Pago Pago

Pronounced as "pango-pango". All the other languages around here have a character in the alphabet "ng" pronounced like in sing, but these folks just add the "n" mentally, without writing it.


The view from the boat of the beautiful fish cannery and the small boat docks where we land the dinghy. If only you could smell it like we do!!! You can't see the garbage in the water either. Every styrofoam cup on the island washes down the streets and into the anchorage during the daily rains.

Today I cleaned the sludge from the port fuel tank again. Donnie helped me do it once before, in Mexico. It seems to have gotten a little water in it, maybe while we were redoing the deck in Hawaii. A little water and it grows algae, which immediately poop lots and die. This all floats to the bottom. First bumpy wave stirs it up and poof! Clogged fuel filters. I got about 1/2 gallon of crud and a quart of water out. Now the whole boat stinks of diesel (to mask the cannery, I guess) because it is a sloppy job, in the floor in front of the kitchen sink.

Then I went in search of a memory chip to use to update the firmware in the radar/chart plotter. I have ordered a Navionics chart chip that has detailed charts of all the South Pacific, Hawaii and Japan to plug into the radar and display with the radar reflected signals. It will be a good backup to the computer navigation charts we've been using.

The first package (of many, it seams) arrived today. The replacement battery and charger for the laptop. Now maybe it will quit loosing time, and even allow us to use it outside the boat some. For the last 2 months, it would not hold a charge more than 10 minutes, so it had to be plugged in all time it was on. Now we are just waiting on the books, chart chip, boat supply order, CDs from Guy, powdered eggs and green chili's, paper mail, etc.

It is nice to be at a place that US mail actually arrives in a reasonable time!

We have met a few boats heading north too. But most seem to be going to Fiji, Tonga and/or New Zealand.