Yacht ALSO II Set Sail with Jim and Kyoko Bandy

In November 1999 the "ALSO II" set sail from Marina del Rey, California on a world cruise with Jim and Kyoko Bandy aboard. Jim had been dreaming and planning this adventure for almost 30 years. We sailed in Mexican waters for 14 months; we sailed from the Sea of Cortez to Puerto Vallarta to Zihuatanejo. In May 2001 we set out across the Pacific, in 23 days we crossed to Hiva Oa in the Marquesas and spent about a month there, then six weeks in the Tuamotus. Sailing on to Papeete , Moorea, Huahine, Raiatea, and Bora Bora in the Society Islands . On the way to Samoa we stopped at Sawaro in the Northern Cook Islands , this is the Atoll where Tom Neal wrote the book "An Island to One's Self". This became one of our fondest memories. There were only two people on the Island : Tom and John, both 70 years old. John still climbed for coconuts and dove for lobster and could stay under water longer than anyone I know. The first time I saw him dive I almost went in to get him because he had been down so long. He popped up, stuffed two lobsters in the bag and immediately went back for more! Tom told him he had to quit climbing the coconut trees because he was going to get hurt, to which John replied: if I quit I would die!