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November 26, 2006

Ellora Caves & Arrival Bombay!

Click on image to play video (high speed connection advised).

LOCATION: Bombay, India
SEE WHERE WE ARE!
Longitude: N:18.92874°
Latitude: E: 072.83865°
Miles from Singapore: 6334 (10,134 kms)

Moksha and I have arrived in Mumbai to a fabulous welcome organized by an ardent Bombay supporter, Vini Soni, who worked with the prestigious Royal Bombay Yacht Club to create a worldclass media event. Vini teamed up with the club's Honorary Sailing Secretary, Cyrus Heerjee, to arrange storage for Moksha until the next leg to Africa and also the press reception.

Just prior to arrival I had an afternoon in hand to visit the ancient caves at the UNESCO World Heritage Ellora Caves. Carved out of the living rock between 600-1000 A.D. the 34 'caves' are comprised of Hindu, Buddhist and Jain temples, including the impressive Kailasa temple which is the world's largest single monolithic structure involving the removal of over 200,000 tons of rock by hand.

So a big thanks to ALL of you who sponsored vlogs and otherwise helped to make the SE Asia leg happen! Also Aberdeen Asset Managment Asia who contributed financially. The plan is now to ready Moksha for an early January departure across to Djibouti in NE Africa; a, 1,800 nautical mile crossing that will take around 7-weeks to pedal. More in the next vlog on these preparations and other planned activities in and around Bombay with our educational programmes and local youth groups.


** FUNDING DRIVE for NEXT LEG **

TOTAL NEEDED to be RAISED for Arabian Sea xing - $8,230.00
TOTAL RAISED TO DATE - $2,487.00
REMAINING AMOUNT TO BE RAISED - $5,743.00

Enormous thanks to the following for recent wishlist pledges to make the next leg a reality -

> Tim Murfitt - Yellow Fever Vaccine - $85
> Gretchin Lair - Dividers (for navigation) - $62
> Greg Kolodziejzyk - Paint job for Moksha - $300
> Nathalie Lauwerier - PC laptop for updating journal page on Arabian Sea xing - $400 (in-kind)

Priority wishlist items needing to be pledged -

> MALARIA TEST KITS (x3) REPLACEMENTS - $30
> MALARIA TREATMENT (Malarone x 12 tabs) - $120
> VISA for DJIBOUTI - $75

Pledge by paypal or credit card via link at the bottom of the wishlist page.

j_moksha_touch_small.jpg

Posted on November 26, 2006 9:35 PM

Comments

Hello Jason!

It seems like forever since I last saw you. I just talked to Craig about my christmas present... My name was inscibed on your boat!
I hope you have a happy holidays! And good luck on your journey.

love Kylie

Posted by: kyliecisney [TypeKey Profile Page] at December 26, 2006 12:56 AM

Hi Jason,

This is Kris from Dinah Beach. Congratulations, well done. For the next leg, I know the East African coast fairly well, so a few hints: you are heading for Mombasa, the Yacht Club is in Mtwapa Creek, about 3 miles north from the main harbour, stil within town traffic, clearance can be arranged there. Good friendly place.
Currents along the coast are very strong, they change with the monsoon, but there is a lag between the onset of the monsoon and turn of the current. If you get swept north, Kilifi has a good safe yacht club on the river, just after the bridge, Malindi is a large commercial harbour, and the last place north is Lamu, also a port of entry. Coast further north has been depopulated by the Shiftas, the bandits. Do avoid the south of Somalia.
If you get swept south, Tanga in Tanzania, Zanzibar and Dar es Salaam are all ports of entry with minimum of hassle. Most of the coast has coral reefs, but gaps are wide, reef not too far offshore and you can see where you are going. I would stil suggest daylight enry, though, on account of the currents.
Any other info I could provide? We'll be leaving Darwin for East Africa in July or August, with a long stop in Chagos.
Good luck,
Kris.

Posted by: krislongrass [TypeKey Profile Page] at December 14, 2006 7:00 AM