Newlands

Strange to see a boat drifting past the yard which had sunk the night before, it was drifting in the tide and dangerous to other vessels as there was no one onboard, all the crew had been rescued. The yard lauched a large barge to pull it into the yard and finally sits for repair. Interesting process to watch.... read more

Brent's new mooring at Telaga Harbour Marina, Langkawi. Having secured a place inside the marina, Brent set about securing the mooring with extra anchors as it had dragged before crashing a boat into the rocks! It's quite of process of first lifting the mooring to reposition it back out, before adding more anchors to make it secure. With the help of a diver who positioned the anchors and made sure they were securely set, this allowed him to bring not only one, but his two boats side by side within the marina. With the weather out in the anchorage turning, it was perfect timing to keep the vessels secure.... read more

So... after being on yachts for the past 6 years, I decided I should get some basic qualifications. I was inspired by the Captain and Crew on MY Bravado when I crewed from Langkawi to Singapore, and I loved the experience. It makes me realise how much I have taken on looking after Aria on my own. I decided to book a Maritime and Coastguard Agency approved Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) course in Phuket Yacht Haven. One, for my own progress and to keep my options open for new opportunities and for my own safety on possible passages on Aria. We were thrown in initially with our Security awareness followed by an examination, it's starting to sink in what I'm letting myself in for! Security awareness is all about security plans, company and ... read more

I always love catching up with my friend Steve, that's 8 years now we've been meeting in random places and this time it's at the airport in Kuala Lumpur. He's just arrived from the US and I'm just down from Langkawi on route to Scotland. So we catch transport into Chinatown and have a bit of an explore round. I booked us into the Traveler's rest guest house for the night and we went out for dinner which was fabulous fish at the local Chinese hawkers which was delicious followed by a wander round the markets and a beer or two at the Reggae Bar . We didn't get out of Chinatown but I enjoyed the night anyway. Next day we left for the airport again with Steve heading off to Cambodia and me heading to ... read more

A Scottish friend on the island gave me a wee taste of home... Slanj... read more