The wind came steadily from behind and we made good progress. Maria was handling the watches well and she was over her seasickness. Only when the wind got above 25 knots, which was rare, did she start to feel queasy. The wind, while generally lighter as we got closer to the equator, always seemed to be enough to keep the sails raised and the engine off. This was a blessing for those in the rear cabin. Being so close to the engine room, it was extremely noisy and stinking hot when we had the motor running. Crew morale was great. We’d had a lot of fun since we left Darwin. But beneath the surface I continued to feel the pressure of expectation on me, the feeling that I could never have too much fun because there was always more work to do, more to film, another update to write and, of course, boat maintenance. There was constant pressure from the office to make quality films to pay for the adventure. I hoped to solve that problem at our next stop, Pulau Rinca, the island home of the infamous komodo dragon.
