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One good thing came out of Ralph's late arrival, though, which was that Winnie and Isis had already arrived on the Fiji islands by then, so they were able to wait for him on the quayside. You can imagine what a wonderful way to finish off this part of the Zeeman Challenge that was for the whole family.
Ralph will be enjoying a well-deserved holiday with his family for three weeks, returning to Amsterdam Schiphol airport on Sunday 23rd December, just before Christmas. After that he'll begin preparing himself for the last part of his journey; he wants to row the rest of his course - from the Fiji islands to Brisbane - after the hurricane season is over, which should be around mid-April 2008.
This article therefore marks the temporary suspension of the Zeeman Ocean Challenge. We will post a few more updates on our website if it seems necessary. We would like to thank our readers for the great interest they have shown in Ralph's adventure. It's been truly heart-warming to see how the international community has stayed with us all the way through the ups and downs since 15th March 2006, when the first update for the Zeeman Ocean Challenge was published.
We would like to extend our gratitude to our sponsors from the international community in particular. We have managed to raise a very large amount of money for the children's home in Mumbai. You can be assured that none of the money collected will be squandered elsewhere.
Special thanks are also due to the inhabitants of the beautiful island of Atafu, of course. You were of great help to us when the chips were down, and we simply can't find the words to express the depths of our gratitude.
To Curly and David on the Fiji islands, and everyone else still actively supporting Ralph there: what you have done is, in a word, fantastic.
Kathleen Saville: your e-mails and advice were more than welcome - thanks a lot!
We hope to see you all again on this website in April 2008!
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