Our apologies for not replying to anyone who may have been trying to contact us. We have not had wifi since Aruba and our mobile phones do not work in the San Blas. There are one or two telephone boxes, but you cannot call Europe.
As it turned out, Jeremy was not really well enough to travel and should have seen a doctor. There was no return of the fever, thank goodness, but the urinary infection gave him “urgency” and “frequency”! He chose to prescribe himself a course of antibiotics, which had previously been for me and expired in 2007. The sea shows no mercy and even though we checked the weather before we left and saw no indication of strong winds or storms, we had both, which lasted one whole day and night. We had more water in the cockpit than we did crossing to the west of the Bay of Biscay. The day began flat calm with us motoring. We rejoiced when the wind turned north, a direction last encountered in Madeira, and we had full sails up on a beam reach, our fastest point of sail. A few hours later, we had two reefs in the main and if you stepped out of the cabin to check the instruments, you were wet through in seconds. As we approached Panama, we had to motor again in light winds.
We used our “new” electronic charts to steer between the reefs to the island of Porvenir. We tried to check in with Immigration but the officer was having a beer in the “hotel” or “restaurant” and managed to avoid us. Porvenir has an airstrip and small planes come in to land lower than the height of the mast so you have to be careful where you anchor. It was bizarre to be strolling across the airstrip at our leisure. The next day we met the Immigration Officer in his office. His desk was very old, several castors were missing from his chair and ants were crawling over his paperwork. We paid $20 and went a few strides to the Port Captain’s office for a cruising permit. He had brand new office furniture with packaging still wrapped around the chair legs. We were soon relieved of a further $69.
The next day we went to Nesta’s island, Nalunega. He showed us round his massive hut, which had a dirt floor, cane walls and a thatched roof. There were beds with mattresses at each end of the hut, but there was also a hammock. All the family’s clothes were hanging in the rafters. Outside there was a cooking hut and a small enclosure for his pig and two piglets. His “ulu” or dugout canoe was pulled up on his beach. His wife and all the island women wore traditional blouses embroidered with “molas”, which they spend hours cutting and sewing to sell to visiting tourists. Every hut we passed would bring out a woman with molas or jewellery to sell. In contrast, Nesta and the men wore western style shorts and t-shirts. He had sunglasses and a mobile phone but no television. A water pipe had just been connected to the village. When it didn’t work, water had to be fetched from rivers by sailing to the mainland in ulus or in one of the larger wooden boats powered by Yamaha outboards.
Unlike many other islands in the San Blas, Nalunega had a store and a visiting Colombian fruit boat, so we were able to buy bread and some fruit and veg. Nesta spoke English and showed us around for an hour. We bought him a beer and bought his daughter (one of 5) a drink and paid him the $5 he asked for as we left.
It is quite difficult navigating in these islands. We were suspecting our charts were not accurate and finding our cruising guide hard to follow, when we ran aground the next day. We now know Sal Darago floats when the depth sounder says 0.8m but not when it reads 0.7m. I thought we were well and truly stuck but Jeremy managed to get us off the reef in reverse. We felt a bit better when we met up with Frans and Lucia the next day and learned that they had been aground as well and a local fishing boat had helped to pull them off. We have become better at eyeball navigation but you still have your heart in your mouth when you cross a reef to get into a lagoon to anchor.
We have had some peaceful days and nights anchored off uninhabited islands but sooner or later an ulu arrives with molas to sell. One family of 7 in an ulu, including a baby being breast fed, were just about out of petrol when they reached us. We gave them some of ours otherwise they would have faced a long paddle to their distant island. We have been able to buy fruit and veg from a boat and half a chicken! We bought two fish and two coconuts from a family on an island and we’ve made our own bread three times. Today, we were moved on as we had anchored in the path of courtesy boats from a nearby cruise ship! The winds were gusting to 27 knots but we had to move, so we’re now anchored off Acuadup in a very sheltered place and it’s started to rain, at last. We have not had rain since we were in Bonaire.
As we’re in Spanish speaking territory, adios amigos, until next time.
Thursday, 25 March 2010
Thursday, 4 March 2010
Wednesday, 3 March 2010
End of Curacao then Aruba
Kathy decided to air the bedding one windy day. The quilt remained on the line, but the quilt cover went flying, which she discovered later. We snorkelled and Jeremy dived. After an hour the quilt was discovered by Jeremy in 7.2 metres. Our friends, Frans and Lucia on “Dalwhinnie” left for Cartegena. We walked to the deserted, but impessive fever hospital, the fort; went by bus to the Vergdenhill supermarket and nearby laundrette (to wash the salty quilt cover); and most nights fought a battle with increasingly swift footed cockroaches (Where the H do they live?).
On St Valentine’s Day we arranged to pick up a special bus to take us to the CARNIVAL. We waited at 1050. We continued to wait until 1130. We decided we would go with the 1200 special bus. We waited until 1215. The organiser (once removed… don’t ask) phoned the bus man and he said he would come straight away. By 1300 we were milling with the friendly, dense crowds along the Carnival route. The magnificent Carnival came through. It was intensely colourful, joyous and at times ear splittingly deafening – the sort of sound that gives you a pain in the chest. After an hour it ground to a halt and, as Kathy and I had to catch the bus back at 1600, we walked towards the tail end of the procession. We did not get anywhere near it after 15 mins so turned back for the bus which was only 25 mins late.
On Tuesday 16 February(Happy Birthday DoDo), we caught the bus to Willemstad to clear Customs, Immigration and to obtain a pass to anchor the night in Santa Cruz Bay, making the passage to Aruba a day’s sail. All went well. We popped into St Martha Lagoon, where we had previously received excellent WiFi reception, but the holiday makers had left their rented accommodation and WiFi was off the menu. At Santa Cruz, in 25 to 30 knots of wind we went ashore twice to get 37 gallons of water free from the shower there! On our crossing, the next morning, we were joined by a crowd of dolphins all keen to show off under Sal Darago’s bow wave. After rocking and rolling for 11 hours we anchored in the delightful St Nicholas Bay. This was slightly illegal as you are always supposed to clear Customs and Immigration, before anchoring. Our excuse was that we did not want to arrive in Oranjestad in the dark. We became a little nervous when the Coastguard Helicopter flew over us; however, nothing was ever said. At one end of the bay was the enormous Valero oil refinery, but it was downwind and very quiet – perhaps not in use any more.
The following morning in strong winds from behind, we quickly sailed on genoa only to Oranjestad. The Harbour Authority told us to go back to Barcadera, where all yachts now clear Customs etc. Turning round and returning the two and a half miles was hard work, reminiscent of crossing to the Isle of Man. All cleared, we went to the Oranjestad anchorage which is directly under the flight path for the international airport. Aren’t planes noisy when they land and take off?
Aruba is a holiday island. The planes come in on Friday, Saturday and Sunday every few minutes. Fortunately most of these Adventure seeking beings go to The High Rise resort, several miles north of Oranjestad. The cruise liners, three on average per day, come to Oranjestad. It really does not seem to rain on Aruba and the dust and sand get everywhere. We have tried to swim every day, but the two foot waves in the anchorage make it less than peasant. Dinghy rides ashore are wet. Everyone we have spoken to has been very pleasant indeed. We are allowed to use the local Dive Shop jetty for free and they sell us their water at a modest price. Unfortunately, Jeremy had to have a tooth removed almost as soon as we arrived. Later he picked up something akin to flu and this interfered with the two days on which we hired a car to tour the island. There are surprisingly few places of interest on the island and finding them is difficult for two reasons. First they are not signposted. Second the beautiful, tarmac road suddenly changes into a dirt track version of the test-track at MIRA which is designed to shake cars to pieces (Please email Ritchie for further explanation). We plan to leave Aruba on Friday 5 March, if Jeremy is well enough. Our next anchorage will be in another kind of “Paradise” (hopefully no aeroplanes), 579 miles away in the San Blas Islands of Panama. If we get decent WiFi, we hope to post some photos!
On St Valentine’s Day we arranged to pick up a special bus to take us to the CARNIVAL. We waited at 1050. We continued to wait until 1130. We decided we would go with the 1200 special bus. We waited until 1215. The organiser (once removed… don’t ask) phoned the bus man and he said he would come straight away. By 1300 we were milling with the friendly, dense crowds along the Carnival route. The magnificent Carnival came through. It was intensely colourful, joyous and at times ear splittingly deafening – the sort of sound that gives you a pain in the chest. After an hour it ground to a halt and, as Kathy and I had to catch the bus back at 1600, we walked towards the tail end of the procession. We did not get anywhere near it after 15 mins so turned back for the bus which was only 25 mins late.
On Tuesday 16 February(Happy Birthday DoDo), we caught the bus to Willemstad to clear Customs, Immigration and to obtain a pass to anchor the night in Santa Cruz Bay, making the passage to Aruba a day’s sail. All went well. We popped into St Martha Lagoon, where we had previously received excellent WiFi reception, but the holiday makers had left their rented accommodation and WiFi was off the menu. At Santa Cruz, in 25 to 30 knots of wind we went ashore twice to get 37 gallons of water free from the shower there! On our crossing, the next morning, we were joined by a crowd of dolphins all keen to show off under Sal Darago’s bow wave. After rocking and rolling for 11 hours we anchored in the delightful St Nicholas Bay. This was slightly illegal as you are always supposed to clear Customs and Immigration, before anchoring. Our excuse was that we did not want to arrive in Oranjestad in the dark. We became a little nervous when the Coastguard Helicopter flew over us; however, nothing was ever said. At one end of the bay was the enormous Valero oil refinery, but it was downwind and very quiet – perhaps not in use any more.
The following morning in strong winds from behind, we quickly sailed on genoa only to Oranjestad. The Harbour Authority told us to go back to Barcadera, where all yachts now clear Customs etc. Turning round and returning the two and a half miles was hard work, reminiscent of crossing to the Isle of Man. All cleared, we went to the Oranjestad anchorage which is directly under the flight path for the international airport. Aren’t planes noisy when they land and take off?
Aruba is a holiday island. The planes come in on Friday, Saturday and Sunday every few minutes. Fortunately most of these Adventure seeking beings go to The High Rise resort, several miles north of Oranjestad. The cruise liners, three on average per day, come to Oranjestad. It really does not seem to rain on Aruba and the dust and sand get everywhere. We have tried to swim every day, but the two foot waves in the anchorage make it less than peasant. Dinghy rides ashore are wet. Everyone we have spoken to has been very pleasant indeed. We are allowed to use the local Dive Shop jetty for free and they sell us their water at a modest price. Unfortunately, Jeremy had to have a tooth removed almost as soon as we arrived. Later he picked up something akin to flu and this interfered with the two days on which we hired a car to tour the island. There are surprisingly few places of interest on the island and finding them is difficult for two reasons. First they are not signposted. Second the beautiful, tarmac road suddenly changes into a dirt track version of the test-track at MIRA which is designed to shake cars to pieces (Please email Ritchie for further explanation). We plan to leave Aruba on Friday 5 March, if Jeremy is well enough. Our next anchorage will be in another kind of “Paradise” (hopefully no aeroplanes), 579 miles away in the San Blas Islands of Panama. If we get decent WiFi, we hope to post some photos!
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