After breakfast and tidying up, Elaine completed her final edits on our latest video: “Magnolious Malaysia - High Tea at the E&O Hotel”, something we are so pleased we got the opportunity to do again before having to depart Malaysia under less than desirable circumstances.
With the time to reflect on the events that unfolded, it is staggering that even ongoing medical care for Elaine was an insufficient reason to obtain a visa extension and that sending an unvaccinated, immunocompromised individual out into the great unknown in the middle of a pandemic, was perfectly acceptable to the Malaysian authorities, never mind the disregard of the benefits that our foreign currency contributed to the economy during our stay, at a time when the economy of many countries are in free fall. In the time we were in Malaysia, we had an extensive amount of work completed on Paw Paw amounting to thousands of USD, in addition to the amount of money spent on medical expenses as a result of unforeseen circumstances, as well as preventative care, dental care, eye care, etc, all at fabulous medical facilities with wonderful staff, contributions which would have continued, since Elaine still had upcoming hospital appointments with three different specialists and plans were underway to have Paw Paw hauled and the antifouling work undertaken as well as to have the outstanding engine work completed, amounting to a few thousand more USDs.
Regardless, it’s fair to say, we enjoyed every minute of our time in Malaysia, we loved the people and everything the country had to offer cruisers; world class in every which way, but the sudden announcement that we had to leave and with such short notice, has left a very bitter taste in our mouths. Being in the middle of our circumnavigation, and en route to Thailand when the pandemic was declared and countries closed their borders, we were immensely grateful for the safe haven Malaysia offered at the time, but to have it so suddenly rescinded with no explanation and no options that could be pursued to permit us to stay, has left us utterly astounded and rather bewildered, especially since we’re now reading accounts of other individuals who have been far less fortunate than ourselves, all having to leave Malaysia at the worst possible cruising time of the year with regards to weather and finding themselves in great peril, all while foreign embassies sit on the sidelines and let their citizens we tossed out of a country, when many of those countries are providing a safe haven for Malaysian citizens who are stranded because of the pandemic, not to mention, the complete and utter silence about this fiasco in the international press.
The irony, though, is that, like most other cruisers, we would gladly have paid for a visa to stay until it was safe to continue our sailing adventures, but, many months ago, when we suggested this to one of the sponsors, we were reprimanded, “as Malaysia will never just throw the cruisers out”; all a mute point now, of course, because, thankfully, Thailand opened their borders to us, for which we will be forever grateful and it was a huge relief to receive copies of all the clearance documentation this afternoon, indicating that we are “bonafide”, giving Roy a great excuse to crack open his bottle of Laphroaig Four Oaks whiskey!
It was also interesting to see a flotilla of Dream Yacht Charter yachts arrive in the quarantine anchorage this evening from Langkawi. It’s rumoured the company has decided to move their business out of Malaysia, given the developments.
However, floating just off the island of Phuket, our minds have also wandered to the events of the 2004 tsunami and the devastation it caused. We remember exactly where we were when we woke to the news on that Boxing Day; at our log cabin in the White Mountains of Arizona, enjoying Christmas with Justine and Paul, who had arrived from the UK a few days earlier. We understand from some research that the first location where the tsunami was noticed, was on the Similan Islands, when strong currents were reported by divers underwater who felt as if they were in a washing machine.
Although the west coast of Phuket Island was badly hit with floods, killing 250 people, including tourists and causing damage to almost all the major beaches such as Patong, Karon, Kamala, and Kata beach, places we’re definitely looking forward to visiting later in the year when the northeast monsoon returns, it was the smaller, but increasingly popular resort area of Khao Lak, some 80 Km north of Phuket, which was hit far worse, with 3,950 confirmed deaths, including Bhumi Jensen, grandson of Thailand's King, Bhumibol Adulyadej.
Since there was no warning of the first wave, although these days, like most countries, Thailand is better equipped with warning systems, people had no idea it was coming and, due to the topography of the seabed, coastline and reefs offshore, the tsunami waves piled on top of themselves, thus creating the infamous “disappearing sea effect”, also known as the “tsunami drawback” which, in itself, enticed many tourists to their death.
On the island of Phi Phi hundreds of holiday tourists were washed out to sea, although apparently “tuk-tuk” drivers were quick to offer assistance, driving victims to hospitals, higher ground and away from the surging waters.
As with every natural disaster, there is also a miracle that occurs; on one of the beaches, a man was leading an elephant to entertain tourists, when the tsunami hit. Because the elephant's natural instinct was to flee the sea, it saved the life of a young girl who was on its back. Talk about being in the right place, at the right time!
Roy’s task for the day was to revive our chain counter for the windlass which had decided to stop working just before we left Straits Quay marina, forcing us to install our spare which doesn’t have a chain counter. Although our chain is marked, having a chain counter is just far more convenient. He also took the time to install our new wifi antenna after the previous one simply rusted away; gotta love these so called stainless steel yacht items we pay good money for!
Since Roy cooked breakfast, Elaine offered to cook dinner, a rare occurrence indeed, but, to be honest, it helped pass the time and it was something she could actually prepare; cottage pie!
Another beautiful sunset, followed by our first rain shower in days topped off our day.
