tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21518000507379067062024-03-06T20:03:16.167+00:00S/V BeBe<center>Adventures of Judy & Bill as we circle the world on s/v BeBe</center>CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.comBlogger827125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-26322598059532647542017-02-13T21:06:00.002+00:002017-02-18T17:47:30.982+00:00Final 2 1/2 weeks aboard S/V BeBe (sniff, sniff; wipe a tear)<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We have been so busy setting up household in Galveston that I have been lax in catching up this blog. This posting covers our final 2 1/2 weeks aboard S/V BeBe. Likely, I will make one more final posting later this year covering our adjustment back to land life. That is something that people often wonder about -- how does one adjust back to land after cruising for more than a decade. Too soon yet to know how that will go.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">S/V BeBe from aloft</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On 11 January 2017 new owners Dan and Lori Carlson arrived in St. Thomas. We had docked at American Yacht Harbor marina in Red Hook in order to make their moving aboard as easy as possible. Good thing we had booked 2 nights in this marina because half of their luggage did not arrive with them. It was delivered to the marina the following day. Dan took the opportunity while tied to the dock to go up and check out things at the top of the mast. Wind was high so that also was a good reason to hang around the marina for an extra day. As we motored out on Friday the 13th (shudder!), unbelievably, that wind instrument again acted up!! Is there no end to this problem!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lori & Judy watching Dan at top of mast</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill realized as we motored out that the instrument once again reported erratic readings after strong winds and heavy rain. This convinced him that we were getting water intrusion into the sensors. Since every component had been replaced more than once, the only thing left to replace was what is called the control mount. It is a mount built into the end of a cable which runs through the mast down to the Hydra 2000 at the nav station. The wind instrument attaches to the control mount at the top of the mast. We had this part but had been unable to hire anyone to do this work and I did not want Bill going up there again. He had some minor surgery on his thigh last September and each time he went up the mast that incision area was irritated. Thankfully, Dan is quite comfortable going up the mast. We motored to Francis Bay and as soon as the wind slowed Dan went up and replaced the cable; he re-mounted the wind instrument and all worked perfectly once again. Think we finally had a fix!!!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All this and more was stored in the cockpit lazarette.<br />Dan attempted to organize it 'his way' - but I think<br />he will find that the lazarette will be re-arranged<br />almost every time he gets in there. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One day we went out for the first sea trial and all went well. Winds were about 20-knots. We sailed from Francis Bay northward to off western end of Jost Van Dyke; turned around and returned to Francis Bay. Seas were lively and winds were a little high, so perfect conditions for a sea trial. Dan and Lori could see that this 53-foot ketch handles differently than their 30-foot sloop back up on Lake Michigan. Much heavier (and slower, most likely) and very comfortable and safe.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lori & Dan celebrating on day we finalized the sales paperwork</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After a few days we motored over to Soper's Hole to clear into BVI; then sailed in ultra-light winds to The Bight on Norman Island. Dan flew the Secret Sail for awhile. The Secret Sail is the mizzen ballooner which we have had placed into a sock; basically an asymmetrical sail flown from the mizzen mast. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill & Judy also celebrating on day sales<br />paperwork finalized.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have always especially liked this sail. It can add up to 1 knot boat speed and really balances the movement of the boat comfortably. On this particular day the wind was so extremely light BeBe got down to only 1-knot speed over ground! But Dan had fun playing with the sail and it is best to learn new sails in calm conditions . Finally we started the engine so we could arrive well before sunset. We anchored in about 10-meters depth just inside Treasure Point. We all felt that it was okay to anchor on this lee shore only because winds were so light and forecast to remain benign.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">White Bay on Guana Island, British Virgin Islands</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sunset as viewed from White Bay on Guana Island. That is<br />Jose Van Dyke in center background.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The following day we motored to Marina Cay since there was no wind whatsoever to sail. The following morning Dan and Lori took the dinghy across the channel to Beef Island to go to mass. That afternoon we motored to Lee Bay on western side of Great Camanoe Island but the northern swell made that bay untenable. We continued motoring past Monkey Point and picked up a mooring in White Bay on the eastern side of Guana Island. There we found free wifi with decent speed; guess it was provided to the mooring field from the expensive resort on Guana Island. How nice of them!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lori & Dan settling into their new boat.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Next day was a gorgeous sail westward over the northern side of Tortola. Dan and Lori put out a pole to starboard for awhile and then took it in -- just for the experience to see how it works. Dan took the helm and sailed all the way to the entrance to Little Harbour at Jost Van Dyke. Just before going between Green Cay and Sandy Cay we crossed paths with a couple of Texas boats which we knew were in the area and had hoped to meet up with, Tammy and Bruce on <b>Dos Libras</b> and Janet Lee and Michael on <b>Adventure Us 2</b>. I have followed the blog for Dos Libras since they were berthed in Corpus Christi and had looked forward to meeting them. Bill and I had met Janet Lee and Michael in Kemah a few years back and wanted to catch up with them now that they were out cruising in their own boat. Both <b>Dos Libras</b> and <b>Adventure Us 2</b> went on into Great Harbour while we stayed overnight in Little Harbour.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next day we moved over to Great Harbour and we all met up for lunch at Foxy's. We enjoyed this very much. Great to meet up with fellow Texans. And I very much enjoyed listening to Tammy and Janet Lee tell stories of their first year or 2 out cruising. Both boats just arrived in the BVI after spending last hurricane season in Puerto Rico followed by short visits to Culebra and the USVI. So, while not really newbies, neither are jaded long-term cruisers. I enjoyed seeing and listening to their excitement about their 'new' experiences, which caused Bill and I to remember how we felt at that stage of our first few years out.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L-R: Tammy & Bruce of <b>Dos Libras</b>; Judy, previously of <b>BeBe</b>; Janet Lee & Michael of <b>Adventure Us 2</b>;<br />and Lori & Dan, new owners of <b>BeBe.</b> Bill is not in photo because he is behind the phone camera.<br />Lunch at Foxy's on Jost Van Dyke. Excellent way to end our cruising years -- with friends at a beach bar.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Judy with Foxy. Photo taken on<br />Christmas Eve day</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYDsCHPBkxSJsXs71-XXOD04LK19SUpp_5SJdOziXmM27OedVgGK-Q_Aa_admtH-4bvieGpoF24FrA2IvSbQv3Zft3y1-iHrGYy4HPK8rI1vM6tEk00DSift3REr3d_I3WTl5gnrmCVY/s1600/2017-01-24+Foxy%2527s+hammock.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYDsCHPBkxSJsXs71-XXOD04LK19SUpp_5SJdOziXmM27OedVgGK-Q_Aa_admtH-4bvieGpoF24FrA2IvSbQv3Zft3y1-iHrGYy4HPK8rI1vM6tEk00DSift3REr3d_I3WTl5gnrmCVY/s320/2017-01-24+Foxy%2527s+hammock.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A famous hammock. Guess where?</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Next day we motored over to Caneel Bay to pick up a mooring in order to clear into USVI once again at Cruz Bay. Officialdom satisfied, we motored back to Francis Bay for our final night on a mooring. The following morning we removed the bimini extension and mesh shade panels and folded down the bimini so that Dan could practice using the bow thruster to maneuver the boat in reverse as practice for docking stern-to in a marina. He backed up perfectly to a mooring several times and it appeared that he could handle the boat in reverse just fine. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When we arrived at the marina another boat was in our reserved slip -- the only slip that this marina has which can accommodate a boat the size of BeBe. A smaller sailboat named Sunquest was in the slip and refused to move. He was waiting for a new transmission to be delivered in 2 days and said he would not move from our reserved assigned slip. The marina office advised us to temporarily dock at the T-dock. Dan tried to reverse BeBe to the dock but got confused at some point and turned the helm the opposite direction and also pushed the joystick for the bow thruster in the wrong direction. The wind caught the bow and there was no way to recover correct direction because of the strength of the wind off the bow. We came within inches of ramming the stern of BeBe into the dock but Dan managed to go hard throttle forward just in time to avoid collision. A learning experience. He recovered control and re-positioned the boat and was able to reverse to dock the boat on the second attempt. Now to settle the problem of that boat in our assigned slip. I loved it when the guy told me that "It is all taken care of; I am not moving." I told him he might be all taken care of but we were not yet taken care of; and that we could not remain on that T-dock.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill and Dan visited the marina office and soon Sunquest was moved to another slip which could accommodate that smaller boat. Do not need an engine to move a boat; lines and dinghies can do that just fine. Now that guy really was 'taken care of.' And so was BeBe.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dan was able to reverse BeBe into the assigned slip perfectly. Bill stayed with him, standing near the helm to talk him through the process. At one point the boat was reversing too rapidly and Bill moved the throttle from reverse to forward to stop the backward thrust or we might have hit the dock. Other than that one little issue, Dan docked in reverse just fine on this attempt. This process is something that becomes easier with practice and BeBe is still new to Dan and Lori. So docking and reversing in tight quarters is stressful for them, I'm sure. They will gain confidence with more experience and practice.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For our final night aboard BeBe, Dan and Lori hosted us for dinner at a nice restaurant. It was a pleasure to enjoy a fine meal in a nice restaurant; a true treat for us. Our flights home were uneventful. We arrived in Houston after 1 a.m. and had booked a room at the Marriott right there in the airport. We had rented a small SUV to handle moving all those duffle bags to our home in Galveston; ended up making several trips transporting as many things as possible the following day; then that long drive back up through the city out to the airport in order to turn in that rental vehicle. Shame they do not let people rent vehicles at IAH and return those vehicles to Hobby airport; that would have been much more convenient.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Adjusting back to land life is going to take awhile, I think. As I have stated to several people who have asked about this, we are returning to a different country than the one we left 11 years ago. It was time for us to stop living on the boat because my hip has become too painful and movement limitations were difficult in that marine environment. I ran across this quote from a State Department employee recently fired by new President Trump and it sums up my feelings about giving up our cruising life. Tom Countryman served the nation for 35 years and at the time of his discharge he was the Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation. He was in Amman, Jordan, booked to fly to an international meeting on nuclear arms control when he received notice of his discharge and orders to turn around and fly back home. At his retirement gathering, he stated:<br /><br /><i>""I leave you with one last thought, from one of my favorite philosophers. If you've never read him, or not for many years, I urge you to take the time now. His name is:....Winnie the Pooh.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>And he said:</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>"<b><span style="font-size: large;">How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.</span></b>"</i>"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><u>Please note a new blog tab titled "Next Step (new)"</u></span><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKpByiJN0ODeYRizoaZq_DQn6F3CQ36R6yrVEWqWVzAsNY4KlvXyvd7o6xM0COjiamzaLs4ebx4n1LNa4Soe-ixY_gL-fC02znrIpntck7r29FFHcttAPeZQX5dvQQqVLR8E5KeyYxwdU/s1600/2017-01-27+final+photo+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKpByiJN0ODeYRizoaZq_DQn6F3CQ36R6yrVEWqWVzAsNY4KlvXyvd7o6xM0COjiamzaLs4ebx4n1LNa4Soe-ixY_gL-fC02znrIpntck7r29FFHcttAPeZQX5dvQQqVLR8E5KeyYxwdU/s640/2017-01-27+final+photo+2.JPG" width="627" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill & Judy stepping off BeBe for the final time, with lots of luggage for the flights home. (So sad!) <br /><b>It has been a fabulous 11 years!</b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-65985309520871819762017-01-12T13:44:00.001+00:002017-01-28T01:40:05.080+00:00Old Year's Night <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is called New Year's Eve all over the world but in the BVI and sometimes in the USVI this night is observed as Old Year's Night. This year we enjoyed an impromptu mini-celebration aboard BeBe with 'new' cruisers John and Cat Fearnow, owners of catamaran Heaven, to raise a toast to the end of 2016 and welcome in 2017. True to cruiser form, our celebration ended well before midnight. But we did share a bottle of Moet & Chandon, followed by a steak dinner. As always, enjoying the conversation made the evening. Glad they joined us.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYSQ2_giIefERfSSR4uCpCdgJ4SowV4Kl1kELptiGG6ckTDilobUbBZEZdfXanYugh9SHZtHW49XzxQkDMxTdvE_lm0D4I66iHLuuDKaTpZ_RgMMi5YI5TW9aQ0LNZzLSzoIN3xEFvPs8/s1600/2017-01-06+fenders+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYSQ2_giIefERfSSR4uCpCdgJ4SowV4Kl1kELptiGG6ckTDilobUbBZEZdfXanYugh9SHZtHW49XzxQkDMxTdvE_lm0D4I66iHLuuDKaTpZ_RgMMi5YI5TW9aQ0LNZzLSzoIN3xEFvPs8/s320/2017-01-06+fenders+%25282%2529.JPG" width="298" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How the fender covers used to look</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Recently while moored in Soper's Hole at West End of Tortola we rented a car for a day. Having a rental car allowed us to visit a few very old friends at The Moorings and Sunsail base in Road Town. We very much enjoyed chatting with them and also enjoyed a delicious lunch at the restaurant there. The base has changed a lot since Sunsail was moved to the same location as The Moorings, and their secondary charter company Footloose vacated the area to allow more expansion room for Sunsail. And The Moorings has expanded by addition of 2 more long docks toward a newer seawall. The staff have their hands full maintaining operation of both these charter company brands. Quite the fleets! And the director of operations told us they still had 40 more boats laid up in the hurricane hole area because have no space for them at the docks. It appears that the lower valuation of both the British Pound and the Euro has greatly affected the charter business this high season, as there are fewer boats out on charter at a time of year when both Sunsail and Moorings are often fully-booked. This portends of bad financial news for all the businesses in the BVI and somewhat in the USVI.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXa4ksAhJvb35Cv4_IfvfHbMzUGKICUDzJ7cS9IFXcfTjUTRcOX0nSdJObps9wXwH-T2b-MBImE6-BkNDX0Fhejk6LwBCL7p9xpRMziEu9fcC7cd3D7YM1yGACvr0SViF-ykyyCcazRlQ/s1600/2017-01-06+fenders+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="257" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXa4ksAhJvb35Cv4_IfvfHbMzUGKICUDzJ7cS9IFXcfTjUTRcOX0nSdJObps9wXwH-T2b-MBImE6-BkNDX0Fhejk6LwBCL7p9xpRMziEu9fcC7cd3D7YM1yGACvr0SViF-ykyyCcazRlQ/s320/2017-01-06+fenders+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How the fender covers look today. Terribly chewed up<br />by the docks at the marina</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While exiting Road Town to drive back to Soper's Hole we picked up a couple of hitch-hikers. We could tell they were cruisers (we are all easily identifiable by our well-worn and very casual clothing), so had no qualms about giving a ride to these strangers. Turns out they were Canadians who had planned to be in St. Martin by now but due to the high easterly winds they were 'stuck' in the BVI. They had to go into Road Town to request visa extensions. We were happy to help them out with a ride back to West End. But they would have to wait while we stopped at the Island Department Store to shop for duffle bags. Turns out they were not familiar with this store and were as delighted as we were to discover it. Wish we had known about this department store years ago as it sold things not found anywhere else in the BVI. Including the duffle bags we had just about given up hope of finding.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We dropped the 2 cruisers off near the dinghy dock next to Customs and Immigration in West End and on the spur-of-the-moment decided to see where another road might lead us. This very narrow road led us up the mountain, where near the top the road deteriorated horribly. The rental vehicle was a small SUV, thank goodness; so it was able to navigate the very rough terrain. The road was washed out in many places; very steep inclines; and very narrow. We did not encounter any other vehicles until near the sea level on the northern side of the mountain. We were on a search for the hotel where we stayed in January 1984 after a week sail on the Windjammer ship named Flying Cloud. And we found it!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It still amazes me that I booked us into small hotel so off the beaten track. This was during the pre-internet days! However did I find out about Sebastian's on the Beach! It is a small and very casual beach hotel situated on Apple Bay and pretty isolated. Bill was working himself to death that year and I wanted to give him a couple of weeks away from everything. These were the days before fax machines and cell phones and I wanted him to have a break from all things job related. So I booked us for a week aboard the Flying Cloud, followed by a week at this small isolated beach hotel. Turned out to be a great choice.<br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1m69GGresk" target="_blank">Sebastian's on the Beach</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I did not want to turn around and return via the awful road back over that mountain, so we continued onward toward Cane Garden Bay. Which is another place for which we have many wonderful memories from many visits spanning over 30 years. And it looked like really nothing has changed. That famous tire swing on the beach was lost years ago...but has been replaced by another tire swing on another leaning palm tree on a different place on the beach. Myett's is still Myett's. And Callwood Rum is the same as it has always been. The beautiful cute little 5-year-old girl who gave us such a detailed tour of the distillery is now a grown woman with children of her own. But the family distillery is same as ever.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdOhx8jnpY9eoRbAUMLARws50deWsULE53JDF1sUTGBSotGureUZL92hfl7GvMTurzHG4TSEy7TfEG0NNy6MSiSv6zsZw51wrHxtuuEOLXiS0ijxqe2fpjJtcd8tI0-bViUJlOzxALx0s/s1600/2017-01-03+cleaning+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdOhx8jnpY9eoRbAUMLARws50deWsULE53JDF1sUTGBSotGureUZL92hfl7GvMTurzHG4TSEy7TfEG0NNy6MSiSv6zsZw51wrHxtuuEOLXiS0ijxqe2fpjJtcd8tI0-bViUJlOzxALx0s/s320/2017-01-03+cleaning+%25283%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Once a year we remove the microwave and clean<br />behind it. Today was the day.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We drove onward, back up over the tallest mountain on Tortola (on a much better road this direction!), and back down the mountain, ending up back on the same road just west of Road Town where we had picked up the hitchhiker's earlier in the afternoon. From there we again headed west and stopped off in Nanny Cay to check out Cay Electronics to discuss that B&G wind instrument which continued to give us grief intermittently. That turned out to be a wasted effort as Cay Electronics was booked and referred us back to the same riggers we had already contacted. Astounds us that hiring someone can be so difficult! (Turned out to be for the best.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We had just enough time to fill-up the gas tank and return the car before the rental agency office closed for the day. This had been a very enjoyable day roaming around the island. Sorry, no photos because I forgot to bring my camera. Bill was busy driving and I do not use his cell phone for photos.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It was time to replace a few of our batteries. We had bought 6 batteries in Montenegro which were dual-purpose batteries rather than the marine variety which were not available in that country. We bought what we could get knowing these would not last as long as the proper marine batteries. These lasted 2 1/2 years so we were not disappointed in their performance. Two of the 6 had developed internal shorts; so we planned to replace all 6. The 6 marine batteries which we had purchased earlier in Turkey were still perfectly good. Bill notified the buyers of BeBe about the battery situation and the new owner asked us to replace all 13 batteries so he could start fresh and he would pay 1/2 the cost. The 13 batteries had been ordered a few weeks earlier and were ready for delivery, so we took the boat into American Yacht Harbor for a night.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill and I are too old now to deal with lifting 13 batteries up out of the battery compartment, up the companionway steps, over the cockpit seats, over the life rail and down to the dock. Each battery weighs nearly 100-lbs. That means 1300 pounds up and 1300 pounds down! We have done this ourselves but this time we paid 2 younger and muscular men to handle this heavy lifting. In the heat of the Caribbean. They were both dripping sweat with every movement. But the delivery went smoothly and they carted off the old batteries. A job well done! We stayed at the dock overnight to allow the new batteries to fully charge to float.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While in the marina we enjoyed dinner ashore as a rare treat. Next morning we shopped Moe's Supermarket and stocked up a bit. This market is better than I remembered it. Now stocks just about everything one might want. High prices, of course, but at least they have whatever you need or want as long as willing to fork over that price. The only negative about our 1-night stay at the AYH marina is that the docks are badly in need of repair and literally ate up our fender covers. This now is an IGY marina and certain standards are expected and should be met. Those docks are sadly in need of repair or replacement.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Og1bDsoejRmgVDnaOjBfXOMzGgzl0JuXYWM-zfc1fcuObJkxbYzIefDi_G_mkHpVFMwbo2raMY9CEBlDborz-DwJ80VHwLJvzppFj5xUk06W_YneWtOh6L5hShxd_MQjXva50zV62oI/s1600/2017-01-02+40-ft+Nordhavn.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7Og1bDsoejRmgVDnaOjBfXOMzGgzl0JuXYWM-zfc1fcuObJkxbYzIefDi_G_mkHpVFMwbo2raMY9CEBlDborz-DwJ80VHwLJvzppFj5xUk06W_YneWtOh6L5hShxd_MQjXva50zV62oI/s320/2017-01-02+40-ft+Nordhavn.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Judy fell in love with this 40-ft Nordhavn moored next<br />to us for a few days in Francis Bay.<br />(No; we are not seriously in the market for another boat.)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Back on a mooring in calm Francis Bay Bill went back up the mast several more times. I think the wind instrument finally is working correctly once again. Bill realized that each time it reported erratic readings was shortly after a heavy downpour; thus, he deduced that it was getting water intrusion somehow. Sure enough, the sensor was missing a tiny 'spacer' between 2 gaskets. Just enough to allow a few drops of water when winds blew heavy rain. The darn spacer could not have been more than 1/64th inch wide! Bill fixed that little problem and (fingers crossed!!) the wind instrument has worked fine ever since -- even after heavy rains.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last evening our friends Pam and Larry Shelton aboard Southern Girl arrived back in Francis Bay. They and their guests visited us for a few hours for sundowners aboard BeBe and we enjoyed ch</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">atting. Their friends also are ex-boaters; they sold their boat last year and talk about it as if they still owned it. Hard to make that adjustment to no longer owning a beloved boat. I can relate; giving up BeBe is going to be a MAJOR adjustment for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Southern Girl left the bay this morning. There are 2 other Texas boats in USVI right now and we hope to catch up with them soon -- Dos Libras and Adventurous Us 2. We returned to American Yacht Harbor on today. The new owners of BeBe arrive this evening and we decided being docked in a marina would make transfer of lots of luggage easier. We will enjoy sailing with the new owners until January 27. The first week, however, might be a bit too rough as a major cold front passes through and is predicted to cause high winds and large swell for almost a full week.</span>CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-84824318836816020982016-12-29T21:39:00.000+00:002016-12-29T21:46:34.540+00:00Final Christmas aboard S/V BeBe<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwGt0kVL7moxsf6_xvYehDlmG4m_4Nx4scViJlZtLbclieK3pWODOf1fTI2Xa2qM4EZN0qAV1UxClnAljcIdB4IKHtikJHGr4VRUktzkTIVaXRebgL-8hFy8mrDCEQILjjdeJ0Ssj_4Ss/s1600/2016-12-05+Francis+Bay+sunset+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwGt0kVL7moxsf6_xvYehDlmG4m_4Nx4scViJlZtLbclieK3pWODOf1fTI2Xa2qM4EZN0qAV1UxClnAljcIdB4IKHtikJHGr4VRUktzkTIVaXRebgL-8hFy8mrDCEQILjjdeJ0Ssj_4Ss/s320/2016-12-05+Francis+Bay+sunset+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sunset viewed from Francis Bay</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Christmas day was an ultra-quiet celebration for us this year. Ten years ago we spent Christmas day anchored in nearby Christmas Cove on the eastern side of Great St. James Island. There, we enjoyed watching boats come and go all day as Christmas Cove is sort of the traditional place to spend Christmas day in the USVI. This year neither of us felt the urge to go the short distance there -- and then have to deal with coming straight back into the wind to return to Francis Bay. And we have come to really enjoy being in Francis Bay on St. John. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRSTn2MJb4Rd4WIHoPKoCOX3LRaHQnR-4Ymdmx-EfNk_ha3gRjdpDd_U8jZjTF5TV2UA4dkQWjr1TkufAXwxcIIcc7qFYImWvMBQOgXUeFBjbPm_a6IE7Sb1o1sstG1QWc3UvWfQ_bwD0/s1600/2016-12-24+Foxy+and+Judy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRSTn2MJb4Rd4WIHoPKoCOX3LRaHQnR-4Ymdmx-EfNk_ha3gRjdpDd_U8jZjTF5TV2UA4dkQWjr1TkufAXwxcIIcc7qFYImWvMBQOgXUeFBjbPm_a6IE7Sb1o1sstG1QWc3UvWfQ_bwD0/s320/2016-12-24+Foxy+and+Judy.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Foxy and Judy</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For a change of scenery a few days past we sailed up to Great Harbour on Jost Van Dyke. The first day there weather was lovely. On Christmas Eve day we went ashore for lunch at Foxy's -- a 'must do' anytime one stops at Jost. Foxy chatted with us and bought us a drink on the house to honor our having sailed around the world since last seeing him. Foxy told us that when his youngest daughter graduated from university that he wanted to give her a trip around the world in 80 days -- as the classic Jules Verne book was entitled. But he found that this was not possible. Instead, his daughter and her mom enjoyed a trip around the world in 90 days. A fabulous graduation gift! </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZQtD1S6lmGPaBcqWmYMYOdvzv-FodWD9DNOvzW5ryjvCfs8PmPUlPqjaAZgsvON4vGsJN8wOMDPHpKVclQucjE3aalL2Daevg5rGpBBS5ViPGw96XTaHcuiyNUjKvZeHseIuOV8CoNBI/s1600/2016-12-08+Francis+Bay+charter+boat+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZQtD1S6lmGPaBcqWmYMYOdvzv-FodWD9DNOvzW5ryjvCfs8PmPUlPqjaAZgsvON4vGsJN8wOMDPHpKVclQucjE3aalL2Daevg5rGpBBS5ViPGw96XTaHcuiyNUjKvZeHseIuOV8CoNBI/s320/2016-12-08+Francis+Bay+charter+boat+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A charter boat moored next to us. The guy<br />would lay in that swan & drink beer.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, years ago we chatted with Foxy's wife one day while Foxy was singing and joking with the band. She told us Foxy had no idea how much money he has; money means very little to him. That sure appeared to be the case as we watched him and saw how much he enjoyed telling stories to the audience and singing with the band while sipping rum in his world-famous beach bar and restaurant. Mama was the money person. Thanks mostly to her, each of their children has graduated from Ivy League universities in the USA. We did not see her this time and I was hesitant to inquire because feared she might have passed away. After all, they are getting up in years! I hope she is well and that we just missed seeing her that particular day. Foxy remains as always, full of life and joy, and completely unpretentious, while being one of the wealthiest (if not THE wealthiest) person in the British Virgin Islands.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ewgvSOUvEhe99Q2t7gdj3IuDDKi8nd81TgULPFjf4DbftrLLIxSEgNcYjQzH2ufV4mJg5Mr3RAqADMbdX_HGexPBKoz1GsVomVvxrE5Ckh44TQtOAn9pCn-8VzkxeizZHUA2VCrSSik/s1600/2016-12-15+Tortola+Steele+Point+house+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ewgvSOUvEhe99Q2t7gdj3IuDDKi8nd81TgULPFjf4DbftrLLIxSEgNcYjQzH2ufV4mJg5Mr3RAqADMbdX_HGexPBKoz1GsVomVvxrE5Ckh44TQtOAn9pCn-8VzkxeizZHUA2VCrSSik/s320/2016-12-15+Tortola+Steele+Point+house+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A house called Steele Point. My favorite house<br />in the BVI. Looks like they have added onto it.<br />It is located on NW tip of Soper's Hole and is<br />available to rent for a nice relaxing vacation.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Within minutes of returning to the boat after lunch Bill decided it was just too rough to remain in Great Harbour. He went back ashore to clear out, but found the officials were out to lunch and about 20 people waiting in the office to clear out. We upped anchor and motor-sailed over to Soper's Hole and cleared out there. That was faster than waiting for the officials to return in Jost and then waiting our turn in queue. Winds were solid over 20 knots and forecast to go higher and remain high for days. Francis Bay on St. John was looking better and better by the minute. That bay provides the best shelter from NE winds and swell. We were back on 'our' mooring before 4 pm. Next to us was S/V Allegro with Lee and Sharon aboard; this was the boat moored next to BeBe for the final 2 or 3 weeks in Trinidad. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtD1NNBXLwl_q4LVPQkKgLS8cd0NsEumlIPCU9EYivP-4GGwsGBh06k39GERCbvJ6afBtze1m9Xg33f19RAu2F4Wz1bD0TH_bJ-GGgTNP4sbc4nNUlrqEAmHh3BRdTuyV1cO-U8ZsI1hk/s1600/2016-12-24+Francis+Bay+Xmas+carolers+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtD1NNBXLwl_q4LVPQkKgLS8cd0NsEumlIPCU9EYivP-4GGwsGBh06k39GERCbvJ6afBtze1m9Xg33f19RAu2F4Wz1bD0TH_bJ-GGgTNP4sbc4nNUlrqEAmHh3BRdTuyV1cO-U8ZsI1hk/s200/2016-12-24+Francis+Bay+Xmas+carolers+%25283%2529.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Christmas carolers</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Just before dark several dinghies arrived at the stern of BeBe singing Christmas carols. These folks were Salty Dawgs. I do not know if they arrived in the Virgins with the Salty Dawg rally from mainland USA or if they arrived with the Salty Dawg North rally which sailed up from Bequia. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVcIH3WDjicLykA67rosE1PlFRghTwXPUQ7xcCf2OjjNlleH8Xx5OcJWYd4Cc6R-lDJN-9oSeDez-hr6Qdt_ILFkO9xN3CCf2fcfnCus8r69xpfq-P4Ey_gQvIZXdWGrXyIccwZTP6nMI/s1600/2016-12-24+Francis+Bay+Xmas+carolers+%25285%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVcIH3WDjicLykA67rosE1PlFRghTwXPUQ7xcCf2OjjNlleH8Xx5OcJWYd4Cc6R-lDJN-9oSeDez-hr6Qdt_ILFkO9xN3CCf2fcfnCus8r69xpfq-P4Ey_gQvIZXdWGrXyIccwZTP6nMI/s320/2016-12-24+Francis+Bay+Xmas+carolers+%25285%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Christmas carolers</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That rally was in Bequia when we stopped there on our way north, but we moved on and did not attend their party. This was the first time we had heard of the northbound Salty Dawgs. I do not know if this is an annual organized event or if people who had participated in the southbound Salty Dawg rally the previous year got together and sailed north in an unofficial group. The Christmas carolers visited all the boats moored in Francis Bay on this Christmas Eve; then they gathered on one of the boats to party. They invited us to join them but I did not want to intrude on their party since we knew none of the folks except Lee and Sharon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The wind instrument which we thought again was working properly has continued to give us grief. Intermittently the readings go very low, indicating like 2 knots of wind when we know it is more like 20 knots. Most of the time it appears to be accurate but every once and awhile it indicates low readings. Bill has been to the top of the mast to work on this 6 or 7 times already. We now have 2 complete masthead units and each exhibits this identical intermittent low reading problem. We have a new mount with attached cable and want to have that installed. Since this is installed with 4 stainless steel bolts into the aluminum mast, we are positive that the 14-year-old bolts up there are seized. So it is time for a professional to do this replacement! Both BVI riggers we have contacted are booked solid until after 1 January, as is the B&G distributor. We are on the 'call list' for all of them and will give the job to whomever can get to it first. I find it difficult to understand that hiring someone for this job is so hard!! We would like to have the wind instrument in proper working order before the new owners arrive 11 January, but it looks like that will not happen. The rigger we spoke with in St. Thomas said he cannot get to this job until 26 January!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Today we went into American Yacht Harbor in Red Hook bay on St. Thomas to have batteries delivered and installed. It was that time again! Only 3 batteries actually tested bad; the other 9 house bank batteries still tested fine. We were going to replace the 6 batteries that we bought in Montenegro since 3 of those are bad, and we were going to leave the 6 purchased in Turkey because all those are still fine. But the purchasers of BeBe wanted us to replace all of them (including the starting battery, which also still tests fine) and they will split the cost with us. We ordered the 13 batteries a couple of weeks ago and the shipment arrived in St. Thomas yesterday. Each battery weighs nearly 100 pounds. That would be 1300 pounds lifted up out of the battery compartment; moved up the companionway steps into the cockpit; moved up over the cockpit seats to the deck level; lifted up over the life rail and then down onto the dock. And then another 1300 pounds reversing all those steps! Bill and I have done this job ourselves in the past but decided we are too old to do such physical work anymore. Don't get me wrong -- we could do it -- but we would ache for days afterward! Time to pay someone else with stronger backs and more flexible legs for this heavy work. Batteries were delivered right on schedule and all tested fine. All installed and are charging as I type this blog posting.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We are spending the night at this marina. Not sure where going tomorrow. What you want to bet we end up right back in Francis Bay again?</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A bright rainbow very close to our boat in Francis Bay on St. John, USVI.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-75713414815433889342016-12-06T18:56:00.000+00:002017-02-18T18:24:50.783+00:00Martinique to USVI<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Sailing up
the island chain is now somewhat of a blur in memory; so much so that I must
refer to our log book to remember where and when.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We arrived at
Marina du Marin in Martinique on Thursday, 10 November 2016, and took a
mooring, hoping to be there only 1 day so we could pick up a new propane gas
solenoid from the Amel service center located in Le Marin. The solenoid had failed on our final day in
St. Lucia while I was baking muffins.
Gas supply shut down when the solenoid failed. Bill found a union fixture at a local
chandlery and installed that as a temporary fix. The only solenoids available locally and
online were the cheap kind and we wanted to replace it with exactly the same
kind as original. This is a German
produced solenoid and costs about 6 times the price of the typical cheap
versions used in most boats. Bill
telephoned Amel in Le Marin and learned they had 1 in stock, so we sailed up
there. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rigger in Martinique replacing forward port shroud</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">That was
quickly completed and we were ready to head off again when received an email
from the buyers of BeBe stating that they would like to have a rigging
inspection performed while we were there at the Amel service center. There is a rigger nearby who is recommended
by Amel. The following day was a holiday
but the rigger agreed to do the inspection then rather than make us hang around
until the following week. Next morning 2
riggers arrived shortly after 09:00 and 1 of them quickly was up the mast. Inspection took less than half-hour. The port side forward baby shroud had 2 tiny
spots of discoloration near the upper swage.
The rigger said these 2 tiny discolorations could be an indication that
2 of the 19 twisted wires might be broken inside the shroud. The rigger looked shocked when Bill
immediately told him to replace the shroud.
Bill figured might as well replace it now while at a place recommended
by Amel – why take a chance; if there is
any possibility of a problem with a piece of the rigging, then replace it
immediately. We moved the boat over next
to the rigger’s office and work facility and within 2 hours the shroud was
replaced and we were motoring out of Le Marin.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">It was too
late in the day to go anywhere so we anchored at St. Anne’s once again. Ended up staying there a few days before
sailing 26.5 NM up to St. Pierre, where we anchored only overnight
(rolly!! & tight spaces!!). At 05:30 the next morning anchor was up and
we were motoring out of St. Pierre in the dark.
This turned into a very lively day of sailing. Forecast was for 12-15 knots wind from 110
degrees but we never saw that. Actual
experience was solid 25 knots minimum, mostly 30, with gusts to40 knots – from
40 degrees to 80 degrees! Forget that
downwind sailing we were expecting. Wind
was on beam or slightly forward of the beam all day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Strange clouds at sea</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">As we sailed
well westward in the lee of Dominica the wind dropped to comfortable levels,
but jumped right back up to ‘a bit too strong’ as we crossed the channel to Ile
des Saintes. About half-way across that
channel is when the top half of our wind instrument blew away. We still had apparent wind speed, but no wind
direction. No more TWS, TWA, AWA; just
apparent speed. Bill tied 2 long plastic
strips on the aft mainmast shrouds on port and starboard and those little
tell-tails acted as our means of telling apparent wind direction. Back to the basics!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">More strange clouds at sea</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We entered
via the southwest cut into Ile des Saintes – and would never do that
again!! We had motored through this cut
years ago with no problems, but today both the southwest and southeast cuts are
filled with literally hundreds of fish traps.
This could be a real mess if attempted during darkness or during rain
when could not see the floats to maneuver around and between all those fish
traps. I was very glad to put those
behind us!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Where we used
to anchor near the town of Terre Haut is now all filled with moorings, so we
picked up a mooring. Ended up staying
there exactly 1 week. This is by far our
favorite island in all of the Caribbean.
We first visited Ile des Saintes way back in 1984 when took a Windjammer
cruise aboard the Mandalay from Antiqua to Grenada. It was like a tiny piece of Brittany placed on a Caribbean island. We were impressed by the
women outside washing their stoops and doorways in the mornings. The structures
might be meager but the owners took pride in their homes and kept everything
very clean. Those days are gone; the
next generation living there today no longer go to the trouble of washing their
stoops and steps and doorways each morning.
A little sad to see this change.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwJy0rGc4o2Yf1x8jQSUFI7WUGBWWlJarN2yWwTJNttyOF3FigWXAbIi9ot0gexq12c2eXLVzfdsvQfRcEICw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Bill went up
the mast to assess the damage to our wind instrument. He ended up going up that mast 3 times and
it still was not repaired. That would happen later.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Bill posted
on the Amel Yacht Owners Group and on the Amel Owners FB Group about the parts
we needed. Lo and behold, several people
who have upgraded to newer electronics offered up their old units for spare
parts. Pat and Diane on S/V Shenanigans
shipped exactly what we needed to Connections in St. John, USVI. We are very grateful to them! Connections is a mailing and shipping service
in Cruz Bay which we used when we moved aboard BeBe in 2006. Great service and reasonably priced. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Also while in
Ile des Saintes there was a chance meeting with another Amel owner. Derrick Gates on S/V Brava, along with crew
members Doug, Roger and Gracie, arrived and moored nearby for a couple of days.
It was a pleasure meeting them. Derrick treated us to delicious dinner at a
lovely little garden restaurant; the French do know how to cook! Derrick has followed our blog and
conversation was fun because he already knew so many of the places and experiences
that Bill and I have enjoyed over the years.
This was a very enjoyable evening for many reasons – companionship,
conversation, food, discussion with fellow Amel owners. One of Derrick’s crew members also owns an
Amel; I believe he said in Maine; and Gracie is his chef. We enjoyed drinks and snacks aboard Brava
before going ashore for dinner and I can attest to Gracie’s skills as a
chef. She produced some small fish cakes
accompanied by a pickled lettuce garnish which tasted fabulous. Thank you again for a lovely evening,
Derrick!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxymAwo34aplj6Yf0fuIxfCrBeRBE3O0_oOc4P0yTenOyNNG-yFV4iZkuMqUNoQgfEWbabHis-iuhl4c3aPMcxUNtw7kghhTz1eNLkTjXIs5YujLz_Du7G-Z7DgGmMo-I-sAwQhaz4f4E/s1600/2016-11-21+Guadeloupe--Deshaies.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxymAwo34aplj6Yf0fuIxfCrBeRBE3O0_oOc4P0yTenOyNNG-yFV4iZkuMqUNoQgfEWbabHis-iuhl4c3aPMcxUNtw7kghhTz1eNLkTjXIs5YujLz_Du7G-Z7DgGmMo-I-sAwQhaz4f4E/s320/2016-11-21+Guadeloupe--Deshaies.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Deshaies, Guadeloupe</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Next leg of
our island-hopping north was 35 NM up to Deshaies, Guadeloupe. Once again, there were many fish traps
encountered going out the northwest cut from Ile des Saintes. If we were entering or exiting Terre Haut again,
we would opt to go the extra distance and use only the northeast cut. That is where all the ferries to and from
Guadeloupe enter and exit and there appeared to be no fish traps hampering that
route. We arrived at Deshaies at 15:30
and the anchorage was pretty filled. All
the moorings were taken, plus there were 18 boats anchored outside the
moorings. And boats were pointed in
every direction because the wind swirls through this bay due to the
surrounding high mountains on 3 sides.
We dropped anchor pretty much in the middle of the bay in 9.9 meters
depth and could let out only 46 meters of chain. The bay was too congested to allow more
scope. Turned out not to be a problem;
holding was excellent.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH5qZOvNj6FNZgLCv-LhtLO1cU9E9dq5gwA4gJuoNe1-QEDBECpCdUnsCSRui551F71o7HaWTKvFHSEjEwoqGIRZvZ2kQJysPRn1yGTv5I8helOdyOCelIsnfukP7jgd0iTgXl4-uezG8/s1600/2016-11-22+Montserrat+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH5qZOvNj6FNZgLCv-LhtLO1cU9E9dq5gwA4gJuoNe1-QEDBECpCdUnsCSRui551F71o7HaWTKvFHSEjEwoqGIRZvZ2kQJysPRn1yGTv5I8helOdyOCelIsnfukP7jgd0iTgXl4-uezG8/s400/2016-11-22+Montserrat+%25282%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Montserrat. The light areas are the ash flow that covered the major<br />town of Plymouth when the volcano erupted not so many years ago.<br />Not a single person died as they were evacuated to the northern tip<br />of the island. The volcano remains active.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">At 05:15
anchor was up and we were motoring out of the bay. An ‘Oh-Dark-Thirty’ beginning once
again. It was a black pre-dawn exit with
no problems. This day would be 78 NM to
St. Kitts. We motor-sailed or sailed 75%
and motored 25% of the distance. Our
course was basically 320 degrees and wind 20 knots at 120-150 degrees apparent
and 2.5 meter seas, which meant jib poled to port and plenty of rolling all day
long. This time we skipped Montserrat,
going up the western side well off shore to avoid any volcanic ash in the
breeze. We have seen boats really messed
up by that volcanic ash. It is so acidic
and destroys gel coat on boats. Normally
we have gone on the eastern windward side of this island but this time we
decided to chance the western leeward side as that was better direction for our
desired route. Thankfully, the volcano
was not burping that day and we slipped past with no ash landing on BeBe.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigFnbfCrsK-ZTGssWD53KWGtMqzMShyeT6RCp0PQjLxbcercdUOEf9dP7IFU19RUoytOrupf2rRcpjY-O25OXZw9ng_eZRENWVpIT0qGdvoioCZKhTcWylybgWIQZa4WafoG6zyQeeAT4/s1600/2016-11-22+Nevis+arrival--long+point+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigFnbfCrsK-ZTGssWD53KWGtMqzMShyeT6RCp0PQjLxbcercdUOEf9dP7IFU19RUoytOrupf2rRcpjY-O25OXZw9ng_eZRENWVpIT0qGdvoioCZKhTcWylybgWIQZa4WafoG6zyQeeAT4/s320/2016-11-22+Nevis+arrival--long+point+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sometimes what you see is not what is real. This<br />is called Long Point and it does look like a long<br />point protruding from the SW tip of Nevis.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">As we
approached Nevis and St. Kitts squalls were building. I checked our log book and noted where we had
anchored when last here in 2006. We
headed toward that waypoint in Ballast Bay as a squall rolled through. I was very thankful to have that waypoint;
knew if we safely went there 10 ½ years ago then we should be safe returning
there today – even though we could see nothing past 25-feet around our
boat. We dropped anchor and put up the
yellow Q flag. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVSHxDiODwJJCOG8ERqpzX-S1Dk8zc9UmQGZt1KhsiXddhfR_J7eeWDKptxUhmgi8IQzVK_Shd98KhJSeJ1185Gusw1haDlq6qDCYWBpFOCSQhQc5V1iALLTW3NWGyy4UnLfQdiJusLFw/s1600/2016-11-22+Nevis+arrival--long+point+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVSHxDiODwJJCOG8ERqpzX-S1Dk8zc9UmQGZt1KhsiXddhfR_J7eeWDKptxUhmgi8IQzVK_Shd98KhJSeJ1185Gusw1haDlq6qDCYWBpFOCSQhQc5V1iALLTW3NWGyy4UnLfQdiJusLFw/s320/2016-11-22+Nevis+arrival--long+point+%25283%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And do you see any Long Point protrusion from the<br />SW tip of this island? Nevis is basically a round<br />island. But the topography is such that the SW<br />tip does appear to be a long point jutting out<br />into the sea. An optical illusion. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The following morning we
motored out of Ballast Bay just before 10:00 and almost instantly a large rib
zoomed up beside us filled with Dutch marines and a guy who worked for St.
Kitts (coast guard?). We slowed and
several of them boarded BeBe. They did
not even do a cursory inspection; 3 of the Dutch marines stood on the deck
while the St. Kitts guy sat in the cockpit and filled out a form, just the
basic information and basic safety equipment verification. He asked to see 2 lifejackets and the flares
and confirmed we had VHF and HF radios.
Everyone was very friendly and within 10 minutes they departed and we
continued motoring away from St. Kitts.
In all our years of boating this was the 2<sup>nd</sup> time we have
been boarded. Coincidentally, the only
other time BeBe has been boarded also was by the Dutch – in Curacao in August
or September 2007. That time they searched the entire boat; this time was just questions.
Each time everyone was very professional.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKp_lHF0YbzUldPeAichVrQ5lUzE2nYz8V4oj4UNCuMtF_3nomI-O_NICH-s2Ua8X-fPaVp0AByX_TLgahJG3zDCaxfCk9tRilBVYQBH85bcaZcTuAtGgLzK5yGrYEM-qje5jCd3UeHkI/s1600/2016-11-23+St.+Kitts+fort+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKp_lHF0YbzUldPeAichVrQ5lUzE2nYz8V4oj4UNCuMtF_3nomI-O_NICH-s2Ua8X-fPaVp0AByX_TLgahJG3zDCaxfCk9tRilBVYQBH85bcaZcTuAtGgLzK5yGrYEM-qje5jCd3UeHkI/s400/2016-11-23+St.+Kitts+fort+%25281%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">St. Kitts. A fort on top of the small hill by the sea</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The sail from
St. Kitts to St. John was 146 NM and was very fast! Course once again was basically 320 degrees
with wind 20 knots from 80 degrees. This
placed jib poled to port and mizzen to port with preventer. The mizzen acts to reduce twist and roll in
the 2.5 meter confused seas; large swell from southwest and wind waves from
northeast. When in the lee of St. Kitts,
again in lee of Statia and again in lee of tiny Saba, the seas calmed and
sailing was very pleasant. Other than in
the lee of those 3 islands, seas were confused and uncomfortable. When Bill glanced down and saw we were doing
10 knots SOG he decided to reef that jib!
We continued under single reef until sometime during the night when boat
speed again crept up to over 9 knots SOG and I put a second reef in the
jib. Still our boat speed was faster
than I prefer. We sailed 146 NM is 20
hours – averaging 7.3 knots SOG. And
that includes the time for the Dutch marines boarding and the time motoring
through the channel at St. John and finding a mooring at Caneel Bay. So the sailing average SOG probably was
greater than 8 knots. I prefer 6.5 knots
sailing speed. I do not like fast
sailing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcBhwP8kXPAYOj1hLB7c3bwIpuNt9JkyDLMrXb2EC_BFVSyaSIcU32wbYIF2vZTiUFU_uV3MOwsMC719fKQEuyVSpzlstavCct-QcSrd8pYMexMpiItFmCB0oLaJk6C5WKHGoCzvghZCM/s1600/2016-11-23+St.+Kitts--Eos+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcBhwP8kXPAYOj1hLB7c3bwIpuNt9JkyDLMrXb2EC_BFVSyaSIcU32wbYIF2vZTiUFU_uV3MOwsMC719fKQEuyVSpzlstavCct-QcSrd8pYMexMpiItFmCB0oLaJk6C5WKHGoCzvghZCM/s400/2016-11-23+St.+Kitts--Eos+%25282%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">S/V Eos. We last saw this mega yacht in Ponce, Italy. A friend<br />worked as crew on this special yacht back then but now works on<br />another mega-motoryacht. Eos anchored near us in St. Kitts.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">This final
overnight sail was bittersweet. It marks
the ‘last time’ and in some ways I am happy about that and in other ways quite
sad about it. The ‘last time’ for
watching the bio-luminescence flow down the side of the boat at night. The ‘last time’ for my enjoyable solitude at
sea at night. The ‘last time’ to see the
sky laden with hundreds of thousands of stars, as only can be seen from sea
with no ambient lighting from nearby lands.
The ‘last time’ watching other vessels pass in the darkness. I will so very much miss these things and am
very grateful to have had these experiences.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dy__LNrI9j_n-toobU4GFghTKslqGLpd5fhWJfppjqi7P63AKKVSj35JxYBOlzMFeExEHpCzcV0J3_ck_RBqw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We picked up
a park mooring in Caneel Bay, St. John, before 07:00 on Thanksgiving Day. We rested a bit and then went into Customs
and Immigration in Cruz Bay to handle inbound clearance. While clearing in we learned that our LBO
(Local Boaters Option) cards which we had obtained in November 2006 are still
valid!!! The official said these LBO cards
are “pure gold” because these are much better than the current SVRS program. With the SVRS program vessels are supposed to
file float plans. With the LBO cards, we
merely need to telephone when we arrive in USVI or Spanish Virgins or Puerto
Rico. As long as we own this boat then
these LBO cards remain valid, although these are not available anymore.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="color: red; font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><b>Update: Effective 31 December 2016 all LBO information was purged from the systems. The only option today is the SVRS scheme. Biggest difference between the old LBO system and the SVRS system is that SVRS requires filing float plans online. Which can be difficult since cruising boats are not connected to the internet 24/7/365.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">That
afternoon I roasted the small piece of turkey which was purchased at Ile des
Saintes. Our Thanksgiving feast was
comprised of roast turkey, peas, mashed potatoes and gravy and followed by
pecan pie. The worst pecan pie I have
ever baked, but appreciated by both of us regardless. This was an impromptu Thanksgiving meal as we
had thought we would be at sea all day. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The following
morning we loaded 7 of the 10 boxes of books which I had packed back in
Trinidad and took these to the US Post Office in Cruz Bay. There we learned that for whatever reason
this particular post office location will not allow any shipments in boxes
which have names of liquor or beer or wine printed on the outside. The clerk said those alcohol boxes are the
strongest boxes but she is not allowed to accept these for shipment. She loaned me a black marker and I crossed
out those offending words on some of the boxes, but the Heineken boxes had the
word Heineken all over them. We took
these boxes down the street to Connections, where we purchased heavy brown
paper and packing tape and wrapped the boxes.
Then back to the post office and shipped them. We returned to the boat for the remaining 3
boxes and got those posted also. Got to
love the US Post Office right now! They
consider USVI as domestic postal rates and also allow media rate from here to
the mainland. We shipped 200 pounds of
books in 10 boxes for total cost of around $130. That is a deal!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">While at
Connections we picked up the package of wind instrument parts shipped from Pat
and Diane on S/V Shenanigans. They were
life savers! These parts are exactly
what we needed. Bill has
already tested everything and between what we had and what Shennigans gave us, it all works perfectly. If it works down here at deck level then it
should work when mounted at the top of the mast. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">All the
shipping taken care of that could be handled this day, we slipped the mooring
line and motored over to Francis Bay at the northeastern side of St. John. This bay brings back many memories of our
charter days with friends back in the 1980s and very early 1990s. The following day friends Pam and Larry
Shelton on S/V Southern Girl arrived from the BVI. It was great finally catching up with them
while on our respective boats. Pam is
one of those friends with whom we chartered back in the 80s and 90s. They headed off towards Puerto Rico the following morning, while Bill and I remained on this mooring for several more
days. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We have made a couple more trips to the post office to ship more boxes, each time returning to the same mooring in Francis Bay. Bill has installed the repaired wind instrument on top of the mast and all works perfectly once again. I am very glad this is so. It was more difficult than I imagined picking up a mooring pennant without knowing the exact direction of the wind. Once we had to make 3 attempts to pick up a mooring. That is shameful! We normally get it accomplished effortlessly on the first attempt.</span></div>
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-50485858167716424642016-11-11T13:14:00.001+00:002016-12-29T22:01:48.530+00:00Trinidad north to Martinique<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">On Tuesday, 2
November, we were up at 04:00 to begin the process of leaving the dock at Crews
Inn Marina in Trinidad. This marina does
not simply pro-rate the electricity for the final night docked as is common;
they want an actual meter reading when that power cord is unplugged. We, of course, wanted air-conditioning for
our final night at dock; hence, the extra early wake-up time. What’s an extra hour of sleep! Plus this provided the advantage of enjoying
our morning cups of coffee before the last-minute rush to depart. The hotel
desk is staffed 24/7. Bill had to awaken
the dock master so he could read our electric meter; the front desk clerk
prepared our final invoice; and at 05:00 we were finally ready to depart the
dock. We waited around for another 15
minutes until sky was light enough to see well in this crowded narrow bay. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">BeBe went
around the moored yachts rather than go through the middle of the mooring field
in the still somewhat darkness, then headed straight for the Bocas channel.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We were
sailing this day in company with 7 other northbound yachts. We all had filed float plans with Trinidad
officials with destination of Grenada.
No Venezuelan pirate worries this day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Weather was
great for the initial part of this passage.
Cloudy skies, but plenty of bright clear blue patches, about 15 knots
wind from SE on our starboard aft quarter, and positive current assisting us
with an extra 2 knots of SOG. BeBe
sailed and/or motor sailed for about 6 hours at over 8 knots SOG. We dropped a fishing line to trail once we had passed the Hibiscus gas platform. A couple of hours later that line sped out extremely fast! We had a bite and it must have been big! Within seconds the line snapped. Whatever it was had taken our newest and best lure -- what I call a treble treble. One that swims 10 to 15 feet below the surface and had 3 treble hooks. I prefer this type lure because, after all, the more hook barbs increases the likelihood of keeping the fish on the line until it gets gaffed and aboard BeBe. Goodbye best lure. No more fishing for us this day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">And then our pleasant passage all changed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We had been
watching the sky over Venezuela off to our SW all morning. The sky looked very strange – an odd
cloudless solid dark steel gray-blue.
Around mid-day the wind died to nothing; to pick up soon thereafter
coming from the SW! That is really
weird! The wind just never comes from
the west in the Caribbean except during storms with circular motion like
hurricanes. (Except for 1 day in
February; almost every year for 1 day in February west winds usually surprise
sailors at some point in the Eastern Caribbean.) In all our years of sailing in the Caribbean
we have never experienced westerly winds or southwesterly winds during
November. That weird inversion over
northern Venezuela caused some strange weather.
The SW winds stayed up for hours.
As we approached the SW tip of Grenada the winds switched to come from
the NE at 18 knots.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp2WjSvR2FKxPMy53GU1Ec3uIUkjzXC9RnaE5hsdZpARLhfZ9G8VL32DO7yTslmHkKH2fqWLD-nL3QV5Y4oMChYJbSe16Xt2WcKGXN9xguK0sy4HEZwh8ndmG-SVpyLNl9nYQVvL4R6r8/s1600/2016-11-13+Martinique-St.+Pierre+sunset.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp2WjSvR2FKxPMy53GU1Ec3uIUkjzXC9RnaE5hsdZpARLhfZ9G8VL32DO7yTslmHkKH2fqWLD-nL3QV5Y4oMChYJbSe16Xt2WcKGXN9xguK0sy4HEZwh8ndmG-SVpyLNl9nYQVvL4R6r8/s400/2016-11-13+Martinique-St.+Pierre+sunset.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another sunset</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">This was one
strange day of Caribbean sailing. We
changed sail configuration more frequently than ever has been needed in the
Caribbean on one day. We started off
with jib to port; then jib poled to port; then jib poled to starboard; then to
starboard without pole; then back to port as we beat into 18-knot headwinds and
2-knot adverse current for the final few hours.
We sailed 91 nautical miles, arriving in the St. George’s anchorage at
19:00 in pitch blackness -- no moon and no stars, with many strikes of lightning
off to the west. It was impossible to
see some of the boats as we slowly crept into the anchorage. Boat owners who use those garden lights have
no idea how poorly lit their boat appears as someone approaches an anchorage in
pitch-black darkness with the shore lights in background. When I suddenly saw a boat to our starboard
because it swung a bit and the shore lights displayed the motion of that dark
boat, I pleaded with Bill not to attempt to go any further. We dropped anchor at that point in 8 meters
depth and put out 55 meters chain. Ended
up being the boat farthest out in the anchorage and that was fine with me. The next day I saw that the boat which we
could not see at all in the darkness was painted a bright orange on port side
and dark blue on the starboard side. We
could see neither color at night and this boat did not display any form of
anchor light. It was pure luck that we
did not have a collision.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">This was not
a fun day of sailing. It was very tiring
and hot. Downwind sailing always is hot
because the boat is moving with the wind and you do not feel much, if any,
breeze. We were beat and too tired to
care about dinner. We each grabbed a
shower and felt good enough to share the last can of chili on the boat. (We are slowly eating our way through my
over-filled food lockers since will be selling the boat in a couple of months.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_5oaRpLvu9wedbRJOPK6nB2vq1slFyU9hTtBRpk8X5FBP-132ZYBdLu0A2TVfEmuzg66QHxupnaNq93SjBIpHQgziCLUKD-7WECUayqCFr1CBXDordDS2YNZpt4AoWVNAH2B1FX-gL30/s1600/2016-11-03+Grenada+dish+Hasan+and+Zehrya.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_5oaRpLvu9wedbRJOPK6nB2vq1slFyU9hTtBRpk8X5FBP-132ZYBdLu0A2TVfEmuzg66QHxupnaNq93SjBIpHQgziCLUKD-7WECUayqCFr1CBXDordDS2YNZpt4AoWVNAH2B1FX-gL30/s320/2016-11-03+Grenada+dish+Hasan+and+Zehrya.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A special gift from very special friends. We will<br />think of Hassan and Zeyhra (and little Carlos<br />Santana) every time we look at it.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The following
day we met up with Turkish friends Hasan and Zehrya on S/V KANDIBA. They had returned from a summer in Turkey only
the previous day and it was great catching up with them. They presented us with a small silver dish for
our home in Galveston. It is stamped
with the symbol of the Ottoman Empire as a remembrance. Hasan and Zehrya plan to head to the South
Pacific early next spring and it is very unlikely we will see one another
again. They hosted us for a delicious dinner
at a restaurant in the Port Louis Marina.
I enjoyed sautéed shrimp and leeks and it was cooked to perfection. The next morning we upped anchor and sailed
to Carricou.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">This time we
sailed about 1 ½ miles off the western coast of Grenada. This allowed us to catch more wind than if
hugged the coastline. We went west of the
exclusion zone for Kick’em Jenny, the active underwater volcano situated
slightly NW of Grenada; then angled to beat into Tyrrel Bay, Carricou, arriving
just in time to launch the dinghy for Bill to zoom in to handle departure
clearance from Grenada and Carricou before closing hour.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">That evening
we enjoyed a special treat of a lobster dinner ashore. On the way to the restaurant we noticed S/V
FROST and stopped to chat a moment with Mike and Rebecca. We last saw them in Martinique last
spring. The lobster dinner was unusual,
cooked differently than the typical boiling or grilling; these were pan seared
tails. It was good but did not compare
to fresh cooked on our boat. The
highlight of the meal was dessert of homemade buttered almond ice cream. THAT was delicious! Roasted almonds cooked into a butter brickle
and then broken into homemade ice cream.
Whoever invented this recipe has a winner.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Early Sunday
morning we upped anchor and enjoyed a day of sailing perfection up to
Bequia. We went west of Union Island,
skipping Mayreau and Canouan and Mustique.
We talked about going to Mustique once again because the wind was of
good enough direction to allow us to sail that far eastward; but decided that
we will cherish our memories of that special island. We have visited Mustique 4 times. Why chance a 5<sup>th</sup> visit and possibly
destroy our good memories there if it has changed, which inevitably is the case. We continued onward to Bequia where we
anchored for only 1 night. Good memories
of that island many times too. Thirty
years ago there were maybe 5 cruising boats anchored in Bequia; today there
were about 200. Sigh….is this better for
the local people? I fear the island
rapidly is becoming too dependent on tourism and they are losing their
traditional ways of life. I am not
certain this is a good thing in the long run.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">On Monday, 7
November, we departed Bequia at first light in company with several other boats
headed north. The Salty Dawg Rally BVI
had a rum punch party scheduled for Tuesday night and everyone was invited, not
just the rally participants. But the
wind was right to sail this day and would not be right if we waited to attend
that party, so off we went. Since this
would be a long day (70 miles) we opted to motor-sail until lost all wind in
the shelter of beautiful St. Vincent; then we motored until just past the
northern side of this very high island.
There we again caught the wind and were able to sail to St. Lucia. The topography of the island of St. Vincent
is gorgeous. It might be the most
beautiful of all the Caribbean islands --
but we have not once stopped there because of the high violent crime
against cruisers. This is well-known and
has gone on for decades. Too many sailors
have been attacked by men wielding machetes and guns for us to consider
stopping there. Such a shame.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Anchor was down
at Rodney Bay, St. Lucia at 16:15 so this was an excellent day! Motor-sailed or motored 56% and sailed 44% of
the 70 NM trip. We were happy with that. This time we anchored closer to the beach
than ever before. We cleared in and out,
saying we plan to depart early the next day; then we hit the supermarket. That supermarket was the primary reason for
coming here. I found 1,000 EC currency
in a purse a few months ago. That
currency is good only on certain islands of the Eastern Caribbean. We blew some of that EC cash on those lobster
dinners at Carriacou and would spend the rest of it here in St. Lucia buying whatever. That has now been accomplished and it is time
to move on to Martinique.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Wednesday, 9
November 2016 – We stayed put for at least 1 more day even though we had
already cleared out of St. Lucia. Our
propane solenoid failed and the only replacements available in St. Lucia were
the standard cheap models; we wanted the German produced original part (which
costs about 6 times the price of the common solenoids sold in marine
chandleries). We contacted Amel in Le
Marin and learned they did have this part in stock; so, to Le Marin it would be
– even though we had not planned to go there. There was a LO system which
passed through on Wednesday and it would have been a miserable day at sea. When this weather system passed we sailed up
to Martinique. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">But more
nasty weather followed for yet another day.
On Thursday we enjoyed a beautiful sail towards Martinique until the
final 45 minutes. Off to the east the
sky was black as far as we could see. We
quickly took in all sails and turned on the engine and motored straight for St.
Anne’s; no way we would attempt the long jagged narrow entrance channel into Le
Marin during nasty weather. We arrived
in St. Anne’s in a 40-knot squall, dropping anchor near the stern of the first
anchored boat we could see through the water-filled air. We each grabbed something for a quick lunch
while waiting for the squall to pass, then motored into Le Marin where we had
arranged for a mooring for 1 night so we could pick up the solenoid from Amel. Mission accomplished.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">When we
checked email we learned that the buyers of BeBe would like to have a rigging
inspection performed by a rigger who was recommended by the Amel Service office
here in Le Marin. Today is Veterans Day
(called something else in France) and the rigger said he could not do this
inspection until Monday. We talked to
him yesterday afternoon and he said he would make an exception and come out to
inspect the rigging this morning, even though it is a holiday. As I type this blog posting it is now after
09:00 and we have heard nothing from the rigger this morning. Maybe we are leaving today and maybe not
until Monday or Tuesday. There are far
worse places to be ‘stuck’ than here. We
enjoy Le Marin very much. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-77942216035274548832016-11-02T08:00:00.000+00:002016-11-11T13:18:02.816+00:00Time to begin heading north <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BeBe will be on passage north to Grenada when this post is published. We are sailing in a little informal flotilla of 7 boats. Hurricane season will not be over until the end of November but the Atlantic is calm at this time and all 7 boats are sailing up to Grenada. We hope to meet up with friends there for a few days for the final time; they then will be sailing west to the South Pacific and we will continue north to the Virgin Islands. <br /><br />We had planned to sail non-stop from Grenada to the British Virgin Islands, but now have had second thoughts. There is no reason for us to hurry as the new owners do not arrive in the Virgin Islands until 11 January -- except that the wind traditionally begins to switch predominant direction during November from SE of the summer to NE of the winter and we do NOT want to be forced into headwinds because we dallied too long down-island. Careful eye to the weather, as always.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Things I will miss about Trinidad: the friendly people and flavorful ethnic foods.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />Things I will not miss about Trinidad: the heat, humidity and biting noseeums. I swear Trinidad is as bad as Houston or New Orleans for heat and humidity. Of course, this is no surprise as we are on the same latitude as Cochin, India. I am holding out high hopes for cooler weather at 18N than it is here at 10N. As we leave here I feel as though I have been eaten alive by noseeums. Not a single other person around me has been bitten. I have been covered with the strongest insect repellents available, yet I am the one who has dozens of very itchy bites. PLEASE let there be no more of these noseeums at any of the places we stop going north!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After catching up with friends in Grenada we now favor island hopping north rather than sailing non-stop to the BVI. Both Bill and I would enjoy visiting Ile des Saintes one final time, indisputably our single favorite island in the entire Caribbean. If the wind changes direction while we are still island hopping north, we should be able to turn NW at any point and get on over to the Virgins without difficulty (or headwinds!).</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Forward cabin is now a storage space. Port side leeboard in place <br />and ready to set sail northward. Should be a starboard tack for the<br />entire trip to the Virgin Islands; these boxes should ride fine.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And our destination has been changed from the BVI to St. John in the USVI. I have taken advantage of being berthed in Trinidad with no busy social schedule and have packed up boxes of things to be mailed back to Texas. I have 9 boxes of media (books, CDs and DVDs) that will be mailed via the US Postal Service from St. John to Texas. Love that domestic postal rate and especially that ultra-inexpensive media rate! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">According to the USPS website the post office in St. John should have stock of the flat-rate boxes in the sizes we need. Rather than ship our things back to Texas we have decided to mail things home. Bill is convinced that the post offices in the USVI will have stock of the flat-rate boxes which we need. I am not convinced those boxes will be stocked in those locations. So....in order to be prepared (as always; it is my neurotic weakness)...I have collected what boxes were available from the local supermarket. The boxes were saturated with roach spray before being allowed on our boat. These are reserved as our last resort in case the post office has no flat-rate boxes in stock and there are no small heavier moving boxes available for sale in the USVI. Moving is stressful!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Do not look for more postings on this blog for weeks. As we will be island hopping, we will not purchase data sims because each island has a different system. Therefore, unless we just happen upon some open WiFi somewhere, I will not be updating this blog any time soon.</span>CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-43037617338254922922016-10-17T21:03:00.003+01:002016-10-17T21:36:20.014+01:00Taste of Trini tour<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjkWE6_QjJDufhX4W433Ztu1cGZ-EuyLYV410lkXJXuZvZpDF1wauGtwf3zl2hUBXA-CU0N91ALgBJV0q1s7Ql41uj1ZZ4zuF21MXk-LrL-NeZppozOO5L4_b3r1fsciPXMm3KOFdyJcg/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25282%2529%25232.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHs3Rt9t7Z4FS737g_pODoLxP_gJt4Av7rcRSBSEZfSV6yb8JFxn3qYgJTxVKxlChSnTxMUTpYFGs0Q0UX6ryuBRfu-unNvumxhAHgHKXJCuCnIbSz9a9DksQD_8ahi8adKt4Wtua-Cfk/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25287%2529address.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHs3Rt9t7Z4FS737g_pODoLxP_gJt4Av7rcRSBSEZfSV6yb8JFxn3qYgJTxVKxlChSnTxMUTpYFGs0Q0UX6ryuBRfu-unNvumxhAHgHKXJCuCnIbSz9a9DksQD_8ahi8adKt4Wtua-Cfk/s320/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25287%2529address.JPG" width="248" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This photo really is for some Facebook<br />friends. We recently discussed odd<br />mailing addresses used in some areas.<br />I love this one. In case it is too small<br />to read clearly, it is labeled:<br />Hector -- Light Pole193</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEssgWCZ-lZboAwFB4ns43747DGubiqWaDV9qaXRSdoUmVDyqaG6h1vg_54fZrZpr6x-tz71klGTpEurHFJoLDoaC99-zNPah0S4tIEz4h8HVc5dlNUnS5ck0UlxUIjYg_qRlKgrwcAIw/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252839%2529%252337.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAMEkjvIn_ZaxkGfcTp6cpiZjWvZjKLYYXlmHReDzHq6MjfxJSJ8CHDeSs9tr76qlSPZ0ZaS28PY5aoS9AVwP8_w3uLFx7FVOfw-f6zcJuZLzVPz39YMALcLgH4-7IFr8ubizBpvCgKDY/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252823%2529%252322.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Soon after arriving in Trinidad late June we heard about a 'do not miss' tour sometimes offered by Jesse James. Not one person gave this tour a negative review. But this tasting tour was not something we wanted to do with the grandchildren; kids would not enjoy this. Then we returned to Texas for a long visit, returning to Trinidad late last month. Last week there finally were enough new arrivals that Jesse was able to offer another tasting tour. There were 7 cruisers in the small bus for this tour and Jesse himself was the driver and host. Bill and I were the last 2 participants to board the bus so we were relegated to the rear seats. Even though the bus was very nice, with his diminished hearing ability Bill was unable to understand much of what was said because of the wheel noise that always is present in the rear area of a bus or van. But I had no trouble hearing and was able to relay or repeat most of what Jesse said so Bill could follow along with the rest of us.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As soon as everyone was in the bus Jesse passed out a plate and cutlery to each couple to share the day's tastings, with the solo guy in the front passenger seat getting his very own personal plate. Of course, since he had the premier seating he also was assigned to assist Jesse in serving the foods all day long. Jesse had stopped and purchased a few breakfast items to get us started while slowly driving in the congested traffic on the only egress to/from Chaguaramas where all cruisers temporarily reside. A bus had broken down in the southbound lane and traffic was horrendous this morning. As we slowly made our way toward Port of Spain, Jesse served us several breakfast dishes and talked about the special foods particular to the islands country of Trinidad and Tobago.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tobago has a national dish called Crab and Dumplings but Trinidad has no national dish. Tobago has mostly African/Creole foods; whereas, Trinidad has more Indian/Creole/Middle-Eastern foods. We would be sampling a little of everything Trinidad has to offer in foods. Following is a list of the foods we tasted in the order in which these were presented. I have included recipe links for a number of these dishes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><u><b>Breakfast foods:</b></u></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjkWE6_QjJDufhX4W433Ztu1cGZ-EuyLYV410lkXJXuZvZpDF1wauGtwf3zl2hUBXA-CU0N91ALgBJV0q1s7Ql41uj1ZZ4zuF21MXk-LrL-NeZppozOO5L4_b3r1fsciPXMm3KOFdyJcg/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25282%2529%25232.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; font-family: "Times New Roman"; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjkWE6_QjJDufhX4W433Ztu1cGZ-EuyLYV410lkXJXuZvZpDF1wauGtwf3zl2hUBXA-CU0N91ALgBJV0q1s7Ql41uj1ZZ4zuF21MXk-LrL-NeZppozOO5L4_b3r1fsciPXMm3KOFdyJcg/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25282%2529%25232.JPG" width="187" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">clockwise from upper left: bhaji<br />herring, chicken gazette, bake</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">1. Coconut Bake -- 'bake' is a dough that usually is fried but could be baked. Bill and I had previously eaten Bake 'n Shark and it was fried; sort of like a hamburger bun for which the risen dough has been deep fried rather than baked. This Coconut Bake likewise had been fried.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2. Bhaji (spinach) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">3. Chicken Gazette (chicken liver)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">4. Smoked herring/salt fish</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-YQY-qItdv8c6u6CKXmrree5y_E46SM7xc593sLfl8wp1vXhvbDq6LJnLZDuTiS8J5cAzjd-9y-3iQEVcyeQ496fkDy5kE2GG5jMhB8YlS-lCE40qKtxhiFKzjsPq3-Xz0LbTqOKyyMw/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25284%2529%25235.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-YQY-qItdv8c6u6CKXmrree5y_E46SM7xc593sLfl8wp1vXhvbDq6LJnLZDuTiS8J5cAzjd-9y-3iQEVcyeQ496fkDy5kE2GG5jMhB8YlS-lCE40qKtxhiFKzjsPq3-Xz0LbTqOKyyMw/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25284%2529%25235.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">5. Fried Bake</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">6. Fried Bake filled with curried channa (chickpeas)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">7. Fried Bake filled with shark</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Guess you could add just about anything you like to the bake.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXh5fgYHJFyGMyq5plQ4PjQz_OmQIu74IN3L8AA11T0LDxXnvkl7KDkGRiL39kQ9cjcAH-_LaY_XmW1Cz7Ov_Pipxs_m8r1yeHx8dH9IxCu-69WwBINx6aF34Xa96h0iIabMLfSUJkmGg/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25288%2529%25238.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXh5fgYHJFyGMyq5plQ4PjQz_OmQIu74IN3L8AA11T0LDxXnvkl7KDkGRiL39kQ9cjcAH-_LaY_XmW1Cz7Ov_Pipxs_m8r1yeHx8dH9IxCu-69WwBINx6aF34Xa96h0iIabMLfSUJkmGg/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%25288%2529%25238.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Signs like this are in front of many<br />shops. Easy food on the go.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">8. Hot Pie - filled with white cheese and mashed potato</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">9. Hot Pie - filled with straight potato and onions, sweetened mango sauce and cucumber</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is easy to be strict vegetarian and eat breakfast street foods with no eggs, meat or milk.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkmMPD2HIzFENG_j4M7-c0zke7Y77WwxiwfSwYFyPU7X30H4JVa3E6dvDjSeUfIgjXF06Hc_uic0a10Unaqkublw-xe-_iLGYrdioMnvs9aTuJDZdc7BCm2sCXJpdRZ9QKY9ffNx9RWxc/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252813%2529%252310.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkmMPD2HIzFENG_j4M7-c0zke7Y77WwxiwfSwYFyPU7X30H4JVa3E6dvDjSeUfIgjXF06Hc_uic0a10Unaqkublw-xe-_iLGYrdioMnvs9aTuJDZdc7BCm2sCXJpdRZ9QKY9ffNx9RWxc/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252813%2529%252310.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">pickled pommeceteye</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">10. Pommeceteye -- green fruit pickled with salt, peppers and shadow bene (culantro)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The pommeceteye fruit also is eaten raw with salt and black pepper.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaA_zyfYh5zFkAlIHW6LDG-97BFazSyKVKaRQqt1mxCekHRhJPg6ZvGCuzMEZ42f8FVnoJlNO6NgDv8Yu8T9Mv5kiKlGFvBiFUcBYuu7tHW4XdAPcu-J2BqUrk33UYkAUyF0tZ4L5JZNY/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252815%2529%252311.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaA_zyfYh5zFkAlIHW6LDG-97BFazSyKVKaRQqt1mxCekHRhJPg6ZvGCuzMEZ42f8FVnoJlNO6NgDv8Yu8T9Mv5kiKlGFvBiFUcBYuu7tHW4XdAPcu-J2BqUrk33UYkAUyF0tZ4L5JZNY/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252815%2529%252311.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L-R: Caralie, tomato choka, baigan<br />choka, pumpkin choka, sada roti</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><u><b>Typical Indian breakfast in Trinidad is 15 TT ($2.25 USD):</b></u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">11. Roti - Sada Roti <a href="http://www.trinigourmet.com/index.php/sada-roti-recipe/" target="_blank">http://www.trinigourmet.com/index.php/sada-roti-recipe/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">12. Caralie (bitter green vegetable) <a href="http://caribbeanpot.com/a-classic-trinbagonian-caraili-recipe/" target="_blank">http://caribbeanpot.com/a-classic-trinbagonian-caraili-recipe/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">13. Tomato Choka (very good!) <a href="http://caribbeanpot.com/simple-but-very-tasy-tomato-choka-recipe/" target="_blank">http://caribbeanpot.com/simple-but-very-tasy-tomato-choka-recipe/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">14. Pumpkin Choka <a href="http://tastetheislandstv.com/trinidadian-pumpkin-choka-talkari/" target="_blank">http://tastetheislandstv.com/trinidadian-pumpkin-choka-talkari/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">15. Baigan Choka (roasted eggplant, also very good) <a href="http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/sada-roti-and-baigan-eggplant-choka/" target="_blank">h ttp://www.simplytrinicooking.com/sada-roti-and-baigan-eggplant-choka/</a></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVhmzwsT_3r7SBmrQvgPzHtt_wEsOdR7O8qsoKzWouBHYjrW5wrpqFyLJP_KQfJCSa1_C3BjrHxfFzkI8Bj1MLD22CysPiKU8Y93n09PVi6urgg5Rt08CGLtGod-4YMCTKlPlB4RXAo0Q/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252818%2529%252316.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVhmzwsT_3r7SBmrQvgPzHtt_wEsOdR7O8qsoKzWouBHYjrW5wrpqFyLJP_KQfJCSa1_C3BjrHxfFzkI8Bj1MLD22CysPiKU8Y93n09PVi6urgg5Rt08CGLtGod-4YMCTKlPlB4RXAo0Q/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252818%2529%252316.JPG" width="192" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cow Heel Soup</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><u><b>Hangover Cure:</b></u></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">16. Cow Heel Soup <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcyW6nPV93Y" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcyW6nPV93Y</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Pastry Pies (baked rather than fried as are the Hot Pies listed above):</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">17. Pastry Pie filled with fish (did not like this one bit)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">18. Pastry Pie filled with Spicy Beef </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">19. Pastry Pie filled with Spicy Macaroni (surprisingly pretty good)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Around this time we passed the community of Laventille. Today this community is the highest crime area on the island and is filled with ramshackle shacks where people live in poverty. When one reads of the high crime in Trinidad, this is where most of it occurs. There has been no crime against cruisers in Trinidad in several years; that type crime happens up in Grenada. Here in Trinidad it is mostly local-on-local crime, and Laventille is the area hardest hit. Also located in Laventille is the only factory in the world which produced Angostura Bitters. Angostura Bitters sold all over the world come from this small factory situated in this shantytown high-crime neighborhood. Who knew!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPQ5rgcdZJC0fdtC2yJKX2DkrpUvpc22CI2avzqzxuqKWrR924xVKrMKhwUwCxtKVKMOO13zwUv0t2ppPwRWVORIOhUmZSgoVo4NMJm-FJ74pMuWAZMAvhuOLuStcvbKLpeOyh098UG2U/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252821%2529%252321.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPQ5rgcdZJC0fdtC2yJKX2DkrpUvpc22CI2avzqzxuqKWrR924xVKrMKhwUwCxtKVKMOO13zwUv0t2ppPwRWVORIOhUmZSgoVo4NMJm-FJ74pMuWAZMAvhuOLuStcvbKLpeOyh098UG2U/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252821%2529%252321.JPG" width="191" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Accra</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">20. Coconut Roll -- pastry containing lots of ginger and is tasty</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">21. Accra -- like a hushpuppy mixed with fish and often served with tamarind sauce which can be spicy <a href="http://www.trinigourmet.com/index.php/trinidad-saltfish-accra/" target="_blank">http://www.trinigourmet.com/index.php/trinidad-saltfish-accra/</a></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAMEkjvIn_ZaxkGfcTp6cpiZjWvZjKLYYXlmHReDzHq6MjfxJSJ8CHDeSs9tr76qlSPZ0ZaS28PY5aoS9AVwP8_w3uLFx7FVOfw-f6zcJuZLzVPz39YMALcLgH4-7IFr8ubizBpvCgKDY/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252823%2529%252322.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAMEkjvIn_ZaxkGfcTp6cpiZjWvZjKLYYXlmHReDzHq6MjfxJSJ8CHDeSs9tr76qlSPZ0ZaS28PY5aoS9AVwP8_w3uLFx7FVOfw-f6zcJuZLzVPz39YMALcLgH4-7IFr8ubizBpvCgKDY/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252823%2529%252322.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Portugal</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">22. Portugal -- a type of orange which remains green; more like a tangerine to me</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">23. Saheena -- unusual and good; we did not taste the dipping sauce that often is served with saheena </span><a href="http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/saheena-i/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/saheena-i/</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">24. Pitchorie -- Jesse spelled this for me as *pitchorie* but I cannot find any recipe by that name. The sample we ate reminded me of a type of fried corn bread served with chickpeas on top. This is a vegetarian dish. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No photos of the Saheena or Pitchorie because we ate these at a food truck and I forgot my camera in the bus. Note that eating street food in Trinidad is quite safe, like Singapore. Each street food vendor is required to wear a food badge which means s/he is licensed and inspected. The food preparation and serving areas must pass health inspections. Good to know.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One unusual-to-us thing noted is that some men here carry birdcages around with them -- to work or to socialize or to shop or whatever -- they take their caged song birds with them. Jesse </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">said his grandfather carried such a bird. Bill and I had noticed the 2 men who operate the roadside doubles stand near the marinas bring their caged song bird to work with them each day. Which brings up that dish for which Trinidad likely is most famous -- doubles. We did not stop for doubles during this Taste of Trini tour because everyone on the bus previously had eaten doubles and this tour was intended to introduce us to other Trinidadian treats. But here is a recipe for those famous Trinidad Doubles, which usually are served with hot sauce. Just be sure and watch that hot sauce! It can be a killer!! </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIjUxfZD9tQ" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIjUxfZD9tQ</a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHAhQCUudTbVtSxOQzEGgs7PPuOxLv_PwC45TCGWWewB0AksiuOR_XqRl5ckTOfumu_oHMPlANcY37WPgYj8xdJiHOGe2AaRZZa455GmHUg9Q9DTsWjlKxuqF9MFejmpe5mgH2gIuU0yA/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252825%2529%252325.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHAhQCUudTbVtSxOQzEGgs7PPuOxLv_PwC45TCGWWewB0AksiuOR_XqRl5ckTOfumu_oHMPlANcY37WPgYj8xdJiHOGe2AaRZZa455GmHUg9Q9DTsWjlKxuqF9MFejmpe5mgH2gIuU0yA/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252825%2529%252325.JPG" width="181" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Macaroni Pie & BBQ Pig Tail</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><u><b>Lunch Foods:</b></u></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">First was a typical Creole lunch:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">25. Macaroni Pie -- Neither Bill nor I cared much for this. It was slightly sweet.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">26. Barbeque Pig Tail -- a specialty of the town of Valencia. Not much to eat on a pig tail but the sauce was good.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dumpling topped with Callaloo<br />w/ Stewed Pork on 2nd dumpling</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And another typical Creole lunch:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">27. Dumpling -- square and flat and heavy. Very filling.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">28. Callaloo -- African Creole staple <a href="http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/callaloo/" target="_blank">http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/callaloo/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">29. Stewed Pork -- The difference in Trini style stewed pork (or goat or beef) is that they add sugar to the hot oil in the pan to carmelize and create a dark color and coating on the chunks of meat first; then cook as regular for stewed meats. <a href="http://caribbeanpot.com/tender-stew-pork-packed-with-a-unique-punch-of-flavor/" target="_blank">http://caribbeanpot.com/tender-stew-pork-packed-with-a-unique-punch-of-flavor/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">30. Sea Moss Punch </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV45Hp6n8S7woO-VMjNKDE4bGSLebTFpJ5dyraOi7tjiaAMY6lAr0VKTHJ4Rvcw5s4dzn5_n_aF0tANxhGkswO3MEUps7_P8gCZHme7M8Aoz89uVbvT4a6Kk8dKlO1Wh7gAQhew-SqCgw/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252830%2529%252331.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV45Hp6n8S7woO-VMjNKDE4bGSLebTFpJ5dyraOi7tjiaAMY6lAr0VKTHJ4Rvcw5s4dzn5_n_aF0tANxhGkswO3MEUps7_P8gCZHme7M8Aoz89uVbvT4a6Kk8dKlO1Wh7gAQhew-SqCgw/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252830%2529%252331.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L-R: Dasheen, Salt Fish, Cassava,<br />with Green Fig at bottom.<br />Cassava was best thing on plate.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And another typical Creole lunch:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">31. Cassava -- typical 'provisions' throughout the Caribbean</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">32. Salt Fish (neither Bill nor I tasted this as we have tried it before and it is far too fishy)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">33. Dasheen -- more provisions</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">34. Green Fig -- this is a tiny banana which normally is cooked. It is exactly the same as we ate at Fatu Hiva in French Polynesia. In Polynesia it is cooked in coconut milk and turns bright pink. Here in Trinidad it is cooked numerous ways but stays banana colored.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Custard Apple</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">35. Custard Apple -- again, we passed on tasting this because have had it before and we were getting awfully full by this point in the tasting tour.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">UFO Fruit on bottom</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidA_RpCiPBUIV3MofpLdhkZodZ9yDoUHoQCGisBXGG-L4pJ8hRVK48MBglxBTcUb3XiINVJwpz-G7Qwk4F-qm3tJlxC7Xc9X3qYflrSfNObLQFORYpDIZnKFbiFrgMOsjNiZGM1WZED94/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252837%2529%252336.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; font-family: "Times New Roman"; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidA_RpCiPBUIV3MofpLdhkZodZ9yDoUHoQCGisBXGG-L4pJ8hRVK48MBglxBTcUb3XiINVJwpz-G7Qwk4F-qm3tJlxC7Xc9X3qYflrSfNObLQFORYpDIZnKFbiFrgMOsjNiZGM1WZED94/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252837%2529%252336.JPG" width="167" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">UFO Fruit</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhORxcr99yTrlaTkTn1wzga2yfTAnvA982BkkKL3934jAkowAABXK65XVZI8uXyre_yfHbLUaJXbffNzNjU7G0j6zr3dIHtp0N3FRnmig1sXNFaAgKUyA_9g2EJU2fGb6oLKEMiENl1ynM/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252838%2529%252336.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">36. UFO fruit -- Okay, they might call this a fruit but Bill and I know better. It is a pod of Brazil nuts which has not fully ripened. Here in Trini they cut the pod from the tree before it is ripe enough to fall off on its own. When we were in the Amazon jungle region of Peru we saw these Brazil nuts very high on the trees and were warned by our guide to stay well clear of them. Because if they fall on your head you likely will be killed. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Brazil nuts which grow wild here in Trini are a different variety than those found in Peru. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhORxcr99yTrlaTkTn1wzga2yfTAnvA982BkkKL3934jAkowAABXK65XVZI8uXyre_yfHbLUaJXbffNzNjU7G0j6zr3dIHtp0N3FRnmig1sXNFaAgKUyA_9g2EJU2fGb6oLKEMiENl1ynM/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252838%2529%252336.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhORxcr99yTrlaTkTn1wzga2yfTAnvA982BkkKL3934jAkowAABXK65XVZI8uXyre_yfHbLUaJXbffNzNjU7G0j6zr3dIHtp0N3FRnmig1sXNFaAgKUyA_9g2EJU2fGb6oLKEMiENl1ynM/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252838%2529%252336.JPG" width="186" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of many nuts inside UFO</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The typical Brazil nut is shaped somewhat triangular along its width; whereas, while these found on Trinidad also are triangular along the width there also are additional ridges along the width causing a somewhat fluted shape. Plus, these are fresh and raw as opposed to the dried and often roasted nuts found in stores back home.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEssgWCZ-lZboAwFB4ns43747DGubiqWaDV9qaXRSdoUmVDyqaG6h1vg_54fZrZpr6x-tz71klGTpEurHFJoLDoaC99-zNPah0S4tIEz4h8HVc5dlNUnS5ck0UlxUIjYg_qRlKgrwcAIw/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252839%2529%252337.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEssgWCZ-lZboAwFB4ns43747DGubiqWaDV9qaXRSdoUmVDyqaG6h1vg_54fZrZpr6x-tz71klGTpEurHFJoLDoaC99-zNPah0S4tIEz4h8HVc5dlNUnS5ck0UlxUIjYg_qRlKgrwcAIw/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252839%2529%252337.JPG" width="153" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Chockie Toe</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9gA6oU2vIGIdb-KNPA-06mLK_DFbf9E2Fu1CSQnTqxbx_mdrS-EkeI3ENV7S_yEPEej3c1Sbrit7SzCA62iDrjCMJFrBqwRkD3yg3zZ9EbESGNjBSL3w-T37pk1Z-jnX20-phdkLjxdc/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252841%2529%252338.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9gA6oU2vIGIdb-KNPA-06mLK_DFbf9E2Fu1CSQnTqxbx_mdrS-EkeI3ENV7S_yEPEej3c1Sbrit7SzCA62iDrjCMJFrBqwRkD3yg3zZ9EbESGNjBSL3w-T37pk1Z-jnX20-phdkLjxdc/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252841%2529%252338.JPG" width="174" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Silk Fig. The best!!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">37. Fig -- a very tiny chewy very yellow banana; locally called a Chockie Toe</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">38. Silk Fig - the best small banana; called Lady Fingers in other parts of the world. This banana is rather delicate and cannot be exported. It is my favorite type.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVnkKVVNl5ybhFfYODsI-oNVuGWYaAczH2ZzrVJ_CiIYfy2q3xLBM2tDrzQmTI8XBF6X3i6HMqCRuxYOgionQbl9HcCa3dG8Po-n1-5F-MI470fAXFzA6vamuUUizffaBzPYvF_CimMl8/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252845%2529%252339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; font-family: "Times New Roman"; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVnkKVVNl5ybhFfYODsI-oNVuGWYaAczH2ZzrVJ_CiIYfy2q3xLBM2tDrzQmTI8XBF6X3i6HMqCRuxYOgionQbl9HcCa3dG8Po-n1-5F-MI470fAXFzA6vamuUUizffaBzPYvF_CimMl8/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252845%2529%252339.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">View to the north</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL2trKhoNy1ZutCbKt57eH6xlR2_v7WKkEThQIKcBbhqZ3M5dmMZjW5l_5oGtHr4GdpWba-XEKNUOeUgIXZKXtxvgek1A2rBpMmlH2-PNUuPhJk5tmGuwz1dPfZKBeiYwCtQfUVImpSVM/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252844%2529%252339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; font-family: "Times New Roman"; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL2trKhoNy1ZutCbKt57eH6xlR2_v7WKkEThQIKcBbhqZ3M5dmMZjW5l_5oGtHr4GdpWba-XEKNUOeUgIXZKXtxvgek1A2rBpMmlH2-PNUuPhJk5tmGuwz1dPfZKBeiYwCtQfUVImpSVM/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252844%2529%252339.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">View to the south.<br />Very nice beach side public park.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIVTXLE4968qDj667rtvcaa5zO1pS6_Lug8KoWkFrmoeg3Ml7zfoECbHW8tao_lRdOPnofcl5H81hbrPMURLNnyz3iqTom5cs8jIseV9IS-gyAbrCvt8TKoYNqs_b06N-hSZ98sIxR-S0/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252846%2529%252339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: "Times New Roman"; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIVTXLE4968qDj667rtvcaa5zO1pS6_Lug8KoWkFrmoeg3Ml7zfoECbHW8tao_lRdOPnofcl5H81hbrPMURLNnyz3iqTom5cs8jIseV9IS-gyAbrCvt8TKoYNqs_b06N-hSZ98sIxR-S0/s320/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252846%2529%252339.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><br />
<b style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>A typical Indian lunch beneath the palms at beachside on eastern side of island:</u></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">39. Pilau -- seasoned rice</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">40. Piratha Roti -- <a href="http://www.juniormagazine.co.uk/recipes/recipe-how-to-make-jamie-olivers-homemade-paratha-bread/18660.html" target="_blank">http://www.juniormagazine.co.uk/recipes/recipe-how-to-make-jamie-olivers-homemade-paratha-bread/18660.html</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">41. Dhal Puri Roti -- <a href="http://www.simplytrinicooking.org/recipe/dhal-puri-roti/">http://www.simplytrinicooking.org/recipe/dhal-puri-roti/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">42. Curried Green Mango</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">43. Curried Chickpeas & Potatoes -- my favorite dish on the plate</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">44. Stewed Beef</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">45. Pumpkin</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">46. Curried Chicken</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">47. Curried Goat -- also pretty good</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">48. Peanut Punch (we both passed on this) </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL9Xw1iGlJUkDc6weO0V2-Gx-VHelfXSXih99a09q-rO6kwj4uUlUmfamZFi7MaFYsAmsJuJzCuYnwwwveRe1IUjAR9XJJU-SRarjZ58IavvdtDLkONGxN8QSYWGJPMkZhz8IHvYZjVSg/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252849%2529%252339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; font-family: "Times New Roman"; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL9Xw1iGlJUkDc6weO0V2-Gx-VHelfXSXih99a09q-rO6kwj4uUlUmfamZFi7MaFYsAmsJuJzCuYnwwwveRe1IUjAR9XJJU-SRarjZ58IavvdtDLkONGxN8QSYWGJPMkZhz8IHvYZjVSg/s320/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252849%2529%252339.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Picnic lunch by the sea with our Taste of Trini co-horts</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyWN-6TiuqdBP9S6a1KnhB6JGyYqLZMYVb-fPDZ6Bs9A8qHaEji4yn2DCDpX_LWkXmhnIxpGat9JtKw67qMiIm3TGL6nrs3r8cgzhTZZDxVxgwdU3XNaI2bWxEwWpZOb5WrIqNvq7tY8o/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252850%2529%252339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; font-family: "Times New Roman"; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyWN-6TiuqdBP9S6a1KnhB6JGyYqLZMYVb-fPDZ6Bs9A8qHaEji4yn2DCDpX_LWkXmhnIxpGat9JtKw67qMiIm3TGL6nrs3r8cgzhTZZDxVxgwdU3XNaI2bWxEwWpZOb5WrIqNvq7tY8o/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252850%2529%252339.JPG" width="146" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Peanut Punch</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoaowDEOvq7HyYahWHZthImtQKX8xhK5AzBP7Kl65XXc4Y09EvIPd_ZD5DicuC5TlDeF4oOYbL0xYxZEcp2MGTFEzoBwOSjn1h7k6F2QuMYu0Ia9JgqMuWzlr72DoOpc0tJr2-dikaDgc/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252847%2529%252339.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoaowDEOvq7HyYahWHZthImtQKX8xhK5AzBP7Kl65XXc4Y09EvIPd_ZD5DicuC5TlDeF4oOYbL0xYxZEcp2MGTFEzoBwOSjn1h7k6F2QuMYu0Ia9JgqMuWzlr72DoOpc0tJr2-dikaDgc/s400/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252847%2529%252339.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L-R clockwise: Piratha Roti, Stewed Beef, Curried Chickpeas & Potatoes, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Curried Goat, Pumpkin, Curried Green Mango, Pilau.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We did not sample the Dhal Puri Roti</span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">or the Curried Chicken because we </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">were simply too full. All these bites were adding up over the day!</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc-0wbTWKVKkeqRxOv8LByW9tNcuo-wmOYDTiaROeMcZyeNVcU8lO1LfaNoCEyr5YSB3_zkd_vA5NPtitAjsUpo8Vh_UJSEBU9AHUp0WdSxm-GFBVdj5qgv3Ot_J_uZT_aBK62RVLPcec/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252853%2529%252349.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc-0wbTWKVKkeqRxOv8LByW9tNcuo-wmOYDTiaROeMcZyeNVcU8lO1LfaNoCEyr5YSB3_zkd_vA5NPtitAjsUpo8Vh_UJSEBU9AHUp0WdSxm-GFBVdj5qgv3Ot_J_uZT_aBK62RVLPcec/s320/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252853%2529%252349.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jesse James cutting up watermelon for our group.<br />The man on the right is Dallas, the melon vendor.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There were thousands upon thousands of small Birds of Paradise plants blooming as we drove through the two savannahs between the mountain ranges. There are 2 mountain ranges which traverse east/west across Trinidad, and 2 savannahs. These savannahs are open to the Atlantic and go completely across this large island. These are very worrisome in the event of a tsunami. The local people practice evacuations in case of a tsunami.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">49. Watermelon -- the man named Dallas who sold us the watermelon was quite the character. He talked for 10 minutes straight about the health benefits of eating watermelon.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF1li1VsrBZTdCf9ltJQqqgJBjQoE8u1fCuGmLAGL3Xp-_3HF2sDE5Aq2uJSFW_A6ax0wuXMrJSkVoiAMzBxY8qNfWaFr9cplQkBMqUXFFoSwwEFbJgSzA0brvptWaZHIwPGMJKdDJl4/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252854%2529%252350.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="173" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTF1li1VsrBZTdCf9ltJQqqgJBjQoE8u1fCuGmLAGL3Xp-_3HF2sDE5Aq2uJSFW_A6ax0wuXMrJSkVoiAMzBxY8qNfWaFr9cplQkBMqUXFFoSwwEFbJgSzA0brvptWaZHIwPGMJKdDJl4/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252854%2529%252350.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Roasted Corn</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">50. Roasted Corn-on-the-Cob -- very hard and chewy; nothing like corn in the USA. It tasted like popcorn which had been popped over burning charcoal. I nibbled a few kernels and Bill passed on this. Corn is not allowed on his Crohn's diet.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIuTEw4EvvVX_YWe1wAJqlN6ko84PvPcW6iMImr5U3-_e2DsXX9CGxs5MFg4stgBFfsOH8FGsnEyfXM6HzElDxUE4nKASoLdNWTrODp7KiM1xXFWbeMZ1CZrMjhL8QrG3g1KB9A0cioMI/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252855%2529%252351.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIuTEw4EvvVX_YWe1wAJqlN6ko84PvPcW6iMImr5U3-_e2DsXX9CGxs5MFg4stgBFfsOH8FGsnEyfXM6HzElDxUE4nKASoLdNWTrODp7KiM1xXFWbeMZ1CZrMjhL8QrG3g1KB9A0cioMI/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252855%2529%252351.JPG" width="146" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tulum</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">51. Tulum -- this is what is called an Old Time Treat. Neither Bill nor I liked it in the least but the woman seated in front of us loved it and asked for a second helping. Tulum is very hard and is chewy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It has a licorice flavor and is made from dried coconut and molasses. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This was the thing I disliked most of everything we tried this day.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yet the other woman loved it. People do have different tastes.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj957abSR4mri8FaNdQcsJ5HJC5i56hC1D7lYko37KW4lq0nbVKYUJIouqGGHJtS9wzR2r2HxvHAJ-wgcXl4bjGv3mYGocKzn19jLhZVeVWr7mEYO3b_Xsz8JtKA-uZx07n2_2ligoVa_8/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252856%2529%252352-53.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj957abSR4mri8FaNdQcsJ5HJC5i56hC1D7lYko37KW4lq0nbVKYUJIouqGGHJtS9wzR2r2HxvHAJ-wgcXl4bjGv3mYGocKzn19jLhZVeVWr7mEYO3b_Xsz8JtKA-uZx07n2_2ligoVa_8/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252856%2529%252352-53.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pickled Pineapple on left;<br />Kurma (sticks) on right.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">52. Kurma -- another Old Time Treat but this one was delicious! It is a ginger candy. I plan to make this once we are living back on land.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://caribbeanpot.com/how-to-make-kurma-known-as-mithai-in-guyana/" target="_blank">http://caribbeanpot.com/how-to-make-kurma-known-as-mithai-in-guyana/</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The road turned back northwards and we began to see teak trees growing all along the roadside as we moved to higher elevation.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">53. Pineapple in salted brine pickling solution. Okay but not something I would seek out.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4bE2Mqcu2s7np21plxhr0u0xqjndbGviVuQxHv0GCkrZKqz8DDw5dL7iRayvZwfOdmeoefnQDXqEfnOhQ3JZJdNMFUABCYdd4Ey19fwaPoqDErEm3xgZO8o_-xDYHZ1fEJ12g1maGUlQ/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252857%2529%252354.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4bE2Mqcu2s7np21plxhr0u0xqjndbGviVuQxHv0GCkrZKqz8DDw5dL7iRayvZwfOdmeoefnQDXqEfnOhQ3JZJdNMFUABCYdd4Ey19fwaPoqDErEm3xgZO8o_-xDYHZ1fEJ12g1maGUlQ/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252857%2529%252354.JPG" width="183" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Coconut Finger</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">54. Coconut Finger -- a layered pastry with food coloring added to the coconut.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzhLyeFOhXBeWllrzzU1APhEU23Sk5CooW2ElQelCTOKWR-5ePefaZjpovfuozOWmYeTZihL6cPAFtndtitushvfe1C4BZ30dr_mSUtq_KS9qRCMQubb1AHFDpAhLjgvL5_LBBaW-Zy5o/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252858%2529%252355.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzhLyeFOhXBeWllrzzU1APhEU23Sk5CooW2ElQelCTOKWR-5ePefaZjpovfuozOWmYeTZihL6cPAFtndtitushvfe1C4BZ30dr_mSUtq_KS9qRCMQubb1AHFDpAhLjgvL5_LBBaW-Zy5o/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252858%2529%252355.JPG" width="159" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pone</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">55. Pone -- Cassava Cake made with coconut, ginger and condensed milk. Pretty good.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEPuPa0axwGMPWPaz43OG6OVZlKnrJxK2ZW4S0e2WT3_E0FfDLUAldGlv15sWzPekXdkZZscObfv2cu-KCYCCP_PxENG-mTvCBX2Rrj9DpWv2w760kkzvv8YfroC1vUwTXQd95diGbIEU/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252859%2529%252356.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEPuPa0axwGMPWPaz43OG6OVZlKnrJxK2ZW4S0e2WT3_E0FfDLUAldGlv15sWzPekXdkZZscObfv2cu-KCYCCP_PxENG-mTvCBX2Rrj9DpWv2w760kkzvv8YfroC1vUwTXQd95diGbIEU/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252859%2529%252356.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tamarind Balls -- SPICY!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">56. Tamarind Balls -- sour and sweet and fairly spicy hot</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">57. Bread Pudding -- from the days of British control of Trinidad. It contained lots of fruit was was not like any bread pudding with which I am familiar. I prefer my own recipe.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As we drove around the Trinidad countryside and small villages we noticed mostly-faded flags on long poles standing in the yards of many homes. Jesse explained that these were Jhandis -- Hindu Prayer Flags. The Hindu holiday of Divali will be on 29 October 2016 and these prayer flags traditionally are displayed for a month prior to Divali. The flags represent the gods prayed to by the family in each home. Hinduism recognizes many gods and goddesses so the combination of colors of flags varied wildly.<br /><a href="https://tnthinduhistory.wordpress.com/chapters/jhandis/" target="_blank">https://tnthinduhistory.wordpress.com/chapters/jhandis/</a></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr3ppazmUedLQBaQ6Rv1tmtZ92V0uSf6O3oYCT0hfgm507D_TREEZpOf3MaHFwKDCk0Yukku2H7ey5srGQ-flU7IJUbYk_RyCw_JPz660BYLHuwamL5iE6pxJ4FnKjALXefye_f74ILf4/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252864%2529bamboo.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr3ppazmUedLQBaQ6Rv1tmtZ92V0uSf6O3oYCT0hfgm507D_TREEZpOf3MaHFwKDCk0Yukku2H7ey5srGQ-flU7IJUbYk_RyCw_JPz660BYLHuwamL5iE6pxJ4FnKjALXefye_f74ILf4/s320/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252864%2529bamboo.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Boy bussing bamboo.<br />This can be dangerous.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As we drove to higher elevation there was a village with a young boy 'bussing bamboo' in front of his home. Jesse stopped the bus to allow us to watch this process. Jesse said that when the bamboo is burned all the way through the center that it will sound like a gunshot. I do not understand the attraction of doing this but it is something that has a long tradition in Trinidad. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgdshXsxgms" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgdshXsxgms</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">People can be, and have been, injured doing this. Again, I do not see the attraction. Here is a local newspaper article about an accident which happened a few years ago:<br /><a href="http://www.trinidadexpress.com/featured-news/Judah_needs_help-148466735.html" target="_blank">http://www.trinidadexpress.com/featured-news/Judah_needs_help-148466735.html</a></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhihOFSY6E8EhtclKmRmY76jXFwARui5GhDAaIIB7xoy9CTJh3rYy2FMfaAVhip782WQQD5M4oA8lAvClKMeMy2rN2MsgG0ziFJxLkEAmQxqFT7MX_jk9sdgQq3s3s6G2DFedSM-PfWBRs/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252862%2529%252357+pottery.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhihOFSY6E8EhtclKmRmY76jXFwARui5GhDAaIIB7xoy9CTJh3rYy2FMfaAVhip782WQQD5M4oA8lAvClKMeMy2rN2MsgG0ziFJxLkEAmQxqFT7MX_jk9sdgQq3s3s6G2DFedSM-PfWBRs/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252862%2529%252357+pottery.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A few of the tiny pots being made<br />at the pottery shop for Divali.<br />These will be filled with oil for lights.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Also along this roadside we found a man making pottery. He was very busy making items already ordered by locals for the upcoming celebration of Divali. We disembarked and watched him throw a vase on his potters wheel. Jesse said he was having to do all this work himself because he cannot find any workers; the workers he has tried to hire all want to be paid for the entire day but will work only 3 hours; so this shop owner is working 18 hours daily by himself to fill the orders before Divali.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKJ-hcf0oGOj3uF_k4xtPd7AOy-KLx7CPitnNgaPgU6ap0my7qtPYy7MGreDJbuuFpL1LEPz9uAA9s6Nt4voblWu9C0AtOJrRCAg8QpxDMVeJy1FMGAca5FK9ZXF9WzXr0N4IdyVEt84/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252866%2529%252358.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKJ-hcf0oGOj3uF_k4xtPd7AOy-KLx7CPitnNgaPgU6ap0my7qtPYy7MGreDJbuuFpL1LEPz9uAA9s6Nt4voblWu9C0AtOJrRCAg8QpxDMVeJy1FMGAca5FK9ZXF9WzXr0N4IdyVEt84/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252866%2529%252358.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pholourie</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">58. Pholourie -- another hushpuppy type dish but made from flour rather than cornmeal. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/pholourie/" target="_blank">http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/pholourie/</a></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFk5av1NQKhKVHnUjfT6xCHclsDpOJrU4WBadUIr7itLpNRP3cQyMFOINytrbsSLDZgAL8bgmYRFvlWjO3HzITdIP6zk1D-Vp2qeIlEliitTSs5hUMPHnyaLV5cIvUWApWYuzu7jfeCPM/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252868%2529%252359.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFk5av1NQKhKVHnUjfT6xCHclsDpOJrU4WBadUIr7itLpNRP3cQyMFOINytrbsSLDZgAL8bgmYRFvlWjO3HzITdIP6zk1D-Vp2qeIlEliitTSs5hUMPHnyaLV5cIvUWApWYuzu7jfeCPM/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252868%2529%252359.JPG" width="199" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tiny Trini Plum</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">59. Tiny Trini Plum -- looks like a large green olive but is very tangy and spicy hot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">60. Mauby -- a brown beverage made from the bark of a tree and tastes somewhat like root beer; has a bit of a a sassafras flavor although made from a different type tree. Mauby is common throughout the Caribbean and is known by various names. The Mauby we sampled was not the fizzy variety, more like sassafras flavored iced tea.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauby" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauby</a></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-uXDHZchfE6A_Fm-efo82W2Ri9q7zDFEKPwWAVZe-3K1rdWtd2GXmMbNoaQ04RA2CKslWtN_g5ohs6OKqlVK1RD_c1EYU5VHf6EP_Oia2TnfZmx-9FyVhib7eY6AyVWBs_y4ijgYucgA/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252869%2529%252361+%252659.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-uXDHZchfE6A_Fm-efo82W2Ri9q7zDFEKPwWAVZe-3K1rdWtd2GXmMbNoaQ04RA2CKslWtN_g5ohs6OKqlVK1RD_c1EYU5VHf6EP_Oia2TnfZmx-9FyVhib7eY6AyVWBs_y4ijgYucgA/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252869%2529%252361+%252659.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sugar Cake. With bag of<br />Tiny Trini Plums</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">61. Sugar Cake -- Coconut and sugar and food colors; our sample was purple.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK6NW7eOFL4jzvrtl-uGgBZvc1z_-rwJMEfwo0au2IvDSokxm8ZhD0U2yC_KmNwWAgbDSlGdZNhw6EkJxha8DM9rnF6BnsuRX6k2iZmEFyE0eRjC9WkcFMY6FGKLo8DvCff4aLrKwhfQk/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252871%2529%252362.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK6NW7eOFL4jzvrtl-uGgBZvc1z_-rwJMEfwo0au2IvDSokxm8ZhD0U2yC_KmNwWAgbDSlGdZNhw6EkJxha8DM9rnF6BnsuRX6k2iZmEFyE0eRjC9WkcFMY6FGKLo8DvCff4aLrKwhfQk/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252871%2529%252362.JPG" width="143" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pepper Roti. One of my<br />favorites of the day.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">62. Pepper Roti -- sort of like pizza (?); this was a stuffed flat roti and very spicy. Good!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG1YOEUzzd-PqCgqBwl522aDP1oknAMXIJYWkgFWv_nC5sFAsYAe4fCzoT6WdHZrEDoocEO_daAAY1x3txU7cksEPD_B5DxsEPu_31wMq_sOePvel4uQHJEC7uFbjTQFBianO1YjVRtwk/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252873%2529%252363.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG1YOEUzzd-PqCgqBwl522aDP1oknAMXIJYWkgFWv_nC5sFAsYAe4fCzoT6WdHZrEDoocEO_daAAY1x3txU7cksEPD_B5DxsEPu_31wMq_sOePvel4uQHJEC7uFbjTQFBianO1YjVRtwk/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252873%2529%252363.JPG" width="113" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Chicken Fingers</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">63. Chicken Fingers -- boiled chicken feet. These make a delicious broth as a base for soups; I have cooked chicken feet on the boat. The woman seated in front of me on this tour could not get past how these looked. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She squealed and dropped the foot onto her plate because she thought it had wiggled. Thoroughly boiled and removed from the body of the chicken, so she knew it could not have moved; but it bothered her to see it.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju0yp6Mgbl6e5s_IktvH8ArJ8whNv4SD3CXpQUuLgaXcixDoH4X4Jr2CO0JQ5Cp6bcPulzjZH6rIMq2_LuQ0FISj14R_EgG3J0NcYt8prnoMewmZ1g8KFAltpNHFFYNsdpdFPUawWdpjs/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252874%2529%252364.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju0yp6Mgbl6e5s_IktvH8ArJ8whNv4SD3CXpQUuLgaXcixDoH4X4Jr2CO0JQ5Cp6bcPulzjZH6rIMq2_LuQ0FISj14R_EgG3J0NcYt8prnoMewmZ1g8KFAltpNHFFYNsdpdFPUawWdpjs/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252874%2529%252364.JPG" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cutters -- Roast Pork</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">64. Cutters -- Cutters are snacks one eats before going out drinking, so the rum won't get you drunk as quickly. Our tour was not going to drink any alcohol but Jesse treated us to a couple of cutters. This first one was roast pork with hot sauce and it was delicious!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijpKMq7KflqcOXMtW-YRpifGOqnrie4Dq9XL1itW068NSzYvQSKWKuOjjjukap9sg1GzFQjGwgxjj1h_zwRT2nt209oUlEWEJ6-j0dAVz-ctqn360QUkwolWrnXOiZNyaa0Ih_CvzBB0g/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252876%2529%252365.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijpKMq7KflqcOXMtW-YRpifGOqnrie4Dq9XL1itW068NSzYvQSKWKuOjjjukap9sg1GzFQjGwgxjj1h_zwRT2nt209oUlEWEJ6-j0dAVz-ctqn360QUkwolWrnXOiZNyaa0Ih_CvzBB0g/s320/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252876%2529%252365.JPG" width="224" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A Cocoa Pod. The cocoa beans are<br />covered with that white slime.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">65. Cocoa Pod -- 4 of us on this tour had previously tasted a fresh cocoa pod; 3 had not. This is the wrong season as the pods have not yet ripened enough to pick. But Jesse drove slowly and eventually found a couple of pods that were yellow enough to warrant picking. One of our tour participants was tall enough to pick one of the pods. Trinidad grows the best cocoa in the world. Grenada likes to boast that claim, but Trinidadian cocoa is the best. Plus, a Trinidadian is credited for saving cocoa from extinction; unfortunately, I did not note his name and do not remember it. But he found a way to stop the Witches Broom disease that was killing cocoa all over the world. There is an entire department devoted to cocoa at the University of Trinidad still today. Jesse told us a story about a very large yacht coming to Trinidad years ago and he was engaged to take the elderly male owner on a tour, and the man specifically wanted to visit cocoa plantations and the University of Trinidad to speak with the experts on cocoa. Turned out this elderly man's surname was Mars -- of the Mars candy company, the 6th largest privately held corporation in the United States. (Sorry, British friends; Mars is not a British candy company; it is an American company which has production facilities in the UK, as well as in The Netherlands, the Czech Republic and Australia.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">) The white slime surrounding the cocoa beans inside the pod tastes like cocoa.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS0R5PL1MJARq-M4efeVGwTF__mIC6leLdHUD3xHYODrnqi0R2t2MpFwNlmQ3jxtRIhjjKLMAZDZKD_YW5KdEL5qDqCAOT0OmCU1AvqWATD5AmO6PEZ8QYHssOwJNfk7cAfaKch8U7E6g/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252877%2529%252366.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS0R5PL1MJARq-M4efeVGwTF__mIC6leLdHUD3xHYODrnqi0R2t2MpFwNlmQ3jxtRIhjjKLMAZDZKD_YW5KdEL5qDqCAOT0OmCU1AvqWATD5AmO6PEZ8QYHssOwJNfk7cAfaKch8U7E6g/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252877%2529%252366.JPG" width="158" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cutters--BBQ Chicken</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpO7rNPwpbScEKhxHRtR1UKu0fFXLvqKo93DAlNSNLO0lR4lwFFjS7oRPeNQ5IkbxK_RCHn8Q9YU-Ae62AGXU-Jg-IUONdFKf1fvcwXZuS1cY5SSxiZjP_bIBtsniajObHzwOVrJqOpVs/s1600/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252878%2529%252367.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpO7rNPwpbScEKhxHRtR1UKu0fFXLvqKo93DAlNSNLO0lR4lwFFjS7oRPeNQ5IkbxK_RCHn8Q9YU-Ae62AGXU-Jg-IUONdFKf1fvcwXZuS1cY5SSxiZjP_bIBtsniajObHzwOVrJqOpVs/s200/2016-10-14+Taste+Tour+%252878%2529%252367.JPG" width="183" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gullar Jamoon on left.<br />Barfi on right.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">66. Cutters -- barbequed chicken this time</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">67. Gullar Jamoon -- a commercially packaged sweet which is like a donut hole.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">68. Barfi -- a commercially packaged candy; a type of white milk fudge with confetti sprinkles.</span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Dinner:</u></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">69. Cinnamon fried plantains</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">70. Cold Macaroni Salad</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">71. Grilled Kingfish -- very tasty!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">72. Stewed Pidgeon Peas -- the best I have ever tasted</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">73. Festive Rice</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">74. Geera Pork -- Trini version of jerked pork </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/geera-pork-ii/" target="_blank">http://www.simplytrinicooking.com/geera-pork-ii/</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">75. Sorrel drink -- a canned or bottled drink made from sorrel, a flower. Nice and refreshing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">76. Spicy dill pickles, cucumbers, peppers & tomatoes relish -- <i><b><u>my favorite dish of the day</u></b>.</i> This accompanied the grilled fish very nicely. I do not know the local name of this relish and could not find a recipe for it. But all ingredients were finely chopped and blended to compliment the flavors extremely well (to my taste buds!). This is something that I will attempt to duplicate in the future when grilling fish. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">L-R clockwise starting at top center: Grilled Kingfish, Geera Pork,<br />delicious dill pickle relish, Festive Rice, Cinnamon Fried Plaintains,<br />Cold Macaroni Salad, and Stewed Pidgeon Peas in center.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By the way, while attempting unsuccessfully to find a recipe for this relish, I came across the following local news article about cucumbers. Cucumbers are not just served raw in salads here in Trinidad; they actually cook cucumbers in various dishes. A few of the dishes we sampled this day had cooked cucumbers incorporated as a minor ingredient. This linked news article provides a sample of some other recipes cooking cucumbers. The Shrimp and Cucumber Stir Fry is one that I certainly will cook in the future. </span><a href="http://www.newsday.co.tt/features/0,162049.html" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">http://www.newsday.co.tt/features/0,162049.html</a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We enjoyed this Taste of Trini Tour and thank Jesse James of Members Only Maxi Taxi for introducing us to the flavors of Trinidad. This was a long driving tour covering the island from the northwest tip at Chaguaramas, completely across the island west to east, then south, again west, and back north to origination point -- about 150 miles. On island roads, not the highways of home. It had to be tiring to drive this much as it was tiring for us simply riding. Excellent job, Jesse! <b>The record number of foods sampled on a Taste of Trini Tour is 99.</b> Our group tasted only 76. And not a single one of us could have tasted another bite of anything, regardless of how delicious it might have been. We were full!!!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anyone planning to visit Trinidad can contact Jesse; he can assist you in innumerable ways:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.membersonlymaxitaxi.com/services/services.htm" target="_blank">http://www.membersonlymaxitaxi.com/services/services.htm</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-67671994885635568372016-09-16T12:30:00.000+01:002016-09-25T21:36:59.328+01:00Awarded Sailor of the Year <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(Maybe that should be Sailor<b>s</b> of the Year.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Recently we received notification from the editor of magazine <i><b>Sailing Today</b></i> that we have been voted the winners of the <i><b>Sailing Today</b></i> Awards 2016 <u>Sailor of the Yea</u>r category. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Judy and I accepted by video and Lu Heikell accepted in person in our stead </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What a surprise!! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">His note stated that this information was under embargo until 17:00 UTC, Friday 16 September when the awards winners would be officially announced at a champagne ceremony at the Southhampton Boat Show. Therefore, I am writing this blog posting and scheduling posting for that appropriate time. The awards winners will be announced in the November issue of the magazine which will be published on 30 September 2016.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i style="font-weight: bold;">Sailing Today</i> grants many awards each year for a variety of gear and accomplishments:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.sailingtoday.co.uk/sailing-today-awards-2016/" target="_blank">http://www.sailingtoday.co.uk/sailing-today-awards-2016/</a></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here is a link to the nominees for the Sailor of the Year award:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.sailingtoday.co.uk/sailor-of-the-year/" target="_blank">http://www.sailingtoday.co.uk/sailor-of-the-year/</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Reading the accomplishments of our 'competition' made us wonder why people voted for us! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rest assured, we are appreciative of this unexpected award! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Several friends and family members suggested that possibly my blogging about our travels for the past 11 years might have had an impact on voting numbers. This blogspot has had just under half-million views since I moved the previous blog onto this format in March 2009. I have deliberately not monetized this blog and a number of people have told me that they appreciate that this blog does not contain advertisements and no solicitations for donations. Or maybe the voters were other sailors we have met over the years and had nothing to do with this blog. T'is a mystery --- but thanks to all who voted for us!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill arranged for Lu Mitchell Heikell to accept the award in our stead since it was impossible for us to attend the Southhampton Boat Show this year due to our son's accident. We first met Rod and Lu in the Kingdom of Tonga in 2008. The last time we saw them was when we were anchored next to one another at Darwin, Australia in September 2009. Rod Heikell was honored by <i style="font-weight: bold;">Sailing Today</i> with a lifetime achievement award at the same award ceremonies at the Southhampton Boat Show. Thank you so much, Lu, for accepting the Sailor of the Year award for us.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thanks also to friend Jake Angelo for helping us make this short video of acceptance which was shown at the awards ceremonies at the Southhampton Boat Show.</span><br />
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-83652147880226174252016-09-10T19:06:00.001+01:002016-09-10T23:01:43.669+01:00Summer is over / Trip to Houston<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBsGErCuhVJrAZktsEddnVuWvjIgCA7M0or7aHImR7dC65vV1Zd74DxxPk7VB6bOEY01ixCZx6vIjrlgeNi0Z58m0ay7NmeKf_SQ0h6GnFpahPnMfTABPWWmWGAcNjTDiaF-ZKD93_tFo/s1600/Turtle_Watching_2lg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBsGErCuhVJrAZktsEddnVuWvjIgCA7M0or7aHImR7dC65vV1Zd74DxxPk7VB6bOEY01ixCZx6vIjrlgeNi0Z58m0ay7NmeKf_SQ0h6GnFpahPnMfTABPWWmWGAcNjTDiaF-ZKD93_tFo/s320/Turtle_Watching_2lg.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Example of giant leatherback turtle. Photo borrowed<br />from MembersOnly, Jesse James' website about<br />tours available on Trinidad.<br /><a href="http://www.membersonlymaxitaxi.com/events/oos.htm" target="_blank">http://www.membersonlymaxitaxi.com/events/oos.htm</a></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Summer was over
and time for the grandchildren to return to Texas before we knew it.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We had hoped to take one of the turtle
watching tours to see the giant leatherbacks either laying eggs or see the tiny hatch-lings scooting across the beach and into the sea.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">But that trip never materialized for a
variety of reasons.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">First there was a
health problem in tour operator’s family and then there were not enough other
cruisers to join us for this outing.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Jesse James cannot run this tour for only 4 people unless he charges a
high fee, and he did not want to do that.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Sorry that Elisabeth and Damien missed seeing the giant turtles or the
tiny babies.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Bill and I did the tour on
Grenada years ago so we did not miss anything, but it would have been nice for
the kids to see this wonder of nature.</span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAlowB4ki_bOZAM3vQQ9GdA09i3FphVPzuCWu8EoF3H8QKNd1qUdr1AHDQdmiBNz_sJ0MMui6pWLrGnVjfCTaCJTL_hyeZ_kqNbzG7n2I5A8EiOsz9TDTvJJ5KLAFAq-C96cxxYwoLTls/s1600/2016-07-18+Trinidad+Damien.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAlowB4ki_bOZAM3vQQ9GdA09i3FphVPzuCWu8EoF3H8QKNd1qUdr1AHDQdmiBNz_sJ0MMui6pWLrGnVjfCTaCJTL_hyeZ_kqNbzG7n2I5A8EiOsz9TDTvJJ5KLAFAq-C96cxxYwoLTls/s200/2016-07-18+Trinidad+Damien.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Damien trying coconut water for<br />1st time. Not a fan.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl9TKzCRmQhH7LmPDnq1TQRs0i-zaf36SZ-PjolqZD1qYGYbMu8bIsB3TNs_PVhQQPUSchLgG4CwN6RiPDZP1QIDSmzO04ecUMLf0qGKckZUTKemDsjUx1egt2uSOdaL5ljeV_9ea0ZVk/s1600/2016-07-22+Trinidad+haircut.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl9TKzCRmQhH7LmPDnq1TQRs0i-zaf36SZ-PjolqZD1qYGYbMu8bIsB3TNs_PVhQQPUSchLgG4CwN6RiPDZP1QIDSmzO04ecUMLf0qGKckZUTKemDsjUx1egt2uSOdaL5ljeV_9ea0ZVk/s200/2016-07-22+Trinidad+haircut.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Haircut! Looks like a boy again.<br />All ready to start school when<br />get back home.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The taxi to the
airport for flight to Houston picked us up at 04:30 so we opted to stay in
Crews Inn Hotel the night before departure.
We have a routine of preparing BeBe when leaving for weeks or longer and
we did not want to do that in the middle of the night. I had already emptied and defrosted all the
freezers </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrE7l00fRGxuM0oDTpC8Fn5aRmgEqmuJE2YQp7iRA6NZwa2D5QUp0u-Vs2PXNCqUzyjC6s6BGl_2TZXPtThlxHKLbr6Z8vhK7e__weLsFf_QZ0oGWMMf-bZU-ps9Ael0DFi6xXfBzBGmY/s1600/2016-07-20+Trinidad+cat+ears+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrE7l00fRGxuM0oDTpC8Fn5aRmgEqmuJE2YQp7iRA6NZwa2D5QUp0u-Vs2PXNCqUzyjC6s6BGl_2TZXPtThlxHKLbr6Z8vhK7e__weLsFf_QZ0oGWMMf-bZU-ps9Ael0DFi6xXfBzBGmY/s320/2016-07-20+Trinidad+cat+ears+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elisabeth making cat ears for Damien. Every young<br />girl should know the basics of sewing.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">and refrigerators. When leaving
the boat we run fresh water through everything that normally uses seawater -- the
air-conditioning systems, heads and hoses, generator and engine. That fresh water kills any marine growth or
creatures that might have found their way into those hoses and systems. This is not necessary but is something that
we have always done when leaving the boat for longer than a week or so.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2L9gpBcMWhfVBdVMz5xYIbjg0LPM8ziQoJRIFcJ6s49K5oaIx89XYW0YXGeEGv66OlgsP1KUM__sQCF_rlPQS-7B_xU4yuiu_WyhuDgaSrqXtNFXZb5gReO-QVlhqIEmHHMqH_VCT0gs/s1600/2016-08-01+Trinidad+luggage+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2L9gpBcMWhfVBdVMz5xYIbjg0LPM8ziQoJRIFcJ6s49K5oaIx89XYW0YXGeEGv66OlgsP1KUM__sQCF_rlPQS-7B_xU4yuiu_WyhuDgaSrqXtNFXZb5gReO-QVlhqIEmHHMqH_VCT0gs/s320/2016-08-01+Trinidad+luggage+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Luggage for flight home to Houston. 8 large duffle<br />bags; 4 carry-on bags; and 4 backpacks. THAT got<br />a lot of our stuff off the boat!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We had booked a
large van to accommodate all our excess luggage for this flight. Since we are selling the boat it made sense
to take advantage of flying with the 2 grandchildren and max out luggage
limitations for this flight. And did we
ever! The 4 of us each had 2 large
checked bags, plus each had one rolling carry-on bag and each had a
backpack. That made for a lot of
luggage! Because we had so much luggage
it was decided that both our sons would meet us at the airport in Houston with
their largest vehicles. And this is when
the problem happened.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">As so often
happens we were delayed in luggage collection in the Customs section of foreign
arrivals at the airport. Because it had
been so long since the flight arrived and we were not yet out in the arrival
area, Trey decided to step outside to see if by chance we had walked through
the crowd already and were waiting for them near the cars. There was a dark gray curb next to a dark
gray driveway, and in the darkness and shadows contrasted with the sunlight
nearby he did not see that curb. This
caused him to trip and shatter his kneecap.
He said it sounded like a gunshot when he fell full-weight onto that 1
knee. A cart attendant said that Trey
was the third person to fall in that exact spot in the past week. So this is a known safety hazard. The airport management really should have a
stripe painted onto that curb!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWnjFUmhEOOSyECPvkWUALudrDCeqPB8hDwOyJyCBwB5TuX1VdgBqsqs_4ENxiY2-MvK9oJpFDOfFyHnhgpy-li-XUju57drSMU2Mp1mvgz3vrwoweuHKsuBctEDJk8vOhp-LfBwuu_s/s1600/2016-08-22+Trey+leg.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWnjFUmhEOOSyECPvkWUALudrDCeqPB8hDwOyJyCBwB5TuX1VdgBqsqs_4ENxiY2-MvK9oJpFDOfFyHnhgpy-li-XUju57drSMU2Mp1mvgz3vrwoweuHKsuBctEDJk8vOhp-LfBwuu_s/s320/2016-08-22+Trey+leg.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Trey in fixed brace. Happy on pain pills second day<br />after surgery. We bought a small fridge and set it<br />on rollers next to his recliner to hold ice green tea and<br />snacks. This became his command center as more<br />and more magnetic holders were added to the fridge.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Trey’s patella
was broken into 3 sections, with the middle section slipping down behind the
lower section. Ligaments to thigh quadriceps
were severed as well as ligaments to lower leg bone also severed. The kundles also were sheared off. This was a very severe break. He had to wait 9 days for the severe swelling
to reduce before surgery to screw and wire the kneecap back together. The doctors placed him into an immobilizer brace
for those 9 days and he was in a great deal of pain. After surgery the leg was placed into a fixed
brace locked at 180 degrees—straight leg.
The orthopedist wanted the leg to remain locked straight for 5 or 6
weeks before slowly beginning deflection 10 degrees each visit. Supposedly, by 3 November his leg will once
again be capable of moving to 90 degrees.
And then the fun part of physical therapy begins. What an ordeal!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Because of this
accident Bill and I extended our visit to Houston. Rather than return to the boat on 1 September
as originally planned, we will return on 21 September. Trey needed help until he could regain better
mobility and stability of movement. He has
a walker and now could move from bed to recliner unassisted after the first 3
weeks post surgery, but still needed someone to prepare meals and fetch
drinks. He has diabetes; healthy and
timely meals are critical; it wasn’t like someone could prepare a sandwich for
him before heading off to school and work and leaving him alone all day. I am glad we decided to remain another 3
weeks to allow him time to gain more movement and become less dependent on
others to help. He tries sitting at his
home desk each day and is slowly increasing the time he can stand that. He is progressing nicely and hopes to improve
to the point that he will be able to work from home next month. Thank goodness for the FMLA (Family Medical
Leave Act) which provides him with employment protection until 25 October. He has disability insurance through his
employer. Those 2 things are saving
graces when someone sustains an accident such as this. It is painful not only physically but also
financially.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR4Xn8EnNCfuwfecgR8Akm-QuTVE6cDIG0eNGANqF9Zq4G-m6gjtc-YVd6zNPFeekzwn97sQ4LzpMZUihQImcoWFYuPRfbRrcCuPEt1yXL-2HVOqtBtZSFc8YrKrDMr2ll6OjtupaLVls/s1600/2007-08-13+BeBe+on+deck+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR4Xn8EnNCfuwfecgR8Akm-QuTVE6cDIG0eNGANqF9Zq4G-m6gjtc-YVd6zNPFeekzwn97sQ4LzpMZUihQImcoWFYuPRfbRrcCuPEt1yXL-2HVOqtBtZSFc8YrKrDMr2ll6OjtupaLVls/s320/2007-08-13+BeBe+on+deck+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elisabeth, a/k/a BeBe, in Bonaire August 2007<br />celebrating 6th birthday.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2iu3fNstjhDIqTCGeb8K8OaFjjp4aqd77L0_zwqKpWr-KXb6dyeNB5EpWURxycBS3nWVGhScg1lIwqAR3LVGi1Sh1D9t-ylKsI8lAfdFlAAnx6iYOntVkRc9WsjY2GNVZsI3EbaoXCAU/s1600/2016-07-31+Trinidad+15th+birthday+%25284%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2iu3fNstjhDIqTCGeb8K8OaFjjp4aqd77L0_zwqKpWr-KXb6dyeNB5EpWURxycBS3nWVGhScg1lIwqAR3LVGi1Sh1D9t-ylKsI8lAfdFlAAnx6iYOntVkRc9WsjY2GNVZsI3EbaoXCAU/s320/2016-07-31+Trinidad+15th+birthday+%25284%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BeBe in Trinidad celebrating 15th birthday</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi588Y2q2usuA8APs7iLC3NFUqT_3h2HRbmG_Ts6lvtf4XOZgKu57GHaZlCAYu6tYeauO9xK_KWFTOoWCp-vF_C-causP031C6J6rMa0JSxycUZHEch2Kd4QNxPYDFISh1P3jJqYj1F_1o/s1600/2016-07-31+Trinidad+15th+birthday+%25287%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi588Y2q2usuA8APs7iLC3NFUqT_3h2HRbmG_Ts6lvtf4XOZgKu57GHaZlCAYu6tYeauO9xK_KWFTOoWCp-vF_C-causP031C6J6rMa0JSxycUZHEch2Kd4QNxPYDFISh1P3jJqYj1F_1o/s320/2016-07-31+Trinidad+15th+birthday+%25287%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elisabeth, Judy & Damien. We will<br />miss summers on the boat with<br />grandchildren.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Extending our
stay in Texas also had other benefits for Bill and me. It afforded us more time to fix up our little
bungalow in Galveston. Our tenant had
died unexpectedly in late June. We are
leaving the home as rental property through the remainder of 2016; changing
status to be our homestead effective 1 January 2017. Since we will be absentee owners it seemed
best to retain the property manager for the remainder of this year. He has subcontractors to effect repairs
should any damages or accidents occur during our absence; although, I seriously
doubt anyone would want to rent the home for such a short time period.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We have taken
this opportunity to have the flooring replaced throughout the home. And replace the aging HVAC system. A gas line has been run and a meter
installed; I am so looking forward to replacing as many of the electrical
appliances as feasible with new gas appliances, but those will wait until we move
in next year. The front steps have been
replaced (remember—this is an elevated home in Galveston; there are always
plenty of exterior steps). Soon the
exterior will be pressure washed and repainted.
And a new security alarm system has been installed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We have
reclaimed some of our old furniture from various relatives, as well as some
kitchen things. Bill’s brother John has
donated numerous things to set up housekeeping in this little bungalow. There are enough furniture pieces in the home
now that it would be possible to rent it furnished for the next 3 months should
someone be in that market. Highly
doubtful. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrEym1CVl-Ygbls4MnEG3TsjmRnd1I7m85D8WLSSBImFAJlMWZW_rhKbvZsrLJ9L_jZkMXwvOgsQDvSzdB6jJadzTl-m0UEZbjZxbV94yLLIbanS076Mp5yVBpO-VS4xVC6_Wh5SNsSrI/s1600/2016-09-04+Galv+unpack.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrEym1CVl-Ygbls4MnEG3TsjmRnd1I7m85D8WLSSBImFAJlMWZW_rhKbvZsrLJ9L_jZkMXwvOgsQDvSzdB6jJadzTl-m0UEZbjZxbV94yLLIbanS076Mp5yVBpO-VS4xVC6_Wh5SNsSrI/s320/2016-09-04+Galv+unpack.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All that is left of my pots and pans from 11 years ago!<br />A single pot lid.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">It was funny
when I unpacked the crates labeled ‘kitchen’ which I had loaned to Bill’s
sister 11 years ago. I found exactly ONE
lid for a pot. No pots or pans or
skillets --- just 1 pot lid. Good thing
I am keeping those good German-made Silit pots and pans currently on the boat
which I purchased a couple of years ago!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Time to repaint the deck stripes. I last did this job in<br />New Zealand in early 2009. The paint was dark brown<br />and perfectly matched the original stripe color, but turned<br />green within 6 months. This time the stripes were painted<br />by someone other than me (aging hips and knees are not<br />for this job!). The new buyers wanted white and I like it.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Bill and I are getting
anxious to return to BeBe. We do not
like being away from the boat for such a long time, especially when we do not
have trusted friends there to report any problems that might occur during our
absence. We have spoken with the dock master
at Crews Inn and he says BeBe is fine.
Bill emailed the guy who recently painted our deck stripes white and he
also checked the boat and said all is fine.
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, did I forget to mention that?</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Yep, the deck stripes on BeBe now are ivory
colored. A new color for the new buyers. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"> And Bill and I like it.</span></span><br />
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-38482528113443099492016-07-15T23:02:00.000+01:002016-07-15T23:10:15.189+01:00Swallowing the Anchor<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>This is a difficult post to write. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Bill and I will soon become CLODS.</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We have a few months left, but that departure time will be here before we know it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some readers (sailors!) will know that acronym. For the non-sailing folks, a CLOD is a Cruiser Living On Dirt. The other oft-heard expression is that we are 'swallowing the anchor.' Either expression tells you that we have reached the end of our cruising years and it is time to retire back to land. I would continue cruising for another year or possibly 2, but Bill is ready to call it quits now. And we each have always believed that when one partner is ready to stop cruising, then it is time to stop. How awful it would be to live on a boat with someone who does not wish to be there. We have seen that situation in some other cruisers and it never works out well for either partner. Plus, there are so many things that I physically cannot do anymore due to my painful arthritic hip and damaged knees. Boat life has become increasingly difficult for me physically. It is time to quit and find an easier lifestyle.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR-L8RKT5-isgsXiBnzrTvrDW1RUOdL6NS1uHowkE8UaI1LpH6t2WPVpYzXi_kR8q6SBACnoVeawL-p4VtEQC0We9h19beADSCaaISitm3i2RbvJgO_UFk7VdUw3g9hkVyHSHiNJG43dQ/s1600/Dan+and+Lori+with+Bill--BeBe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR-L8RKT5-isgsXiBnzrTvrDW1RUOdL6NS1uHowkE8UaI1LpH6t2WPVpYzXi_kR8q6SBACnoVeawL-p4VtEQC0We9h19beADSCaaISitm3i2RbvJgO_UFk7VdUw3g9hkVyHSHiNJG43dQ/s400/Dan+and+Lori+with+Bill--BeBe.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">BeBe already is under sales contract to soon-to-be new owners, Dan and Lori Carlson of Chicago. Dan and Lori flew to Trinidad last Friday and spent several days with us going over BeBe. They presented us with a sales contract and we accepted. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill sent an email to about 20 people who had contacted us over the past 18 months looking for a boat like ours. All these people were looking to purchase an Amel, preferably a Super Maramu 2000 model such as BeBe. Five people responded that they were interested in seeing BeBe and might be serious buyers. We did not want to show the boat to anyone until late September as there were several things we wanted to do first -- such as clean carpets and empty some of the overly stuffed lockers. It is amazing how much junk one can accumulate living on a boat for 10+ years.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But Dan was insistent that because of employment commitments mid-July was the only time he and Lori could make the trip to check-out the boat. We finally said 'okay' but that they would have to stay in a hotel because we did not want company on board while our 2 grandchildren were with us. And they would have to understand that the boat has not been cleaned and prepped for sales viewing. Dan said they wanted to see how we lived aboard anyway; they had already looked at several Amels listed for sale over the past few years but those boats had all been emptied. They wanted to see ours while still filled with all our 'stuff' -- to see how real cruisers live.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">While they were here in Trinidad they had the opportunity to join the cruiser group playing Sunday afternoon Mexican Train Dominoes. And our friends, Simon and Jenny aboard Fenecia, joined us all for dinner one evening aboard BeBe so they had a small opportunity to see what the cruising life is all about -- the people one meets out here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill and I will be flying home to Houston with the grandchildren for the month of August, then we will return to Trinidad and begin trying to figure out what should be shipped back to Texas and how. We will sail BeBe north to the US Virgin Islands where we will meet Dan and Lori in early January and spend a few weeks familiarizing them with the unique sailing characteristics of this Amel Super Maramu 2000.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And then Bill and I will be retiring to our little bungalow in Galveston. Bill has a number of activities planned for retirement: 1) he has been appointed Vice Commander of the Galveston Squadron of the Texas Navy; 2) volunteering at the Texas Lone Star Flight Museum doing maintenance on those old WWII airplanes; and 3) volunteering on board the tall ship Elissa, where he crewed before we began this round-the-world 10+-year sailing adventure. I have no idea how my time will be occupied once we are CLODs next winter.</span>CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-32918153611247171142016-07-15T17:16:00.001+01:002016-07-15T17:24:08.481+01:00Return to Trinidad <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The overnight sail from Le Phare Bleu Marina on the southern coast of Grenada south to Chaguaramas, Trinidad, was far better than we ever would have hoped to experience. The last time we made this passage in 2006 both Bill and I were either seasick or on the verge of being seasick most of the way because conditions were so lively. Back then we did the rhumb line which took us between the Hibiscus and Poinsettia offshore gas rigs. Since we had grandchildren aboard this time we opted to take the route recommended by the Trinidad coast guard. Well....almost. The coast guard recommends going 10 miles east of the Poinsettia gas rig. I think we went about 5 miles east of that rig before angling southwestward toward the cut between the islands to arrive in Chaguaramas. Wind was from 80 degrees true and sailing conditions were quite nice. Even little Damien, who is prone to motion sickness, managed to enjoy the trip without incident. I did not feed him dinner but instead allowed him to eat granola bars and ginger cookies to his heart's content while limiting water consumption to sips. We were all extremely pleased that he did not get seasick and enjoyed the trip.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Funny thing is that last December when we made the reservation the marina required a starting date for the season contract. It is impossible to plan any sailing 6 months in advance but we made a wild guess and noted on the calendar that we would sail overnight from Grenada to Trinidad on Sunday, 26 June, thus having the berthing contract commence on Monday, 27 June 2016. And that ended up being exactly what happened. Surprised us. Usually plans made that far in advance do not happen as originally planned.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Chaguaramas has changed a bit over the past decade. It is more built-up with shipping facilities. The pleasure yacht berthing has not increased but the facilities for commercial shipping have increased. There *might* be a few more moorings in place; impossible for either of us to remember how crowded that mooring field was 10 years ago but it does appear slightly larger and more crowded today than it was back then. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last time we berthed in Coral Cove Marina because we were unable to get into Crews Inn Marina. This time we were able to book Crews Inn Marina 6 months in advance. And everything is now switched! Previously, even as recently as 3 years ago according to our sailing friends, most of the cruisers berthed at Crews Inn Marina. All the social activities were held at Crews Inn. Today, all the social activities are over on the Coral Cove side of the bay, mostly near Power Boats at the Roti Hut. The only cruiser social activity still held at Crews Inn are the Sunday afternoon games of Mexican Train Dominoes. Even the ATM machine is now located on the other side of the bay. And there no longer are any water taxis!! It is a long, hot walk around to that other side. At least the little supermarket is still open on the Crews Inn side. And Jesse James still operates the Members Only Maxi-Taxis for shopping trips and island tours. So far we have not gone anywhere. The Crews Inn Marina is home today mostly to local power boats. Cruisers arrive for a day or 2 and then have the boats hauled out while they fly home for a month or 2 or 3. It is very different here in Trinidad for cruisers than what we experienced 10 years ago. Things always change.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We attempted to get the grandkids interested in taking sailing lessons while here in Trinidad but neither kid wants to do that. One is too young to form an opinion, but the 14-yr-old nixed the idea because the type of sailboats used for lessons here are not like what her school at home uses so she sees no point in learning to sail these. We tried explaining that knowing one kind of boat would benefit her in learning another type of boat but teenagers resist reasoning sometimes. We saw no benefit in forcing the kids to participate in an activity, so there will be no small boat sailing lessons for them this summer. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last evening there was a manager's cocktail party for cruisers berthed in Crews Inn. That was very nice of the management. Food was good (West Indian spicy!) and beverages aplenty. Even the grandkids enjoyed the function.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For about a week a boat which had crossed the Atlantic with us last January was berthed next to us here. We very much enjoyed catching up with Simon and Jenny aboard Fenecia. They moved over to Power Boats this morning so we won't be seeing them again much. We do not want to put our dinghy in this dirty water of a commercial harbor and get it covered in the fuel slime that floats in patches all over this bay. We will be flying home to Houston in about 2 weeks and do not want to have to clean the dinghy in order to store it on the mizzen deck when we leave, so it will just stay on that deck and remain clean and we must walk around to the chandleries and whatever else boat-related that we might want to do.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Red streaks for the young girl.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elisabeth, a/k/a BeBe, and I each had our hair colored at the salon here at Crews Inn. Me to cover the sparkles of gray and she to add trendy streaks of bright red. Nice that there is a hair salon on premises that does good work.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We have made no island touring trips yet. The kids were not interested in seeing any of the swamps, nature preserves, the pitch lake or even the trip to watch turtles lay eggs. They liked the idea of the turtle trip until they learned that it is done very late at night. Nothing we have suggested has interested either of them. The young one has enjoyed the hotel swimming pool on days when the rain stops. It has really been a rainy season so far this month! I hope to at least take the kids on a day trip somewhere to sample bake and shark. How can anyone visit Trinidad and not try that famous Bake and Shark! I also would like them to sample doubles but that also probably won't happen.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill and I will fly with the grandkids to Houston in early August and return to Trinidad in early September. There are a few boat chores that we want to do while here in Trinidad; one of which is to re-paint the deck stripes. I had planned to do this job myself as I am the one who did it last time in New Zealand in March 2009. But Bill knows how painful my hip has become and he thought painting the deck stripes might be too hard on me. He contracted with a man yesterday to do this work next week -- assuming the rain abates for a few days to allow exterior painting. So that painting might or might not get down next week. This is the rainy season, after all. If not, then surely the rain will be less frequent in October and the deck stripes can be painted then. Stripes will be painted an ivory cream color this time.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08HA6C8fEcC2kYLndowGFSQukKHYTiJQ1SkVoidvArUL8Icp8iSUQ-iqPqYonr3RoBp2We0DWKir2-jmTfhgW2w6ykvSB5TrZ5jSO3fOYACcNkh34Bd7Qw7lxicdTpK0ZhmptUHci2bE/s1600/2016-06-30+head+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh08HA6C8fEcC2kYLndowGFSQukKHYTiJQ1SkVoidvArUL8Icp8iSUQ-iqPqYonr3RoBp2We0DWKir2-jmTfhgW2w6ykvSB5TrZ5jSO3fOYACcNkh34Bd7Qw7lxicdTpK0ZhmptUHci2bE/s320/2016-06-30+head+008.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The newly replaced valve. Good thing Bill does not<br />have painful hip or back like me. Contorting the<br />body to do this work is beyond my physical ability.<br />VERY glad that one of us is still physically able.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As soon as we arrived at this dock Bill worked a full day replacing a valve which is glassed into the hull. A very nasty, nasty job! This was the valve in the aft head which dumps contents of the black-water holding tank into the sea when offshore. It had started leaking a few weeks ago and we were most anxious to get this leak fixed ASAP. My trusty MacGyver husband came through once again! I am very pleased to have that leaky valve replaced. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Oh, the joys of owning a boat! </span><br />
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-57602733554451892352016-06-25T20:26:00.000+01:002016-06-26T15:03:05.556+01:00BeBe summer school and Le Phare Bleu Marina<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9LWsloKWqkz2nQMiyTV-JSZODPuGxUbLFcYJFscybXBNCY39g6NhxH7UsnoeacxeUgTCIEN3l0vOWpYTf_0OmQ3eXg9W3Ra7G2ONrQBckvtqpmrh9lNQqHQoKrBzWT4quVg3B3RCX0Uo/s1600/2016-06-18+Grenada+pool+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9LWsloKWqkz2nQMiyTV-JSZODPuGxUbLFcYJFscybXBNCY39g6NhxH7UsnoeacxeUgTCIEN3l0vOWpYTf_0OmQ3eXg9W3Ra7G2ONrQBckvtqpmrh9lNQqHQoKrBzWT4quVg3B3RCX0Uo/s400/2016-06-18+Grenada+pool+%25283%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Damien in pool at Le Phare Bleu Marina.<br />S/V BeBe is the center boat in background.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is that time of year again -- time for grandchildren to spend part of their summer vacation aboard BeBe. This summer we are hosting Elisabeth again (a/k/a BeBe) and also her younger brother Damien. Elisabeth has spent many summers in exotic locations aboard BeBe; this is her normal summer activity. Damien has visited us aboard BeBe in Australia at age 5 weeks; Greece at age 2; Turkey at age 4; and Spain at age 6. This is first visit with us on the boat without his parents. With his older sister being with him, he should be fine for the couple of months he will be away from his parents. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This time away also allows the parents to move from the rental house back into their home with 2 fewer kids underfoot. Their home was deeply flooded last year and then flooded again in April this year with about a foot of water inside the home. The city of Houston has been working on drainage improvements and during that construction the region has suffered several bouts of flooding. The unfinished drainage construction has exacerbated the flooding in certain areas of the city. A sad situation for thousands of homeowners. Repairs were delayed by both FEMA and the city of Houston </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(even though their home was insured for flood damage)</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">, but FINALLY the home is being repaired and they have begun moving certain items this week. Hopefully, the home repairs will be finished by the time we fly to Houston with Elisabeth and Damien in early August.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sign language lesson</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elisabeth and Damien arrived on a Friday night at the airport in Grenada. We had remained anchored in the mouth of Mt. Hartman Bay awaiting their arrival. We remained there for over a week so that they could attend a sign language lesson presented by the grandfather of a deaf teenage girl who was spending the summer aboard with her grandparents. Elisabeth and I also took one of the shopping vans to the supermarket one day, so she saw a bit of the island; Damien remained on board with Bill.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Damien eating a double banana. Two bananas<br />had grown inside one peeling. Strange!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One day we went 'exploring' in the dinghy to allow the kids to see the beach at Hog Island. And over into Woburn Bay (a/k/a Clarke Court's Bay). We wanted to dinghy all the way to Le Phare Bleu Marina to check it out but winds were too strong and we wimped out before rounding that final bend with waves splashing into the dinghy. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On Sundays there is a pool party and barbeque hosted by Secret Harbour Marina in Mt. Hartman Bay. We thought the kids would want to go to that and spend the afternoon in the pool, but we could not pry them off the boat that day. We had walked up to the pool the day before to show them where it would be held and neither kid wanted to walk back up that hill to go swimming. Oh well. It is their summer holiday; let them do what they enjoy most of the time.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Happy 7th Birthday to Damien!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Damien celebrated his 7th birthday on 18 June with a chocolate cake with chocolate icing -- his favorite for the moment. We have seen no toy stores since arriving in the Caribbean so gifts from his grandparents were a bit atypical but he was happy with what we gave him. Kids this age are easily pleased when led not to expect too much. A puzzle, some swim arm bands for the pool in Trinidad, a LED card-light, an enormous birthday card and a large piece of organic chocolate grown and produced right here on Grenada -- all made him a happy boy for the day.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Chowing down on birthday cake</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We pulled anchor, motored over to Secret Harbour Marina and filled the diesel tank, and then motored east to Le Phare Bleu Marina. Damien was ecstatic to finally be able to go right next to the 'sunken pirate ship' (crane on a barge) on the reef as we exited Mt. Hartman Bay via the east channel. He was disappointed that there were no skeletons visible. I have no idea where he got that idea. I was pleased that Damien did not get seasick during the 4 mile trip over to Le Phare Bleu Marina. First time we have been here. There were 2 red markers and 1 green marker missing in the entrance channel. But between the illustration in the sailing guide of where the markers should be and identifying the remaining markers, entrance between the reefs was easy. Our electronic charts were correct.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Calivigny Island resort as seen from the deck of S/V BeBe while<br />docked at Le Phare Bleu Marina. Nice view, huh!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There is a constant surge into this bay as in all the bays on the southern side of Grenada, but the outlying reefs break it up somewhat. We requested to be docked stern-to with bow pointed out to sea. This causes the boat to hobby-horse but there is no rolling so it is a comfortable motion. Bill dug out those expensive 'springs' that we purchased to use in the Med winters and we are quite happy being docked here in Le Phare Bleu. In fact, if we had not already confirmed berthing with Crews Inn in Trinidad and already purchased flights home from Trinidad, then I would be happy spending hurricane season right here in Le Phare Bleu. It is isolated from the regular cruiser community but the facilities here are nicer than in any of the other more popular bays. I would be content to stay here but would never leave the boat in the water while we fly home in August. Whereas, we have no qualms whatsoever leaving the boat in the water unattended in Trinidad in August. That 90 miles father south makes a big difference in statistical probability of storms. Grenada statistically now is over 2 1/2 years OVERDUE for a storm. We would be very uncomfortable leaving a boat here unattended during hurricane season, even with guardinage.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-R3ew-5nwDBZy5ZHQ8lFc33jjsyIyc_EVkO7IeCq7Jo4LUCY1DhZYXBtK8nTRmJrYarw-XyxNNrXOAsXSJg6be1bQc7dQnRXxnqpCzFALy6dd35scPiOTkU7xffSu8FXw71J1yQcZORY/s1600/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-R3ew-5nwDBZy5ZHQ8lFc33jjsyIyc_EVkO7IeCq7Jo4LUCY1DhZYXBtK8nTRmJrYarw-XyxNNrXOAsXSJg6be1bQc7dQnRXxnqpCzFALy6dd35scPiOTkU7xffSu8FXw71J1yQcZORY/s320/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Swedish Light Ship (used where impossible or<br />too costly to build lighthouse)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVl7RmhYFZ3fr7-0eU7w9aukjyFkkVC4AvfZY1F8wxNfizswu7kM6YzK9CKG9UIYDdgom-JXpfXYN4U5YKSjK2NF4lOO4w3_FhaOG6br_iGVNHNSFlgcxee5BM3Xls-AUGLX0nEYXTHvM/s200/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25286%2529.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="200" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On rear of ship outside the bar</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVl7RmhYFZ3fr7-0eU7w9aukjyFkkVC4AvfZY1F8wxNfizswu7kM6YzK9CKG9UIYDdgom-JXpfXYN4U5YKSjK2NF4lOO4w3_FhaOG6br_iGVNHNSFlgcxee5BM3Xls-AUGLX0nEYXTHvM/s1600/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25286%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVl7RmhYFZ3fr7-0eU7w9aukjyFkkVC4AvfZY1F8wxNfizswu7kM6YzK9CKG9UIYDdgom-JXpfXYN4U5YKSjK2NF4lOO4w3_FhaOG6br_iGVNHNSFlgcxee5BM3Xls-AUGLX0nEYXTHvM/s1600/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25286%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Le Phare Bleu Marina has a Swedish lightship secured next to the dock. This lightship was manufactured in the early 1900s and the steam engine still works! </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5PNLPEADrziO5UXeSJ5QjG2OefBVr0hblmyC8_xVLPxtqCFeT0wWeFLf8oGpnv1G4rsuTgffrR5_Ejo9PyDDvt5DEMqcawhzCNir9yvPrO3arP0EHLdVB62o-eYDzaopGlDM7mEYrTjg/s1600/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25289%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5PNLPEADrziO5UXeSJ5QjG2OefBVr0hblmyC8_xVLPxtqCFeT0wWeFLf8oGpnv1G4rsuTgffrR5_Ejo9PyDDvt5DEMqcawhzCNir9yvPrO3arP0EHLdVB62o-eYDzaopGlDM7mEYrTjg/s320/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25289%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Damien on bow of lightship on the bar deck level.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The interior deck has been modified and now houses the toilets and shower facilities for marina guests, as well as a complete kitchen serving a bar which also serves snacks. Rather a cool ship.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinO2g8LvaIbDvGruKiSaNtJpOv-nzBVbjbMmZ_fo75sb7zzBOzWmPLJwuNkWqXtz60em61esisd_ShM3ET4rZGpakDIEgtXGAPiaQSCKwYQSLoE26HFjnr_DwSP2VeNQcry4z0aXjCLJk/s1600/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%252814%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinO2g8LvaIbDvGruKiSaNtJpOv-nzBVbjbMmZ_fo75sb7zzBOzWmPLJwuNkWqXtz60em61esisd_ShM3ET4rZGpakDIEgtXGAPiaQSCKwYQSLoE26HFjnr_DwSP2VeNQcry4z0aXjCLJk/s320/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%252814%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Interior deck for video and book selections<br />also for toilets and showers</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Inside the ship there are shelves and shelves of DVDs which can be checked out from the hotel office. We have checked out minimum 2 children's movies daily while here. A good way for Damien to relax after swimming in the pool, while his sister does school work on the computer. WiFi service here is free and is the best we have had since arriving in the Caribbean, so we are encouraging her to get as much of that online school work completed as possible since who knows how good the WiFi service will be in Trinidad.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBR-hkOmTyn7cFVdwGYQBcBdxZ1mEbA0PF9ji-oXUTMxsIiu6VsHRix_76Yd2xbBbLnY1rdfA595UGAMyg54Qy2_UzJBpkvaSw7AJ-_RJedpwAUSxei9axTm0kNweTMaX3NsbJrNR0GIQ/s1600/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%252810%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBR-hkOmTyn7cFVdwGYQBcBdxZ1mEbA0PF9ji-oXUTMxsIiu6VsHRix_76Yd2xbBbLnY1rdfA595UGAMyg54Qy2_UzJBpkvaSw7AJ-_RJedpwAUSxei9axTm0kNweTMaX3NsbJrNR0GIQ/s320/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%252810%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elisabeth on deck of the light ship</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGp0YiIaeGuwEJOFG0Zh7IZNTg_3mjPG3Uk9tNZlvm58QveZwXIplrxfNw82evssoWoDYUfh89e01ko5UjF0BLrQ0KRZzH3yheQTBmbNPPESP5BS5IaC2BMnzz4PedsbiSogBEbfMx_JA/s1600/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGp0YiIaeGuwEJOFG0Zh7IZNTg_3mjPG3Uk9tNZlvm58QveZwXIplrxfNw82evssoWoDYUfh89e01ko5UjF0BLrQ0KRZzH3yheQTBmbNPPESP5BS5IaC2BMnzz4PedsbiSogBEbfMx_JA/s320/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%25283%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The little tug boat</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The little tug boat on the left is used for dinghy concerts. Musicians and equipment are loaded on the back of it beneath a canopy and it anchors in the bay in front of Le Phare Bleu Marina. Cruisers come in their dinghies and raft up to listen to the concerts. The first concert of this season will be on Sunday just about the time we plan to depart for the overnight passage to Trinidad.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This little tug also participates in another interesting activity. In The Netherlands there is a chocolate company which is totally green. They use the last sailing cargo ship in the world to transport cocoa which is organically grown in Grenada. It is then manufactured into chocolate in a 'green' plant in The Netherlands. That sailing cargo ship has no engine. When it calls into port in Grenada, this tiny tug boat brings the sailing ship into port and back out. I do not know how the port docking is handled once that sailing ship reaches Europe.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpVc1UioP1jK_Egq5Gk_YGLAWW-bRtd9sXfsKWEbe8lW2NH212UlO4wjle8iIFEqm3rMbZ-lsZ1r-1rAwG4DjcUAiEoclTexHFfMqeIXMzzllY2WDzLex29edFWPqgt0udqWs4IW1bh2k/s1600/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%252812%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpVc1UioP1jK_Egq5Gk_YGLAWW-bRtd9sXfsKWEbe8lW2NH212UlO4wjle8iIFEqm3rMbZ-lsZ1r-1rAwG4DjcUAiEoclTexHFfMqeIXMzzllY2WDzLex29edFWPqgt0udqWs4IW1bh2k/s320/2016-06-21+Grenada+lightship+%252812%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Looking at Le Phare Bleu hotel from the lightship.<br />The swimming pool is behind the wooden fence.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFGM79IX2a2tCIn6rJ9dX44cgxrgbClSbHdpxK5pgiRqOSpiW2sNNEqsp0e999Jbdx0K72annvUa5tCA6TcSnROd4JXPlq967tMB7fMl0Ln_rpjnmNfh12_4-T5-2jb2zuGo6Gv098cHs/s1600/2016-06-24+Grenada+Damien+mast+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFGM79IX2a2tCIn6rJ9dX44cgxrgbClSbHdpxK5pgiRqOSpiW2sNNEqsp0e999Jbdx0K72annvUa5tCA6TcSnROd4JXPlq967tMB7fMl0Ln_rpjnmNfh12_4-T5-2jb2zuGo6Gv098cHs/s320/2016-06-24+Grenada+Damien+mast+%25281%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Damien going up the mast.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There is a small mini-market on-site where freshly baked bread is sold daily, except Sundays. We have emptied their shelves of all fresh veggies and fruits. I also have bought all the frozen chicken. There is no frozen meat left in the store except for a couple boxes of hamburger patties (but no hamburger buns). Meals aboard BeBe are becoming a bit inventive this weekend, to say the least, and the freezer meat supply has dwindled. Tomorrow we will sail overnight to Trinidad. Weather looks as good as it could get for this trip -- winds from 80 degrees at 14-16 knots. It really does not get any better than that! Thank goodness there is a supermarket on premises at Crews Inn because we need some fresh produce. I do hope that supermarket is still there and still open for business.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqU3-74D8s263r57dlRRPXDlSXBRADrvWKOqRsIxoB7W76rLGxYSiBckxMyUR25shzBhy3by9kpHQ6T80YGaMGtyIARTahP_gOC5bUjiTMEI7zS2SnFyEYEGmY770PCp03fdDbfwTKyA/s1600/2016-06-24+Grenada+Damien+mast+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqU3-74D8s263r57dlRRPXDlSXBRADrvWKOqRsIxoB7W76rLGxYSiBckxMyUR25shzBhy3by9kpHQ6T80YGaMGtyIARTahP_gOC5bUjiTMEI7zS2SnFyEYEGmY770PCp03fdDbfwTKyA/s320/2016-06-24+Grenada+Damien+mast+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Check out the smile on that face!<br />Not afraid at all.</span></td></tr>
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-35628627722773919662016-06-11T12:58:00.001+01:002016-06-11T12:58:51.251+01:00Grenada past and present<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; color: #1d2129; line-height: 16.08px;">We first visited Grenada </span></span><span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; color: #1d2129; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 16.08px;">in late January/early February 1984 </span><span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; color: #1d2129; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 16.08px;">shortly after the 'invasion' by the USA in October 1983 in response to the Cuban 'invasion.' And what we were told by local people then was very different from what we had read in the American press and seen on American TV. The people we me</span><span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; color: #1d2129; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 16.08px;">t in Grenada stated they were very thankful that the USA had come to their aid. They said what Maurice Bishop did was more like a coup in that he was attempting to take personal control of the government and that he requested Cuba to assist him. Other locals told us that it was not just Cubans in Grenada but lots of Russians. One guy was certain it was Russians because they commandeered his own home to quarter some Russian officer, forcing his family out into the street.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; color: #1d2129; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 16.08px;">Today, one might hear a very different opinion from some of the Grenadians. Recently we hired a taxi for a major provisioning trip and that taxi driver expressed a different opinion than we heard from locals back in 1984. This man hails from Dominica; he married a woman from Grenada; and now calls Grenada home. He did not live on Grenada during the time of the Cuban invasion and American rescue. But in his view the Cubans did not invade Grenada because he said they were invited. Well...technically...yes. The Cubans were invited by Maurice Bishop to assist him in the overthrow of the system of government which then existed for Grenada. The majority of the people of Grenada did not invite the Cubans to their island and the majority of the citizens of Grenada did not want Maurice Bishop to change their form of government to communism. That is the basic reason that Maurice Bishop was murdered during this invasion by his fellow Grenadians.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; color: #1d2129; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 16.08px;">Another well-known cruiser happened to be in Grenada during the time of that invasion and shortly thereafter. Most cruisers and people who wish to begin cruising are familiar with the Hacking Family blog site for S/V Ocelot. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; color: #1d2129; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 16.08px;">Here is a link to what SuenJon Hacking wrote about their experiences in Grenada around the time of the Cuban invasion:</span><br />
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<a href="http://svocelot.com/Jon/grenada_intervention.htm" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">http://svocelot.com/Jon/grenada_intervention.htm</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Browse around on their blog site. They are some of the most knowledgeable and well-traveled cruisers in the world. I found her insights about Grenada at that time to be interesting. </span><span style="background-color: #f6f7f9; color: #1d2129; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 16.08px;">There is a wealth of information on their blog site.</span><br />
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<br />CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-33000387856735953522016-06-09T20:18:00.000+01:002016-06-10T21:55:02.310+01:00Down to Grenada<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Tyrrell Bay on Carriacou was temporary home for BeBe for over 2 weeks before we upped anchor and sailed down the leeward side of Grenada. Cannot say we did much while at Carriacou other than chill out and play Mexican Train dominoes a few times with other cruisers. It has been a very long time since we have enjoyed that activity. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of the women we met playing dominoes said they were done with cruising. They were leaving their boat at anchor in Tyrrell Bay and flying home; her husband would return in January and bring their boat back to the USA where it will be sold. She said that she had promised her husband 4 years of cruising and was glad to be done with it. Wow! I find that attitude disappointing. How enjoyable could cruising have been for the husband when the wife was openly stating to strangers that she did not like this lifestyle and had endured it only to fulfill her verbal commitment to her spouse. Seems like that would have a negative bearing on everything experienced by both of them during those 4 years cruising. My sympathies to the husband. If both partners do not want to be living on a boat and sailing around, it cannot be an enjoyable experience for either partner. I am thankful that Bill and I each enjoy what we are doing. Otherwise, we would not be out here.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The second part of what this woman said also disturbed me. Leaving your boat at anchor or on a mooring unattended during hurricane season? And the government of Grenada and Carriacou allow this? Well, yes they do. I find that shocking. Trinidad will not allow anyone to leave the country and leave their boat at anchor or on a mooring. Trinidad requires that the boat be stored in a secured boatyard if the owner leaves the country. That makes total sense to me. There are many boats left unattended at anchor or on moorings in Tyrrell Bay. Supposedly, there are 3 local men who can be contracted to 'look after' a boat when the owner leaves the country. If a storm warning for this area is posted, then those boats must be moved into the mangroves. The mangroves are part of a national park and boats can no longer be stored there; boats are only allowed inside the mangroves during a posted storm warning. Once such a storm warning was posted and only 1 of the local men who contract to look after these unattended boats was on the island. He had to move 34 boats into the mangroves. All by himself. In one day. That had to have been one tough job!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We watched these 3 men check on an unattended boat moored next to us. When they returned to shore, a side port on that boat inadvertently was left open. Ten days later, that side port was still open. It rained several times daily during that period -- the wet season has started early this year. That boat now will be filled with mold and mildew. Can you imagine leaving your boat like this!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDredHfv9YSsrFIkQVsXuzj2e5VqHTSa-5q9Qbdf_fFgJ1xv3kZVtBGmYGShZAmcNaZYN9S18bUzETGyPEgVmckxIjEPdSi0Groptb70ofhoi7LENfFLLFXe4TrB_-4IW2a_idZ0qniw/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDredHfv9YSsrFIkQVsXuzj2e5VqHTSa-5q9Qbdf_fFgJ1xv3kZVtBGmYGShZAmcNaZYN9S18bUzETGyPEgVmckxIjEPdSi0Groptb70ofhoi7LENfFLLFXe4TrB_-4IW2a_idZ0qniw/s320/2016-06-01+Grenada+002.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Windshield screens</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Andy still owns and runs the shop In Stitches in Tyrrell Bay. We had Sunbrella shade panels made by his shop 10 years ago. These zip onto the sides and aft portions of our bimini and provide excellent protection from the strong sun of these latitudes. These shade panels have held up surprisingly well. We wanted to have sun screens made to cover the windshield panels while anchored or moored. The plexiglass windshields were replaced in early 2014 and we thought covering these while anchored or moored might extend the life of the new panels. UV causes plexiglass to craze -- tiny starbursts appear inside the plexiglass. Eventually those tiny starbursts cloud visibility and the only solution is to replace the plexiglass. This also happens to hatch lenses and sideport or sidelight lenses.</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtyvbrJ4NZCvZhT3lSt8GB1txFb9lPE4nPZxaSB4BdGWCu2Hf1AeMirNqND_z-Qvk5VnnxsIo5Bsvd-mRkzEnOieySpU_v0P63buZdR6XLS6-WNRAwLEOu97kRFIpSgskZMiWcTM804Y4/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtyvbrJ4NZCvZhT3lSt8GB1txFb9lPE4nPZxaSB4BdGWCu2Hf1AeMirNqND_z-Qvk5VnnxsIo5Bsvd-mRkzEnOieySpU_v0P63buZdR6XLS6-WNRAwLEOu97kRFIpSgskZMiWcTM804Y4/s320/2016-06-01+Grenada+003.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Andy measured and constructed the 2 windshield panels that we wanted. These fit well and are easy to put in place and remove. Only time will tell if this mesh will afford protection from UV damage. But I already like the way these windshield screens reduce the glare into the cockpit, yet we can still see out of the starboard windshield through the mesh. The port windshield is left open except when raining, and the mesh screen panel on it also helps reduce glare.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlfimVEbUEitOAcQhKFCmwAM67KOwsrBIThmtJ_8KXKxXtvfHrncawNv0eFcsKjtjvkABOho9x0RfFxTLWXcOEVh32b_p3AHIaXyQLyNaDrLc8_TRUzgTsbRzuIvAYqD_i6UW3J8D4vqo/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlfimVEbUEitOAcQhKFCmwAM67KOwsrBIThmtJ_8KXKxXtvfHrncawNv0eFcsKjtjvkABOho9x0RfFxTLWXcOEVh32b_p3AHIaXyQLyNaDrLc8_TRUzgTsbRzuIvAYqD_i6UW3J8D4vqo/s320/2016-06-01+Grenada+014.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">View when sailing down western side of Grenada.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR2rxRh3DLOvOTE_BI6syZdwKxOi8JyokaArSTjG-n_fmzj8Uh28BXDzyDfpuOS_iSjhNYI7QYIskXu4PBuWuceaA1UYKrSr5dUTgowr-hkxBU9rt8bmn31zk4Id1ABTBGYI142FZt3cI/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR2rxRh3DLOvOTE_BI6syZdwKxOi8JyokaArSTjG-n_fmzj8Uh28BXDzyDfpuOS_iSjhNYI7QYIskXu4PBuWuceaA1UYKrSr5dUTgowr-hkxBU9rt8bmn31zk4Id1ABTBGYI142FZt3cI/s200/2016-06-01+Grenada+010.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Can still see out through the<br />screens! That is a nice<br />surprise.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Aft</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">er waiting a few days for delivery of these new windshield screens, we finally tore ourselves away from Tyrrell Bay and sailed south to Grenada. Some insurance companies allow boats to remain as far north as Carriacou, but our insurance company requires us to be in the southern half of Grenada. So it was past time to get on down there as hurricane season officially began on 1 June. We had notified the insurance company that we were within 20 miles of the required line and that we would be there within 4 days, and that was okay with them. It is unheard of to have a major storm this far south in the Caribbean this early in hurricane season. Both we and the insurance company knew that there was zero statistical likelihood of a storm here now.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYHC5qB9xuQ1qXdghXjOt2VaWvViIrNvwu30vXql1Z_Dtxudb4sIiEe8KNrEKv4la2LBMef_v0zjHwU_FSLiQMqWP8z2-SASyJlo-GBqPDx7z9s0tMNsBaAkB9-h5bNch7J_i1huLrR-Y/s1600/underwater+sculpture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYHC5qB9xuQ1qXdghXjOt2VaWvViIrNvwu30vXql1Z_Dtxudb4sIiEe8KNrEKv4la2LBMef_v0zjHwU_FSLiQMqWP8z2-SASyJlo-GBqPDx7z9s0tMNsBaAkB9-h5bNch7J_i1huLrR-Y/s400/underwater+sculpture.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first sculptures placed in this underwater park. These statues<br />represent and honor the African slaves brought to Grenada.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We enjoyed another beautiful sail down to Grenada. This time we decided to stop in one of the small bays on the western side of the island since there was no hurry to get to the southern side. We picked up a park mooring at Moliniere Point near the underwater sculpture park.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqdSg1LjFRYeJyobDWbY7wuRnOQfTCOHy59Gck6Qra9N5WStcj9BhGHLBVGzfQuxODYribVS7s0oyNAJqg4Nzm2sFskKKL192cvavz7N3JzPPPTO_jEg_iSGn4Ov5eoniDtZbAEdlN0RA/s1600/underwater.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqdSg1LjFRYeJyobDWbY7wuRnOQfTCOHy59Gck6Qra9N5WStcj9BhGHLBVGzfQuxODYribVS7s0oyNAJqg4Nzm2sFskKKL192cvavz7N3JzPPPTO_jEg_iSGn4Ov5eoniDtZbAEdlN0RA/s320/underwater.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Heavy marine growth and coral have changed<br />the original statues. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first statues placed here have deteriorated badly. The photo above was taken from Google images. It was taken not long after these statues were placed. Today the marine growth has changed these greatly, as shown in the photo on right.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Quite a few more statues have been added to this underwater park. I think there are over 65 statues down there today. Our underwater camera has a dead battery, so no photos from me; but here is a link to more information, photos and videos: <span style="font-size: large;"> <a href="http://grenadaunderwatersculpture.com/" target="_blank">http://grenadaunderwatersculpture.com/</a></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYbcuCC6gtOnMNwaD0IPqp-dBinXt9p7A7nxSaZX6hrml1Lmtvcm1Hflgm-OyPsWuwVxjR0pVd8YUMSH0QzKtPNfvzl2hT04QVqc0YrM636fxqN_RLWxcU3YQp4kqu-4ubjbQNgu2XwiM/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYbcuCC6gtOnMNwaD0IPqp-dBinXt9p7A7nxSaZX6hrml1Lmtvcm1Hflgm-OyPsWuwVxjR0pVd8YUMSH0QzKtPNfvzl2hT04QVqc0YrM636fxqN_RLWxcU3YQp4kqu-4ubjbQNgu2XwiM/s200/2016-06-01+Grenada+016.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mouliniere Pt.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8cOsAVnm5eWBrXBZY4N2fcB7u43R6sJBpg-QT2nAKOHViDu2d0M4frsVIisbi1xUA2DLE72VfOcCUsIkHmg7I1d-6CXBrqzXsTSYDhXuVo_VEpxqdj7i5al_Kjn9smjUKRLeQ7dm5p1I/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8cOsAVnm5eWBrXBZY4N2fcB7u43R6sJBpg-QT2nAKOHViDu2d0M4frsVIisbi1xUA2DLE72VfOcCUsIkHmg7I1d-6CXBrqzXsTSYDhXuVo_VEpxqdj7i5al_Kjn9smjUKRLeQ7dm5p1I/s400/2016-06-01+Grenada+020.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Full rainbow west of Grenada</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Winds were still from ENE so there was a bit of swell in this mooring field. Seas looked perfectly flat and calm but still enough swell to roll our boat all night long, although not too uncomfortable. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpLOxLGtY8gZz3lS1XSzD_dJ7CMKWJbK4ZsYPhyqi0OxUjM57r4q2FLg0-o2NjhRwVX101iDInTYJgI_alAzgbiEeRDTHCtxT4vKx0RBYiCk8D0YjCzsmKVIcs6PKVDdhwIEzzDz9d9DI/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+026.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="382" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpLOxLGtY8gZz3lS1XSzD_dJ7CMKWJbK4ZsYPhyqi0OxUjM57r4q2FLg0-o2NjhRwVX101iDInTYJgI_alAzgbiEeRDTHCtxT4vKx0RBYiCk8D0YjCzsmKVIcs6PKVDdhwIEzzDz9d9DI/s400/2016-06-01+Grenada+026.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Many military ships from many nations here in<br />Grenada for exercises.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next morning as we motored past St. George's, the main city of Grenada, it was a pleasure to see the US Coast Guard Cutter Umberto Hernandez at the cruise ship dock. The Hernandez is down here for multi-national military training exercises. So much for all those sailors and cruisers who insist that the USCG does not visit this area. Bill and I know better. We saw USCG vessels between Grenada and Trinidad in 2006 and 2007. I imagine that the current upheaval in Venezuela might have played a small part in decided to hold these exercises in this location at this time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Participating in these exercises, according to what we have listened to on the VHF radio, are: <br />USA--Cutter Umberto Hernandez<br />USA--another USCG cutter but do not remember that name</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">USA--US Army vessel Aldi (when did we start having US Army vessels again?)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">France--one large warship, cannot understand the name because do not speak French</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">France--Guyana Patrol Boat Antibo</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Canada--Canadian Warship #704, a/k/a Warship Shawinigan (conducting live firing)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">St. Kitts small boat</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dominica small boat<br />air support or monitoring, heard but not self-identified.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_qpbmPg13xEYtRwbD-LSxGFermGHWJptMMlemAm6064ucxIGUoM_x0UefFxNBw6ihwNbkBjok1znYMTL4lGPJn-W-QO0kRynqvpxPM24od-fVZJ2tvzUBogFPmEzClyH4aMeoKUYh1Nk/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+040.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_qpbmPg13xEYtRwbD-LSxGFermGHWJptMMlemAm6064ucxIGUoM_x0UefFxNBw6ihwNbkBjok1znYMTL4lGPJn-W-QO0kRynqvpxPM24od-fVZJ2tvzUBogFPmEzClyH4aMeoKUYh1Nk/s400/2016-06-01+Grenada+040.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Moored inside True Blue Bay. How can it look so calm<br />and roll the boats so much!</span></td></tr>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-n8RhRp8GmXLS4t7-lBBId1m0eVZftJ6AJnMCw4c-zku0kB5cZgiV2Tbsl_WXPHSJvUEuJmfPLJgmgO5i70FY7SwR-ndZWcdu-1gDFJ8D4_mTLv0vS2CtzSmDQdazW3vZxRRIbgCgg74/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-n8RhRp8GmXLS4t7-lBBId1m0eVZftJ6AJnMCw4c-zku0kB5cZgiV2Tbsl_WXPHSJvUEuJmfPLJgmgO5i70FY7SwR-ndZWcdu-1gDFJ8D4_mTLv0vS2CtzSmDQdazW3vZxRRIbgCgg74/s400/2016-06-01+Grenada+043.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Beautiful view looking SW from True Blue Bay</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rounding the SW tip of Grenada puts one directly into the prevailing wind and current. The northern side of that point is calm and the southern side usually is quite lively. Today was the norm. It was a bouncy, slow and wet ride to True Blue Bay where we picked up a mooring. Plan was to stay on this mooring for a week as 2 of our grandchildren arrive this week and there is a swimming pool at True Blue Marina. Plus, it is the closest bay to the airport. However, after 2 nights and days of incessant rolling Bill decided it was too much and that we would move to Mt. Hartman Bay. True Blue Marina accommodated us by refunding the pre-paid mooring fee for the week, and we motored over to Mt. Hartman Bay.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKS52TprxoustDxMbP3cohsBBuL5-ZQFj2ndMmlCroP2Bzn6NZxjoBkCO_HUDyspvmTKUpxB311T4L_XKcs9n32btKFCngf5vwwhI7KjZCkcQV72CQcHmwVEVfEOc56_66TZmqNJpGGSA/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKS52TprxoustDxMbP3cohsBBuL5-ZQFj2ndMmlCroP2Bzn6NZxjoBkCO_HUDyspvmTKUpxB311T4L_XKcs9n32btKFCngf5vwwhI7KjZCkcQV72CQcHmwVEVfEOc56_66TZmqNJpGGSA/s320/2016-06-01+Grenada+046.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Those white surface wavelets indicate reefs. Those<br />reefs break up the swell entering bay.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Winds were strong and seas kind of high so we opted not to attempt the entrance to Mr. Hartman Bay from the western side. Took us probably an extra hour to motor to the eastern entrance and between the reefs. Once inside the reefs this bay is calm and serene, even during 20 to 30 kt winds. We anchored in a spot favored by a fellow Amel owner who has been in Greneda a lot over the past 5 years. And are we ever thankful to him for this local knowledge! This spot is perfect. The more protected areas deeper into the bay experience squirrel-ly wind. Those boats twirl in all directions, all willy-nilly. Many are on moorings and those boats swing differently than the boats on anchor. We are very glad to not be in among those twirling boats. We are isolated and that is perfect for us.</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg70qoMMRbBLiPs9-d26AbTAsDIkZvoHgsvQk-7CQyZEagEbZygFBq121p9dNc1TlnVFC4cbm1GMmRDn5ULRQI0Ic3_Wqzi_a2WBqie02kpwO_FJ4Necn-hNwMrznl4ElpTsXG2wVK0LAI/s1600/2016-06-01+Grenada+048.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg70qoMMRbBLiPs9-d26AbTAsDIkZvoHgsvQk-7CQyZEagEbZygFBq121p9dNc1TlnVFC4cbm1GMmRDn5ULRQI0Ic3_Wqzi_a2WBqie02kpwO_FJ4Necn-hNwMrznl4ElpTsXG2wVK0LAI/s320/2016-06-01+Grenada+048.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Winds swirl and twirl in every direction in<br />Mt. Hartman Bay</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yesterday we took a taxi to Spiceland Mall for a major provisioning to stock up on foods the grandkids might eat. They arrive tomorrow night. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I managed to get these photos uploaded courtesy of free WiFi provided by Island Water World which covers Mt. Hartman Bay. And also courtesy of a clear sunny day which allowed the solar panels to fully charge the batteries and I could use the inverter to power my laptop with the dead battery.</span><br />
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-36411998675184597232016-05-28T14:06:00.000+01:002016-05-29T14:23:27.454+01:00Mayreau -- and then keep slowly moving south <span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">18 May
2016 </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">It was a
lively and lovely sail down from Bequia to Mayreau. It is difficult to decide which is our
favorite island of the Caribbean – Isle de Saintes south of Guadeloupe or
Bequia or Mayreau. All 3 places were
first visited when aboard the Mandalay back in early 1985 and again in early
1986, visited again on aboard BeBe in 2006 and 2007. We have not yet gone far enough north to once
again visit Isle de Saintes, we are saving that for next winter; but both
Bequia and Mayreau have changed a great deal in the past 31 years. They actually have changed a great deal in
just the past 9 or 10 years.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Just as we
reached the tip of the southwestern point of Bequia there was an Amel Super
Maramu approaching from our starboard side, headed on the exact course to which
we planned to turn. As he was the
starboard vessel (and because he showed no indication of giving way to us), we
slacked sail to slow and let him pass in front of us. Then we turned to port and continued on the
same course as him. Technically,
according to Rule 11 of Colregs, that French flagged vessel was supposed to
give-way to us. We were the windward
vessel and both boats were on a port tack.
That made us the stand-on vessel and made him the give-way vessel. As he did not give-way as required by the
rules, we gave-way to him. Jerk. Just meant that we had to change sails and
slow down. Should have been him doing
that. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">He passed us
going 8.4 knots under full sail with all 3 sails. Winds were sustained 20-25 knots and gusting
higher. We were sailing with double
reefed genoa, single reefed mainsail, and full mizzen sail. We saw top speed of only 7.2 knots and
averaged only 6.5 knots for the entire 26 mile passage down to Mayreau. He sailed much faster but we sailed more
comfortably. I’ll take comfort over
speed any day. And full 3 sails in 25
knots sustained winds while crossing an open channel is foolish; not safe
sailing. Winds in the channels often run
up to 10 knots higher. Getting suddenly
hit with 35 knots under full sail is not my idea of a good time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">As we
approached Mayreau we could see only 3 boats anchored behind the largest island
at the Tobago Cays off to the east.
Usually there are minimum 50 boats out there. It was much too windy and seas far too lively
for anyone with any sense to want to be anchored out at the Cays this
week. Forecast is for winds and seas to
remain this high for at least a week; so we will be skipping the Tobago Cays
this season and will continue on south after a brief stay in Mayreau.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_lSZgpVpJ-kJMGCIjFWY6zLnsZle4G0mCQhKAvEr4MARu39xXtvg9rmT0T-MPvspvixMsCSsFQL2uTAMgJUVfrF-4OdkgN2Uuliare9mtF4B8-4gchguJQFuBlr7n4C4LdsSKIF_CSfs/s1600/2016-05-16+Salt+Whistle+Bay+%25284%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_lSZgpVpJ-kJMGCIjFWY6zLnsZle4G0mCQhKAvEr4MARu39xXtvg9rmT0T-MPvspvixMsCSsFQL2uTAMgJUVfrF-4OdkgN2Uuliare9mtF4B8-4gchguJQFuBlr7n4C4LdsSKIF_CSfs/s640/2016-05-16+Salt+Whistle+Bay+%25284%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Salt Whistle Bay on a very windy day.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">My absolute
single favorite anchorage anywhere in the world is tiny Salt Whistle Bay on the
NW tip of Mayreau. But only under the
right weather conditions. This day was
definitely not the right weather conditions!
As we sailed past Salt Whistle Bay we peeked in to see that it was much
too crowded and much too windy. Since so
many boats these days are catamarans (especially charter boats and there are a
lot of those in these waters), that small bay now can hold only half as many
boats as in years past -- because each catamaran takes up the space of 2
monohulls. We continued on south to
larger Saline Bay.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Saline Bay
vividly brings back a few memories. When
we first arrived here on the Mandalay 31 years ago the captain told us that
only 50 people resided on this island.
The St. Vincent and Grenadines government had just built a sturdy high
concrete dock which was serviced by a weekly supply ship from St. Vincent. A 2-lane hard-surfaced road had been built
which connected to the concrete dock.
This would enable heavy materials to be off-loaded from the weekly
supply ship but there were no roads to allow easy transport of those materials
beyond about 150-feet from that dock because that is where that short new road
ended. Today that road connects all the
way from Saline Bay on the SW side to Salt Whistle Bay on the NNW side of the
island, and there are several smaller roads branching off to either side of
that main road. There probably are 20
times the number of homes and/or businesses on this tiny island than back then. This island was so poor that after we had
returned to our homes several of us passengers on the Mandalay shipped basic
school supplies down here. Windjammer
assisted by allowing us to ship items to their office in Miami and they sent
everything down on their supply ship that serviced all the Windjammer vessels
throughout the Caribbean back then.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Another
memory from that same trip was when we snorkeled in Saline Bay and ‘discovered’
an old sunken small ship. The wooden
ribs were still in place and the outline of the ship was evident. It was not too far off the beach on the south
side of the bay. We looked for that
sunken ship in 2007 and found it, but it had disintegrated significantly over
the years. If one did not know where to
look and what to look for, this shipwreck would be easy to miss.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Another
memory is from 2007 when we again visited here aboard BeBe. In 2006 we rushed through here because we had
a date deadline by which we had to be in a marina in Grenada so Bill could fly
home for a commitment to his previous employer.
Plus, we did not know any of the other cruising boats at that time; we
were total newbies to the full-time cruising lifestyle. But by the following year we had befriended
people on many other boats and when here in 2007 a group of 10 of us cruisers
gathered in Saline Bay for a week or so.
We did pot-luck sundowners in a thatched roof structure on the beach. One evening all 10 of us walked the main road
up that hill to Dennis’ Hideaway for drinks, a long-time favorite of cruisers
and charter sailors alike. Among that
group were Roberta and Tito of Alleleujah! and Nick and Josie of Jedi. I do not remember the names of any of the
other folks in that group, although do remember it as a fun evening. Roberta and Tito have since moved back to
Miami and sold Alleleujah! after 10 years of cruising the eastern
Caribbean. Nick and Josie on Jedi are
somewhere in the western Caribbean now, I think.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Today Bill
and I would not walk up to Dennis’ Hideaway after dark unless there were a
group of 10 people -- certainly not if only 2 or 4 people. Because, as Dennis recently stated in a
comment published in the Caribbean Compass newspaper, today Mayreau is
experiencing a problem with local gang members.
This armed gang has robbed several cruisers recently, all of whom were
walking on the main road after dark in groups of only 2 or 4 people. This has greatly affected the local
restaurants and bars, including Dennis’ Hideaway. It is difficult for us to understand how an
isolated community of this size can have a problem with gangs. It seems that the local men could solve this
problem with little effort. This makes
we wonder if possibly 1 or more of those gang members might be related to
either local police or politicians.
There has to be more to this story because this island community is too
small and too isolated to suffer gang problems.
They need to nip this in the bud before the problem grows. No matter how idyllic this place is, if crime
is not stopped then cruisers will stop coming here. That would devastate the community; they rely
on our tourist dollars for survival.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Note that if
anchoring in Saline Bay that one must anchor well south of the dinghy dock in the
center of the bay. The concrete dock
which services the ferries is situated on the northern side of the beach. Those ferries require a larger space to turn
around than one might assume, especially the green and white one. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Bill had
contacted the author of the sailing guides for this region and asked which was
the best company or companies for internet service from St. Lucia through
Grenada. He informed us that Lime (Flow)
works through all those islands and that is what he uses. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Well…yes…and…no. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Once again,
his information is partially correct.
Based on his advice, we purchased 3GB of 3G service in St. Lucia,
thinking that we would be able to use this all the way to Grenada. Nope.
That Lime (Flow) sim/service is valid only in St. Lucia. One must purchase another sim and set-up
another account for Lime (Flow) service in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. And then purchase yet another sim and set-up
yet another account for Lime (Flow) service in Grenada. That expert author failed to explain those
details, as did the shop clerk in St. Lucia when he verified that Lime (Flow)
does work all the way south to Grenada.
Both the author and the shop clerk failed to mention that one must buy
separate sims and set-up separate accounts for each island country. Because of this foul-up, we had no internet
service while anchored in Mayreau. We
were able to purchase service from a different company in Bequia, but that
worked only in that specific bay. We
hope that there will be a Lime (Flow) store in Carriacou. The island of Carriacou is part of Grenada; a
sim purchased there also should work in Grenada. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Simple
‘problems’ in paradise.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">19 May 2016<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">This morning
we washed a load of clothes and while waiting for those to dry we decided on the
spur of the moment to head on down to Clifton on Union Island and clear out of
St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Weather
is forecasted to be good today and tomorrow and then squalls for a few days, so
best to get to wherever is a good place to wait out squalls. And we decided that place should be Tyrrell
Bay on the island of Carriacou.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The bar on the reef at Clifton, Union Island.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">It was a
short beam reach 5 mile sail down to Clifton.
We anchored behind the Newlands Reef just to the SE of Clifton town;
and, as always, that anchoring area was very crowded. We could only lay out anchor chain scope of
slightly over 2.5:1 so I stayed on the boat to monitor possible dragging while
Bill grabbed a water taxi into town to handle departure clearance. BeBe never budged in those 25 knot winds with
only 2.5:1 scope; we were stuck well! </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BeBe anchored behind Newlands Reef. Facing Palm<br />Island as we swung on anchor; facing that tiny bar<br />on the reef when we swung the other way.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And then there was the reef behind us. Not much<br />space for anchoring here, but there are no other<br />choices.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">More reef behind us. Looking toward Clifton town where one<br />handles inbound or outbound clearance formalities.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Pinnacle in the background. Clifton town for clearance.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We
each prepared a quick sandwich for an early lunch and then enjoyed a perfectly
lovely downwind sail to Tyrrell Bay on Carriacou.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">In a certain way this bay
makes us feel as though we have returned home.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">An elderly
man came by and offered us several items for sale. We bought 3 small lion fish from him and that
would be dinner tonight. We have never
eaten lion fish and I was not entirely sure how to cook these. Bill pulled out the grill (which we cannot
even remember the last time we used); I scored each fish and sprinkled
liberally with Old Bay Seafood Seasoning; and Bill grilled them for 12 minutes
while flipping over every 2 minutes. I
placed these on a serving plate and gave a generous squeeze of lime juice. Tasted great.
Who would have guessed that lion fish are tasty. Never thought that when watching them in the
aquarium in the Houston Zoo. Lion fish
are taking over the Caribbean and parts of Florida waters and killing other
fish as well as reef. People are
encouraged to catch these as frequently as possible.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Tomorrow we
will officially clear into Grenada and Carriacou. Only about 32 miles from here to Grenada
where we will meet the grandchildren in early June, so we will stay here in
Tyrrell Bay for at least a week -- maybe longer.
This bay honestly does make us feel like we have returned home. Too bad that all the good friends we met here
10 years ago are no longer cruising.
Such good memories of some wonderful people. I know of only boat still cruising of those
we socialized with back then. Hope we
eventually meet up again with Ed and Linda on Dreamtime.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-82702665629777925602016-05-28T13:42:00.002+01:002016-05-28T13:46:22.821+01:00Bequia<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">17 May 2016 </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Bequia has
long been one of our favorite islands.
It is popular with most folks cruising the eastern Caribbean. The island has a unique vibe and the people
are friendly and almost always have a smile for everyone if you smile at them
first. The island has been isolated
enough to remain relatively unspoiled.
It is still a delight although we noticed that there are likely twice as
many homes on Bequia as there were a decade past.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Almost every day these 2 little boats would race around<br /> the bay. Note that steep driveway in background.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Bequia is
traditionally a whaling island. By International
Whaling Commission agreement, the local whalers can take four whales per
year. Some years they do not get
any. In fact, many years they do not get
any. When we were last here they had not
killed a whale for the previous 4 years. But they did get one whale in 2015. I know there are many people who believe that
no whales should ever be killed by mankind, but this whaling is different than
the Japanese commercial whale killing. This
is a cultural tradition for a sparsely populated isolated island. These local
islanders build small whaling boats by hand.
These are sailing craft, not engine assisted vessels. Bequia currently has two small whaling boats, one named Preservance and the other named Why Knot. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiADF7RH3FlmLN3M-P6y0CGHE-UUezkYyW0v1zia3xqhke-EeZ-5DxA6ixt2Hd_BtYIhcG_wOAxvT0t7soRTVLukBA7ttI4L2r7nvEnvTdmY98a2_tCKWqCS2ncNCyePfmhA1Hd7Molu00/s1600/2016-05-16+Bequia+%252827%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiADF7RH3FlmLN3M-P6y0CGHE-UUezkYyW0v1zia3xqhke-EeZ-5DxA6ixt2Hd_BtYIhcG_wOAxvT0t7soRTVLukBA7ttI4L2r7nvEnvTdmY98a2_tCKWqCS2ncNCyePfmhA1Hd7Molu00/s320/2016-05-16+Bequia+%252827%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The guys loved hanging off the side to balance this<br />tippy little boat. Again, see that driveway!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Each small boat has a crew of seven men ranging in
age from early 20s to early 50s. When a
whale is sighted within range, these two small boats set sail and those men
manually throw hand-built harpoons to kill the humpback whale. If successful, that whale is then towed by
those two small sailing boats to the nearby tiny Semplers Cay just off Friendship
Bay on the southern side of Bequia, where it is butchered. Every bit of the whale is used by these
islands in centuries-old ways. Even the
whale oil is used for charcoal enhancement.
It is a daring feat in a small, open, engine-less sailing boat, using
hand-thrown harpoons, which requires skills.
Hunting as in the olden days of man against animal for survival. These islanders might not require the whale
for survival today but they do still use the entire whale when one is
killed. I have no problem with allowing
this tradition to continue.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Showing off for the camera?</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We stayed in
Bequia for a full week. There was a
3-day holiday weekend during this period and we just mostly chilled out on our
boat listening to music from various restaurants and bars surrounding the large
bay. We walked around town and along the
shore a few times, visiting once again The Whaleboner and The Frangipani. We gave a miss to Tommy’s Cantina this
time. In his newest 17<sup>th</sup>
edition of the cruising guide for the Windward Islands, on page 261, Chris
Doyle writes: “When you get tired of local food, Tommy Cantina specializes not
only in your favorite Mexican dishes, such as tacos, enchiladas, and burritos,
but also in seafood and lobster (in season).”
That is not true. The only
Mexican type item on the menu today was a plain quesadilla. Oh…and I was so looking forward to enchiladas
or tacos, especially maybe fish tacos.
This is not the first error I have found in this newest edition of
sailing guide. I think this guide has
been updated so many times that it is time to stop updating and write a new
guide from scratch with current information.
Heck, this newest guide does not even have an index! The 2006 guide by the same author which we
previously used had an index. Not
including an index in this newest guide is laziness, pure and simple. It is time to re-write the book and stop
attempting to update old information and getting so much wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdkdyR5Fc48Rj_ZVq8j2pcwL6GgjXX7EddyvZj2cIwG3BkGoJwRpUGUlblwXdob5T7fdoV9u7bDPgP2_Rze5IkkUUzqZ9VktN9VSUKAVcHGYcTs4WP0rW1DJ01ugACzHjmxdec_NeZ2DU/s1600/2016-05-16+Bequia+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdkdyR5Fc48Rj_ZVq8j2pcwL6GgjXX7EddyvZj2cIwG3BkGoJwRpUGUlblwXdob5T7fdoV9u7bDPgP2_Rze5IkkUUzqZ9VktN9VSUKAVcHGYcTs4WP0rW1DJ01ugACzHjmxdec_NeZ2DU/s640/2016-05-16+Bequia+%25281%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Note those 2 upright white things just to the right of the catamaran.<br />Those are whale rib bones marking the entrance to the Whaleboner Bar and Restaurant.<br />When we first visited Bequia there was a tiny strip of white sand beach just in front of those whale bones.<br /> Today that strip of beach is beneath a foot or more of water. How many more years before the entire<br />shore side is submerged. Cannot deny the climate is changing; as ever.<br /></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The last time
we were in Bequia the Rastafarians operating the produce market were not so
nice and I vowed never to go back there to shop. But this time on our final morning at the
island the other veggie vendors who usually have tables set up along the main
street were late and we did not want to wait around any longer. They are much nicer than the Rastafarians
have been in the past and their produce costs are the same, so why not do
business with the happy people rather than the angry people. But since they were late this particular day
I returned to the Rastafarian produce building and was pleasantly surprised to
find that the angry Rastas have apparently stopped working here. The older women who sold me various veggies
were just as nice as could be. And the
single young Rastafarian from whom I did not buy anything still had a smile on
his face and joked with me about not buying anything from his table. The last time I did not purchase anything
from a particular Rasta man he got so angry that I feared a physical
confrontation. Maybe the nicer Rastas
realized that this angry attitude was driving people away from their market and
made the angry ones move elsewhere.
Whatever the reason, the people there are much nicer now. The sailing guide encourages cruisers to
avoid the Rastafarian market; please ignore that outdated advice. It is not the only outdated advice in this
newest edition of the sailing guide for
the Windward Islands.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">For several
days we kept hearing someone blowing a conch shell. Sailors know this often is a tradition of
‘blowing down the sun’ or announcing sunset and declaring it is time for a
sundowner beverage of your choice. This
conch was being sounded over and over for what seemed like all day. This went on for several days, off and on at
various hours each day. One day we were
walking ashore and came upon four young men, one of whom was blowing a conch shell
loudly. They were selling fish! They were using the conch sounds to notify
others on the island that they had a fresh catch of fish available for
sale! Apparently, another of their
traditions. Who needs an expensive cell
phone when you have a conch shell. On
our final morning in Bequia, they were blowing that conch with a series of
sounds. This series of sounds were
repeated numerous times so obviously this series of sounds was
intentional. The only explanation that I
could think of is that the different series of sounds indicated a certain type
of fish or seafood that they had caught and were selling that morning --maybe
shrimp or swordfish or wahoo or something specific like that rather than their
usual small silver fish which we could not identify.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrothHlirosLQlaitNYBl-KzbjVz6-YvqyjOH2PZENVwxbOwa9GjEFGixdS5FVxk003BPZOCMzFPTsqrIlB37wirCyDS1SdoF_ZnJvMbatZ_TBpT0cdI7Fo-ajQo4AFL3YeEdapFiBu2I/s1600/2016-05-16+Bequia+%252829%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrothHlirosLQlaitNYBl-KzbjVz6-YvqyjOH2PZENVwxbOwa9GjEFGixdS5FVxk003BPZOCMzFPTsqrIlB37wirCyDS1SdoF_ZnJvMbatZ_TBpT0cdI7Fo-ajQo4AFL3YeEdapFiBu2I/s640/2016-05-16+Bequia+%252829%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Mandalay anchored in Admiralty Bay at Bequia</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">As we
departed Admiralty Bay we passed the Mandalay lying at anchor once again. This ship arrived in Bequia on Tuesdays and
departs early on Wednesdays. Goodbye one
again, oh bearer of fond memories.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpOowbTfcmy9SFeurVPptCvX0oGTNrXTM_uFugGBzoi5Kwq5fpYOZQhXu5vnl7tM5f_O2_vXA6BIABiIyBM6-Z-0xE0MjaJT398orIqY1pmuryRMOuL03sr3JQJtBz6HLbBFWbC9Mmzlc/s1600/2016-05-16+Bequia+%252832%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpOowbTfcmy9SFeurVPptCvX0oGTNrXTM_uFugGBzoi5Kwq5fpYOZQhXu5vnl7tM5f_O2_vXA6BIABiIyBM6-Z-0xE0MjaJT398orIqY1pmuryRMOuL03sr3JQJtBz6HLbBFWbC9Mmzlc/s400/2016-05-16+Bequia+%252832%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That door next to the large window was our first room during our<br />fist voyage aboard the Mandalay. On our second trip we had one<br />of the 2 cabins which open to the stern of the ship, beneath that<br />green awning. Like having our own private patio. Only those<br />2 rooms share a bathroom. Our neighbors kept forgetting to<br />unlock the door when finished. Otherwise, great room. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Far out on
the southern point we passed Moonhole. I
have written about Moonhole years ago, so will not bore anyone by repeating
that information. Suffice it to say
that this is a unique place only a few might appreciate. Google for images; these are unique.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Next stop
would be Mayreau.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-80986658181112526632016-05-25T12:23:00.002+01:002016-05-25T12:27:52.559+01:00False Colors<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This posting is a bit of a rant -- a pet peeve, if you will -- improper display of maritime flags.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As I type this posting there is a boat anchored next to us which is flying a brightly colored, large national flag of Canada on the stern of their boat. That flag is called the ensign and tells all who see this vessel that the vessel is registered in that country. It is the flag of the nationality of the boat -- NOT the flag of the nationality of the boat's owner or of anyone on the boat. Only this boat is not a Canadian vessel.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On the stern of this vessel is displayed the hailing port, as required by law. The hailing port is a widely recognized American city. This vessel also has the state name as well, although only the city name is required by law.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">An American vessel flying the Canadian flag? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Why?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">An online search of the vessel documentation database revealed the names of the owners and their address of record. Their USA Certificate of Documentation for this vessel expires 30 June 2016. A Google search of their vessel name revealed their blog. They are Americans but the man did live in Canada for most of his life. This does not give him the right to fly the Canadian flag as the ensign for an American vessel. If he wants to fly the </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Canadian ensign then he must register the vessel in Canada.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As an American, I am somewhat insulted by these people flying the national flag of another country on their American documented (registered) yacht. It not only is illegal; it is insulting to all other Americans.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Am I being judgmental? Absolutely!! And would feel the same if this were a British registered vessel flying an Italian flag. The term for this is "flying false colors." And it is illegal worldwide.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Last December we met a New Yorker who had been born in Canada; he supposedly held dual passports, although I never saw either passport to confirm that claim. His boat was US Documented with a hailing port of New York City. When in Europe he decided to fly the Canadian ensign; he saw no reason why he should not be allowed to do this. The officials of The Netherlands felt differently. On a routine inspection they discovered he was flying false colors and levied a substantial fine for this illegal act. They remained on board while watching this man change to the proper ensign of the Stars and Stripes. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Can you imagine what would happen to this vessel on our port side if it were seen by a US Coast Guard boat? Those Coasties would put that boat through the most rigorous safety inspection possible. Why are you flying false colors? Attempting to smuggle drugs or weapons? Attempting to avoid safety inspections? There are no good answers to those questions when a group of pissed-off Coasties find you flying the wrong ensign. They will search that boat and make your day miserable. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And, yes, contrary to what some people believe, there are US Coast Guard vessels throughout the Caribbean. As part of the drug interdiction efforts. We saw one once in the waters between Venezuela and Grenada. The US Coast Guard has the legal right to board and search any US vessel anywhere in the world. If they find a US boat flying the national ensign of a different country, they will be upset. Guaranteed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If these American (Canadian wannabees) want to fly a flag to indicate that at least one person on board is a Canadian, they should fly a Canadian fly on the port side of their boat near the main mast. That is the proper location for such a flag. But that US Documented vessel with the US city hailing port requires the Stars and Stripes to be flown as its ensign.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-29652664907909994022016-05-15T06:52:00.004+01:002016-05-15T06:52:44.599+01:00Down to Bequia<div class="MsoNormal">
1<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">2 May 2016</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Finally winds
switched to East rather than SE and we upped anchor in Rodney Bay to sail down
to the mooring field between the Pitons.
The rule in St. Lucia is that one must depart within 24 hours of
departure clearance formalities. We
never stop in St. Vincent because that island has a very long-term and on-going
crime problem; several cruisers and charterers have been murdered over the past
decade while anchored at St. Vincent. We
always clear into the country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines at Bequia when
southbound, skipping the main island of St. Vincent. The distance from Rodney Bay to Bequia is a
bit too long for a day passage, plus considering the adverse current for most
of that distance which causes slower boat speed; and we try to avoid nighttime
arrivals if possible. Therefore, we
usually sail down to the mooring field between the Pitons and overnight
there. It is only approximately 53 NM
from there to Bequia, a distance that is easily sailed during daylight hours,
even against that current.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Sailing down
to the Pitons was absolutely perfect!
One of those rare sailing days that is pure joy. Wind was 20 knots either on the beam or 10
degrees behind the beam; boat was heeled at only 5 degrees; seas in the lee of
St. Lucia were calm; a thoroughly enjoyable sailing day. Winds swirled strongly between the Pitons, as
usual, making BeBe twirl on the mooring for half the night. Then winds died to almost nothing from 02:00
until 06:00. We motored out of the bay
at 06:00 in calm. But once out of that
bay winds picked up rapidly to 20-24 knots, gusting to 30 knots; and we were
off! Seas in the channel between St.
Lucia and St. Vincent are larger, unprotected as the whole of the Atlantic
moves in. It was a rollicking ride, as
it always is here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Once in the
lee of St. Vincent the seas flattened out and wind dropped dramatically. We ghosted along while running the watermaker
for a couple of hours. We wanted to have
enough supply in the tank to last while we would be anchored in Bequia, if
possible. The tank held 650 liters by
the time we reached two-thirds way down St. Vincent and turned course more SE,
thus making wind angle impossible to sail any longer regardless of how slow we
could tolerate. Watermater off;
generator off; sails furled; start that engine. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">About
half-way down St. Vincent BeBe sailed slowly through a large pod of
dolphin. These porpoises behaved
differently than any pod we have seen before.
They did not play with our bow wave, probably because we were sailing only
about 4 kts SOG and they were not inclined to play that slowly. At first we thought there were only about 20
to 30 porpoises. Then we realized just
how far out this pod stretched! There
were at least 100 of them! Maybe more.
This was the largest pod of dolphin we have seen in the Caribbean. And they were just very calmly swimming about
in slow circles. They were not feeding
because they would have been thrashing about.
Bill theorized that maybe they had just fed and were acting so calmly
because they had full tummies. The ones
nearest BeBe made the strangest sounds; never heard these sounds before. They sounded like small barking dogs! I think the ‘barking’ sounds were caused by
the way they were explosively exhaling.
Not the usual blowing sound that we are familiar with as dolphin have
swum alongside BeBe at night. These were
harder and sudden, stronger, exhalations.
It was a weird experience.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Of course, as
we neared the southern tip of St. Vincent those easterly winds showed up once
again. As headwinds now because of the
angle to Bequia. Before we cleared the
southern tip of the island, winds were again solid 25 knots. And the rains began. Because of the current, we had to point BeBe
almost to the eastern side of Bequia in order to arrive at Admiralty Bay, which
is about center on the northern side of the island. The current was that strong on this
particular day. And those strong winds
did not help the situation either. Why
is it always such a lively trip down here!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We motored
into Admiralty Bay at 14:15. And motored
right past the Mandalay! How
fitting! The first 2 times we visited
Bequia were aboard the Mandalay in 1985 and 1986. That old ship looks quite tired today. She is older, as are we. But we have fond memories of those passages
aboard the Mandalay from Antigua to Grenada 30 years ago. One night in particular stands out in our
memories, the night that President Ronald Reagan gave his speech about the
explosion of the Challenger. Many of the
Mandalay passengers on that particular trip were scientists and engineers who
worked for NASA. Bill and I had brought
along a large boom-box which also included a short-wave radio. Almost every passenger gathered on the top level
(above our aft cabin) and listened to President Reagan’s speech on a night
filled with stars. It was a solemn
moment that cannot be forgotten. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The Mandalay was owned by Windjammer Barefoot Cruises back then and regularly sailed 2 weeks south from Antigua to Grenada; then reversed and sailed 2 weeks back north to Antigua. Each time we opted to sail from Antigua to Grenada because this was during winter months when winds usually are from the NE, meaning that going back north would be motoring the entire distance. The Mandalay was the only tall ship in that fleet that was still capable of actually sailing. All the other ships could only motor-sail. We remember a few beautiful evenings of quietly sailing on the Mandalay in the lee of various islands. And these 2 vacations introduced us to many of the islands in the eastern Caribbean chain. We were very fortunate to enjoy these experiences. Windjammer later declared bankruptcy in 2007. The Mandalay has been purchased by another company and now bases out of Grenada, although her hailing port is Zanzibar.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> <a href="http://tropicalsails.com/tall-ship-cruises/windjammer-mandalay/" target="_blank">http://tropicalsails.com/tall-ship-cruises/windjammer-mandalay/</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.sailingshipadventures.com/index.cfm?event=GetVesselDetails&VesselID=64" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">http://www.sailingshipadventures.com/index.cfm?event=GetVesselDetails&VesselID=64</span></a></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlgJ95lKX-3QUuNJogXW9GVUEoERAAeTUgI1ocCaKZS_q3ChLm4x6C8_dECRMRk7Yqj5jlEplMdtHGcf5pGXGT8j8baJk9mnjmQb4D0x9kRB4E8-byaPmS8Y53iq7Kx1wCEkLkVFj77Rw/s1600/2016-05-13+Bequia+Sunny+Caribe.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlgJ95lKX-3QUuNJogXW9GVUEoERAAeTUgI1ocCaKZS_q3ChLm4x6C8_dECRMRk7Yqj5jlEplMdtHGcf5pGXGT8j8baJk9mnjmQb4D0x9kRB4E8-byaPmS8Y53iq7Kx1wCEkLkVFj77Rw/s400/2016-05-13+Bequia+Sunny+Caribe.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sunny Caribe resort in Bequia, newly refurnished</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">It was a quick trip down from St. Lucia, even
allowing for ghosting for 2 hours to make water.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Top boat speed was 9 knots, much to my
discomfort.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">I really do not like sailing
fast.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">But most of the trip was only
about 7.5 knots and I was happier with that.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">6.5 knots would have been perfect, in my opinion.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">There was nowhere to anchor that would
provide any protection from the north, so we radioed Daffodil to request a
mooring.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">There is no forecast of winds
from the north at this time, but that could change.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Daffodil sent out Didi on Blessing and she
assisted us to a mooring.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">This mooring has thick
new line on it and looks secure.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">That is
a big problem here in Bequia.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Many
people have put down ‘illegal’ moorings throughout the bay.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Those might or, more likely, might not be
good moorings.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">These moorings break
loose frequently.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Daffodil is the only
one who has legal moorings and those are inspected and well maintained.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhSBIQZSKnRd6QnsKTuEq9YDAJ-HhmDfRAczopWYJUl-kYvyYER3E2m2Q5groD_FeeRGdSaxxUKabGt7H88rmW5F37-Whd5VIbIn7s5A6_nbwVSjTiZ9OFs9XQ8q_peMDJBAnSRwRLTW0/s1600/2016-05-16+Bequia+steep+drive.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhSBIQZSKnRd6QnsKTuEq9YDAJ-HhmDfRAczopWYJUl-kYvyYER3E2m2Q5groD_FeeRGdSaxxUKabGt7H88rmW5F37-Whd5VIbIn7s5A6_nbwVSjTiZ9OFs9XQ8q_peMDJBAnSRwRLTW0/s400/2016-05-16+Bequia+steep+drive.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Driving either up or down that very steep drive/road<br />would make me very, very nervous.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">And, oh-my-goodness,
are these moorings all placed so close together!!! There are many more moorings than were here
10 years ago. And they are so close
together it makes me slightly nervous. If
one breaks loose it could be on top of yours within seconds. Many of these are so close together that
there is not enough space for another boat to motor between moored boats. I am happy with the mooring on which Didi
placed us. There is only one boat to our
port side and we should be able to leave this mooring with no crowding
issues. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We paid for a
week on this mooring. Didi said she had
never had anyone pay for a full week before.
After a bit of discussion, she charged us for only 6 nights for our 7
night stay. Bet we do not get that deal
again. She is an interesting island
lady. She lived on a sailboat for 11
years and would like to sail around the world.
Probably will not happen. But I
bet she does know how to sail. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVD2BeOz03wsTQyJKAW_f-y4eWqYtwkFllrR4qRWBmzR3HyX5MwMX5Ga2cYJk6ZlReqO_wzEvnI5jqN98fZ3r6dgnG7dfGX7P1D_v3y9hDUhgtem1SvDqIoRwfzD278pzQZK_8zpEb1Hk/s1600/2016-05-11+Bequia+lobsters+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVD2BeOz03wsTQyJKAW_f-y4eWqYtwkFllrR4qRWBmzR3HyX5MwMX5Ga2cYJk6ZlReqO_wzEvnI5jqN98fZ3r6dgnG7dfGX7P1D_v3y9hDUhgtem1SvDqIoRwfzD278pzQZK_8zpEb1Hk/s400/2016-05-11+Bequia+lobsters+3.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These huge lobster were such a treat! Delicious!</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhSBIQZSKnRd6QnsKTuEq9YDAJ-HhmDfRAczopWYJUl-kYvyYER3E2m2Q5groD_FeeRGdSaxxUKabGt7H88rmW5F37-Whd5VIbIn7s5A6_nbwVSjTiZ9OFs9XQ8q_peMDJBAnSRwRLTW0/s1600/2016-05-16+Bequia+steep+drive.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Minutes after
Didi left, a young man arrived with 2 enormous lobsters. These were the last of his catch. Lobster season here is finished and the
lobstermen are allowed 2 weeks to sell their final trap catch to restaurants
and individuals. There will not be more
lobster until the season reopens in September.
These were still active and crawling around the bottom of his little
boat. Together they weighed 6 pounds and
we bought both.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEionOwM-EMklBocYLW8nmE_L6bJWsWc0wIGckUsn_v1LrIT9JlnlSQS0vW00qQ3aNxjAfja83bJ5oOFSHtMZe-hhtGT6gAk9LAVzcQ3E86ryASpzp8D9_mKkLZnV87UeudFxKX1JrAYso0/s1600/2016-05-13+Bequia+my+house.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEionOwM-EMklBocYLW8nmE_L6bJWsWc0wIGckUsn_v1LrIT9JlnlSQS0vW00qQ3aNxjAfja83bJ5oOFSHtMZe-hhtGT6gAk9LAVzcQ3E86ryASpzp8D9_mKkLZnV87UeudFxKX1JrAYso0/s400/2016-05-13+Bequia+my+house.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The number of homes on Bequia has doubled in<br />the past decade. "My" house would be that flat<br />roofed one on the top of this hill. It has views<br />of both Caribbean and the Atlantic. Looks<br />rather Frank Lloyd Wright style.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Recently
someone gifted us a couple bottles of very nice wine because Bill had helped
him with something. We had already
enjoyed that really good bottle of red wine back in Martinique with the last of
the really good beef tenderloin that I had bought in the Canary Islands. Now was time to enjoy that bottle of
white. Bill placed it in the freezer for
a quick chill while I steamed both of those enormous lobsters. I cut up some limes and made drawn
butter. Oh…was this ever a feast! It has been a very long time since we enjoyed
fresh lobsters. Last time was in the San
Blas Islands of Panama in late 2007.
This was a decadent treat that will not be soon forgotten. And that white wine was superb! Simply superb. Went exceptionally well with that delicious
lobster!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoWJN8_LLWbHpX292DzH5JYXHX7L6QEdpbTcA3eo76EnCRUGMXqYVygIEeZCR2YdSz_PM8LeHy5bpRwCe4G5sFBq0ZnlFjJUR65q01EY-dxP6kON-ERQ9uGZqxnvWLIsSaxvU8YuMoy4E/s1600/2016-05-13+Bequia+boat+model.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoWJN8_LLWbHpX292DzH5JYXHX7L6QEdpbTcA3eo76EnCRUGMXqYVygIEeZCR2YdSz_PM8LeHy5bpRwCe4G5sFBq0ZnlFjJUR65q01EY-dxP6kON-ERQ9uGZqxnvWLIsSaxvU8YuMoy4E/s400/2016-05-13+Bequia+boat+model.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are 2 shops in Bequia where model boats are<br />crafted and sold. These not not inexpensive. The<br />craftsmanship is superb. This is Mauvin working on<br />his latest model.<br /></span></td></tr>
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</div>
CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-75105205120279450452016-05-15T06:31:00.000+01:002016-05-15T06:53:44.576+01:00Beginning 11th year of cruising <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">2 May 2016</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Yesterday
Bill and I celebrated the completion of 10 years and the first day of Year 11
living aboard and cruising S/V BeBe. It
feels odd to realize that a full decade of our lives has been enjoyed sailing
around the seas and oceans of our world, meeting people of all sorts of
cultures and societies and visiting so very many historical sites. A decade well spent. And now we look forward to a few more years
cruising the Caribbean.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK_mYcMCBPH4YzHs0iRu6-1pD1tMkf12wMq6NTBbOXltEnJo1dn0SyZbtco5tkneXQi9Kv9jYeTi6_xjdajsGdBpAOhez1GGXfh0K15ktmErgn0rFZTYMS3x_I1ClX4owWZI838jGOakM/s1600/2016-04-23+Rick+and+Linda-Rascal-Martinique.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK_mYcMCBPH4YzHs0iRu6-1pD1tMkf12wMq6NTBbOXltEnJo1dn0SyZbtco5tkneXQi9Kv9jYeTi6_xjdajsGdBpAOhez1GGXfh0K15ktmErgn0rFZTYMS3x_I1ClX4owWZI838jGOakM/s320/2016-04-23+Rick+and+Linda-Rascal-Martinique.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill with Rick and Linda of S/V Rascal, a sister-ship<br />to BeBe. Tex-Mex dinner aboard BeBe in Le Marin.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">There are not
all that many places in the Caribbean where we have not yet visited, but there
are enough to hold our interest for a few more years. In particular, we look forward to visiting
Barbados in December this year. Also
looking forward to seeing Barbuda; several people have mentioned how beautiful
is that island, and we have never seemed to find the time to stop there because
it requires first clearing in at Antigua and then sailing back into the wind to
get back north to Barbuda. Hopefully,
that will be rectified next winter sailing season, sometime after visiting
Barbados, as we will be sailing northward for a few months before once again
sailing south for hurricane 2017 hurricane season. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">And we very
much look forward to sailing to Cuba at some time before it is time for us to
swallow the anchor. (For any
landlubbers, ‘swallow the anchor’ is the expression used by cruisers for those
of us who stop cruising, usually sell the boat, and move back to land. Where we will become CLODs = Cruisers Living
On Dirt.) I am afraid that I will find
the transition to land life very difficult.
Bill will volunteer once again to work on the tall ship Elissa. And volunteer to work in the Lone Star Flight
Museum because he loves all things related to flight. I, on the other hand, have no idea what will
occupy my time once we swallow that anchor.
So I hope to continue cruising for a few more years. This is the better life. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ6SWOSMDGbHOWQZKDvQ4TVR8o2F-spQnRTS8DQrm_Mz38QdlyZ_tXRP4LRj4y9T1tW6986gTL8CsKDvTxoQy_en_cuVj76jVj4eScnKkJ8XFD5j5xJ-XSY0LyjHnm1HS8k94dPiKiRWM/s1600/2016-04-27+dinghy+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ6SWOSMDGbHOWQZKDvQ4TVR8o2F-spQnRTS8DQrm_Mz38QdlyZ_tXRP4LRj4y9T1tW6986gTL8CsKDvTxoQy_en_cuVj76jVj4eScnKkJ8XFD5j5xJ-XSY0LyjHnm1HS8k94dPiKiRWM/s320/2016-04-27+dinghy+2.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Lift it; lock it; or lose it. Motto of the Caribbean.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Upon
departing Marina du Marin last week we anchored in front of St. Anne’s for only
1 night. We had cleared out of
Martinique for Friday departure, but on the spur of the moment around noon on
Thursday we weighed anchor and sailed south to St. Lucia. The winds were solid 25 knots the entire way,
hardly any gusting at all, and from 100 to 110 degrees. It was a pleasant sail on a course of around
200 magnetic. Weather forecast called
for 30-35 knot squalls throughout this section of the Windward islands
beginning on Saturday and lasting possibly up to a week. We took advantage of the good weather to get
down to St. Lucia before the bad weather set in. Glad we did.
It was sunny and fairly clear on Friday as we handled clearance and
shopped. And it has been rainy and
sometimes windy ever since. Kind of
makes one get a little stir-crazy closed inside the boat in this yucky weather;
one can enjoy reading and lazing about for only so long. We will remain at anchor in Rodney Bay until
this drizzly gray weather improves. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUO5ZiCZk_J5jT-wwIKBIv7CaW8PkE85s8JsXrqW3US1w0_a2zNWZub1QaSTaEby6z2bRcq0j1auZRfNOjshssIG4XE6FldzMQSWGK9xoijvdVnBh7kL1cz6Fo5qW74hDkKELso5EWMeU/s1600/2016-04-27+dinghy+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUO5ZiCZk_J5jT-wwIKBIv7CaW8PkE85s8JsXrqW3US1w0_a2zNWZub1QaSTaEby6z2bRcq0j1auZRfNOjshssIG4XE6FldzMQSWGK9xoijvdVnBh7kL1cz6Fo5qW74hDkKELso5EWMeU/s320/2016-04-27+dinghy+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Took us 8 years to realize that the dinghy could be<br />lifted using the electric winch in the cockpit. No<br />reason it needed to be hung off the main mast;<br />that mizzen mast works too. And no hand cranking.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5o4KRW8y0HqOl9iCgUfgJxD6-THujmi1ijmnmLJs9wpWlTTTN40aw00y_62lEV-nHQwOIFiQcBKUiekq-JwR54jP4vaX0wKEkkIkuY_rC5lyH31yIolNxizCUrNXuvtDmMC0exQ48xp8/s1600/2016-04-27+dinghy+lock.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">A few unusual
things have happened since we anchored here.
First was the night I looked out the side port and saw a boat creeping
into the anchorage. It appeared to be
arriving from Martinique or someplace farther north. It displayed a steaming light and a deck
mounted green light, indicating I was seeing its starboard side as it entered
ever-so-slowly into this very dark anchorage.
I know that captain was worried about all the unlit or very poorly lit
boats in this anchorage; that is the reason he was barely creeping in so
slowly. And then he turned on his
tricolor on top of the mast – and I saw a RED light. While also still seeing the green deck-mounted
navigation light. How could that
happen? Is it possible to install a
tricolor fixture upside down, thus placing the red and green on the incorrect
sides of the boat? I do not understand
how this very odd and very incorrect navigational lighting could happen. Weird.
I continued to watch this boat until he was anchored well behind all the
other boats (as best I remembered where they were, as it was impossible to see
them in the dark because few were correctly lit). Once anchored, he turned off the deck nav
lights and then the steaming light and then the tricolor, and turned on the
proper anchor light; and I turned my attention to something else as he was now
safe and was not going to collide with us or anyone else.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5o4KRW8y0HqOl9iCgUfgJxD6-THujmi1ijmnmLJs9wpWlTTTN40aw00y_62lEV-nHQwOIFiQcBKUiekq-JwR54jP4vaX0wKEkkIkuY_rC5lyH31yIolNxizCUrNXuvtDmMC0exQ48xp8/s1600/2016-04-27+dinghy+lock.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5o4KRW8y0HqOl9iCgUfgJxD6-THujmi1ijmnmLJs9wpWlTTTN40aw00y_62lEV-nHQwOIFiQcBKUiekq-JwR54jP4vaX0wKEkkIkuY_rC5lyH31yIolNxizCUrNXuvtDmMC0exQ48xp8/s320/2016-04-27+dinghy+lock.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We do not just lift it. We also lock it.<br />Using a Titanium Cable by<br />Kryptonite and a stainless steel<br />padlock. Those SS padlocks are<br />expensive (about $100) but last<br />and work well.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6p2bKzopydI-2vVIf7MOzPrGLYD578TulYQ25wWmEjdpny40GdxnxUpWLD9nLtJbpAD_WMyXmW_x4hBvI4gnEdvEay7nJT0XC78lVKvew0r6GzQkRD8VH64YXAs08bUZfWKNDjxQwvVY/s1600/2016-05-05+red+wine+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Then
yesterday a woman on a catamaran began hailing a series of boats, I assume
people she knew. No one answered. Finally she hailed Rodney Bay Marina and they
answered but the marina uses a handheld and the woman on the boat could not
hear their weaker transmissions. This
went on for a while and finally she told the marina to just speak with her on
Ch 16 since she could not hear them on any other channel. She explained that she was en route to the
marina because her husband apparently had suffered a stroke. The dock master said he would arrange an
ambulance to transport the husband to the hospital and would send out a skiff
to assist her in arriving into the marina.
That conversation triggered 3 of her friends who were anchored here to
join into the radio conversation and to send out several dinghies to help her
into the marina. They scurried out to
the catamaran as soon as it came into view from this anchorage. Bill started to go help too, but I
discouraged this because she already had help from so many people she knows and
we are strangers. She now had plenty of
assistance on board and one man was
gathering up the Code Zero sail from the deck as the cat motored quite rapidly
through the anchorage and into the marina.
We have heard no further VHF radio traffic and hope the man is
okay. The wife said her husband knew her
name but did not know anything else.
This kind of medical emergency can happen anytime, anywhere. It is nice to know that cruisers are still
helpful when something like this happens.
They also are fortunate that this happened while near or at St. Lucia
where a hospital is available, and not down somewhere in SVG (St. Vincent and
the Grenadines) where medical care is nearly non-existent. This event exemplifies why it is crucial that
both partners be capable of sailing or handling the boat ALONE. As one never knows when the other person
might become incapacitated and YOU must handle that boat alone. Know how to rig the lines and fenders and how
to handle the sails and engine and radios and how to navigate. Even if you think you will never do those
things. Life has a habit of making us do
things we never thought about doing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6p2bKzopydI-2vVIf7MOzPrGLYD578TulYQ25wWmEjdpny40GdxnxUpWLD9nLtJbpAD_WMyXmW_x4hBvI4gnEdvEay7nJT0XC78lVKvew0r6GzQkRD8VH64YXAs08bUZfWKNDjxQwvVY/s1600/2016-05-05+red+wine+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6p2bKzopydI-2vVIf7MOzPrGLYD578TulYQ25wWmEjdpny40GdxnxUpWLD9nLtJbpAD_WMyXmW_x4hBvI4gnEdvEay7nJT0XC78lVKvew0r6GzQkRD8VH64YXAs08bUZfWKNDjxQwvVY/s320/2016-05-05+red+wine+1.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill did a favor for someone who is looking to buy an<br />Amel. In return, that guy bought us a couple of<br />bottles of wonderful wine. This was the red.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-RwPHo4vGu3YNMotF5u7aJAqiNA50Hhyphenhyphenh6928KmCIacMYR0yFGGtKGYF-y8r8IJHFQZEKl0QgVFH8h7RvXkJW1Z6W8Y8rscEXNxkJdg_rlzZ9Gj3IBDWUhEqdNaEzN2kPIIZqiYFW40E/s1600/2016-05-05+red+wine.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-RwPHo4vGu3YNMotF5u7aJAqiNA50Hhyphenhyphenh6928KmCIacMYR0yFGGtKGYF-y8r8IJHFQZEKl0QgVFH8h7RvXkJW1Z6W8Y8rscEXNxkJdg_rlzZ9Gj3IBDWUhEqdNaEzN2kPIIZqiYFW40E/s320/2016-05-05+red+wine.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Close-up of that red. Highly<br />recommend this wine. It was wonderful!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The third
unusual thing that has happened is that as I type this posting we are listening
to VHF traffic between Fort du France rescue and a sailboat which is on
fire. Several times during these
conversations we have heard the name of a boat which we met in Martinique. We cannot tell if this boat we met is the one
on fire or if possibly this boat we met is one of the boats going to assist the
boat on fire. (I do not want to publicly
post the name of this boat.) The French do not repeat radio transmissions in
English as is done in every other country we have visited. When the Fort du France rescue guy speaks in
English we can understand him, but we are only hearing his side of the
conversation; we cannot hear the side of the conversation from the boat which
is on fire. We assume that person on the
boat afire is speaking in English because the only time the Fort du France
rescue guy speaks in English is when speaking to them. The rest of the time the conversations are
only in French. Guess if the boat on
fire is the boat we know, then we will hear about it via email later. As for now, we do not understand exactly what
is happening. The 2 things that are
clear are that: 1) a boat is at sea and on fire; and, 2) that boat is not
willing to abandon ship and is attempting to return to Martinique. We assume the boats going to their assistance
will rescue them if return is not possible, but the burning boat does not want
official rescue yet because that means abandoning their vessel. Something none of us want to do unless there
is no other option. God be with them.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-20505693169122334382016-04-25T22:25:00.000+01:002016-04-25T22:47:07.348+01:00Yoles, dancing and more<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">There were a few activities hosted by Cornell Sailing for the Atlantic Odyssey rally participants which I neglected to mention in previous posts. When organizing photos I realized that these activities had skipped my mind when writing the blog almost 2 months ago.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh96U1hLafdcltcyVXSa3BwK6-Dubv34eJQ63-A243l6Ce2mHFpkq3M0goOQ_jjKyCKJLuWR-KWvVVCEZbBICvbz6CpKuz4uvlcOSH1ACOhrXPpA-GuyCspVVOx9npPkgFGePXcVNL46CU/s1600/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh96U1hLafdcltcyVXSa3BwK6-Dubv34eJQ63-A243l6Ce2mHFpkq3M0goOQ_jjKyCKJLuWR-KWvVVCEZbBICvbz6CpKuz4uvlcOSH1ACOhrXPpA-GuyCspVVOx9npPkgFGePXcVNL46CU/s320/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Starting the process<br />Turing the yole upright</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Some of the rally participants enjoyed an afternoon learning how to sail yoles. A yole is a native craft of yesteryear particular to Martinique. A yole is a sailing vessel, since obviously they did not have engines years past. This craft has a keel of sorts, being a solid piece of wood running the length of the hull; but that keel provides merely inches of draft. And there is no ballast. So that keel is pretty much useless except for providing hull strength. As there is no ballast, there are poles placed out to each side on which people sit as needed to balance the boat. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Ot5ngd9Rb4G_2xHk8I2BPiwz28yDlqDfgb7yTxlDi_Q4UtZjunj6mZXLg2dKJKJNx8iRbcwl6bg-HEswcHgaNF95KdSv5SPH-TtN5PBulQ8llYN_qji0l45imVIY_JllCyDsO2pxyVE/s1600/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Ot5ngd9Rb4G_2xHk8I2BPiwz28yDlqDfgb7yTxlDi_Q4UtZjunj6mZXLg2dKJKJNx8iRbcwl6bg-HEswcHgaNF95KdSv5SPH-TtN5PBulQ8llYN_qji0l45imVIY_JllCyDsO2pxyVE/s320/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Flip it over.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At the first arrival cocktail party a woman from the office of tourism asked me if we would like to participate in a yole race. Having no idea what a yole was, I inquired as to the physical activity level required to sail on a yole. A young guy standing nearby said that it requires good agility and is very physical. In that case -- NO! Neither Bill nor I would want to participate in that activity. But sign our crew member, Andrew Blum, up. He enjoys physical activity; sounded like something right up his alley.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghFnySYOZtS71CO82P8_pskuiqyc3tbDozjK0KmVK-u4YrwPiqPKjIeZij_ZShlAjUlS4kb9zrUebaZNQDghFlW-XpdP8YRbi-JG5UMuapg2tIunMG_x_F5wc69bxCfcsgHh7OfQ4EWZE/s1600/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%252810%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghFnySYOZtS71CO82P8_pskuiqyc3tbDozjK0KmVK-u4YrwPiqPKjIeZij_ZShlAjUlS4kb9zrUebaZNQDghFlW-XpdP8YRbi-JG5UMuapg2tIunMG_x_F5wc69bxCfcsgHh7OfQ4EWZE/s320/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%252810%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Climb on and balance that puppy!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The following week many of the rally participants gathered on the beach where these yoles were located. We had just enjoyed a bus trip to the old slave plantation camp and then relaxed in the shade of a nearby restaurant, imbibing beer or wine or rum punch along with grilled fish lunch, all compliments of the office of tourism. Most everyone was well-prepped and ready to display their balance skills on these tipsy yoles.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOwdrzx87U7LeSXJRD8gLcHUVHATDjwHUV7ZcZb8jkeha0TXznXKctEiLTeFhHOC9CCLOOvirjrwJXgy3O718Q6IwGO5viMr_jc4rranUrnA9iLtk866OVZFDkmczwl3fdpxo_-3XNZkw/s1600/2016-02-07+Martinique+rally+lunch+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOwdrzx87U7LeSXJRD8gLcHUVHATDjwHUV7ZcZb8jkeha0TXznXKctEiLTeFhHOC9CCLOOvirjrwJXgy3O718Q6IwGO5viMr_jc4rranUrnA9iLtk866OVZFDkmczwl3fdpxo_-3XNZkw/s400/2016-02-07+Martinique+rally+lunch+%25281%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Free lunch! With drinks! You know the cruisers<br />will welcome that!<br /></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMs_jA4yecsFl38Nc4av3iBaXnRaypEuDmONaUYUmWr94MvXs1Je6Rza2kqdy7IdMIAZCqnrO00ApJ02MOGDj4wqL72NI4xxSHdM0uC73YK1bgRP3YUd_S77L5cW_3n9aSZve73Fd2uow/s1600/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%25287%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMs_jA4yecsFl38Nc4av3iBaXnRaypEuDmONaUYUmWr94MvXs1Je6Rza2kqdy7IdMIAZCqnrO00ApJ02MOGDj4wqL72NI4xxSHdM0uC73YK1bgRP3YUd_S77L5cW_3n9aSZve73Fd2uow/s320/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%25287%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2nd yole heading out</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Two of the yoles were soon assembled and dragged down the beach to water's edge. The rally participants divided into 2 groups and selected their chosen yole. The local guys directed everyone to the best place for balance. And off they sailed.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjnT-Kf1Mmd-mM_PTDBXO2BwTYeNzsyrZKzBcbT3id3FzPpjrt_1izQAw13L_whppNNy3HDzWUBGMwnKHtaM6tF1UDtA6m3SRBuKG_QDTNOQhS52JPBXpoZrbuZv2dHfNMFI4hF9FYgpI/s1600/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%252811%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="427" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjnT-Kf1Mmd-mM_PTDBXO2BwTYeNzsyrZKzBcbT3id3FzPpjrt_1izQAw13L_whppNNy3HDzWUBGMwnKHtaM6tF1UDtA6m3SRBuKG_QDTNOQhS52JPBXpoZrbuZv2dHfNMFI4hF9FYgpI/s640/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%252811%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Found their balance!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEYCzL1Cd-Dmv17t_eovxl5rl4tHUi_2Czhe5vPOnInG_DxggHKtgtmNCVhO5KPujA7FOghgeBAZefCgGe3RYFbinGScKFmf36n-pZH9Jk-c4vn_lyEUz9l1Jka4_66baBkY6YylVtw-M/s1600/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%252812%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEYCzL1Cd-Dmv17t_eovxl5rl4tHUi_2Czhe5vPOnInG_DxggHKtgtmNCVhO5KPujA7FOghgeBAZefCgGe3RYFbinGScKFmf36n-pZH9Jk-c4vn_lyEUz9l1Jka4_66baBkY6YylVtw-M/s400/2016-02-06+Martinique+yoles+%252812%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is 'racing'?<br /></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We watched for awhile. Soon both yoles were out of sight, sailing between anchored and moored boats in the large bay. Once the yoles were no longer visible we decided to walk on back to the marina, leaving Andrew's stuff with Virginia on S/V Libertad since she was stock there waiting for her crew members who were on the yoles. No point in all of us having to wait there. We heard later that only 1 of the yoles tipped over during this 'race' and it was soon upright. The local guys know how to operate these vessels well. Had it been left to us more modern-day sailors, both yoles likely would have been on their sides most of the afternoon.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This was a fun activity for most of the rally participants. Made more fun because of the drinks consumed at lunch just prior to climbing out on those poles on the yoles.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5TGEYa4FKyFUt7GRsldUw56xuwFdFzl9AHrJL5cD5gS_-XcGLhNIjkBGocZCDMksckA01udQYn3GiEw_viyjTEagB0qGhjUxaku7Oy8bvUHAwM4xu9IIZgHbxTJbNxFQiKyehaVFLvOI/s1600/2016-02-03+Martinique+rally+dance+%25284%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5TGEYa4FKyFUt7GRsldUw56xuwFdFzl9AHrJL5cD5gS_-XcGLhNIjkBGocZCDMksckA01udQYn3GiEw_viyjTEagB0qGhjUxaku7Oy8bvUHAwM4xu9IIZgHbxTJbNxFQiKyehaVFLvOI/s320/2016-02-03+Martinique+rally+dance+%25284%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Judy and instructor</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Another rally activity that we enjoyed were dancing lessons. We mistakenly thought we were going to <i style="font-weight: bold;">watch</i> a local dancing exhibition. It was not until we arrived at the assigned place that we learned that we were going to participate in learning a couple of local traditional dances. Well...make that...learn <u style="font-weight: bold;">a</u> local traditional dance. It took so long to teach our group 1 dance that time ran short and we never got to the second dance.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2UqC9P1wzRRCrKTTXD_9Nlcp4fUhDNh95LqKKIz-NEHGND4nK-9RKJ5lC3FRvHCHu5mW9Q7pHDnxNVmffnR3YaS7mP0x3HJ_9rrhWXw-ASUErKNkw_e8Krt5Rdd9QMaf4lmzuSB-L27g/s1600/2016-02-03+Martinique+rally+dance+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2UqC9P1wzRRCrKTTXD_9Nlcp4fUhDNh95LqKKIz-NEHGND4nK-9RKJ5lC3FRvHCHu5mW9Q7pHDnxNVmffnR3YaS7mP0x3HJ_9rrhWXw-ASUErKNkw_e8Krt5Rdd9QMaf4lmzuSB-L27g/s320/2016-02-03+Martinique+rally+dance+%25283%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill and the professional dance partner</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The instructor arrived late. In fact, he was so late that Pascal and Pascale were about ready to cancel the activity altogether. (Don't you just love those names! Pascal and Pascale are husband and wife from France. With the same names. Great people; very nice.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The steps and moves for the dance we learned were quite simple. Soon everyone could do the basic steps. And then the instructor sped up the beat! And it all fell apart. None of us could do this dance even half as fast as the instructor and his assistant. But we all had lots of laughs trying. That instructor did not have an ounce of fat on his body. I danced with him several times and he felt like solid muscle. Like the body of a ballet dancer. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcpRsAxev098Tui5V7SMYiHq_3sdPkzz7rpAnthQyD4APDnjqTK8af7KCgRaBhpRBO-cIfj-KM1TnojU5P7bVX4n1lNlHzHjgSrGxOqQDKHsMtkcRIx4XKWoQs1NvRuApN1xllWr_hRoA/s1600/2016-02-03+Martinique+rally+dance+%252810%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcpRsAxev098Tui5V7SMYiHq_3sdPkzz7rpAnthQyD4APDnjqTK8af7KCgRaBhpRBO-cIfj-KM1TnojU5P7bVX4n1lNlHzHjgSrGxOqQDKHsMtkcRIx4XKWoQs1NvRuApN1xllWr_hRoA/s400/2016-02-03+Martinique+rally+dance+%252810%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The professionals. Their dance looked nothing<br />like that of our group.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This was a fun evening and I was drenched with sweat by the time we finished for the night. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is not a dance I will be trying again. And I never understood the name of this dance. Like everything else said in French, I have no idea what the people were saying. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj80MCdi8poODPSmec-_7kDYlHeHwVrE0FW_JGyOcKKLhGJlfPEi4H2DTN-B7O6Ae2X6Z85_UzbFFS0gN1oYO_pduatGY7EHjDKPpV2ZlcB3zCpmueDsS__yTAQs3yRtRX49-eqc7wFen8/s1600/2016-02-08+Martinique+carnival+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj80MCdi8poODPSmec-_7kDYlHeHwVrE0FW_JGyOcKKLhGJlfPEi4H2DTN-B7O6Ae2X6Z85_UzbFFS0gN1oYO_pduatGY7EHjDKPpV2ZlcB3zCpmueDsS__yTAQs3yRtRX49-eqc7wFen8/s320/2016-02-08+Martinique+carnival+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Local people gathering for a small carnivale parade.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A few nights before the rally farewell party, there was a small carnivale parade presented just for the rally participants. We were all docked on the same pontoon. Some of the marina staff, along with employees of the local office of tourism, and along with a few local residents, presented a musical parade. They beat drums and played various musical instruments as they wound through the marina grounds and then down our dock and back to the office area. Cornell Sailing has encouraged all rally participants to dress in carnivale costumes and participate, but few of us did. Bill and I stood on the stern of our boat and watched the parade pass both directions.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A few days later all the rally participants got together and chartered a bus to the big carnivale in Fort du France. I think Bill and I were the only people who opted not to attend. We have seen carnivale on several of the Caribbean islands. Fun the first and maybe second time, but not really our scene anymore. Our crew member, Andrew, however, did join the bus group. He and a crew member off another American boat did not return to the marina that night. No worries; they probably were just having a grand old time at carnivale. Then, they did not return the second night. Okay; they probably were just still having a good time. But after 48 hours past when they had originally been expected to return, both Bill and I and the owner of the other boat began to get slightly worried. The other guy wanted to contact the police but Bill discouraged that. Good thing he did not get the police involved, because both guys returned to the marina that night. As we all had expected, they had just been having a grand old time at carnivale. No problems. Glad they got to experience a true carnivale.</span><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiibaoCdXu7dD_JkAsQeL4I88vdcSMIeSa1XwTk1QdrBgkQzuZ4PHAXm89V96dn4mcDOaAChWUIGq_-6-JR2JhwrwkLtpOHOjwZBsAv9ucYYX379m6OVHYKPatDxlNDPNx6YpciESHEWM0/s1600/2016-02-08+Martinique+carnival+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiibaoCdXu7dD_JkAsQeL4I88vdcSMIeSa1XwTk1QdrBgkQzuZ4PHAXm89V96dn4mcDOaAChWUIGq_-6-JR2JhwrwkLtpOHOjwZBsAv9ucYYX379m6OVHYKPatDxlNDPNx6YpciESHEWM0/s640/2016-02-08+Martinique+carnival+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Unusual musical instruments used in parade for carnivale.</span></td></tr>
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-40315825717188166312016-04-21T19:33:00.000+01:002016-04-21T19:38:05.320+01:00A day trip around Martinique with friends<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKnQTCe5emsxWiTl8-gXxU15fICK1t6qbbvNfvWalqlCjVSwHodlekMETqvpZn54-spyuodPahYTriSaZgGIj6warUxucgbxAJTR6wMub4Ry0iqwez4KDlWdbi3zIrxUnrFs72NfMGBOk/s1600/2016-02-17+bot+gardens+5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKnQTCe5emsxWiTl8-gXxU15fICK1t6qbbvNfvWalqlCjVSwHodlekMETqvpZn54-spyuodPahYTriSaZgGIj6warUxucgbxAJTR6wMub4Ry0iqwez4KDlWdbi3zIrxUnrFs72NfMGBOk/s320/2016-02-17+bot+gardens+5.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One of many flowers at mountaintop botanical gardens</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Recently friends invited us to accompany them on a day trip driving around the island of Martinique. They had rented a car and it was barely large enough to accommodate the 3 of them plus the 2 of us. Cramped quarters but manageable. We joined Hassan, Zeyrha and Fatma of boat Kandiba for a day of land sight-seeing. Bill and I had rented a car here years ago and had already seen the entire island, but that was so long ago that this day was a new adventure. Plus, Hassan did all the driving; thus providing Bill an opportunity to actually see the island rather than just watching the road and other vehicles.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill strolling in front of the old church at top of a mountain. </span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">First stop was a very old church at the top of a mountain. There was no literature available onsite which could have provided information about this church and I have not had sufficient internet access to research it. But it appeared to be quite old...as Caribbean island churches go. Views down the mountainside were pretty even on such a gray and dreary day. The skies drizzled off an on all day long. The name of this church was Misericordieux Comme Le Pierre.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Virgin Mary and Jesus are black. Why not.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not too far down the road we stopped for a nice creole lunch at a restaurant called the Bamboo. Hassan refused to allow us to pay for a thing all day, as he insisted we were his guests. This attitude likely is a Turkish custom. We felt a little guilty about that as it is customary among cruisers to share expenses on these type outings and we felt a little like we were not pulling our own weight. Lunch was good, but the creole cooking here on Martinique does not remotely resemble creole cooking found in Louisiana. The Louisiana version is much spicier; and, frankly, much more to our tastes. The creole foods here on Martinique are quite bland in our opinions. I find this a little odd because they also cook with Scotch bonnet peppers and these are very hot. Guess we just have not ordered the right foods to taste the spiciness. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9eMizgalzGEOhf_vEPpAQreFk5nuvuR-xvFxCpvn7arZ7ipJK5Mzfj2s5NzTpCSLVpRNWFIw0jkgjq71rWxkQe9BvIixheiP_g6RvCOp2GGLOBzoRtYQMJZooSRvf-9XDwV-wsm-Kz6w/s1600/2016-02-17+bot+gardens+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9eMizgalzGEOhf_vEPpAQreFk5nuvuR-xvFxCpvn7arZ7ipJK5Mzfj2s5NzTpCSLVpRNWFIw0jkgjq71rWxkQe9BvIixheiP_g6RvCOp2GGLOBzoRtYQMJZooSRvf-9XDwV-wsm-Kz6w/s200/2016-02-17+bot+gardens+1.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Stream at gardens</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCfmcJ2NBfZKSmL586l22N1iMTZKuSa_JBn4EAro6lZscbOG_GuCy-LfCY-ZfXNYpn6gMkKd05v0g_yY-aCRdeDQn5Oye_DCsQaSw4NhRpqG1vd33tQS7jgJEhvTpnhOpdxmd-qR8RUuw/s1600/2016-02-17+bot+gardens+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCfmcJ2NBfZKSmL586l22N1iMTZKuSa_JBn4EAro6lZscbOG_GuCy-LfCY-ZfXNYpn6gMkKd05v0g_yY-aCRdeDQn5Oye_DCsQaSw4NhRpqG1vd33tQS7jgJEhvTpnhOpdxmd-qR8RUuw/s200/2016-02-17+bot+gardens+3.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our 'guide'. Beautiful girl.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After lunch and a bit farther down that upper mountain road we came to some large botanical gardens. We walked the grounds until rain began again and then we ducked into one of the informational buildings, sort of like a museum. In one area there were a few video presentations. These were all in French except one which was narrated in English and had French subtitles. A little local girl stood with us and 'explained' many of the things discussed in the video. She was adorable. Loved her self-confidence and attitude.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLMVSyNhiAqmyjcvwIq5u2tK0vY1_DFcIMCQ_I577yJo_VZZClXehriGiy2B4xyVVeqVW7MhcfMud0d7fduLIXFFtuR71XH6iby9lU8N8qrXYMi7vu-XRJUDQQ9q1kLK53EZkRz8_JND8/s1600/2016-02-17+St.+Pierre+5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLMVSyNhiAqmyjcvwIq5u2tK0vY1_DFcIMCQ_I577yJo_VZZClXehriGiy2B4xyVVeqVW7MhcfMud0d7fduLIXFFtuR71XH6iby9lU8N8qrXYMi7vu-XRJUDQQ9q1kLK53EZkRz8_JND8/s400/2016-02-17+St.+Pierre+5.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anchorage at St. Pierre. Note the black sand beach.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The rain stopped and we moved on, farther down that upper mountain road and then twisting and turning down to the seaside at St. Pierre, where we found those famous black sand beaches. The sand is black, even after more than a century, because of the ash blown down during the 1902 eruption of Mt. Pelee. I blogged about Mt. Pelee back in 2006 or 2007, so will not write about that again. Readers can research that volcanic eruption if further interested.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz9wcvsDrUvevGl2gMc0HGmBaJWc9M2PwnumIpIcliooP-cYY4E9dlK6JeHwXebGozjvwoB4fKt5JJwNNQViiDIsVtSIbJ2bL_l419tF2yOBQE3NQu_OSg5DvoZUUrcCumWVpy3IigqWM/s1600/2016-02-17+St.+Pierre+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz9wcvsDrUvevGl2gMc0HGmBaJWc9M2PwnumIpIcliooP-cYY4E9dlK6JeHwXebGozjvwoB4fKt5JJwNNQViiDIsVtSIbJ2bL_l419tF2yOBQE3NQu_OSg5DvoZUUrcCumWVpy3IigqWM/s400/2016-02-17+St.+Pierre+3.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Canon atop the wall of the old French fort appear to aim at<br />the cruising sailboats in the anchorage at St. Pierre.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is a nice anchorage on the northwestern side of Martinique. In 2007 when sailing from Dominica to Martinique our prop became fouled with an old fishing net section which must have been floating submerged. When we got into the lee of Martinique the winds died and we turned on the engine and discovered that the blades of our auto-prop could not spin. We again put out full sail and it appeared that we were making slow forward progress. But our electronic chart showed that in reality we were being forced toward the rocky shore faster than we were making forward progress. We put the dinghy in the water and tied it just behind the beam on the port side and used the outboard motor to propel BeBe. Actually got the big boat up to over 3.5 knots speed over ground! Once at St. Pierre, Bill kitted up and dove to check the prop and discovered a huge ball of netting wrapped around it. He cut it away and problem was solved. That day is when we decided that we would never have an outboard engine so small that it could not be used to propel BeBe during an emergency. That also was the last time we had visited St. Pierre until the day of this road trip.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsUMFjr6MvvD3EH8_i1JXhfOrH9G_Wf1C6EFc-M12pEKpl3MMcdXj6JQOWfyfqmJzmLcxIq07gNpoOM2H0sX27FDgeD5_OnE6bIifucxCGxsF8Adomq8b8YDmqCZPh51Sk58d_YuIt0js/s1600/2016-03-09+new+OB+and+dinghy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsUMFjr6MvvD3EH8_i1JXhfOrH9G_Wf1C6EFc-M12pEKpl3MMcdXj6JQOWfyfqmJzmLcxIq07gNpoOM2H0sX27FDgeD5_OnE6bIifucxCGxsF8Adomq8b8YDmqCZPh51Sk58d_YuIt0js/s400/2016-03-09+new+OB+and+dinghy.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our new 3D dinghy and new 10 HP Honda outboard engine.<br />Photo taken at Rodney Bay Marina last month.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4-Xo1XH9NffJ2jUdM687_2GkJIbXvfTtC3EMLfQnWBbiFx5aHqLK522XmjkFb_yCNsFKPbrKy_D18DgSwaUSdcK9PDQy2TlMUznY3D8f9ayLFCpOHkrCpj1B1L7t42B4FG2nW5_v8keQ/s1600/2016-02-17+St.+Pierre+6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4-Xo1XH9NffJ2jUdM687_2GkJIbXvfTtC3EMLfQnWBbiFx5aHqLK522XmjkFb_yCNsFKPbrKy_D18DgSwaUSdcK9PDQy2TlMUznY3D8f9ayLFCpOHkrCpj1B1L7t42B4FG2nW5_v8keQ/s400/2016-02-17+St.+Pierre+6.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bill, Hassan, Zehrya and Fatma at St. Pierre</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After St.Pierre we drove down the western coast of the island to the main city of Fort du France, where we found a large shopping mall so Hassan and family could shop for a few items. Bill lucked out and found a sportswear store and was able to buy several of those ultra-thin shirts that wick moisture and are so cool. He also found some shorts in this material. He now is all set for the hot weather of summer.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From Fort du France we headed east to return to Le Marin. We stopped at a local roadside produce vendor and purchased a few things just as it was getting dark. For what it is worth, the fruits and vegetables here are about 5 times the cost of similar items in Turkey. And the selection here is very limited and usually poor quality. Recently we started to buy a cantaloupe in a local supermarket. We weighed it and printed out the price label. 11.16 euro for a single cantaloupe!!! That is $12.68 USD for a single normal sized cantaloupe! We put it back in the melon bin; refused to pay that absurd price for a simple cantaloupe. The only bargain on these French islands are the daily baguettes. Everything else is priced high, just like on all the other islands. People planning to cruise down here need to be aware of how expensive things cost. The popular idea promoted on sailing forums that one can cruise on $500 or $1,000 per month is totally unrealistic. Food alone will cost more than $500 per month for only 2 people.</span><br />
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-61215679051508304132016-04-21T16:40:00.002+01:002016-04-21T16:40:30.304+01:00A little of this, a little of that <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A few people have asked why we have not updated blog postings, so here is one .... although we have not done much lately. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe2OMlpcmUtFsmfF-6T6AG2wf8YlbYEjFUKmZWvsIdbnfNgspSB6DE14IEEUDM3Q2D2gl0knVMFzPU1QgEfQByA-1wohdzei8ylBVmzsx7Dtu1FfQTF4sHgj1uQgYdQp80YATOtm_UXlQ/s1600/2016-04-08+Marin+palm+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe2OMlpcmUtFsmfF-6T6AG2wf8YlbYEjFUKmZWvsIdbnfNgspSB6DE14IEEUDM3Q2D2gl0knVMFzPU1QgEfQByA-1wohdzei8ylBVmzsx7Dtu1FfQTF4sHgj1uQgYdQp80YATOtm_UXlQ/s400/2016-04-08+Marin+palm+%25282%2529.JPG" width="312" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Colorful bloom on a palm tree in Le Marin</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BeBe is still sitting at the dock in Marina du Marin; we will leave here Saturday and move to an anchorage somewhere. Maybe we can find a spot among the reefs to anchor closer to Le Marin rather than out at St. Anne's. It is too far to take the dinghy into Le Marin from St. Anne's, but closer anchoring options are limited. We prefer the shopping options of Le Marin over the quiet village of St. Anne's, plus we are enjoying the social scene here. We are not in a hurry to head southward just yet and will wait for weather to cooperate.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We did make a 2-day trip down to St. Lucia a few weeks ago, anchoring in Rodney Bay and dinghy-ing in to shop at the nice supermarket with all those American brand products. I needed to stock up on jalapeno peppers and flour tortillas and Pepper Jack cheese and real honest-to-goodness sour cream instead of that nasty creme fraiche sold here. I wanted to stock up on things that are not to be found in Le Marin markets. And BeBe needed some boat cleaning supplies that were available at Island Water World but not available in Martinique. When we returned to Marina du Marin the captainerie put us right back in the same berthing spot on the Amel service pontoon #4. Right back in the midst of our new friends. This is beginning to feel like home. Too bad this is too far north to stay for hurricane season.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ8r0qS6xf-05Bq1WHTI_1ljsUAwv_VPb0xjB6FSO8ja7l2exyrqLC9D7RHRoydAschPcRYY_RKppp-h51sUU_JaVBMlHFz4Wxve9nziu97SvxTL7xAMk7ZH5weJMYUkRq06tDMUBxsaQ/s1600/2016-03-22+St.+Annes+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ8r0qS6xf-05Bq1WHTI_1ljsUAwv_VPb0xjB6FSO8ja7l2exyrqLC9D7RHRoydAschPcRYY_RKppp-h51sUU_JaVBMlHFz4Wxve9nziu97SvxTL7xAMk7ZH5weJMYUkRq06tDMUBxsaQ/s640/2016-03-22+St.+Annes+%25281%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When at a French island, be sure and fly a Dutch courtesy flag.<br />Seen at St. Anne's anchorage for 2 days before someone pointed<br />out to the boat owner that he was flying the wrong country flag.<br /></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCAqNasU6uYofgheRKk2k69GeynrOj3cchYwHIpthyphenhyphenNk7VL9QH6LhxFKWzq3Hnb1ZUrEC_428yiVXeGbFy1JFlDWw1VHVTog6fv6CEc9pkAew_YPgnFqFqLQMw5r-pvWkJgGoJeDezJzU/s1600/2016-04-04+weird+dinghy+stowage+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCAqNasU6uYofgheRKk2k69GeynrOj3cchYwHIpthyphenhyphenNk7VL9QH6LhxFKWzq3Hnb1ZUrEC_428yiVXeGbFy1JFlDWw1VHVTog6fv6CEc9pkAew_YPgnFqFqLQMw5r-pvWkJgGoJeDezJzU/s320/2016-04-04+weird+dinghy+stowage+%25281%2529.JPG" width="251" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just when you think you have seen every<br />way imaginable to stow a dinghy, you<br />come across this.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last evening Rick and Linda on a Super Maramu 2000 named Rascal hosted 8 of us fellow Amel owners for drinks and snacks. Ten people in the cockpit and we all were comfortable; I think the most we have had aboard BeBe is 8; now we know that cockpit can accommodate 10. The guests included Fred and Patrick on Django-something; Steve and Liz on Aloha; Gary and Robin on Adagio; and Bill and me; plus our hosts. Foods were delicious and conversation was very enjoyable. This is what we have missed during those years in the Med -- the cruiser camaraderie. It is so very, very nice to find it again! We enjoyed the evening a lot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our Turkish friends, Hassan and Zehrya and their niece Fatma on the Amel 55 Kandiba, have returned after exploring the islands all the way up to Anguilla. Kandiba needs a bit of service and then they will be heading south for hurricane season. We will get together for dinner on Friday night and catch up. It will be interesting to hear their opinions of all the Caribbean islands they have visited thus far. It will be fun to 'see' the islands for the first time through their eyes.</span><br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUwHeh7P4wURM-Q5B1qh6unjflxAHVZE43EF7T2VlREAGwiwdWI1VvpOs-d3x8uTH8ZISVeDoGPJm9waCWrNYhwEzDZgO9067Dm1NMHMxAvExoyuZWgIDaUEtm3nro1IAegN2X2YwEbd8/s1600/2016-04-19+peg+bag+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUwHeh7P4wURM-Q5B1qh6unjflxAHVZE43EF7T2VlREAGwiwdWI1VvpOs-d3x8uTH8ZISVeDoGPJm9waCWrNYhwEzDZgO9067Dm1NMHMxAvExoyuZWgIDaUEtm3nro1IAegN2X2YwEbd8/s640/2016-04-19+peg+bag+%25281%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our granddaughter made decorated this nail bag (with help from her mom) when she was 4-yrs old. It was a<br />Christmas gift to us just before we left to begin cruising. Over the years most of the decorations and some of<br />the glitter glue have fallen off and it now is developing holes. I use this at least once weekly. Maybe she can<br />make a new one for me as this year's Christmas gift. Sometimes it is the small things that are most appreciated.<br /><br /></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the way,we are docked next to a newer Amel 64. That boat makes 13-year-old BeBe look like a neglected step-child. Bill likes the retractable hard bimini on the 64. I like the deck cleats. The Amel service center offered to give us a tour of this boat but I declined. No point in looking at something that we cannot afford.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5J5v4ctwv1efR6czkJD1EetTcwzGjcUQ_5fOVyT6ufuMDBEKg2FQ6LklEItz2dhRn6N7xxoXuxKxj2XBY3zUeEZsTEJ17Fkl_sD_OLsOW3sZEYEbVkhu5yzyDUIsZP7wrz7JSQzhSe3s/s1600/2016-04-04+Amel+64+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5J5v4ctwv1efR6czkJD1EetTcwzGjcUQ_5fOVyT6ufuMDBEKg2FQ6LklEItz2dhRn6N7xxoXuxKxj2XBY3zUeEZsTEJ17Fkl_sD_OLsOW3sZEYEbVkhu5yzyDUIsZP7wrz7JSQzhSe3s/s640/2016-04-04+Amel+64+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have deck cleat and chock envy. Aren't these gorgeous! On the Amel 64 docked next to BeBe.<br /></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-85549650209969758762016-03-28T19:49:00.002+01:002016-04-21T15:30:08.443+01:00Chikununga and the family visit in St. Lucia<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We finally
left Marina du Marin and anchored at St. Anne’s for a few days in early March.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Felt like we were cruisers once again.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The last time we had been at St. Anne’s
anchorage was April 2007 and our log book reflected that the anchorage was much
too rolly so we stayed only one night.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Then weighed anchor and scurried on into the much more sheltered (and
extremely crowded) anchorage on the far western side of the bay at Le
Marin.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">This time, St. Anne’s anchorage
was lovely.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Calm and beautiful; no
rolling motion whatsoever.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">However, the
weather prediction called for conditions to strengthen and we did not want any
delays for the short passage down to St. Lucia to meet family members.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">So we hurried down to Rodney Bay Marina based
on a weather prediction which turned out to be much ado about nothing.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">That ‘heavy weather’ never materialized.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">Oh well, going early afforded us a few more
days at St. Lucia before our family arrived.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">This turned out to be beneficial because Bill came down with chikununga.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Bill had been
unusually physically active on our final afternoon at St. Anne’s and his shoulders
and legs began to hurt that evening. We
attributed the pain to the unusual activity and figured it would dissipate in
three days like muscle soreness often does.
But by the third day the pain was worse rather than abating. On the fourth day he awoke with a bright red
rash covering his entire body and with slightly red eyes. Extreme fatigue; extreme joint pain; mild
fever; red rash; red eyes. Hmmmm…all
those signs posted around Martinique and St. Lucia list these symptoms as being
common for Zika. Time to visit a doctor.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We visited a
medical clinic in Rodney Bay that morning.
The doctor felt that this was Chikununga rather than Zika; but it also
could be dengue. All three viruses are
transmitted by mosquitoes and all three are common throughout the tropics and
sub-tropics. Martinique has been hit
especially hard with Chikununga for the past three years. Since we had been at Martinique since 29
January and had only arrived in St. Lucia three days earlier, this meant that
Bill definitely had gotten bitten at Martinique. The virus has a 10-day incubation period
before symptoms manifest, so there was no doubt this came from Martinique. Lab work was performed to determine which
virus but all that does is make someone a statistic – the treatment is the same
for all three viruses. The doctor gave
us scripts for pain meds, a super-strength antihistamine and Prednisone
(steroid). Bill opted to stick with the
over-the-counter two 650mg Acetaminophen every 8 hours for pain rather than
take the prescription pain med ordered by the doctor. He saw no reason to take codeine based meds
unless absolutely required. By the
fourth day on these three medications, Bill was feeling almost normal once
again. The fatigue lasted a couple of
weeks. Thank goodness he had such a mild
case of this virus. We later met up with
Austrian friends Herbert and Teneta on Kali Mera and learned that she got
dengue at Martinique, but she had a more severe reaction and was hospitalized
for 5 days at Fort du France. We counted
Bill very lucky to have suffered such a mild case. By the way, he does not remember a single
mosquito bite; but obviously one did bite him.
And it takes only one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Bill was
feeling almost normal by the time Trey, Kristina and Zachary arrived. It had been a full year since we last saw
them, and that is way too long to go without seeing family. Zachary is now 15 years old and much larger
than his grandfather. Zach now is 6-feet
1-inch tall and has shoulders about 5-inches wider than Bill. Zach still has a long way to grow to catch up
with his dad who is 6-feet 6-inches tall, but he towers over his short mom and
his not-so-short grandmother. They grow
up so fast!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5skvkp-WA_ZUXyRexKn-KQH2CMKxBgPD82Cd6c5_QF14MAcqlZBfukGGxwNflc6G_AhMVJzSGMDGADbRu4sZQgFtYfTDIHkPHTi3fbT9fd3cweQRempxPN7vfIEuSe_s7z84BqHENW9M/s1600/2016-03-15+St.+Lucia+8+best.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5skvkp-WA_ZUXyRexKn-KQH2CMKxBgPD82Cd6c5_QF14MAcqlZBfukGGxwNflc6G_AhMVJzSGMDGADbRu4sZQgFtYfTDIHkPHTi3fbT9fd3cweQRempxPN7vfIEuSe_s7z84BqHENW9M/s400/2016-03-15+St.+Lucia+8+best.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kristina, Zachary and Trey swimming at Rodney Bay</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We went out
for a short sail the day after they arrived and anchored out in Rodney Bay so
Zachary could swim; then back into the marina for the night. Sleeping in air-conditioned comfort was nice
for everyone. (kept mosquitoes at
bay) </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Monday was a day for shopping and a
follow-up at the medical clinic for Bill.
Our HP printer/scanner which was purchased in Australia in mid-2009
finally chose this morning to completely die.
Lucky that it died on a day when we were at an island that sells 230v
electronics. Bill found a new HP
printer/scanner – this is a requirement for cruising boats. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">On our final
night in the marina we met up with Stuart and Sheila on S/V Imagine. What a surprise! We had lost track of them several years ago,
and it was really nice to see them again.
Last time we were together was in 2007 somewhere in the Caribbean. They followed us through the South Pacific
and then completed a circumnavigation going under South Africa. They arrived back in the Caribbean in May
2015 – departed the Caribbean a year later than us and returned more than a
half-year before us. They plan to head
back to North Carolina soon, finished with cruising. Seems that most of the folks we met cruising
10 years ago are now calling it quits and moving back to be landlubbers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">On Tuesday we
departed the marina for the final time and again anchored in Rodney Bay for
swimming. Sleeping at anchor was
comfortable enough – cool enough that Trey and Kristina actually had to close
the hatch in their forward cabin during the night because they got cold because
of the high NE wind. Feeling cold does
not happen often in the Caribbean.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPuXDJyuNHAVkiuTEDoWGJ0vy1DHXy3NdfFnEVUrHF7WimwtJnaJSFJoIKHZ3_dPDawzJQcXjecux-bi6dIKGWoDEMnbLjto2FTWqaI40dWBYQEzZs2xIaYgVdquIVkB9yEruiWVmGeBs/s1600/2016-03-18+Pitons+%25284%2529+Petite.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPuXDJyuNHAVkiuTEDoWGJ0vy1DHXy3NdfFnEVUrHF7WimwtJnaJSFJoIKHZ3_dPDawzJQcXjecux-bi6dIKGWoDEMnbLjto2FTWqaI40dWBYQEzZs2xIaYgVdquIVkB9yEruiWVmGeBs/s400/2016-03-18+Pitons+%25284%2529+Petite.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Petite Piton ( the northernmost Piton)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Next we
sailed down to the moorings between the Pitons for a couple of nights. One of the boat boys met us north of Souferie
and accompanied our boat all the way to a mooring between the Pitons and helped
us attach to a mooring. Honestly, we
could do this without any assistance; but the local men make their living
acting as boat boys so we felt kind of obligated to utilize their assistance
when possible. We had no interest in any
of the land tours they tout (and make commission on) but we could at least pay
him for assisting us onto a mooring.
Since this guy had come so far with us and wasted so much of his time
with us, yet we would not do any of his tours, Bill paid him 50 EC$ for his
time and assistance. That is $18.60 USD. Other cruisers might not agree, but we feel
that he deserved that much for his time spent with us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOYp_tlYe0lIjMGQlRs-fe31Ci_vfnAMW9tgKv69Zq8kS0ToCWQHEj3OFuH7DzIXJ2l5XjG9XkgZu0VOvrEcPzS8YwX39L-2Z23ZgIKNlUIwy98tkZ_juOV0sJdrIXP6w3OaVED0Q3Xo/s1600/2016-03-18+Pitons+%25281%2529+Grand.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOYp_tlYe0lIjMGQlRs-fe31Ci_vfnAMW9tgKv69Zq8kS0ToCWQHEj3OFuH7DzIXJ2l5XjG9XkgZu0VOvrEcPzS8YwX39L-2Z23ZgIKNlUIwy98tkZ_juOV0sJdrIXP6w3OaVED0Q3Xo/s320/2016-03-18+Pitons+%25281%2529+Grand.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Grand Piton (the one just to the south of Petite)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Zachary tried
out our new dinghy and outboard engine.
The old 15-hp Mercury was on its last leg and we had been afraid to let
him go anywhere by himself because he might get stranded if the outboard conked
out. The new one is a 10-hp Honda
4-stroke. The new dinghy is a 3.1 meter
3D brand, manufactured in France. It is
PVC instead of Hypalon, but it is German PVC and not Chinese PVC. We hope it will last through our remaining
years of cruising. Bill did a lot of
research before buying this one and learned that the US Navy and US Coast Guard
no longer specify Hypalon when purchasing tenders. He also read that AB apparently no longer
manufactures Hypalon dinghies. Fingers
crossed that this 3D dinghy lasts 3 to 5 years; that likely is the maximum time
we will continue cruising before selling BeBe.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Winds swirled
pretty aggressively between the Pitons so Zachary only got to drive the dinghy
for one short spin around the bay. But I
think he will enjoy it if he visits us again someday.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK8-pH68t_MfO0G7JwigLZLGcNqgWhaE-IjpXgJk9bEb7-ivAlistLYVe_EBwU3vGgyk309T__ASkWmblm49x1Z3NmP1VZmF6s6z7Bj63LGgrkiqfKuw5z5Pw-21ehb1Th3KuYXnHG1uk/s1600/2016-03-21+Marigot+%25281%2529+entrance.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK8-pH68t_MfO0G7JwigLZLGcNqgWhaE-IjpXgJk9bEb7-ivAlistLYVe_EBwU3vGgyk309T__ASkWmblm49x1Z3NmP1VZmF6s6z7Bj63LGgrkiqfKuw5z5Pw-21ehb1Th3KuYXnHG1uk/s400/2016-03-21+Marigot+%25281%2529+entrance.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Narrow entrance to Marigot Bay, almost hidden from sea</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">After a
couple of nights at the Pitons we sailed/motored back north to Marigot Bay and
docked at the nice Capella Marina. Trey
and Kristina treated us to a delicious dinner at an Indian restaurant located
there. I have forgotten the name of this
restaurant but it was rated as the #1 restaurant on St. Lucia by
TripAdvisor. I enjoyed this very
much. Sheila on Imagine had told me that
we should try this restaurant if possible, and she was right. It is worth a stop in Marigot just to eat there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><br /></span>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWWgZI3TIaS6zBHeWnExvuMZOsm3rNcXFnO9pMZCafYMD7nX1EXFwFvCEoJujLlSFuEbbV_FbSJ2miMIx_eTrcSEF0xaSEMbQ1LlEWf5OA2q7MgP7TEFJubsFIHUU6vKZxnl2kBnZxjCw/s1600/2016-03-21+Marigot+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWWgZI3TIaS6zBHeWnExvuMZOsm3rNcXFnO9pMZCafYMD7nX1EXFwFvCEoJujLlSFuEbbV_FbSJ2miMIx_eTrcSEF0xaSEMbQ1LlEWf5OA2q7MgP7TEFJubsFIHUU6vKZxnl2kBnZxjCw/s400/2016-03-21+Marigot+%25282%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Looking out from our berth in Marigot Bay at Capella Marina.<br />This is a beautiful and very small bay worth visiting.<br /></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Trey and
family had arranged a taxi to collect them at Marigot marina for the ride to
the airport at the southern tip of St. Lucia.
They left around noon and I spent the rest of the day doing
laundry. All those sheets, mattress
protectors and towels added up to 7 loads of laundry; so my day was filled with
housekeeping chores. Lucky that I did
all that laundry on Sunday because rain started overnight and continued for
days. We were glad that weather had been
good during their visit. By the way,
they were treated twice to the infamous Green Flash during their week with us
at St. Lucia.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">After St.
Lucia we needed to visit Martinique once again to collect some minor Amel parts
which we had ordered. The Amel Service
Center had emailed us that these parts had been received after we had left Le
Marin. It was a rollicking sail north
back to Martinique. Weather forecast
called for high NE trades for minimum of a week, so we took advantage of the
least windy day to get back north that short 24 miles. Even on the least windy day, winds were solid
25 knots and gusting 35 knots; and the boat was heeled over at 25 degrees,
sometimes 35. Actually was nice by our
warped sense of good sailing conditions.
Upon checking into Marina du Marin we learned that the weekly rate would
be 475 euro and the monthly rate only 559 euro, electricity included. That was an easy choice! I have a number of
small housekeeping projects and sewing repair projects to keep me busy while
docked for a few weeks. Even though we
planned to be here only 2 nights, we paid for a full month. We can come and go at will from the marina,
although probably will be berthed in a different spot each time we return. As soon as winds die down again we will sail
back south to St. Lucia for shopping (love those American brands sold there!)
and return back to Martinique. These
islands are so close together that sailing between them takes no more than 4
hours. What a big change from how we
have been sailing for years. Loving the
short distances in the Caribbean. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">While we wait
for winds to lie down, we are enjoying restaurant dinners and visiting with new
friends. We are berthed on the ‘Amel
service’ dock and have met several fellow Amel owners, a couple of whom are
very new to cruising. We each will be
heading in different directions in the next few weeks; us heading south, one
boat crossing the Atlantic, one boat going to Curacao for hurricane season, and
one boat going north. The four boats are
not likely to meet up again any time soon, so it is nice to have this
opportunity to enjoy new friends.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-54386716416902717802016-03-04T19:03:00.001+00:002016-04-25T20:28:17.853+01:006 Weeks in Martinique<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">4 March 2016</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Marin Marina
in Martinique is quite the bargain.
Jimmy Cornell had advised rally members that this is the least expensive
marina in the Caribbean, and we believe he is correct. Rally participants received 1 week free
berthing upon arrival, including free electricity and water. We inquired by email while still at sea and
were informed that the rate for one month for our 16-meter boat would be 595
Euro, including electricity, plus metered water at 9 Euro per ton (1,000
liters). What a deal! Sign us up for a month, please.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Thus, we
spent 5 weeks berthed in the marina, thoroughly enjoying sleeping in cold
air-conditioning at night. There are
numerous restaurants within short walking distance and a supermarket right across
the street from the marina, plus many well-stocked chandleries. This is a nice
place to hang out and relax. I was
mentally ‘tired’ and needed to reset internal batteries for Caribbean vibes and
put the Med countries and Atlantic crossing into memory.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The only
disappointment in this marina is the Wi-Fi.
It is agonizingly slow! We paid
for Wi-Fi on the boat and were berthed fairly close to the access point for
this dock, but service was painfully slow.
I attempted to log into Facebook once and it took a full 15 minutes for
the home page to load. There are several
restaurants with free Wi-Fi for customers, but I quickly tired of paying $20 to
$35 for us to split a lunch just to be able to access internet. Everything else about this marina and small town
is quite nice except for the inadequate Wi-Fi.
We checked with Digicel about purchasing a sim and prepaid data service,
but they sell data only in 1 GB quantities and that would not last any time at
all. Plus, they informed us that there
are several different Digicel companies servicing the Eastern Caribbean
islands, and this particular Digicel would work ONLY in the French
islands. With that knowledge, we opted
not to buy Digicel 3G service for this season because we plan to head south
from Martinique this time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Cornell
Sailing arranged several activities for the Atlantic Odyssey participants upon
arrival in Martinique. There was a full
week of what seemed like whirlwind social activities; then most of the rally
boats departed the marina to begin their Caribbean island explorations. About a half-dozen of us opted to remain in
the marina for several weeks or a month.
Almost everyone was gone by 1 March.
We will depart the marina on 5 March and finally move to an anchorage,
probably St. Anne’s. Our elder son,
daughter-in-law and 15-yr-old grandson are flying to St. Lucia and we will meet
them in Rodney Bay Marina on 12 March for Spring Break. Who knows, maybe we will sail back up to
Martinique with them. We like Martinique
much better than St. Lucia.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXEi-jNDXsPgWyJRx2HutJCBTBL4zvL9OUGy2HzVkcES5Mvs2E08kxTITpBYn4HZRlB0LAWQ8ftS_EexWFqBrh-Xe652cFT0F7Dlo2m0Yfwww3oIFdojF4-OynDxsl_4emeTb4mTLlNE8/s1600/2016-02-04+Martinique+Clement+rum+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXEi-jNDXsPgWyJRx2HutJCBTBL4zvL9OUGy2HzVkcES5Mvs2E08kxTITpBYn4HZRlB0LAWQ8ftS_EexWFqBrh-Xe652cFT0F7Dlo2m0Yfwww3oIFdojF4-OynDxsl_4emeTb4mTLlNE8/s320/2016-02-04+Martinique+Clement+rum+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rather elaborate rum tasting at Clement Distillery</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">Rally
participants were treated to a couple of welcome cocktail parties hosted by the
Le Marin Martinique Office of Tourism.
We also enjoyed a day outing on a large bus to the Clement Estate and
rum distillery. The grounds of this
estate are impressive. There are many
sculptures and art displays on the grounds.
The home is restored and well maintained. And the rum distilled here far surpasses any
of the rum we have tasted at other distilleries throughout the
Caribbean. And it is priced accordingly! </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-OkAbVLuxYH2HhnKQF5tqSON9EuSxBm2ZDYHLg8j3lMznaIUD6ZhUNWVPAq1Zsw7pS5xF5qTvrIcGnMr35xe_W6uqhIK3cH7r9gqt2J2OUqM2fXR4OkM8VxrzvYLntduxzQet7tNG2oM/s1600/2016-02-04+Martinique+Clement+rum+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-OkAbVLuxYH2HhnKQF5tqSON9EuSxBm2ZDYHLg8j3lMznaIUD6ZhUNWVPAq1Zsw7pS5xF5qTvrIcGnMr35xe_W6uqhIK3cH7r9gqt2J2OUqM2fXR4OkM8VxrzvYLntduxzQet7tNG2oM/s320/2016-02-04+Martinique+Clement+rum+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The better rums are always the dark ones.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The Clement top-of-the-line is a rum aged 15
years and it costs 90 Euro per liter at the distillery, 115 at other locations
around the island. We purchased a liter
bottle of the 10-year-old rum for 37 Euro, priced 42 at locations other than the
distillery. Andrew (crew member for
Atlantic crossing) also purchased a bottle of the 10-year-old rum for
BeBe. It was tasty and did not last
long.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibvV5dUXCaEEZCNL6vcAt-pWRj8_CrLBfqNPTE1Ir1isdQE7xsJaQIg43yWjwnX729Ew9wcPv8jmR1GgHjx44du9CnHnGetXKw_mr7VFiEyXcI73hMr-b8BGabNJg3CMbktJgUTZEoUtI/s1600/2016-02-07+Martinique+slaves+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibvV5dUXCaEEZCNL6vcAt-pWRj8_CrLBfqNPTE1Ir1isdQE7xsJaQIg43yWjwnX729Ew9wcPv8jmR1GgHjx44du9CnHnGetXKw_mr7VFiEyXcI73hMr-b8BGabNJg3CMbktJgUTZEoUtI/s400/2016-02-07+Martinique+slaves+%25281%2529.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A typical slave home. Our guide lady is wearing a typical slave<br />straw hat of those days.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Next trip for
rally participants was a visit to the slave plantation near Trois Ilets. Bill and I had anchored off Trois Ilets in
2007 but had not visited this re-creation of a slave plantation. One thing I liked was that our tour guide at
the site always referred to the slaves of yesteryear as “the people.” If this were in the USA, she probably would
have used the nouns “we” and “us” rather than “the people.” </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdvvh3MIOV5YHu2T-ViYu-BgFghEnKTwCwaF4RRZYxRBMcRjQBOiu3SZdToxjfgEO7R9qAo8zgRDTeiHd4_zKVEbAT969I_VE02afS09ol1cDFUqqQp3pjIBZhPFTGgc3wxkfVmdtLL3A/s1600/2016-02-07+Martinique+slaves+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdvvh3MIOV5YHu2T-ViYu-BgFghEnKTwCwaF4RRZYxRBMcRjQBOiu3SZdToxjfgEO7R9qAo8zgRDTeiHd4_zKVEbAT969I_VE02afS09ol1cDFUqqQp3pjIBZhPFTGgc3wxkfVmdtLL3A/s320/2016-02-07+Martinique+slaves+%25283%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our guide explaining how an old manual sugar cane<br />press operated. She was very pretty.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">By the way, Martinique has a very long
history of mixed race peoples and the results are that the natives of this
island are very, very attractive – both males and females. I think the most beautiful women of the
entire Caribbean live on Martinique. And
mostly they are gracious and friendly, even with those of us who do not speak
French. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bill listening attentively to our guide explain the various<br />punishments for slaves who repeatedly escaped and<br />were re-captured.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Our guide was informative and we finally learned why some people consider the fleur-de-</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 19.84px;">lis </span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">to be a symbol of slavery. Apparently in the French islands this symbol commonly was used to brand slaves who had attempted to escape. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";"><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">The first time a slave escaped and was captured, his ears were cut off and his back shoulders were branded with the fleur-de-lis. The second time he escaped and was re-captured, his leg was cut off just below the knee. The third time he escaped and was re-captured, his head was cut off. And then placed on a post within the slave camp to deter future escapes by others. There was a small museum on the grounds of the slave camp with several statues and carvings which depicted slaves suffering these various punishments for having escaped.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQMteZXlLrhDusySNPX_pfuWDMaLlCQRCr2E8FsZyzae6GwDxsS2V43a_XsbDoRr12VbKAby5dRn52dqxIe32OrZOHExPFO3XEjwz2neDg2Bk1onaNGreP7NBuO7xiYBDftVa4UWUdvlw/s1600/2016-02-08+Martinique+rally+farewell+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQMteZXlLrhDusySNPX_pfuWDMaLlCQRCr2E8FsZyzae6GwDxsS2V43a_XsbDoRr12VbKAby5dRn52dqxIe32OrZOHExPFO3XEjwz2neDg2Bk1onaNGreP7NBuO7xiYBDftVa4UWUdvlw/s320/2016-02-08+Martinique+rally+farewell+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rally members at farewell dinner at The Mango. In dark<br />blue shirt center, is our crew member, Andrew Blum.<br /></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">At the
farewell dinner party for rally participants each boat was awarded a small
plaque and presented with a bottle of rum from the Maison La Mauny rum
distillery here on Martinique. Some
folks got white rum and some received dark rum.
Thankfully, our gift bag contained a bottle of the dark rum. It is not as good as the 10-year-old Clement
rum, but it is pretty good. We do not
care for white rums so were thankful that our gift bag just happened to contain
the dark one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bill, Andrew and Judy receiving a gift of rum<br />from Pascal, one of the rally organizers.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;">Bill and I were surprised when one of the rally organizers announced to the group that the arrival of S/V BeBe in Martinique completed our 10-year circumnavigation. We did not expect any special recognition by the rally for this 'accomplishment.' By the way, I had mentioned to Jimmy Cornell that some folks think Bill and I should not use the term 'circumnavigation' because we shipped BeBe through the Red Sea because of the bad piracy situation the year we were in that area. His response to my comment -- "Psshww! Nonsense!"</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BeBe dressed in the courtesy flags of all the countries<br />visited as we went around. It is a tradition to dress<br />the boat in this manner when circle is complete.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Once again I
would like to state that we thoroughly enjoyed participating in the Atlantic
Odyssey. This was our first rally and we
were a bit apprehensive about participating in a group activity such as this
because we usually do not like being committed to group activities and
schedules. But we think Jimmy Cornell
has organized these rallies well and the price certainly cannot be beat. You receive much more than should be expected
for the minimal participation fees. The
fees for these Odyssey rallies are only about one-fourth of the fees for the
ARC. And, Jimmy is keeping these rallies
limited to 40 boats per event. It was
fun participating with only 18 boats, and 40 boats would have been fine; but
280 to 300 boats like in the ARC is pure crazy in our opinions.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Andrew (our
crew member for the Atlantic crossing) left BeBe on 16 February and joined
another American rally boat named Wings which was sailing to St. Lucia. We received an email from Andrew a few days
ago and they were already in Bequia and planned to continue southward to
Grenada. Andrew was great as crew. He chipped in and helped with both interior
and exterior cleaning of the boat after arrival here. He even kitted up and dived here in the nasty
marina water and cleaned the water-line of the boat and scraped off all the
goose-neck barnacles that accumulated under the sloped stern. Those goose-neck barnacles always grow on the
bottom of the stern on ocean passages.
They are easily scraped off if done immediately after arrival; but wait
for just a couple of days and those things become hard as rocks and are very
difficult to remove. Many thanks to
Andrew for doing this work for us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Le Marin is
the location of the Amel Authorized Service Center for the Caribbean. This means that a lot of Amels visit this
marina. Bill has been very active in the
Amel Owners’ Group online for 10 years and has developed somewhat of a reputation
among fellow Amel owners. Owners of a
half-dozen Super Maramu yachts have arrived and dropped by to say hello. It has been lots of fun sipping wine and
sharing dinners with some of these folks.
Looking forward to meeting up with each of them again somewhere,
sometime.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2151800050737906706.post-35940176818183040092016-02-07T18:19:00.004+00:002016-02-07T18:39:42.427+00:00Crossing the Atlantic with 1 Sail and 20 Bimbos …and… OUR CIRCLE IS COMPLETE! <span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">2 February
2016</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Rally boats departing Tenerife, BeBe on right.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">All the ‘last
minute’ things prepping BeBe for the Atlantic crossing were completed a couple
of weeks before the scheduled rally
departure date. Bill and our new crew
member, Andrew, dropped the sails to remove a meter or so of the halyards to
make sure there was no chafe. They
replaced the small lines attaching the heads of the sails to the halyards;
nothing was wrong with the old lines but best to have new lines in place just
before a long ocean crossing. BeBe was
as ready as she would ever be. All that
remained was for me to hit the supermarket for as many loaves of Bimbo as
possible and to buy massive quantities of fresh produce at the very last minute
in order to have the freshest possible at moment of departure. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBkhE74a0HuOrfZNlheYwVo3plU6qRBtBqx3tBXyE6k7aGmzsbqClsea6ROD3NrPrnanoUkRCGJpeYlIhQoPhvzld9bUU2lnoXNQPO8FHmCXjq5cnzyCMs4A0j4zDak-vugHqzfv4r0s/s1600/2016-01-20+setting+ballooner+%25288%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaBkhE74a0HuOrfZNlheYwVo3plU6qRBtBqx3tBXyE6k7aGmzsbqClsea6ROD3NrPrnanoUkRCGJpeYlIhQoPhvzld9bUU2lnoXNQPO8FHmCXjq5cnzyCMs4A0j4zDak-vugHqzfv4r0s/s320/2016-01-20+setting+ballooner+%25288%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We did set the dual headsails but 90% of<br />the passage was under poled genoa only.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We have no
idea what is in Bimbo breads (and do not want to know). That stuff lasts for what seems like
forever! By the time I got to the supermarket
the day before departure the supermarket shelves were nearly empty of Bimbo
breads. Seems like everyone knows this
particular brand lasts for weeks (or months) and it was the brand purchased by
all the sailors. We ended up with 12
loaves of breads, plus 2 packages of hamburger buns and 4 packages of hot dog
buns and 2 par-baked baguettes – all Bimbo brand and all with expiration dates
well past our anticipated date of arrival.
About half-way through the crossing, Bill commented that someday he
should write a book and entitle it, “How to Cross the Atlantic with 1 Sail and
20 Bimbos.” Hence, the title of this
blog posting.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Bill’s
comment was based on the fact that the only sail we used most of the crossing
was the genoa – poled out to port 90% of the time. Take note that it is mandatory to have at
least one spinnaker pole to cross this ocean unless you plan to gybe back and
forth. The wind was consistently from
180 degrees (directly astern) up to 150 degrees off starboard stern. That wind angle requires a pole. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The Atlantic
Odyssey II rally departed Santa Cruz, Tenerife at noon UTC on Saturday, 9
January. Jimmy Cornell had advised us at
the skippers’ meeting the previous afternoon that he did not recommend taking
either the rhumb line route which traditionally is the route used in January or
the slightly longer ‘cautionary’ route to 20N 30W before turning westward. Both of those routes normally used in January
were not advisable this year because of a large tropical LOW which at the time
of our rally departure was situated WSW of the Canary Islands. He stressed that for liability reasons he was
unable to provide any specific advice as to routing but he strongly suggested
that we all head straight towards Mindelo, Cape Verde, before turning westward
once reading the trade winds – the traditional ‘safe’ route. Most skippers took Jimmy’s advice, I
think. We know of only 2 boats that
opted to try the ‘cautionary’ route to 20N 30W – Jacqueline and ViVa – and both
managed to avoid the increasing storm.
Lucky them! ViVa later diverted
farther southward while Jacqueline continued toward 20N 30W. Jacqueline shaved at least 200 nautical miles
off the total passage by going this route.
We took the longer route totaling 2960 NM.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Because that
tropical LOW developed into Tropical Storm Alex and then increased to Hurricane
Alex! How about that!! We had waited to cross in January rather than
November because traditionally January is the better month for weather. Jimmy Cornell was the founder of the ARC
which has departed from the Canary Islands annually in mid-November for about
40 years. He said that he never wanted
the ARC to depart that early in the year; he has always felt that November is
too early to cross the Atlantic. It is
possible for a late-season hurricane to develop in November. Plus, the trade winds are rarely established
in November; the trades usually do not fill in until after Christmas. These reasons traditionally make January the
better weather time for crossing. But
the ARC departs in November because so many people want to be in the Caribbean
before Christmas. However, due to our
changing climate, this particular year a hurricane developed in January! There have been recorded hurricanes (or, at
least one) in January. But this phenomenon
is very, very rare. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBt02aCzNtR48_SW20TjDU8FmyYEfhy9SoIzrR4A_UYEu7g0xegquXZZ-kl3vsqy9Zmbh6SI5zsw0CwrXjH2lIduDS3zIdnbAjiq5waTi7xTMKKDLkI6nurYWu7cVuEuShC2pZ4UZHpE4/s1600/Weather+Chart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBt02aCzNtR48_SW20TjDU8FmyYEfhy9SoIzrR4A_UYEu7g0xegquXZZ-kl3vsqy9Zmbh6SI5zsw0CwrXjH2lIduDS3zIdnbAjiq5waTi7xTMKKDLkI6nurYWu7cVuEuShC2pZ4UZHpE4/s320/Weather+Chart.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That LOW just west of BeBe is the one that turned<br />into Hurricane Alex.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Those 2 boats
were very lucky Alex stopped tracking ESE and then began to move northward
toward the Azores. I had checked windyty.com before we departed
Tenerife and saw that the LOW was predicted to follow the exact path that Alex
did track; but the hurricane could just as easily have continued another 100NM
to ESE before making that stop and change of direction. Both boats arrived safely and never
encountered any heavy weather, so no harm done; but it was rather ballsy in our
opinions to chance possible intersection with a growing storm. We instead opted to head straight toward
Mindelo, Cape Verde. After being sucked
up into that storm in the Bay of Bengal in early 2011 and spending 5 days
circling the eye, we were taking absolutely no chances of going anywhere near
the tropical LOW, much less near a hurricane.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr2sl0fjf33gVmxX9v12oYZWYuMHZxpKi_QEE-c53ktI0207Xo28oGuZL-uqjTW_ocg1VpGFAPnQ7UmKaoqT1PhhYy7M7E2SLFQDMVy5PMHR-IbcnqbER019pceNqr2xWljFsD5Xfc8_k/s1600/2016-01-26+rainbow+%25284%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr2sl0fjf33gVmxX9v12oYZWYuMHZxpKi_QEE-c53ktI0207Xo28oGuZL-uqjTW_ocg1VpGFAPnQ7UmKaoqT1PhhYy7M7E2SLFQDMVy5PMHR-IbcnqbER019pceNqr2xWljFsD5Xfc8_k/s320/2016-01-26+rainbow+%25284%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A mid-Atlantic full rainbow, left side.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We were
plagued with frequent inability to obtain weather reports and emails during
this crossing. Even using both Winlink
and Sailmail there were many days when we could connect with neither. Bill pulled only one weatherfax file and that
was for Tuesday, 12 January. It verified
that the LOW was still following the prediction we had seen on 9 January on
windyty.com. So we felt safely east of
the storm. Still…we were shocked when on
15 January we received a weather report from rally control stating that the LOW
was now the first hurricane of 2016 and was named Alex. In January!!!
Thankfully, Hurricane Alex was
headed away from us at this time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTXHD4F1E-lntR2wSUggWeTKQtB3IP3TBQRKIkJ4SAxIt2XbmkdkZvEFqheebb1AeItIqiYcIbFbVSXWexwpabZ8I5NKCVqkJ6V262CoZRd5yDxZ8K_ANDQgcRHbAkX9kVxSDsUYfSzAc/s1600/2016-01-26+rainbow+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTXHD4F1E-lntR2wSUggWeTKQtB3IP3TBQRKIkJ4SAxIt2XbmkdkZvEFqheebb1AeItIqiYcIbFbVSXWexwpabZ8I5NKCVqkJ6V262CoZRd5yDxZ8K_ANDQgcRHbAkX9kVxSDsUYfSzAc/s320/2016-01-26+rainbow+%25283%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">A mid-Atlantic full rainbow, right side.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We continued
south toward Mindelo, postponing the decision whether to stop or not until we
got there. We did not need fuel and had
no equipment failures or medical issues, so why stop if the trade winds had
filled in by the time we got down there?
The passage between Tenerife and Cape Verdes seemed to take
forever. It was a very slow passage and
I think we averaged only about 135NM daily.
Our slowest times…ever.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">One day out
of Mindelo we experienced wind squalls for the first time. These were strange. They were light gray and did not show up on
radar at all. These contained no rain
but were packed with strong winds. We
could see these during daylight but had no idea where they were after dark since
these were undetectable by radar. We
were lucky and had no bad experiences with these wind squalls, but 2 other
boats were caught in a few. Amakora got
hit by several, the highest winds being gusts of 69 knots! Kandiba saw 44 knots. We never saw anything over 30 knots gusts and
were very glad to leave those behind us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXM4qH6NGhyphenhyphen5jneo3CdQV2ejRHf1o_3Lohmql7zqYsfHhzbiSTacZ2Bm7kcgKYQ0i6EjMyBd7yHfUF_2wTEyjqx1ILuBHX-2kS8a4sKJeyI9vOFIiwdPPnleOQDsgFE7suRRcnEVxRTYo/s1600/2016-01-15+Cape+Verde+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXM4qH6NGhyphenhyphen5jneo3CdQV2ejRHf1o_3Lohmql7zqYsfHhzbiSTacZ2Bm7kcgKYQ0i6EjMyBd7yHfUF_2wTEyjqx1ILuBHX-2kS8a4sKJeyI9vOFIiwdPPnleOQDsgFE7suRRcnEVxRTYo/s320/2016-01-15+Cape+Verde+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cape Verde westernmost island, 10 miles distant.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">We sailed
within 10 NM north of Mindelo in the Cape Verdes and found the westerly trade
winds. The 3 of us immediately decided to keep on
trucking. We were into the rhythm of the
passage watches and saw no reason to stop.
Bill joked that we should stop for African pizza and beer but I said
instead we could have Caribbean pizza and beer in a couple of weeks. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZsD8bapLgy3HiwdhikP9Tflwz0bVpI8-p90SxJfAKt3fxIwNIqWUUlHOI5HzO5OLpSkc1jbtuYFMnSEz0P_JjnsNDoK7OS-qP3Uz_5Gzfxap3cE3jxnryKZy9PUMGP7Hm0cPV5HLOwYQ/s1600/2016-01-15+fishing+seaweed+%25285%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZsD8bapLgy3HiwdhikP9Tflwz0bVpI8-p90SxJfAKt3fxIwNIqWUUlHOI5HzO5OLpSkc1jbtuYFMnSEz0P_JjnsNDoK7OS-qP3Uz_5Gzfxap3cE3jxnryKZy9PUMGP7Hm0cPV5HLOwYQ/s320/2016-01-15+fishing+seaweed+%25285%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Seaweed dinner. Better catch a fish on the next cast!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">As we finally
changed course headed west, Andrew started trolling our first fishing
line. There was so much seaweed floating
in large clumps which fouled the fishing line and lure that this effort was
soon abandoned. Others reported on the
VHF radio that they were catching fish but we did not have the right kind of
gear to weight the lures down low enough in the water to avoid all that
floating seaweed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijyx0l4NE0kT2r-JidUeLFbufIlXq6Fec0prUpOSmY7q8TCle9mv3TyZ1CcnGtwm3QAnUsXSqOJNhbASyUdk8JCWCgPKitGF5Sa6nJthUQuiQEctX-WyeCexY26y1pxmlkRLjV-m50ATk/s1600/2016-01-26+Mahi-mahi+%25284%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijyx0l4NE0kT2r-JidUeLFbufIlXq6Fec0prUpOSmY7q8TCle9mv3TyZ1CcnGtwm3QAnUsXSqOJNhbASyUdk8JCWCgPKitGF5Sa6nJthUQuiQEctX-WyeCexY26y1pxmlkRLjV-m50ATk/s320/2016-01-26+Mahi-mahi+%25284%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Andrew with the only mahi-mahi caught across the<br />entire ocean. Big enough for 1 meal for 3 people.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">A few days
later Andrew caught a small mahi-mahi.
It was the perfect size for dinner for the 3 of us. The next day he caught a much larger
mahi-mahi but it managed to spit the lure just as it came up to the boat and
Bill was unable to reach it with the gaff in time. That one would have fed all 3 of us both
lunch and dinner for at least 3 days!
What a shame he got away! The
next day the same lure caught a small tuna but it also managed to spit the lure
before being gaffed. We were really
liking this particular lure! It was one
that was designed to dive 15 feet and it avoided most of the seaweed and the
fish seemed to like it. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4m-ZlpcK7lB-4vdVmF43RBmwsX0DkE3SkULPpLASKYeJ3wjgjM8kuaSBbyZbQEzNA-A1ZsusU19uJ1WrmbTb2_BmPXw_OH4QbkSLsmJwFpRaQHiZU1uJhEyxgxJvAiI1Mc5tzN_ZYsM/s1600/2016-01-26+Mahi-mahi+%25285%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP4m-ZlpcK7lB-4vdVmF43RBmwsX0DkE3SkULPpLASKYeJ3wjgjM8kuaSBbyZbQEzNA-A1ZsusU19uJ1WrmbTb2_BmPXw_OH4QbkSLsmJwFpRaQHiZU1uJhEyxgxJvAiI1Mc5tzN_ZYsM/s320/2016-01-26+Mahi-mahi+%25285%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Put out the line; reel it in because fouled with seaweed.<br />That got old quickly.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Unfortunately,
soon after something really large took that lure. Awwwhhh….it was our favorite! We had no more lures that would dive deep
enough to avoid the seaweed and we had no weights to keep the line deep enough
down, so that was the end of our fishing.
We are going to search for another of those type lures in Martinique; I
saved the package and want to find on identical one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">A synopsis of
our Atlantic crossing is short and simple:
way too much motion but needed only 1 sail and those 20 Bimbos.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikNBnZ8JA8qxm4lomF7ZI4nzp-FZXOJq104K8ZZHsDJP_j1iNJPos9CSBhDBisE_lO88eVRsijivuXBmDSJh02OnUD2yWnw6Pt30Rj1d8rC0NBn2DktOF9L6cuR_wIEC3j0aAb1bjTW_c/s1600/2016-01-13+Andrew+meatloaf+dinner+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikNBnZ8JA8qxm4lomF7ZI4nzp-FZXOJq104K8ZZHsDJP_j1iNJPos9CSBhDBisE_lO88eVRsijivuXBmDSJh02OnUD2yWnw6Pt30Rj1d8rC0NBn2DktOF9L6cuR_wIEC3j0aAb1bjTW_c/s320/2016-01-13+Andrew+meatloaf+dinner+%25281%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We ate hearty meals on passage. Meatloaf, mashed<br />potatoes with demi-glace gravy and steamed<br />broccoli was a typical meal.</span></td></tr>
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experienced no squalls; in fact, no rain whatsoever. The nearest rain shower across the entire
ocean tracked 7 NM north of us. And how we would have enjoyed having that fresh
water rinse to wash off some of the heavy slimy salt which covered the entire
boat!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The typical
daily weather forecast from rally control included statements such as:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">“24 hour
forecast weakening cold front in a line south of XX and west of XX. NE to E winds 20 to 25 KT. Seas 9 to 11 ft in mixed N-NE and SE
swell. 48 hour forecast E of a line from
XX to XX winds 20 KT or less. Seas 10
ft. in mixed N and S swell.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPjaC0uSbbN_6TUe_wV39aJPtBrnwQcSSrw3THP3Bzeokw0R6O0hDyzbGhMz1_y_UNXbN_rgEg60DU03uqIj7wgVX4YR3ojjyWysGheyGEoU3KqWnpZj1xIrpd-KfhxXL1TmNXLH_GNXQ/s1600/2016-01-16+Andrew+push-ups+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPjaC0uSbbN_6TUe_wV39aJPtBrnwQcSSrw3THP3Bzeokw0R6O0hDyzbGhMz1_y_UNXbN_rgEg60DU03uqIj7wgVX4YR3ojjyWysGheyGEoU3KqWnpZj1xIrpd-KfhxXL1TmNXLH_GNXQ/s320/2016-01-16+Andrew+push-ups+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">If one eats those hearty meals and wants to maintain<br />physique, exercise is required. 100 push-ups.<br />Perfect form.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXd12vEa_lq6dVqivEvV6y_YWx5PbbT5pqUs0A5ejXcYtt8mYbRIG0KWA0u9cPreBGz7bUVzpD8MYe0SAoWcItJ-hmyQe9OBAuIPKQeatxat96w6LDQ0i6EWIXdwF-rRAJycGxrB9Dy6Y/s1600/2016-01-16+Andrew+push-ups+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXd12vEa_lq6dVqivEvV6y_YWx5PbbT5pqUs0A5ejXcYtt8mYbRIG0KWA0u9cPreBGz7bUVzpD8MYe0SAoWcItJ-hmyQe9OBAuIPKQeatxat96w6LDQ0i6EWIXdwF-rRAJycGxrB9Dy6Y/s320/2016-01-16+Andrew+push-ups+%25283%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Don't know how he was able to maintain perfect<br />form push-ups on that rolling deck, but he did.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We still do
not understand how swell can come from both north and south at the same time,
but it does.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">When converging swell would
occur at our stern, BeBe would slide down those 3-meter turbulent swells at a
45-degree angle.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The trusty Autohelm
ST7001+ autopilot handled it beautifully and recovered quickly to keep us on
course.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">We occasionally switched to the
chain drive as a precautionary measure – to allow the linear drive to cool
off.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The linear drive always worked
perfectly but we did not want to over-task it.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;">The chain drive did not steer as easily and effectively as the linear
drive in the heavier stern waves.</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzbaLVVmshE_98nppGkGU0G8JWJcUVAjul3y73bsxi1MG66k7MbtsZiFPkij9WFwd9sDiG8ZWjxB8ydMq6wLw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Having a
third crew member aboard is really the only way to go. We now strongly recommend having a minimum of
3 crew members for ocean crossings.
Those extra hands do come in handy.
Bill and I could have easily handled the crossing with just the 2 of us
but it was nice to have Andrew’s assistance which allowed each person more
sleep. Having 1 additional person aboard
required no additional work for meals or housekeeping and Andrew was a big
help. Having that crew member be of the
same nationality, in our case all Texans from the same general area of Texas,
contributed to the congeniality on board.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzRjSciWVy6aZO8AZiZMn1KrCPQDLS4EkTpqbAzG6m1JOmkZZhZ4bb2FgCUgVE9JofmTEg51ZXlYmfM9hT_OL5eSXI1Mmubdc-lEync2xGbV6lpKC4c9IEvtsFqwI9GV_QELRxU2ZBuQ/s1600/2016-01-29+arrival+Martinique+%25283%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzRjSciWVy6aZO8AZiZMn1KrCPQDLS4EkTpqbAzG6m1JOmkZZhZ4bb2FgCUgVE9JofmTEg51ZXlYmfM9hT_OL5eSXI1Mmubdc-lEync2xGbV6lpKC4c9IEvtsFqwI9GV_QELRxU2ZBuQ/s320/2016-01-29+arrival+Martinique+%25283%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">First glimpse of Martinique, a most welcome sight.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">The first
rally boat to arrive in Le Marin was Jacqueline on 28 January, one of the boats
which had taken a more direct course rather than go so far to Cape Verdes. The captain said they were about 195 miles NW
of Cape Verde when they turned westward.
The following day 3 Amels arrived near the same time. The first to arrive that day was Kandiba, an
Amel 55 owned by friends Hassan and Zehrya who were accompanied by their niece
Fatma and darling little dog Carlos Santana.
Next was BeBe and minutes behind us was ViVa. BeBe and ViVa are sister-ships, Amel Super
Maramu 2000 model. There also was
another Amel Super Maramu that arrived at the same time but that boat was not
part of the Atlantic Odyssey rally. Three identical Amels arriving at the same
time kind of filled up the fairway near the fuel dock where boats are
instructed to drift until the captainerie (marineros) arrive to assist docking
each boat.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOx99dbXVsKkNfCUUK8-pJVGk9whvvehdvAgitNMSzfyf2_enzFm0ei1pVlqN93_n-UqK6MVfkTBBqd2JOkZWHBphyPzgdxQS5nNefdziuRBN8Xy2tPjanZxNa3ZwpagMO4D3zTjCs9g/s1600/arrival+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVOx99dbXVsKkNfCUUK8-pJVGk9whvvehdvAgitNMSzfyf2_enzFm0ei1pVlqN93_n-UqK6MVfkTBBqd2JOkZWHBphyPzgdxQS5nNefdziuRBN8Xy2tPjanZxNa3ZwpagMO4D3zTjCs9g/s400/arrival+1.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BeBe arriving Martinique near rally finish line.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Arrival at Le
Marin completes the circle for us. Our
longest passage was 3,024.2 NM between Galapagos Islands and Hiva Oa,
Marquesas. That one took 19 days and 23
hours. Crossing the Atlantic from
Tenerife to Martinique was the second longest passage at 2,960 NM and took 20
days 5 hours. The Atlantic took 6 hours
longer and covered 64.2 fewer miles. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkvcQmDE8N3hSYHYNsjATyiusTEvJnWXuPfw2Fv8L6MP0GR3jsVwFXnaVaL_lRyTuiZVwgN-UuCXeW7qgs0ThwAVOnAua0y9vs-Sk2JsR_SR94ObHBwmClaKRoVC-ivcJxi3uPB5gZfxo/s1600/arrival+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkvcQmDE8N3hSYHYNsjATyiusTEvJnWXuPfw2Fv8L6MP0GR3jsVwFXnaVaL_lRyTuiZVwgN-UuCXeW7qgs0ThwAVOnAua0y9vs-Sk2JsR_SR94ObHBwmClaKRoVC-ivcJxi3uPB5gZfxo/s320/arrival+2.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Judy, Bill and Andrew with welcoming rum punch<br />on dock at arrival Martinique.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">Over the past
9 years 9 months we have sailed a total of 34,989 nautical miles around the
world. That number does not include
tacking back and forth as all sailboats do; it is the point-to-point miles of
our sailing destinations. We did not
keep records of actual miles sailed but rather focused on the distances between
anchorages or ports. BeBe was
transported aboard a cargo ship through the Somali pirates and Arab Spring
violence during early 2011 for a total of 3,866 NM. (We later sailed back south and farther east
in the Med, so at least 500 of those miles transported were later sailed by us
anyway.) Including that transported distance,
the total BeBe has covered is 38,855 nautical miles (plus all that tacking and
gybing). I have not yet counted all the
countries visited but guess the total is around 53 or 56 or so. We know this is not a mariner’s definition
for a circumnavigation but we truly do not care what anyone wants to calls our
round-the-world adventure. Call it
whatever you like: we have circled the world -- mostly via boat and a minor
distance via airplane. It has been a
fantastic 10 years! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgecVFDxfu1dD3VVMLNXhT_pXOtrZv2b8iz5PEetzWuXd6woUxDspY-DaLwaR-mDcM78CLx5lkPQPGvJzO3Q60JKERzwb91y32kFQjjZm_qjD6RcMKW9KVXRTMR8OvvTm44b_6G3nHpay0/s1600/arrival+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgecVFDxfu1dD3VVMLNXhT_pXOtrZv2b8iz5PEetzWuXd6woUxDspY-DaLwaR-mDcM78CLx5lkPQPGvJzO3Q60JKERzwb91y32kFQjjZm_qjD6RcMKW9KVXRTMR8OvvTm44b_6G3nHpay0/s320/arrival+3.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Time to relax and enjoy. Rum punch was delightful.<br />Judy drank 4, and she never drinks rum punch.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "sans-serif";">And now very
pleased to be back in the Caribbean where we will relax and enjoy the cruising
life for several more years. No plans
and happy to have no plans for a change.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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CW Bill Rousehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13136157610605784706noreply@blogger.com2