After a 24 hour trip from the UK It was a great relief to arrive on the 25th June at Savu Savu, port of entry and base for the Blue Water Rally for the first half of our Fiji stopover. It’s also great to be back for our 7th Rally visit in 12 years.

Savu Savu lies on Vanua Levu, the easterly of the 2 main Fiji Islands, about 3 to 4 days sailing from Tonga and was originally a small port for coasters exporting copra. Our base is at the Copra Shed Marina, its building being the original copra shed, now housing the marina office, the Savu Savu Yacht Club and its bar and some other great facilities like an internet cafe, a superb restaurant, a cafe (great for breakfasts!) a souvenir shop, 2 air travel agents, a tour office and even a real estate agent for Ralliers who want their own piece of paradise! I’m staying in another facility - a comfortable en-suite room upstairs and not too far (about 20 feet!) from the bar.

Some of our yachts are even nearer as they are stern-to the copra shed - Marianne, PelleV, Heidenskip, Neva, Spectra and Moonshadow crews only having to step off and walk about 10 metres to either the Club bar or the restaurant. There is a noise penalty, however, though I’ve yet to hear any complaints!

Smooth arrivals and moorings for all.

One of the many benefits of the Blue Water Rally is the planning and organisation that goes into each stopover. Savu Savu Yacht Club have been friends of ours for many years and on arrival each yacht had been pre-allocated a mooring in the creek within easy reach of the Copra Shed. The moorings had been guaranteed to us from 26th June and everything fell into place at 0700 that morning as the first of 16 yachts called up to ask for mooring instructions. Our friends of the Island Cruising Association, a NZ based Rally had, true to their agreement, vacated the moorings the previous day and steadily cleared moorings for us on the day of our arrival. Our sincere thanks to them for being so helpful.

A busy day it was for everyone - no more so than for the home team of Dolly, the Copra Shed Marina manageress and the marina boatman, Pio, who worked tirelessly throughout a very hot day leading our yachts in to their moorings. Throughout, Dolly coordinated the visits of the Health, Quarantine, Customs and Immigration officials to each yacht. Sometimes Pio did the transfers, but our own skippers did a great job ferrying the officials around. Suffice it to say with this level of mutual assistance (a keynote of BWR 2007) the whole operation was virtually complete by mid-afternoon and crews ashore, fully checked-in and into the club bar.

A note here about the fabled Fiji bureaucracy. When I came here 12 years ago the officials had to come in for a week’s attachment and only go home at weekends and not surprisingly, perhaps, there was a certain lack of enthusiasm when we arrived. With its port of entry status the officials are now based here and we do not deal anywhere in the world with a group of more courteous and smiling group of officers than here. In fact, this gives me the opportunity to mention the people of Fiji and Savu Savu in particular. Everyone greets us wherever we are with a huge smile and ‘Bula’ - the Fiji word for welcome. ( The only likely exception being on the pitch this afternoon when the Fijians meet Australia for a rugby international!) What a great place to come has been a repeated comment to me by our Ralliers.

A great events schedule arranged for the Rally - BULA!

Well, what has being going on? For several weeks, if not months, our hosts at the Yacht Club have been preparing an amazing 8-day programme of events based at the Copra Shed and in Savu Savu. We are now on day 3 and outside my window this Sunday morning the Club staff and volunteers are preparing a lovo and pot luck lunch for us. A lovo is a meal cooked in a traditional earth oven and as I write I’ve just watched a huge fish and several chickens being wrapped in banana leaves ready to be cooked on hot stones in the pit on the club lawn. (Not what happens at your average yacht club!)

Our hosts welcomed us on Friday by introducing us to the best known custom in Fiji - the kava ceremony. Five specially selected skippers - Hugh Evans (Stargazer), Ian Addis (Paramour), Peter Skov (Lousill), Lee Mandemaker (Glendora) and Robert Prisen (Heidenskip) represented the Rally for what was our official introduction toFiji through this ancient custom. A senior village chief conducted the ritual which was followed by a welcoming dances and singing b y local ladies and young warriors. A cocktail party followed, given in our honour by the Club. An evening which started early and went on into the early hours.

Luckily our second day on the programme started late although by then most Ralliers
had been out in this small town which starts just outside the main entrance of the Copra Shed. There are many small shops, a good vegetable market, banks and several eating spots serving local spicy Fijian as well as Indian and Chinese food. Several of our crews have welcomed families and friends who have come from Europe and the USA to share in the special experience that is cruising in Fiji.

Charity starts at home - support for young sailors

Our most important theme of our programme here has always been the Blue Water Rally support for young sailors. The Club has for many years developed a programme for young sailors and many have claimed not only national honours, but represented Fiji internationally and at the Olympics. Any surplus from our fees here goes to support these, but young people, but the Rally skippers race in Optimists attracted the direct support of our crews with bets being taken on the ‘runners and riders’ by our very own trackside bookie, Dorothy Willmott of Neva.

The racing was keenly contested despite a few of the skippers suffering a weight and measurement penalty! Luckily there was enough breeze for most (!) to complete the course and there was a sail-off final between the top 3 finishers from the first 2 rounds. Clear winner of the sailing was Per Save of Pelle, but we hope that the $1163 raised by our supporters will create many more winners from Savu Savu’s young sailors.

The day was rounded off with the Club’s annual prizegiving - a real ‘family’ occasion, but one where the Rally was made to feel completely at home. Mayor Peni, and Geoff Taylor, the ever-enthusiastic youth coach made speeches and our donation was made to the Club’s young sailors by Dorothy.For my part I was pleased to be able to donate a memento to mark some 12 years association between ourselves and the Club. But the real stars of the evening were the Club’s youth who not only received their prizes , but entertained us with a display of Fijian dances.

Well here we are today with plenty going on. We have had the lovo lunch, watched the match (I’m not allowed to comment on Southern Hemisphere rugby, but it was fun sitting with the locals!). This evening there’s a ‘jam session’ with the great musical group that’s been entertaining us every night at the Copra Shed and I hope our own Rally musicians will be joining in . Lots to look forward to in the coming days with local tours starting tomorrow. Let’s hope we can keep up the pace!

PS
Gaia arrived late today and when the crew asked about Savu Savu over the VHF the reply was ‘it’s a really great place’. Everyone else in the fleet agrees,too!!