Adventure Bear Log - SE Asia
Thailand
Phuket, Thailand February, 2008

Look at this box fish! Alex named him Chad. He's very big and as interested in me as I was in him. He lived at a restaurant we went to in Phuket. He wasn't on the menu. Even though I love fish, Chad was a friend and not food.
We went on a sailor's sightseeing trip to the Rolly Tasker sail loft. They make sails and line and even plastic fittings right there in the shop. It was a huge place with lots of people working in it. We were curious and they let us come and watch one of the machines make rope. I got to sit next to the machine when it was not running. Otherwise, I could have been braided right in. The ropes were put in barrels. Can you find me?
Claire climbs the mast all the time. At Rolly Tasker I got a chance to climb a mast too. Here I am sitting on the spreaders. I felt very brave being up so high.
Malaysia
Telaga Harbor, Langkawi, Malaysia January/February 2008

The crew really likes to go hiking. We hiked to a waterfall. First we followed the wrong trail up a hill. At the halfway point I convinced everyone we had gone far enough. I wanted to go swimming. We all enjoy sliding down the rocks and cooling off in the pools at the top of the waterfall.
Singapore
Singapore, January 2008

We rode on a ferry from Batam Island in Indonesia to Singapore. The ferry was very big and it went very fast. I could look out the window and watch all the slow boats as we passed them. I waved at the fishermen.
We were in Singapore close to the Lunar New Year. Lots of the buildings and streets had decorations up for the New Year. These dragons were especailly colorful. This is the Year of the Rat. I think it should be the year of the Bear.

We stopped by the Parliament House. It is good to see important buildings. And, my favorite, we went on a Duck Tour. We didn't go to see lots of water birds. Ducks are WWII vehicles that can drive on land or water. We drove around downtown Singapore and then we drove out into the water and traveled on a river. I think maybe I would like one of those vehicles. It gives you options.
Our good friends, Sea Scouts from California, sent us a care package that arrived in Singapore. It had lots of movies in it. The crew and I like to watch movies on passages. I haven't seen it yet, but I'm looking forward to watching Bee Season. Bears like bees because bees make honey. How wonderful that someone in Hollywood is starting to think about what kind of movies bears would like to watch. Thank you Sea Scouts!!!
Indonesia
Bangka Strait, January 23, 2008

We re-crossed the Equator today. We are back in the Northern Hemisphere. We had a little celebration. I had coke and cookies. No fish.
Bali, January 2008

We needed to go grocery shopping. I was glad I came along because I met another bear at the mall. We talked about bear things, like honey and fish and berries. He also told me about root beer.
We took a day and went sightseeing on Bali. We had a driver who knew all the good places to go. First he took us to a dance show. The costumes were beautiful. There were ghosts and pretty girls, and a king , a prince and a bewitched queen, and farmers and a monkey and a tiger. I got a chance to go visit the tiger after the show. We had lunch at a restaurant on the edge of a crater near a volcano. I was glad the volcano was asleep. We visited a lot of shops where people made things. I liked the carvings on this door. Maybe I'll start carving the captain's door. We ended our day with an elephant ride. After carrying us around and doing tricks, the elephant was tired. I sat with him for a while and I rested too.
Lombok, January 2008

I learned about new food on Lombok. We stopped at a place for lunch and I got to try satays and rice wrapped in palm leaves. I really liked them. I was surprised because they weren't made of fish.

Labuan Bajo, Flores December 2007

We celebrated Christmas in a village called Labuan Bajo. Um, when I told Alex I would be happy to help with decorating the boat I didn't know she had this in mind. Later I got to hang up the stockings. Everyone had their own stocking. Mine is the blue one. Claire made it for me. Santa brought me some candy canes. I'm finding out that there are lots of different kinds of good things to eat.

Rinca Island, December 2007

The Komodo Dragons live on this island. Here I am at the entrance to the Komodo National Park. The captain and crew went on a hike to look for the dragons. I was afraid that the dragons would think I was a nice snack, so I waited back at the boat. I found this traditional canoe near the dock. It was almost my size. It was a little soggy though. I made sure I stayed on the dry end.