We have also decided that from now on we will blog only when we have something interesting to say.
We have begun to bore ourselves with this blog-we can't imagine how you feel!!!!!
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Change of plans...
Hello Everyone.
As some of you may know we have decided to change our plans. We have found the lack of security even in the Carribbean to be not so much fun. After the drink incident we have both felt very on edge. Things will only get worse as we go south. Additionally, we have found that boat life is also a bit too slow for us. There are only so many times we can go and hike the same trail, read our books, and go swimming in the ocean. We don't need to relax that much-we are in our twenties! It has also shown to not be the adventure we had hoped for-we haven't had many adventures at all in fact.
However our end goal was to travel and see the world and we are ammending our plans to do so. We are taking our boat to Tortola to have it pulled out of the water. After that we will fly to Buenos Aires where we have reserved a flat until April. We will work, learn spanish, learn to tango, travel within S. America and enjoy a return to civilization. In April we will return to our boat, take it to Bermuda, on to the Azores, then the Canary Islands, and on the the Med where our boat will stay for several summers while we explore the Mediterranean Basin.
It took us a while to broach the subject with one another. One evening we were both acting funny and the subject came up. We were so relieved and happy to realize that we were on the same page! We've learned that for us boating is wonderful for short periods of time. 3 years would have just been too long for us. We haven't slept on land since the 24th of October. We haven't even had easy access to news/newspaper/basic television since then. At this point we are both itching to get off the boat and back to civilization. We are waiting out some nasty winds and then are off tomorrow morning to Tortola and should arrive in time to celebrate the New Year.
We hope you all have a happy New Year as well.
As some of you may know we have decided to change our plans. We have found the lack of security even in the Carribbean to be not so much fun. After the drink incident we have both felt very on edge. Things will only get worse as we go south. Additionally, we have found that boat life is also a bit too slow for us. There are only so many times we can go and hike the same trail, read our books, and go swimming in the ocean. We don't need to relax that much-we are in our twenties! It has also shown to not be the adventure we had hoped for-we haven't had many adventures at all in fact.
However our end goal was to travel and see the world and we are ammending our plans to do so. We are taking our boat to Tortola to have it pulled out of the water. After that we will fly to Buenos Aires where we have reserved a flat until April. We will work, learn spanish, learn to tango, travel within S. America and enjoy a return to civilization. In April we will return to our boat, take it to Bermuda, on to the Azores, then the Canary Islands, and on the the Med where our boat will stay for several summers while we explore the Mediterranean Basin.
It took us a while to broach the subject with one another. One evening we were both acting funny and the subject came up. We were so relieved and happy to realize that we were on the same page! We've learned that for us boating is wonderful for short periods of time. 3 years would have just been too long for us. We haven't slept on land since the 24th of October. We haven't even had easy access to news/newspaper/basic television since then. At this point we are both itching to get off the boat and back to civilization. We are waiting out some nasty winds and then are off tomorrow morning to Tortola and should arrive in time to celebrate the New Year.
We hope you all have a happy New Year as well.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Christmas day excitement
Hello everyone.
Dragging the boat in tight spaces.
Crash!
Untangling the anchors.
Tucana safely anchored once again.
We hope you are having a relaxing week.
We had a very nice Christmas yesterday. We woke up, opened presents, and then headed into town for a coffee and a juice. (they make really great fresh juices from the local fruits.) On our way back to our boat we noticed a man on a catamaran trying to anchor near us in a very small space. He nearly hit our boat and a few of the surrounding boats. Seeing that he was alone and strugging Walid offered to help. He also reccomended heading to a space with less boats around. They pulled up the anchor once again and took off while I read on the boat. Little did they realize that while pulling up the catamarans anchor they also pulled up the anchor of another small boat. The small boat was maybe 30 feet, hadn't been occupied the entire time we were here, and really looked like it had seen better days. Not only did they pull up the anchor of the small boat, Tucana, but it was attached to the catamarans anchor. I looked up to see Tucana essentially being towed into our boat. I grabbed a fender to try to protect our boat but it was coming straight at it! I called to Walid who quickly came back. He didn't realize right away that Tucana was being towed so the catamaran kept circling around us. We were hit once in the back of the boat-fortunatly there was a door that covers that outdoor shower that just was minorly broken. We were hit once more on the side of the boat with no damage. At this point other boaters saw the disaster that was taking place and came to help. After about 45 minutes of towing, circling, and trying to untangle anchors while avoiding all of the other boats the catamaran was freed and the anchor of Tucana was safely dropped away from the other boats and damage free. I was able to snap a few photos as I was on our boat trying to protect it!
Dragging the boat in tight spaces.
Crash!
Untangling the anchors.
Tucana safely anchored once again. After everything was under control again Walid and I headed into town to go for a hike. We had a little appetizer around lunch time but we were both saving room for the feast we were going to make on the boat. The best we could find was a small roast chicken, some canned spinach, and onions and potatos. Our Christmas dinner was very similar to our Thanksgiving dinner but it was still really nice. We spent the rest of the evening reading and playing some of the games we got for Christmas.
We are heading to Tortola either tonight or tomorrow. We are waiting for a file with the winds to download before we make our decision.
Our Christmas tree this year. (a tiny Jasmine plant we bought in St. Maartin)
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
update on Christmas Eve.
After going into town today and seeing how the locals celebrate the holiday we thought this may be more of an appropriate theme for an island Christmas.
You will be happy to know that we aren't following their lead. We are going to BBQ chicken-the best we could find was mini chicken basically on toothpicks, have curried veggies, cheese and crackers and mini pizzas tonight.
Tomorrow we have a chicken to roast, with spinach, and potatoes-very similar to our Thanksgiving meal.
We are beginning our Christmas party soon so I have to run. Walid had promised to take me caroling by dinghy tonight but as the day wore on has taken back the offer. Maybe I should take him to follow in the footsteps of the locals and we will be able to carol after all...
Just kidding!
Merry Christmas everyone.
Love,
Colleen and Walid
Colleen and Walid
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Dinghy disaster
Hello Everyone.
The interenet has been down in Les Saintes for the past few days so we have been a bit out of contact.
Saturday night we spent the day exploring the island with our MP3. It turned out to be a bit of a dissapointment. It was much cooler looking than it was to actually drive. It felt very unstable and made us both a little nervous. We hiked a few different trails around the island before deciding to return the MP3 early. The narrow, steep roads and the unstable device were not a fun combination! We spent the afternoon reading on the boat. In the evening we went into town to pick up something to BBQ for dinner. We had a small appetizer before heading back to the boat to have a quiet night.
At 3 in the morning Walid woke me up reporting that our dinghy was gone! We used our crime scene investigation skills to notice that everything was as it should have been to hook up the dinghy making it seemingly unlikely that a theif came in the middle of the night. Walid considered taking or kayak out to look for it but decided against it due to the heavy winds and lack of lighting on the kayak. The wind direction was in our favor-if our dinghy had floated away it would have washed up on shore. At sunrise Walid set out on the kayak to find the dinghy. He was able to enlist the help of another friendly American who gave him a lift on his dinghy. Fortunatly for us our dinghy had not only washed up on shore, but, a friendly islander had tied it up and removed the motor for us to prevent any damage. The biggest casualty of the debaucle was our hiking shoes which were getting worn down in any case after several years of use. We feel very lucky (and impressed/amazed) that there was no further damage to our dinghy.
We have decided to stick in Les Saintes for Christmas. We have found that it has the most holiday cheer and additionally it has been very windy and rough. We are keeping our fingers crossed to find a nice piece of meat for Christmas eve or Christmas day so we can cook on the boat. We aren't really in the mood for a creole Christmas!!
We hope that you are enjoying the days leading up to the holidays and that those of you with snow enjoy a white Christmas.
The interenet has been down in Les Saintes for the past few days so we have been a bit out of contact.
Saturday night we spent the day exploring the island with our MP3. It turned out to be a bit of a dissapointment. It was much cooler looking than it was to actually drive. It felt very unstable and made us both a little nervous. We hiked a few different trails around the island before deciding to return the MP3 early. The narrow, steep roads and the unstable device were not a fun combination! We spent the afternoon reading on the boat. In the evening we went into town to pick up something to BBQ for dinner. We had a small appetizer before heading back to the boat to have a quiet night.
At 3 in the morning Walid woke me up reporting that our dinghy was gone! We used our crime scene investigation skills to notice that everything was as it should have been to hook up the dinghy making it seemingly unlikely that a theif came in the middle of the night. Walid considered taking or kayak out to look for it but decided against it due to the heavy winds and lack of lighting on the kayak. The wind direction was in our favor-if our dinghy had floated away it would have washed up on shore. At sunrise Walid set out on the kayak to find the dinghy. He was able to enlist the help of another friendly American who gave him a lift on his dinghy. Fortunatly for us our dinghy had not only washed up on shore, but, a friendly islander had tied it up and removed the motor for us to prevent any damage. The biggest casualty of the debaucle was our hiking shoes which were getting worn down in any case after several years of use. We feel very lucky (and impressed/amazed) that there was no further damage to our dinghy.
We have decided to stick in Les Saintes for Christmas. We have found that it has the most holiday cheer and additionally it has been very windy and rough. We are keeping our fingers crossed to find a nice piece of meat for Christmas eve or Christmas day so we can cook on the boat. We aren't really in the mood for a creole Christmas!!
We hope that you are enjoying the days leading up to the holidays and that those of you with snow enjoy a white Christmas.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
A few more pictures...
A view of our anchorage and the village of Terre Haute. Taken from the peak of our hike at 1,050 feet up. 
My hiking outfit-Walid cuts out the shoes in every picture for me. 
Walid standing on the remaining walls of a fort. Through the valley you can see Dominca in the distance. 
The kitten we came across on our hike. It loved playing with the line we used to tie our dinghy up while Walid tried to untie it.
Hi Everyone.
We are really enjoying Les Saintes. Yesterday we went hiking twice-once before and once after lunch. The second hike was more of a walk exploring a tiny island about a 3 minute dinghy ride away. The island has a very old fort at the top and is inhabited by goats and a small kitten we came across. We saw a stand where they sold clay pots for 10 euros but no one was there. We will head there tonight or tomorrow to anchor, BBQ, and enjoy our Sunday.
We ran into friends from Finland we first met in St. Maartin, then bumped into again in St. Barths, and now found once again at anchor here. They invited us over to their boat for a drink and after learning that they were out of coal for their BBQ we invited them back to ours for a BBQ. It was a fun night!
Today is like Christmas for Walid. The town is filled with moped rentals. Walid found and reserved an MP3 for today. The MP3 is like a Moped but instead of one wheel in the front it has two. We are going to tour the island, have a picnic lunch on the beach, and check out some more hiking.
We are really enjoying Les Saintes. Yesterday we went hiking twice-once before and once after lunch. The second hike was more of a walk exploring a tiny island about a 3 minute dinghy ride away. The island has a very old fort at the top and is inhabited by goats and a small kitten we came across. We saw a stand where they sold clay pots for 10 euros but no one was there. We will head there tonight or tomorrow to anchor, BBQ, and enjoy our Sunday.
We ran into friends from Finland we first met in St. Maartin, then bumped into again in St. Barths, and now found once again at anchor here. They invited us over to their boat for a drink and after learning that they were out of coal for their BBQ we invited them back to ours for a BBQ. It was a fun night!
Today is like Christmas for Walid. The town is filled with moped rentals. Walid found and reserved an MP3 for today. The MP3 is like a Moped but instead of one wheel in the front it has two. We are going to tour the island, have a picnic lunch on the beach, and check out some more hiking.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Les Saintes
Hello everyone.
We are in Les Saintes. So far it is the most charming carribbean island we have seen. From our anchorage in Terre Haute we are a 2 minute dinghy ride from the village which is one main street lined with restauraunts, unique shopping, fresh fruits, and wonderful Christmas decorations. Apparently things will really pick up on Saturday when people begin arriving for the Christmas holiday.
We are off today for some hiking and tonight we will have a BBQ.
We hope you have a great weekend!
We are in Les Saintes. So far it is the most charming carribbean island we have seen. From our anchorage in Terre Haute we are a 2 minute dinghy ride from the village which is one main street lined with restauraunts, unique shopping, fresh fruits, and wonderful Christmas decorations. Apparently things will really pick up on Saturday when people begin arriving for the Christmas holiday.
We are off today for some hiking and tonight we will have a BBQ.
We hope you have a great weekend!
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Guadeloupe
Hello everyone!
We haven't been able to update the blog as often as we would like to due to spotty internet service. That also has made it difficult for us to post photos.
We arrived in Guadeloupe Monday evening. We had dinner on the boat, read, and went to bed. Tuesday morning we got up and headed in to Deshaies to check out the town and clear customs. By the time we had done that it was lunch time. After a quick lunch we headed off for an afternoon of hiking. We had another night of dinner on the boat and reading.
We woke up this morning to a very rocky boat so we set off fairly early. We had a quick bite to eat in town and hiked until lunch time. After lunch we ran a few errands and walked to the botanical gardens just up the hill. They were really very beautiful, although, we have to admit the highlite for both of us was the koi fish pond. For 20 eurocents we bought a cup full of food to feed them and it caused quite a commotion. The fish have learned that when they see a hand out over the water it means they are getting food. They gather around and when the food is dumped they dive all over each other trying to get their share. After we saw the entire garden we went back to feed them one more time before leaving. The garden was shutting down for the evening and the woman who worked at the front desk asked us if we would mind feeding the fish for their nightly meal. We got several pitchers of food to throw to them. We took our job seriously though and were sure to evenly distribute it. That wasn't nearly as much fun though-so after we fed the fish their afternoon snack we bought another tiny cup to watch the fish flop all over each other. We headed back down, grocery shopped, and returned to the boat just in time for the sunset and another night of eating in and reading.
We are off tomorrow afternoon and over the next few days will be making our way to Martinique.
We hope you are all having a great week!
We haven't been able to update the blog as often as we would like to due to spotty internet service. That also has made it difficult for us to post photos.
We arrived in Guadeloupe Monday evening. We had dinner on the boat, read, and went to bed. Tuesday morning we got up and headed in to Deshaies to check out the town and clear customs. By the time we had done that it was lunch time. After a quick lunch we headed off for an afternoon of hiking. We had another night of dinner on the boat and reading.
We woke up this morning to a very rocky boat so we set off fairly early. We had a quick bite to eat in town and hiked until lunch time. After lunch we ran a few errands and walked to the botanical gardens just up the hill. They were really very beautiful, although, we have to admit the highlite for both of us was the koi fish pond. For 20 eurocents we bought a cup full of food to feed them and it caused quite a commotion. The fish have learned that when they see a hand out over the water it means they are getting food. They gather around and when the food is dumped they dive all over each other trying to get their share. After we saw the entire garden we went back to feed them one more time before leaving. The garden was shutting down for the evening and the woman who worked at the front desk asked us if we would mind feeding the fish for their nightly meal. We got several pitchers of food to throw to them. We took our job seriously though and were sure to evenly distribute it. That wasn't nearly as much fun though-so after we fed the fish their afternoon snack we bought another tiny cup to watch the fish flop all over each other. We headed back down, grocery shopped, and returned to the boat just in time for the sunset and another night of eating in and reading.
We are off tomorrow afternoon and over the next few days will be making our way to Martinique.
We hope you are all having a great week!
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Triathlon news and other updates.
Hello everyone.
We hope you are having a great weekend.
We have been on a dock to have a few repairs done and clean up the boat. (and also enjoying air conditioning.)
As you know today was our triathlon. (with a 6:30 AM start time) We headed to Fort James to the beach we would be swimming on. We learned that there was a rule against bare torsos in the entire race. I had come prepared in my bikini and Walid in his swim trunks. We threw on shirts and made the best of it! The race was delayed as a result of one of the boueys floating away. Walid and I stuck together on the swim-I got stung by two jellyfish and Walid by one. We then ran to our foldable bikes (which we had unfolded in prepartion) and took off. The hilly 12 mile ride was very tiring on our foldable bikes. Because my bike hadn't been used in a while the gear shifter on the handle wouldn't work for the first mile or so. Walid didn't realize that his seat hadn't been tightened all the way so slowly over the 12 miles his seat sunk. We were the only competitors without racing bikes so we were the last of the pack-which turned out to be quite the treat. We had a police escort for nearly the entire bike and run. Any intersection where there was heavy traffic the sirens would go on and the cars would part for us. This did seem to upset some of the locals-one older local woman at a fruit stand actually commented to us; "they did all that for you idiots?!" She looked quite perturbed. We finished the bike, refueled with water and took off on our run. Little to our knowledge the final run was all up hill! By the time we finished our legs were very tired! We crossed the finish line and were greeted by very excited kids who attached our metals and gave us gatorade, more water, and some energy bars. We stuck around enjoying the from the top of the hill and waited for the awards ceremony. Our bikes got us a lot of attention-we were the most popular people at the event! The awards ceremony began and before we knew it my name was being called. I won 1st place in the 20-39 year old age group. It isn't anything to brag about though because I was the only person in that age group. Afterwards we hopped onto our bikes and cruised down the hill back to our boat. (The triathlon wasn't a circular course so it conveniently ended right near where our boat is.) We had such a fun time and really loved seeing the sense of community that it brought out on the island. The kids seemed to really love cheering everyone on and participating by handing out water, food, etc. It was really nice.
We are having a quiet Sunday-hoping we can find a movie to buy for this evening. Tomorrow we are heading off to our next stop!
We hope you are having a great weekend.
We have been on a dock to have a few repairs done and clean up the boat. (and also enjoying air conditioning.)
As you know today was our triathlon. (with a 6:30 AM start time) We headed to Fort James to the beach we would be swimming on. We learned that there was a rule against bare torsos in the entire race. I had come prepared in my bikini and Walid in his swim trunks. We threw on shirts and made the best of it! The race was delayed as a result of one of the boueys floating away. Walid and I stuck together on the swim-I got stung by two jellyfish and Walid by one. We then ran to our foldable bikes (which we had unfolded in prepartion) and took off. The hilly 12 mile ride was very tiring on our foldable bikes. Because my bike hadn't been used in a while the gear shifter on the handle wouldn't work for the first mile or so. Walid didn't realize that his seat hadn't been tightened all the way so slowly over the 12 miles his seat sunk. We were the only competitors without racing bikes so we were the last of the pack-which turned out to be quite the treat. We had a police escort for nearly the entire bike and run. Any intersection where there was heavy traffic the sirens would go on and the cars would part for us. This did seem to upset some of the locals-one older local woman at a fruit stand actually commented to us; "they did all that for you idiots?!" She looked quite perturbed. We finished the bike, refueled with water and took off on our run. Little to our knowledge the final run was all up hill! By the time we finished our legs were very tired! We crossed the finish line and were greeted by very excited kids who attached our metals and gave us gatorade, more water, and some energy bars. We stuck around enjoying the from the top of the hill and waited for the awards ceremony. Our bikes got us a lot of attention-we were the most popular people at the event! The awards ceremony began and before we knew it my name was being called. I won 1st place in the 20-39 year old age group. It isn't anything to brag about though because I was the only person in that age group. Afterwards we hopped onto our bikes and cruised down the hill back to our boat. (The triathlon wasn't a circular course so it conveniently ended right near where our boat is.) We had such a fun time and really loved seeing the sense of community that it brought out on the island. The kids seemed to really love cheering everyone on and participating by handing out water, food, etc. It was really nice.
We are having a quiet Sunday-hoping we can find a movie to buy for this evening. Tomorrow we are heading off to our next stop!
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Sunday race day!
Hello everyone.
We hope that you are having a nice week. We have been busy hiking, swimming, running, and doing boat chores along with other real work.
Today we were having lunch on the beach when we over heard chatter about a triathlon. After asking a few more questions we learned that on 6:30 AM, Sunday there is a triathlon-sprint or olympic distance. After a few more questions we were signed up and ready to go! We opted for the sprint distance however because all we have in terms of bikes is our foldable bikes. Tomorrow Walid is pulling them out of the forward bathroom (where we have been storing them) and we are going to get them ready. Even 12 miles on the foldables is going to be pushing it for our poor butts. The swim is 750 meters-we will use our snorkeling goggles. The run is only 2 miles and we obviously have all the necessary attire and accessories for that. We are really excited and are very much looking forward to the event. We had been hoping to find more fun events like this along the way. In NYC we loved the Central Park events, in fact, we were the champions of our age group in the couples biathlon!! Walid has done a triatholon before but this will be my first. I have done 2 biathlons-1 in Central Park with my Dad and Walid and the other upstate with just my Dad. (Upstate NY I set the course record for my age group! I don't usually tell anyone that it was the first year the race was held and that I was the only person in my age group participating.)
Here is Sundays race link for anyone who is interested. http://www.antiguanice.com/events/abta_triathlon/2008/triathlon_2008.htm
Tonight we are having tacos on the boat with home made salsa because we can't seem to find any premade anywhere. We had hoped our avocados would be ripe enough to make guacamole but its not looking promising.
Tomorrow we are heading to a dock so we can have a few repairs done. We are looking forward to that too because the marina has a gym, yoga studio, spa, and turkish bath!
We are off to town now to run a few last minute errands before everything shuts down for the evening. (and hopefully find sour cream!!)
Have a great evening. We miss you all.
We hope that you are having a nice week. We have been busy hiking, swimming, running, and doing boat chores along with other real work.
Today we were having lunch on the beach when we over heard chatter about a triathlon. After asking a few more questions we learned that on 6:30 AM, Sunday there is a triathlon-sprint or olympic distance. After a few more questions we were signed up and ready to go! We opted for the sprint distance however because all we have in terms of bikes is our foldable bikes. Tomorrow Walid is pulling them out of the forward bathroom (where we have been storing them) and we are going to get them ready. Even 12 miles on the foldables is going to be pushing it for our poor butts. The swim is 750 meters-we will use our snorkeling goggles. The run is only 2 miles and we obviously have all the necessary attire and accessories for that. We are really excited and are very much looking forward to the event. We had been hoping to find more fun events like this along the way. In NYC we loved the Central Park events, in fact, we were the champions of our age group in the couples biathlon!! Walid has done a triatholon before but this will be my first. I have done 2 biathlons-1 in Central Park with my Dad and Walid and the other upstate with just my Dad. (Upstate NY I set the course record for my age group! I don't usually tell anyone that it was the first year the race was held and that I was the only person in my age group participating.)
Here is Sundays race link for anyone who is interested. http://www.antiguanice.com/events/abta_triathlon/2008/triathlon_2008.htm
Tonight we are having tacos on the boat with home made salsa because we can't seem to find any premade anywhere. We had hoped our avocados would be ripe enough to make guacamole but its not looking promising.
Tomorrow we are heading to a dock so we can have a few repairs done. We are looking forward to that too because the marina has a gym, yoga studio, spa, and turkish bath!
We are off to town now to run a few last minute errands before everything shuts down for the evening. (and hopefully find sour cream!!)
Have a great evening. We miss you all.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Our past few days...
Hello Everyone!
We hope you had a great weekend. We have been out of touch the past few days due to the fact that we haven't been able to find any wireless networks or internet cafes.
After leaving St. Barthes we headed to Saba in hopes of finding some nice hiking. Unfortunatly, we found the anchorage to be rough and the walk to Bottom (the main village) was long on steep, narrow roads. Any hiking possibilites would begin in Bottom. We did get a 3 hour walk in to and from Bottom our first afternoon. That evening we had a BBQ on the boat and decided to head on to our next stop in the morning. After a very rough night at anchor we headed to St. Eustacia hoping for better hiking! We anchored in time to have lunch in town. After lunch we were adopted by a local dog. He followed us as we checked out the fort, and made out way to the trail we wanted to hike. On our way we noticed the other island dogs were very aggressive but they were all fenced or chained. We arrived to trail and there was the biggest dog of all not chained. (A german shepard/junk yard dog mix) He lunged out of the bushes-luckily the dog who adopted us began barking and we had enough time to back away. We abandoned our hiking plans for the day. Feeling discouraged we moved on the St. Kitts to arrive in time for dinner. We had a quiet dinner in a garden restaurant in St. Kitts and moved on to Nevis hoping to spend a night in the hotel though our american express points that we have been saving for something special. We were hoping for the 4 seasons but upon arrival we learned it was closed until April after Hurricane Omar damage. We spent the afternoon in Nevis grocery shopping, cleaning up the boat, and running on the beach. We had a BBQ Friday night and over our mahi mahi, cous cous, and brocolli brocolli we decided to head to Antigua the next morning. After a full day of sailing we arrived in St. Johns looking forward to going out to eat. We made the mistake of going to St. Johns because they are more of a commerical/cruise ship port. They didn't even have a dinghy dock for us! We ended up having dinner on the boat and heading to English Harbour in morning. We made it to English Harbour around 11 AM and are very happy we did. It is a charming harbour with sea turtles, a beach, and a nature walk-there is even a wifi network that we can pick up from the boat. It is a nice change from having to lug our laptops onto the dinghy than walking to the nearest internet cafe. We are going to stay here a few days, work on the boat, and enjoy civilization for a little while. Stay tuned for pictures of the past few days!
We hope you have a great week!
We hope you had a great weekend. We have been out of touch the past few days due to the fact that we haven't been able to find any wireless networks or internet cafes.
After leaving St. Barthes we headed to Saba in hopes of finding some nice hiking. Unfortunatly, we found the anchorage to be rough and the walk to Bottom (the main village) was long on steep, narrow roads. Any hiking possibilites would begin in Bottom. We did get a 3 hour walk in to and from Bottom our first afternoon. That evening we had a BBQ on the boat and decided to head on to our next stop in the morning. After a very rough night at anchor we headed to St. Eustacia hoping for better hiking! We anchored in time to have lunch in town. After lunch we were adopted by a local dog. He followed us as we checked out the fort, and made out way to the trail we wanted to hike. On our way we noticed the other island dogs were very aggressive but they were all fenced or chained. We arrived to trail and there was the biggest dog of all not chained. (A german shepard/junk yard dog mix) He lunged out of the bushes-luckily the dog who adopted us began barking and we had enough time to back away. We abandoned our hiking plans for the day. Feeling discouraged we moved on the St. Kitts to arrive in time for dinner. We had a quiet dinner in a garden restaurant in St. Kitts and moved on to Nevis hoping to spend a night in the hotel though our american express points that we have been saving for something special. We were hoping for the 4 seasons but upon arrival we learned it was closed until April after Hurricane Omar damage. We spent the afternoon in Nevis grocery shopping, cleaning up the boat, and running on the beach. We had a BBQ Friday night and over our mahi mahi, cous cous, and brocolli brocolli we decided to head to Antigua the next morning. After a full day of sailing we arrived in St. Johns looking forward to going out to eat. We made the mistake of going to St. Johns because they are more of a commerical/cruise ship port. They didn't even have a dinghy dock for us! We ended up having dinner on the boat and heading to English Harbour in morning. We made it to English Harbour around 11 AM and are very happy we did. It is a charming harbour with sea turtles, a beach, and a nature walk-there is even a wifi network that we can pick up from the boat. It is a nice change from having to lug our laptops onto the dinghy than walking to the nearest internet cafe. We are going to stay here a few days, work on the boat, and enjoy civilization for a little while. Stay tuned for pictures of the past few days!
We hope you have a great week!
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Je t'aime
We have very much enjoyed St. Barth. The number one thing about our visit here is the people. We have run into New Yorkers, crazy locals, strange topless young women doing water aerobics to show off their boobs, and one 50+ woman who has had every single kind of plastic surgery and has lips to puffed that the only thing she can do with them is smoke. We watched her for three days at Eden Rock just trying to figure out if she is actually human!!!!
Colleen figured out a great secret of life... how to be sure to get some free drinks!!! She has been working very hard on her French which has been coming along well. She can now order, as directions, find the bathroom and tell me to jump off the boat and drown. Soooo... we were having lunch at Eden Rock and we had a very nice, attractive young waiter who clearly had an eye for the young women, including Colleen. He brought us a complimentary Hibuscus rum shot after lunch which we very much enjoyed. When he took them away Colleen pointed at him and declared in a loud voice so all could hear, je t'aime!!!!!! (I love you!!!) he responded 'Je t'aime aussi maddam!!!!! He then blushed, bowed and ran off. I told Colleen what had happened and she turned into a very attractive tomato. Moments later he returned with a whole bottle of this special rum, winked at Colleen, bowed and said it was on him. Now every bartender on the island thinks that my wife loves them.
Colleen figured out a great secret of life... how to be sure to get some free drinks!!! She has been working very hard on her French which has been coming along well. She can now order, as directions, find the bathroom and tell me to jump off the boat and drown. Soooo... we were having lunch at Eden Rock and we had a very nice, attractive young waiter who clearly had an eye for the young women, including Colleen. He brought us a complimentary Hibuscus rum shot after lunch which we very much enjoyed. When he took them away Colleen pointed at him and declared in a loud voice so all could hear, je t'aime!!!!!! (I love you!!!) he responded 'Je t'aime aussi maddam!!!!! He then blushed, bowed and ran off. I told Colleen what had happened and she turned into a very attractive tomato. Moments later he returned with a whole bottle of this special rum, winked at Colleen, bowed and said it was on him. Now every bartender on the island thinks that my wife loves them.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Happy Monday!
Hello Everyone!
We hope you have a great after Thanksgiving week.
We have spent most of this morning hard at work at an internet cafe in St. Barthes. I finished most of my (online) Christmas shopping and as you can see below posted some pictures onto our blog.
The conditions today aren't so comfortable for sailing so we are going to take off tomorrow instead of today as we had originally planned.
We spent Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at the beach enjoying the holiday crowd. We rented an ATV which was the most uncomfortable ride ever! We zipped around the island though for the past 3 days and had a lot of fun.
Today we will grocery shop for the week and head off tomorrow. We haven't decided exactly where we are headed off to next but will update soon.
Happy December 1st!
We hope you have a great after Thanksgiving week.
We have spent most of this morning hard at work at an internet cafe in St. Barthes. I finished most of my (online) Christmas shopping and as you can see below posted some pictures onto our blog.
The conditions today aren't so comfortable for sailing so we are going to take off tomorrow instead of today as we had originally planned.
We spent Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at the beach enjoying the holiday crowd. We rented an ATV which was the most uncomfortable ride ever! We zipped around the island though for the past 3 days and had a lot of fun.
Today we will grocery shop for the week and head off tomorrow. We haven't decided exactly where we are headed off to next but will update soon.
Happy December 1st!
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