Travel Blogs

Thailand – the Land of Smiles. Crystal clear waters teeming with life, stunning beaches, and a laid-back island vibe. It's a picture postcard come to life, and for us, Daniel and Rita, it was supposed to be the start of our dream life – sailing the turquoise seas with our furry crew: Admiral Mazu the cat, and deckhands Fifa and Binks, the ever-energetic pups. FifaMazu Binks ...

Alright, crew. Time for another Swizzle saga.. Setting sail, I knew the open ocean held surprises. This trip, though, was turning into an epic test – a grueling saga of greasy wrenches, endless tinkering, and a deadline to spend Christmas with Rita. It all began with a sickening clunk – the unmistakable demise of the transmission. A common occurrence for sailors, perhaps, but on this idyllic ...

Our first haul out on Swizzle was a daunting yet exciting experience. We took the bot out of the water at B&V Marine, in Langkawi, Malaysia. We chose to use B&V Marine due to its convenient location to our land accommodation, and best of all PRICE! Now some things we had to consider for haul out and a few tips for anyone looking to do the same 1. Facilities - B&V Marine had everythi ...

After spending nearly 3 months on Koh Lipe, Thailand, we are now planning our departure and preparing for the massive undertaking of hauling out the Swizzle in preparation for our next LONG voyage. Our time here has been much more than expected and though we've met a few setbacks since our arrival, we have taken them in stride. The diving, the food, the beaches and views are all exactly what we ...

Captain's Log November 29, 2022 Leaving Port Dickson! It was a really enjoyablece stop, especially considering all the great banter we had with all the sailors we first met in Puteri Harbor. Now its time to leave though, on to the next. We left dock at approximately 8:30am and looking at Pangkor for our next stop. Seas are calm, not much breeze but still flying the main sail to get whatever we ...

A combination of anxiety, excitement, nervousness, and happiness... those are all the feelings involved with our FINAL departure from Puteri Harbor. The engine is 98% in working order, still some issues with the fuel pump and some air making it into the fuel lines, but so far it's been very minimal. Most of the issues can be avoided by some routine checks as we're moving. Our departure from the ...

The journey begins with a short trip across the Johor Strait, the first step on the long journey that lies ahead. In our case, it was more of a RUN TO THE BORDER, since we were towing our dinghy across the border, which is illegal in Singapore. The good thing about it, however, is that the border is only 400m from the entrance of Raffles, so we had a pretty good chance of winning. And we did :) So ...

It's been MONTHS (6 weeks) since arriving in Singapore. Finally after countless hours of engine work, painting, updating, more engine work, and cleaning, we are almost ready to depart for the maiden voyage. Now it's time to get ready for the long 600 nautical mile sail north to Phuket. This includes getting the dogs situated, provisioning, and saying goodbye to all of the amazing people we've met ...

Some interesting facts I've learned about Singapore during my time here. #1 They love acronyms here. OTP, EP, ERP, IC, MBS... and I'm not sure what ANY of them mean #2 Singapore is an Island/Country/City all in one #3 Singaporeans are in the top longest life expectancy which is 84.8 years #4 The Singaporean passport is one of the strongest in the world #5 Singaporeans sing its national anthem ...

One week in Singapore down, a lot more to go. Yesterday was my first day off of the boat in a week. It's amazing how much time little projects and honey-dos can take up. But nonetheless, we made it to downtown and got to explore for the entire day! First stop I made was Singapore Botanic Gardens. The Singapore Botanic Gardens is a 163-year-old tropical garden located just south of central S ...