Location: Phuket, Thailand
BA for Days. It was a BA day on Argo. We approached Phuket with the rising sun after a single night jaunt from Langkawi. There was excitement for boat lovers as Vertigo, the seventh largest and arguably the most beautiful sailing yacht in the world, was anchored near the entrance to the harbor. After we dropped anchor, we ate a quick breakfast and got started on a big clean, known affectionately as Boat Appreciation. There was a motivation to finish BA early because the promise of shore time was waiting at the finish line. While we got off to a fast start, Thai immigration threw us a curveball by requiring each shipmate to be present at the immigration office onshore. We quickly dropped everything and donned pants to assert our boat’s steadfast adherence to cultural correctness. Once we returned to the boat, we removed our pants and returned to the Boat’s needs. We had the pleasure of cleaning my personal favorite place on the boat, the lazarette. While most think of it as a storage space in the hull, I think of it as Argo’s own steam sauna. When the sun reached its scorching peak, pine sol and the freshwater hose made it so nice down there that you could hardly find space because so many people came down for a nice sweat and a bit of relaxation. After lunch, a group went to provision at a local grocery while the rest of the crew went to enjoy Phuket. Most of the shore goers spent time in cafes catching up on life back home. James, once again, proved that Canada is a superior nation and took the chance to visit the massive Buddha sculpture on top of a hill overlooking Phuket. The most important events of the day, the celebrations of birth for the young Kyle Hay and Annie Sisson, were dependent on the provisioner’s return from their quest for all things tasty. The massive scale of the provision, because of the impending Turkey Day, meant that the missionaries of Munch didn’t return until well past my bedtime. Fortunately, late-night banana splits taste even better. The sugar hit us hard because the celebration quickly degenerated into dancing to Shakira’s salon. Our mental state was so impaired that we even forgot to squeeze a long 5-year streak.