Cruising the Malacca Strait

The Malacca Strait is the body of water between the west coast of Malaysia and Indonesian Sumatra, and it connects the Pacific and Indian Oceans. A very busy waterway 560 miles long, it is one of Asia’s primary sea routes, with almost 100,000 vessels passing through each year. Read on for our experience cruising the Malacca Strait. Malacca is pronounced Muh-LAK-uh.

Post Puteri Harbour Anchorages

A few days after returning from Kuala Lumpur, we untied our lines and left the Puteri Harbour dock. We day sailed for the first two days, stopping at the small islands of Pesang and then Besar. I don’t remember much about either, so they must have been peaceful and boring, which is good.

Sunset on the Malacca Strait, Malaysia
Sunset at anchor at Palau Pisang, Malaysia
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Best of Banyuwangi

The more we travel, the more I prefer the places I had never heard of before visiting. For example, our stay after Bali was this coastal town in east Java. Compared to the overtourism of Bali, Banyuwangi was fresh and inviting. We spent several nights berthed at Boom Marina and enjoyed the best of Banyuwangi.

About Banyuwangi

Banyuwangi is a town on the east coast of Java which serves as the gateway from Bali, with regular ferries traversing the channel. The ferry from Gilimanuk, Bali to Banyuwangi takes under an hour and runs frequently. The town has a population of over 120,000, small for Java, the most populous island in the world with the most populous city, Jakarta. While close to Bali, it took us a day and a half motoring on Go since we came from the southeast of the island and there was no wind in our favor.

boats, Boom Marina Banyuwangi
Go and other boats at Boom Marina
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Sydney Beaches and Pools

Sydney Australia is a wonderful city to visit! It’s especially great to visit in summer, which is when we were there. On top of celebratory fireworks and outdoor festivals, Sydney has many excellent and popular beaches. Summer is hot; the temperature got to almost 40C, and the best way to cool off is to jump in the water. The good news is Sydney beaches and pools are plentiful, and the water is definitely cool. Sometimes it’s too cold, but when it’s this hot, it feels good, at least for a while.

Summer Weather in Sydney

Australia’s biggest city, Sydney is located on the New South Wales coast. Considered to be part of a temperate climate zone, Sydney has warm to hot summers and no dry season. Our experience in summer is temperatures from high teens to high 30s C, with days of full sun alternating with days of clouds and/or rain. Sometimes the best days are the cloudy ones because that sun is strong!

City Pools

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