By Michelle Cheng
Finally, the Horsfields crew made their way to Australia! I vivdly remember the day they left Hong Kong during the height of Covid to start their round the world odyssey. Fast forward two and a half years, and they reached down-under :) Our first meal together was a Korean feast in Sydney’s Chinatown. I imagined they haven’t had Korean food or beef in a while! Arabella and Alex have grown into remarkable girls and meeting adorable Azania for the first time was all so surreal. Delphine and I managed to catch up twice more for some good old adult/girls laughs, with Elkie flying in from Melbourne.
A few weeks later, I eagerly hopped aboard Arabella to join them for an 11-day sailing adventure. Setting sail from the Gold Coast to the Whitsundays in the Great Barrier Reef, we saw whales as they migrated back south with their calves, visited a working cattle ranch island, swam with Coral Sea's turtles, hiked mountains for a 360 view of Whitsundays islands.
Super thrilled when Grant caught a tuna on day 2 - we ate fresh out of the sea tuna sashimi! And then on day 4, he surprised even himself by catching a massive and rare sailfish (the fastest fish in the ocean) that could feed us for months! Delphine never ceases to amaze in the kitchen - how she deftly cut up the gigantic fish and think of creative ways to serve up fish!
On day 6, I soon realised that sailing wasn't quite what I had IMAGINED when I left Sydney, where I thought a typical day would be basking in the sun and swimming among the coral reefs with all sorts of marine life. Instead, it was quite the opposite on this trip. Due to an incompetent installer of their new battery system that went dead in the middle of the sea at the best of times. And to add to the stress, the Horsfields had to catch flights back to Hong Kong and Europe, to take a short break from their nautical adventure. This resulted in a mad rush to reach the marina on time, forcing us to sail through the night not once, but three times, with the entire crew taking turns as night watchers.
Spending almost 2 weeks with the Horsfields on a boat, I had a chance to get to know their little ones quite well. How much their girls have grown. I have no doubt the skies the limit for these three courageous, smart and responsible little humans. I’m in absolute awe at the Horsfield’s unwavering commitment to continue on sailing the world. True modern Crusoe family. Arabella is the only boat I saw in 11 days where the entire family are all hands on deck, literally at the helm, sails, ropes, anchor, cleaning from early morning to dusk.
As for me, I’m a little relieve I’m back on land now :)
Huge thanks to the Horsfields for opening up my eyes to your world and for patiently putting up with my complete ineptitude at sea! 🌊⛵🐳🎣🐢