October 16, 2025

Got to love a place that sells shirts saying "Where the heck is Yap? "

Colonia (population 3,100) is the Capital and Harbor town of Yap State (population 11,600) one of four states in the Federated States of Micronesia. We are in the Pacific Ocean or Philippine Sea just north of the equator, Papua New Guinea and Australia.

This is downtown Colonia on a busy Wednesday afternoon. We are the 5th  cruise ships they have had here, in the last 3 years. Notice no overhead wires, no electrical traffic signals. What Yap is famously known for is their Stone Money. For centuries, they used giant crystalline limestones disks, as their currency; It's noted on their license plates. Today they use USA dollars for their currency but they  still used the stones for birthdays, weddings, funerals and in conflict resolution. The most amazing fact about the stone money is that it didn't come from rocks here on the island. They were transported here on rafts from Palau, 250 miles away! They are scattered all around the island, along walkways and in the forests. There are an estimated 13,000 stones on the four Yap Islands. Some are huge, as big as 12 feet in diameter and weighing 8,800 pounds. The stones stay in place even when they change ownership. Their value is based on the stone's size, beauty and history! (Note: I borrowed huge stone photo from Basia's @Basiak.blog for reference)

Colonia also has a Living History Museum in the downtown. The men still use the community house for their men only meetings!

Went back out to see more of the town today with Bob & Sarah and Sherry - had a great taxi driver - we all chatted whole trip with lots of laughs! Our driver got to hear a whole lot about Ship life!

KUANTAN, MALAYSIA

By Pat Patrick • October 12, 2026
Just the other day a friend asked me if I got enough down time while living this lifestyle. My answer was "you have to make it !" In the beginning, it was go, go, go, every port. We had lots of FOMO ( fear of missing out ) and we tried to cram in as much as possible at every port. Sea days, were our only down time and there were never enough. It was a tad exhausting. Now two years into this life, I can say there are some ports that just don't call me and I opt to get other things done. Kuantan, Malaysia was one of the Ports. I never got off the ship, either day we were here. I intended to this morning, but we had storms with loud thunder late into the night and then was awoken by a crew alarm around 6:45am. My energy was low, there were shuttle issues, town was an hour ride away and there is alot of air pollution, ( due to neighboring Indonesia burning organic materials, in preparation for the upcoming monsoon season ). So I bagged my plans and continued working on my never ending TO DO LIST!

Sad Passing of ODYSSEY Shipmate

By Pat Patrick • October 11, 2026
During our two years of sailing we have had several Shipmates come and go for a variety of reasons. Their health, has sadly been the reason for many departures. Cindy Harvey , would have loved to have lived out her days here on the Odyssey and even bought a second cabin and had an adjoining door added, to have a care provider, stay with her full time. However, Cindy's limited mobility, pain and confinement got to be too much - so she left us a few months ago. She went to an assisted living facility, on the coast of Oregon, to be near her family. Tragically she fell, was trying to recover, slipped into a coma and sadly passed away this week.

SANCTUARY OF TRUTH MUSEUM, CHONBURI, THAILAND

By Pat Patrick • October 8, 2026
The Sanctuary of Truth Museum is the world's largest hand carved wooden castle, located on the coast of Pattaya, Chonburi Province, Thailand . Conceived in 1981 by Thai visionary Khun Lek Viriyaphun the structure is built entirely from 4 types of wood - Teak, Mai Daeng, Mai Takien & Mai Panchaat and put together using Thai nailless wood joinery - mainly dovetails, carrying poles and tongue & groove. We started the tour in the workshop where the artisan, mainly woman, were hard at work. Since conception, the Museum has been an active construction site, thus we all wore hardhats! The artisans continue handcarving sculptures and columns, daily and will most likely continue for years to come.