April 16, 2012

Dear Tehja and Taylor,

Today, we had another exciting Sweet 16 Day. We joined up with four friends, caught the bus to the mall, and enjoyed a delicious lunch. We have made it a tradition that on Sweet 16 days, we try to get out for a steak dinner.

While we were eating, we noticed that the mall windows were shaking a little. The last time we were in the mall, we had to evacuate because of earthquake tremors. Well, today there was another small earthquake but we didn’t have to evacuate. Good thing – we didn’t want to leave our steaks unfinished!

After eating our big meals, we went shopping … for more food! There was a large bakery nearby with yummy-looking stuff, and we couldn’t resist. Then, because we had some time before catching the bus back to Nai Yang Beach, we did a bit more shopping.

The ride was comfortable in an air-conditioned bus, but after we got off the bus, we had a bit of a walk to get back to the beach. So we made a detour and stopped to get fruit shakes at a beach-side restaurant. They were cool and yummy. We were tired when we got back to the boat, so enjoyed a quiet game of chess and the beautiful sunset. And we thought of you.

All our love,

Grandma and Grandpa Sailor

A toast to the Grandkids.

Grandma cutting into the tenderloin.

Another toast to the Grandkids.

Grandpa buying baked goods.

How could we resist?

Feeling happy after our delicious meal:
Peter and Lyn of "Mandella II",
Steve and Julie of "Aqua Dreams",
and Grandpa

It was a very hot day, but a few clouds
provided some protection from the sun
while we waited for the bus.



There is a saying "You should stop and smell the roses".
Grandpa did stop to smell this flowering bush.



Comparing purchases at the bus stop.

The bus was on time ... always is!

It's a pretty walk back to the boats ... but hot.
(Julie is leading the way).

We even saw some deer on our walk.

There was a long list of shakes to choose from.
It felt great to relax and cool down.
(Peter, Lyn and Grandpa checking the menus).

Someday we'll enjoy a beautiful sunset like this with you at our side.
Hugs and kisses, GG Sailor xoxo

March 16, 2012

Hello Tehja and Taylor. Just five more days until spring – hooray for you guys. It doesn’t make much difference here because the weather is much the same all year round, and the amount of daylight we get is much the same all year round because we are close to the equator. No doubt you have noticed that these days, you are getting more and more daylight – more time to play outside!

On this Sweet 16 day, we played outside with our friends Jenn and Ralph from the yacht El Misti. They had just returned from a 3-1/2 month bicycle trip through Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand. They cycled 7100 kilometres! Some nights they stayed in guest houses, but many nights they camped in their tent. We are pretty amazed at their accomplishment.

When we met up with them here in Nai Yang, we went for a swim in the sea and had a small picnic in the park. We invited them to stay on CanKata for the night, but they said they preferred to sleep in their tent. True campers.

We wonder if you cycled on March 16, and we wonder if you had a picnic. We wonder about you lots, not just on Sweet 16 days. And we love you ALWAYS.

We are still in Nai Yang
and we are still enjoying beautiful sunsets.

Nai Yang is close to the Phuket airport
and sometimes we get a good view of the jets landing.

Jenn, Jenn's bike, Grandma and Ralph
in Nai Yang park.

Jenn, the tent, Grandpa and Ralph.

We enjoyed watching some children playing on the
beach at the Nai Yang park.

The next day, we took the bus to Phuket town,
then when we got back to Nai Yang we had
milkshakes at the Dewa (where our apartment is).
Someday we'll do that with you!

February 16, 2012

This was a busy day! Grandma and Grandpa sailed for five hours on CanKata. Well, actually we used one of the motors because the winds were very calm and the sail just flapped around, not knowing quite what to do.

We are on our way back to Phuket from the northern end of Thailand, where we spent a couple of weeks getting to know the area. It is very pretty and peaceful there, but the water is nicer at Nai Yang, where we usually hang out.

We ended our sail at Ban Thap Lamu, where there is a Navy base and LOTS of fishing boats. We had a yummy lunch at the Navy Club Restaurant with our friends Julie and Steve from the yacht Aqua Dreams. Then we walked through the village – everyone was friendly and said hello – stopping at a hardware store for a fish hook, an ice cream stand for Magnum bars, the boat yard, and then the 7-Eleven for a few supplies.

We spent the rest of the day resting on CanKata, watching a movie and eating popcorn, and thinking about our sweet grandchildren.

The ring shows the area that we sailed today,
from Khao Lak to Thap Lamu.

On this cut-out, Thap Lamu is at the top, and Phuket is
at the bottom See the airplane in the red box?
We hang out near there.

These are our friends Steve and Julie from Aqua Dreams.

A fishing boat in the Ban Thap Lamu area.

"In the Navy ..."

Grandma and Grandpa in the boat yard.
Julie took this photo with her phone.

Movie time in the cockpit - with popcorn!
Loads of love, Grandma and Grandpa Sailor xx

January 16, 2012

This day started out the way we like Sweet 16 days to start: there was a rain blob in the northern sky. It wasn’t shaped like a rainbow, but it had the colours of a rainbow. It was definitely blob-shaped, with one jagged side. Oops – we forgot to get a picture, so here are photos of a drawing of the blob by Grandma (she could use some drawing lessons from her grandkids!) and a blob made by her prism in CanKata’s galley.

Yes, drawing lessons definitely needed.

Funny thing - the colors go the opposite way of the rain blob.

 

It's very pretty when the prism catches the sun.

Grandpa did a good deed on this day. There was a swamped fishing boat on shore, and he helped rescue it. Lots of people came to help, so it was nice to see that there are so many good people around.

Big waves kept dumping water into the fishing boat.

Moving the fishing boat's motor to safety.

January 16 was also the day of a big “dinghy drift” (where we tie our little boats together and drift around in the anchorage). We had ten boats for this drift, and we had lots of good snacks to share and lots of visiting, but we also had a bumpy drift. The sea had a bit of surf so it wasn’t as calm as we would have liked. But if you would have been here, we probably would have gone body surfing instead! (Remember body surfing in Costa Rica?)



Grandpa driving us to the dinghy drift.

 

Some of our friends at the dinghy drift.

January 16 was the day that Shaylynn and Louis arrived in Thailand! They got here late – nearly midnight – so we let them sleep in and then we met up with them the next day for lunch and a tour around Nai Yang. It is so great to have our niece and her husband visiting us!

Lovely trees, lovlier people.

And guess who turned 60 today … Auntie Marleen. Happy Birthday, Marleen!

Marleen & Larry

Until next time,

bye-bye from

Grandma and Grandpa Sailor

Taylor is Seven!

Poem by Grandpa:

Today you leave another year

So now you are no longer six.

Will you wear your karate gear

And practice doing kicks?

If you do, please watch your rear

Because it’s hard to fix.

In any case we want to send

This Happy Birthday Cheer.

Love ya, Taylor!!

Poem by Grandma:

It will be absolute heaven

When our grandson who’s seven

Comes to visit us on our yacht.

We won’t be zip-lining

Or be mountain climbing.

But will we have fun? – Yes! A lot!

Happy Happy 7^th Birthday, Great Tate!

November 16, 2011

How sweet! Grandma and Grandpa were with Tehja and Taylor on this Sweet 16 Day.

In one way is was a HAPPY day, but in another way, it was a SAD day.

We were happy because we were with our grandchildren.

But we were sad because we had to say GOODBYE to our grandchildren.  We spent seven wonderful days together at Club Coco in Costa Rica, but then everyone had to go back home.

We had so much fun with you!! We loved it when you knocked at our door in the morning and asked, “Can we hang with you?” We loved helping you with your homework, swimming in the pool, walking along the beach, zip-lining, going out for lunch, getting hugs, and just “hanging” with you.

Here are a few reminders of the fun we had:

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“There’s a flea on the hair on the wart on the frog on the bump on the log in the hole in the bottom of the sea”.

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“The ants came marching …

One by one, the little one stopped to suck his ??

Two by two, the little one stopped to tie her ??

Three by three, the little one stopped to climb a ??

Four by four, the little one stopped to shut the ??

Five by five, the little one stopped to dance a ??

Six by six, the little one stopped to pick up ??

Seven by seven, the little one stopped to look up at ??

Eight by eight, the little one stopped to shut the ??

Nine by nine, the little one stopped to step out of ??

Ten by ten, the little one said “Let’s do it again!"

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For the card trick, if these are the cards left, what three cards are missing?

7 … 4 … Jack … King

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Don't plug your nose!

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And now we have some news for you: We are not selling CanKata after all! So we hope you come to Thailand someday for a great adventure and to practice up on everything you learned in Costa Rica.

Bye for now, wee ones, and we hope you had lots of fun telling your friends all about your trip.

All our love,

Grandma and Grandpa Sailor

Walking a beach in Costa Rica

Grandpa's sand castle/resort

One of our regular walks around Playa del Coco

Grandpa waiting for us in the golf cart

Making your mark on the beach

Playing in the sea

Taylor zip-lining

Tehja zip-lining

October 16, 2011

What a day! Besides being a Sweet 16 Day, it is also the day that Aunty Marleen and Uncle Larry have been married for forty years! Wow – that’s a lot of years.

It’s a Sunday, so we know that you two didn’t have to go to school, and we are wondering what you did instead.

Here’s what we did: we sailed CanKata from Ao Po Marina to Ao Chalong.  “Ao” is Thai for “bay”.  If you say “ow” it sounds just about the same.  We had left CanKata in the marina while we visited Northern Thailand, and then we stayed a while longer while we moved some of our stuff into storage.  We’re trying to get CanKata as empty as possible while we get her ready to sell.

Sunset at Ao Po Marina on our last night there.

Grandpa at the helm on the way to Ao Chalong.

Grandma on watch on the way to Ao Chalong.

Ao Chalong is a big bay, a safe anchorage, is close to good shopping and restaurants and massages, and it’s free! So that’s why we went there.

The trip took us about five hours and it was wonderful – calm and sunny. Both Grandma and Grandpa took turns at the helm (driving the boat) and we enjoyed some snacks on the way. Too bad we didn’t get to a restaurant, so we’ll have to have our Sweet 16 Beef another day.

Grandpa tidying up the boat after arriving in Ao Chalong.

All done tidying

And now we’re getting ready to head to a marina in Langkawi. That’s where we catch our plane to fly to Costa Rica to see … guess who?!

And finally, here are a couple more SpongeBob jokes:

Squidward: What’s the best day for a Krabby Patty?

SpongeBob: Fry day!

How is SpongeBob’s favourite squirrel like the beach?

Both are Sandy.

Bye for now. All our love, Grandma and Grandpa Sailor.