November 16, 2025

Another great day exploring the South Pacific! Today as soon as our ship docked in Honiara, and we were cleared by customs, I was off with 9 other residents, to get in 2 small speed boats and head out to Simon's Nature Reserve in the Solomon Islands. It was about an hour long ride across the Iron Bottom Sound but so worth it to experience this special place!

Lyn, Alex & Chaz, Lori & I were in one boat and Phil & Kim, Sue & Ed and Ben were in the other.Simon's village and reserve was great. They greeted us with hand made super fragrant lei's and provided a huge "snack" tray to each of us ( was bigger than most lunches)  and had all their local favorites! My lei was honey suckle, a personal favorite, lovely!! The kids were so friendly and sweet and the snorkeling here was stunning! Video doesn't do it justice! This is not a typical tourist spot and Simon's preservation work for the last 20+ years really shows. Google Simon's Nature Reserve Baroni, Solomon Islands.

View more

After spending the morning at Simon's we headed to Roderick's Bay which we thought was just another snorkel spot and were delighted to find out there was a German expedition cruise ship the MS WORLD DISCOVERER wrecked there since April 30, 2000. They struck an uncharted reef and the captain was able ground the ship to prevent it from sinking on  the edge of this small village and get all 79 passengers and crew off safely. It was declared a total loss and abandoned in Roderick Bay. Soooo Cool !! We had a great afternoon snorkeling here and they had another lunch feast waiting for us when we arrived!

View more

2nd YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF SAILING THE WORLD

By Pat Patrick • October 1, 2026
WOW!! I can't believe it has been two years of sailing around the World already for me and my fellow shipmates on the Villa Vie Odyssey! We left Belfast, Ireland back on September 30, 2024 and it has been such a great adventure to date! We have been to 201 different ports, some more than once, during those two years, with much more to come!

APOPO, SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA

By Pat Patrick • September 29, 2026
Before coming to Cambodia , I sadly have to admit I was unaware of the landmine problems they face. On our first night in Siem Reap, where we hiked up the hill to try and see the sunset views, there was a small band of men playing instruments and our tuk tuk driver explained to me they were victims of landmine explosions who had lost limbs or their sight and were trying to make money via donations to support their families.

Ta Prohm Temple ( AKA Lara Croft: Tomb Raider), CAMBODIA

By Pat Patrick • September 28, 2026
I rallied for our last temple of the morning, because I heard this one was unique and I think it was my favorite. Ta Prohm was built starting in 1186 by King Jayavarman VII as a Buddhist monastery and university dedicated to the king's mother. It was left mostly un-restored so that huge banyan and silk cotton trees grow directly over and through the walls. In 2001, the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider movie was filmed here.