses, and I told her about our problem. She said she probably could help me and would try to locate a used regulator. And she did! The next day I got the regulator, but when I tried to pay for it I was told it was a present! Absolutely amazing.
View of the harbour from the restaurant where we also found an internet connection (photo by Elaine) |
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