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Back on Skyelark
My last day in Chiang Mai was spent doing some shopping, the laundry having lost all my dark clothes including my favorite Skyelark tee shirt. I stopped at a small bar and had some grilled chicken skewers and a couple beers. I enjoyed a cigar on the sidewalk seating watching the multitude of buses and scooters go by; I always get a kick out of watching a bus crammed with monks travel down the road.
Back at the hotel I posted my trip reports as I’m not sure I will be able to while we’re sailing. My flight to Phuket was originally scheduled for 11:30am but had been moved to 6:20 am so it was straight to bed rather than go for a nightcap.
Flight to Phuket went smoothly, I was the first of the guest to arrive, but the others followed within an hour or so. The yacht is berthed in the Yacht Haven Marina, which is home to the Dream Yacht Charters base; the old girl doesn’t look her best, she is in the process of having the teak deck replaced and the original one is about half removed, exposing the fiberglass deck below. We have all done multiple trips on board, so we cast off the lines and motored about an hour to our first anchorage without the requisite safety briefing which will be given tomorrow.
Our first stop was off a small island that is visited by the day tripper boats, including some wooden ones which are junk rigged. We dingied to the beach in two trips and made our way to the small bar located there. Beers were $3 and mixed drinks $8. The day trippers cleared out quickly and we soon had the beach all to ourselves. As we sat around we became acquainted with each other, it’s an older group on board this time either retired or approaching retirement age.



Enjoying a drink at the island bar



The beach is deserted after the day tripper boats leave

Back on board we had a dinner of chicken and gravy with mashed potatoes, a BBQ was planned but the high winds necessitated a change in that. We had some after dinner drinks, including a taste of Captain Bligh rum from St. Vincent. With my early rise to make my flight and the others having just arrived from the UK, either late last night or just this morning, it was early to bed for all. There was no need for the cabin fans tonight, the fresh breeze blowing through the open hatches made sleeping comfortable. There is something about sleeping on a yacht at anchor that I find really peaceful; the gentle rocking of the boat, the sound of the wind in the rigging just lulls me to sleep.



Our first sunset onboard

What an adventure!

Wow that is beautiful