My alarm goes off, 0430 is a rough one. We are anchored in a glass calm very protected inlet between Hastings and Barnell Island in the Murgui Archipelago. I pick up the anchor at 0500 while the guest and crew sleep. With no wind and glass calm conditions this is easy to do single handed. As the anchor lifts off the bottom the yacht slowly drifts towards the open water with the ebbing tide.
The early morning horizon is brightly lit with the lumen of a 100 squid boats. Above them is a thick blanket of stars including the Southern Cross. This is the first time that I have seen this majestically symbolic combination of stars since leaving the Southern Hemisphere a few months ago. It brings back many memories of the past year, and with the new year two days away, sparks the self reflection and goal setting inward thought process.
I slowly idle past the long tail fishing boats anchored along the sides of the inlet respecting thier last hour of sleep. Soon they will be up and buzzing around with the days chores at sea. We are on the way to Kawthong, Myanmar Burma to clear out of the country and make our way back to Phuket Thailand for the New Years Eve celebration off of Surin Beach.
I slowly idle past the long tail fishing boats anchored along the sides of the inlet respecting thier last hour of sleep. Soon they will be up and buzzing around with the days chores at sea. We are on the way to Kawthong, Myanmar Burma to clear out of the country and make our way back to Phuket Thailand for the New Years Eve celebration off of Surin Beach.
I weave my way through the maze of squid boats as the carpet of stars overhead are slowly washed out by the first signs of daylight. I really love this time of day, it is very special to watch the night transition to day in a place like this. The rising sun over Burma highlights the rolling landscape, layers fog accentuate the horizon.
This is a country that is equally as beautiful and rich in resources as it is complex with corruption and gross human rights violations and oppression. You can learn more here: http://ethnicvoices.civiblog.org/
Cruising the Murgui Archipelago is really amazing. The Mergui Archipelago, is located in southernmost part of Myanmar (Burma), comprises over 800 beautiful islands. Due to its virtual isolation, the islands and surrounding seas are alive with an amazing diversity of flora & fauna and very beautiful underwater scenes and marine life. If I ever take a lap around the world in my own boat this is a place I would like to stay for several months.
The only human inhabitants in the area are sea gypsies, namely Salon in Myanmar. They live on boats during dry season and remain on land during rainy season. They still practice the same fishing and boat building techniques used for generation. http://www.mergui.org/
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