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American Spirit II - Day 383; We Take a Tour of the Island; See Napoleon's Homes and Tomb; & Swim with a Whale Shark; Friday, January 23, 2015



Up at 6:00 AM after staying up late the night before. Needed to get going because we have a lot to do today.



Breakfast at 6:30 AM is scrambled eggs; cut up spiced potato; chilled pear halves; and brown bread.



At 7:50 AM I send out an email concerning our British Airways lost bag to Zandra in Cape Town and Janet in Tampa. BA says that the bag has been delivered to Cape Town. Great.



At 8:10 AM we depart on the water taxi to the wharf; and at 8:30 AM we enter the Custom's office and then proceed to the Immigration office, to clear out of the country. They are closed on weekends and since we're leaving on Sunday morning we must clear out on Friday. In St. Helena, once you clear out you have 72 hours to depart.



Next we head to a bank to exchange South Africa Rand, US dollars, and Euros for British Pounds Sterling. The bank opens at 8:45 AM and when we get there at 8:30 AM the line is already 15 people long. However, once they open the lines moves fast as there are 5 tellers dealing with customers.



At 9:25 AM we're at the yacht club office for our 9:30 AM tour of the island. Twice as many boaters show up as the first vehicle can hold; so another van is ordered. We depart on the tour 30 minutes late at around 10:00 AM.



Our first stop is at Napoleon's temporary home of 7 weeks when he is exiled to the island in 1816. He's in the temporary home waiting for his permanent home to be remodeled. Napoleon was 46 years old when he was exiled; and he died 5 years later on May 5 at the age of 51. This temporary house is called Blair Pavilion and in 1959 it was given to France by the family that owned it. As such it is considered 'French soil' as much as an embassy is. Our tour guide was exceptional and imparted the following information about Napoleon's stay on St. Helena. First, in order to ensure that he doesn't escape his exile, like he did when he was previously exiled to Elba; the number of British troops on the island was increased from 600 to 3,000; four warships at all times were tasked to patrol around the island; and two additional warships were anchored in Jamestown harbor always at the ready to repel any one trying to 'rescue' him. Furthermore, whenever any ship ever sailed out of St. Helena, it had to be verified first that Napoleon was in his house. Otherwise, the vessel would not be allowed to sail. He had an entourage of 28 accompany him. We also learned that he was 5 feet 6 1/2 inches tall; and died of stomach cancer. His father, a brother and a sister also died of the same cancer. There was speculation that he was killed by arsenic poisoning, but this was never proven. When he was buried he was put in 4 coffins, one inside of the other. He was then put in a grave in the ground and the area around the grave and his final casket was over poured with concrete. There was no inscription on the tomb because the French and British governments couldn't agree on the exact wording. Nineteen or 25 years later his body was exhumed and moved to Paris. All four caskets were opened and one of his aides verified that the perfectly preserved body inside was Napoleon.



On the way to our next location we stop along the roadway to take a look and photograph a heart shaped waterfall. Its called the Heart Shaped Water Fall because water cascades through the middle of a heart shaped cliff face. Unfortunately, we're in the dry season so there's no water to see.



Are next stop was at Napoleon's Longwood house. Many of the furnishing inside were no originals as they were sent to France. He lived in this home for 5 years, and died in this home. The bed he slept in was tiny, as it was the custom during that time to sleep with your back in a reclined position.



At noon we stopped at Regies Takeaway for lunch. Joel and I ordered a Hawaiin Burger and Jeanine got some sort of Tuna concoction.



At 1:00 PM we drove by the airport under construction. It should be completed in a year or two. Currently the only way to get to the island is by boat

At 1:45 PM we stop by the St. Helena Distillery, where Joel, Jeanine and I buy some Coffee Liquor, Lemon Liquor and wine. The Coffee Liquor takes 6 months to distill.



At 2:35 PM we're at an overlook of Sandy Bay, where the remains of a volcanic crater are located.



Then on to Plantation House, where the British governor lives. Also there are some land tortoises, with one named Jonathan, believed to be over 180 years old.



Next we stopped at Napoleon's Tomb. It was a 750 meter walk down a steep incline to his tomb. He was buried in this location, away from his house on the island, because he liked to walk in this area and said when he died that he'd like to be buried there. So he was.



Our final stop is the top of Jacob's Ladder. There are 699 steps in the walkway; it is 600 feet high; and 900 feet long. Standing at the top of the steps made my legs weak. It's almost straight down. From this area we can also see down the cliff face to the boats moored below, including American Spirit II. Its a breathtaking sight.



Our tour is over at 3:45 PM. I hop out at a grocery store on the way back to buy 25 pounds of potatoes. I need more for the 1,900 mile trip to Brazil and I'm afraid the stores won't be open on Saturday.



At 5:00 PM we depart on our Whale Shark tour. Fourteen of us, all from sail boats in the rally, get in a large, fast dive boat and speed around the top of the island to the east at speeds up to 45 knots. We don't find any whale sharks. Then our driver calls some of the other boats and finds out that they have found the whale sharks and we turn around and head to that area. Once there we find one of the whale sharks. There are reportedly 30-35 in St. Helena waters. We get in the water and swim and photograph the animal. The whale shark is the largest fish in the world and they grow up to 41 1/2 feet long. The one we're with seems at least that long. They are grey to light grey underneath in color with numerous white spots. The one we're with is also tagged, meaning that it has a satellite tracker on it. The whale shark swims in a circle with us all around it. The rules of the 'engagement' are that you don't get in front of it; stay 3 meters away from the body and 4 meters away from the tail; don't take any flash pictures (turn your flash off; and you can not touch or ride on the animal. We're in hundreds of feet of water that is some of the clearest water I've ever seen in my life. Because its around an hour before sunset, our pictures and video are good, but due to the setting sun, not great due to the fast approaching darkness. I find out later that a tour scheduled for Saturday is at 12 noon. Unfortunately, we're playing golf then so we can't attend. Sigi, from Merlyn of Poole, goes on a different boat and swims with 7 whale sharks.



At 6:15 PM we're back at the boat. We take a quick shower and then are picked up by a water taxi at 7:10 PM. We go to Ann's Place where 8 of the boats in the fleet are having a pig roast dinner. The cost is 15 pounds, about $22.50. Its a very good meal. At our table are American Spirit II, Folie a Deux, Free & BrEasy and Sweet Pearl.



Joel and I take the 10:00 PM water taxi back to the boat. Joel is in bed 5 minutes after he gets on the boat. We've lost Jeanine so hopefully she'll make a later water taxi. The taxi stops running at 11:00 PM and its now 12:01 AM. So unless she hitches a ride on Adela's dingy, she's stuck on the island for the night. I wonder what a hotel room costs?



I'm charging the boat's batteries and making water, so I'll be up for a while longer; at least to 12:15 AM.



Brian Fox


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