Subic Bay Yacht Club , Philippines ... Here i am , sitting down in the pilot house , thinking about those months spent in China . All the people i met , all the things i've been through ... and suddenly I'm in another country , It's like starting all over again . I'm going to have to understand how it works out here , make new friends ... It's a bit overwhelming . I feel quite lost ! On top of that , my friends "from China" left this morning , going back to their own adventures . I've been feeling very melancholic the whole day , i will miss those guys . I've been so lucky to meet such great people . I feel blessed that our paths crossed . I was looking to meet new faces and up to now this lifestyle has been great for that . So this is for the guys i've met during this part of the trip , priceless encounters with amazingly nice and helpful people . I have had Family members or long time friends in Paris who never did even one percent of what those guys did for me . But these people have all been so helpful and so supportive of my trip that I'm still wondering if all this was not a dream !!! I'll remember this for the rest of my life . It finally seems to me that true relationships are possible !!!
Thanks to you guys , i'll always remember you .



"Dave"

Dave is a retired Police officer from California . He's been working on many different jobs during his career : undercover agent , coast guard diver and more . After spending all his life witnessing all kind of crazy things , he finally decided he had enough and now lives on his boat with his wife Dorothy . I met him a month ago when he returned to Hong Kong after spending a year here in the Philippines . Great guy , great stories and now a great friend ! I had tears in my eyes when he finally left this morning , but i know i'll see him again one day , it cannot end like this .




"Andrew"

Andrew Chan was building his boat , Lady Dragon , at the same time as mine . He's from Singapore and is a lawyer in Hong Kong . I'm still not sure if this guy really exists . I got so much help and support from him that it's hard to believe he's real . He's got it all : Great Job , Good Looks , Great family and he managed to stay a really accessible person , always ready to help . And a great sense of humor on top of that . We'll surely meet again sometime , maybe i'll go with him to Malaysia next fall .



"Don and ICE"

Don and Margie McIntyre (sorry Margie , i couldn't take a picture of you , weather was really bad during the time our paths crossed) are professional "adventurers" . They've been leaving a dream life , always doing crazy stuff ranging from treasure hunting to racing rally cars to spending a year in Antarctica on their own in a 3m by 3m shack , Polar Bears and Penguins being their only neighbors . They've become an inspiration for me as it seems they've managed to never stop dreaming . And on top of that they're the nicest people out there , always ready to help . The cutest thing about those guys is that they call each other "Ted" , as in Teddy Bear . I hope i'll be able to live my life the way they live theirs . Thanks to both of you for all the stuff you gave me and for helping me survive the typhoon by planning the weather for me . I will always be here for you if you need me .

Love to all of you guys , i miss all of you so much right now ...
Big Kisses
Ben Ben

"The Lifesaver"

First crossing , first Typhoon !!! After three days of pure bliss , I started feeling a bit worried when i realized that this typhoon was not going to stay on the east coast of the Philippines . A quick look at the weather map confirmed that there wasn't enough time to reach land before everything got out of control . The only option was to start heading west to get away as much as possible from the center of the storm . Night fell and rain started pouring down . 50 knots of wind and no way to see were the waves were coming from . Scary ! The boat got knocked down a few times : it's a strange feeling to be standing on the wall of your boat !!!
I was glad i had met Glenn in Hong Kong and asked him to come with me on that trip , I probably wouldn't have made it without his support . We had to endure 30 hours of madness before finally managing to get to the coast . ICE , Don McIntyre 's boat (more on him later , he's a legend !!! ) who had left Hong Kong with us had managed to get in before the Storm . He was waiting for us at the pass and guided us through a maze of Philippino fish farms to a good anchorage spot . First time in my life i was happy to see flat water :) Surfing a 20 tons steel boat had not been the most pleasant experience . I finally shut down the engine and we went to bed exhausted . After a day of rest we got back on the water this morning , heading for Subic to repair a few things and make a some modifications to the boat .
I'm really peacefull now , fear has been replaced by a feeling of ecstasy . I don't know if i've ever felt like this ...
I guess that's what happens when you really start to enjoy being alive .

Ben , transmitting Alive from Kalakuta , 15° 28 North - 119° 45 East

"Around The World"

The List is Dead , Long Live The List !!! I finally left Hong Kong yesterday and i'm on my way to the Philippines right now ;)
I was on watch this morning and i enjoyed my first sunrise onboard ! 130 miles away from Hong Kong and 420 miles to go !!! What a great feeling , watching the world go by at 6 knots . It's so much more than what i was expecting , i don't know how to write about it ! I just can't get rid of that big smile on my face :)
James Brown blasting from the speakers in the Pilot House , Kalakuta gently rolling with the South china sea swell , I'm like a turtle , slowly moving my house to a new country .
Big Kisses to all who believed in what i was doing, and supported me and my crazy dreams . And a big FUCK YOU to all the others who tried to make me doubt :)
Free Your Mind , And Your Ass Will Follow !

Ben , Transmitting live from the South China Sea : 20° 32' 054 North , 116° 18' 067 East

Rain , Rain and a bit more Rain !!! Summer is coming in Hong Kong and this means hot temperatures and high humidity ... It' s in this kind of weather that i've been running around the city for the past two weeks , looking for all kinds of parts . I' ve become an expert at scouting for all kinds of things in Hong Kong : Boat stuff in Ap Lei Chau , electric things in Sham Shui Po , tools and screws in Mong Kok . And if you want to be successful , you got to get deep into The List .
The List started it's life as an innocent looking piece of paper but has now grown into a healthy looking A-4 sized notebook . The List is like the Blob , the more you feed it , the hungrier it gets . The List likes when i meet other sailors , as it's almost sure i'll have another thing to add to it . The List ranges from fuel filters to cookware , food , diving gear , lifejackets , rope , more filters , bed-sheets , oil , flares , fishing rods and transmission fluid ! My credit card hates The List . The List has become my best friend and my worst enemy : it will keep me safe and ready but could also keep me shopping forever . I now understand now why many people get a boat and never leave : The List has taken control of their lives .
But I plan on beating The List . I'll be burning The List at the end of this week . It's the only way i'll be able to get my freedom back ... Oh , just though about one more thing to add to The List ... And one more ... I will also need a can opener ! And a Wire Cutter , 10mm minimum !!! It feels great , more lines on the notebook ... It starting to look a lot more serious now !
Hmm , The List is so addictive , it's going to be hard to get clean .