We got the anchor down in the quarantine area in Port Vila right on sunrise and then had to wait for a few hours while everyone woke up. We called a few times on the VHF and sent some emails to see if anyone was awake, but didn’t get a response until 9am.
We had to take the boat to the fuel wharf to deal with the authorities because we don't have a dinghy, which I think actually made things easier, even if they didn’t want to admit it. It meant they could all come when they had time and didn’t have to get a dinghy out to the boat or synchronise their trip with other departments, which is a considerably more complicated operation.
The biggest blow of the day was that I didn’t get to go to the supermarket. Instead, I was busy filling in forms, going to the ATM to pay a bill, going back to the ATM to pay another one, getting a form from one office to take to another, and dealing with the fact that no one could understand why we only wanted fuel and water and were leaving immediately.
I also got the hull cleaned for biosecurity in Australia and got duty-free diesel. I wish I hadn’t bothered with the duty-free diesel, as it took so long.
There is also annoying bureaucracy involved in buying it. You have to write down the exact amount of fuel you want for duty-free before you buy it. There is absolutely no reason for this. The fuel hasn’t had the duty cleaned off it. It isn’t special duty-free fuel. It comes from exactly the same tank and exactly the same pump. But apparently you have to write down exactly how much you are going to buy before you are allowed to buy it.
There is nothing quite as frustrating as trying to explain that you want about 200 liters and being told, “But you have to write it down first.”
Luckily, the boys went off in a taxi to sort out some of the paperwork and pay some bills, and went shopping, or I think we would still be in Vila. In fact, the whole process seemed to be designed around making sure nobody actually left.
By 4pm we were all so fed up that we decided a night’s rest was in order. We put the boat on a mooring and left just before sunrise the following day.
 |
| Leaving Port Vila Behind |
The irony was that once we finally got away from Port Vila, everything became considerably simpler. There were no forms, no offices, no ATMs, no receipts and nobody asking us why we wanted to leave.
The wind for the first 24 hours has been from 10 to 25 knots, so we have been swinging between flapping sails and reefing. One minute you are wondering where the wind has gone and the next you are putting another reef in. It has kept everyone busy, but we have been making excellent miles, so I’m not complaining.
After the amount of time we spent trying to leave Vanuatu, there is something particularly satisfying about looking at the log and seeing the miles ticking away without having to fill in another form.