Carriacou Carnival: Since Ash Wednesday came early this year, February 6th, Carnival was February 3rd, 4th and 5^th. We saw some of the bands and stilt walkers when we went to town to pick up propane tanks from the Shell station.

Happy Birthday, Roland: It may be another year, but Roland always says it beats the alternatives! His present this year was a CD of Caribbean music. Kathleen says he doesn’t need more t-shirts, at least not for a while.

Grenada Independence Day: Denise, the enterprising young owner of the new beachfront produce stand in Harvey Vale, organized the Independence Day Celebration and Food Exhibition with a Buffet Dinner at the Bayside Restaurant and Bar across the street from her stand. Roland announced the event along with the morning weather reports for several days. The event was so well attended by locals and cruisers alike that food ran out quickly. Apparently Denise and the cook had not anticipated such a huge turnout, about 40-45 people.

Valentine’s Day: This time when Denise planned dinner, her friend (the owner and cook at the Bayside) printed tickets. There were about the same number of diners who were given a choice of two of the following: pork, chicken, lambi, lobster and fish. This was served along with rice, salad, cole slaw and vegetables. Callaloo soup and garlic bread sticks were served as a starter and vanilla ice cream was the dessert. Denise distributed envelopes to each couple which were to be opened later. When it was time for the fun, one member of the couple had to stand up and read the instructions on the enclosed card. In our case, Kathleen stood up to introduce her love and tell how long they had been loving each other. It was cute and silly, and Denise was obviously getting much pleasure from her games as she giggled and laughed the whole time. It was a fun evening for all, and we were surprised that it was 10 o’clock as we headed back home.

Conversational Spanish Class: Bob on S/V Windshadow led these informal get-togethers to practice our rusty Spanish. There were usually 4-6 people there, and we switched partners every twenty minutes for an hour and a half. We learned some new words and stumbled through conversations half in Spanish and half in English.

Motor Mounts: Over the course of a couple of weeks Roland replaced the four mounts and worked on the alignment of the whole thing. Up and down correction was easy but he found the horizontal movement very difficult and time consuming. He also put in a new flexible coupling, which goes between the transmission and propeller shaft.

Harvey Vale School Athletic Day: On a Sunday afternoon the children and teachers from the school had a fun day at the cricket/soccer field across from Lucky’s. Several of the kids from the sailing club were entered in the races, and finished very well with first, second and third places. Three-legged and sack races rounded out the entertainment. Food and drinks were for sale as well, with Miss Lambert, the principal, in charge of the fried chicken wings.

Movin’ About: On Monday, the 18^th, Roland announced that it would be his last day giving the weather, and anyone else was welcome to carry on. That day we stowed stuff and cleaned up the boat. Then we relaxed for the rest of the day. The following morning we left Tyrrel Bay for Sandy Island, just a few miles away around Jack Iron Point and opposite Paradise Beach. The wind and seas were still up a bit, but we weren’t concerned as we weren’t going far. Then we had a light squall which cut visibility some. Soon we heard a distress call from S/V Island Girl who is normally moored in Tyrrel Bay. They were on their way back from Union Island, and had lost their steering. Roland told them we would stand by while Kelly from TBYH contacted George from Arawak Divers and arranged for them to come out with a tow boat. George safely towed them back to their mooring with the single engine outboard dive boat. That’s what cruisers and seamen do for each other!

Sandy Island: Most people would think this is more like a sand bar than an island, but it’s a picturesque spot with some "private" pools a few feet deep that you wouldn’t expect to see. Actually, you can’t see them unless you walk to the top of the sand dunes. The coral builds up on the north side where the waves crash, allowing some water into pools. One has a nice, mostly sand bottom, warm water, and a little beach that was a pleasant surprise. There’s supposed to be nice snorkeling, but the weather was still a little rough. We opted to enjoy the "pool" instead. Most cruiser spend an afternoon here, especially the charter people. We stayed for two days and nights.

Total Eclipse of the Moon: Wednesday, the 20^th, brought the lunar eclipse which was visible throughout the Caribbean. We’re not sure if anyone up north saw it. Here it began about 9:45. Once it was total at 11 p.m., we hit the sack. This was much later than the usual cruisers’ bedtime.

Visit to Petite Martinique: This small island to the northeast of Carriacou is the northernmost part of the country of Grenada, but, of course, is part of the Grenadines as is Carriacou. About half a mile on the north end of PM is PSV, Petit Saint Vincent. PSV is also part of the Grenadines, but belongs to the country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Mark and Debbie on Sea Cycle called us from PSV where they were anchored with S/V Gladys, but were leaving shortly for Mayreau. They just wanted to say hi since they spotted us across the water. This gave us chance to wish Mark a happy birthday.

The sail there was not particularly comfortable, and took twice as long as it normally should. We had decided to go there to fill our diesel cans as we had been told that the fuel is cheaper there for some reason. Couldn’t prove it by us. The anchorage was extremely rough, and we got soaked going to the dinghy dock in our dinghy to visit the town. There is a quaint sign at the end of the pier pointing the way to the banks, post office, markets and restaurants. The St. Thomas Aquinas Parochial Grammar School is at the intersection of the main road and the beach. The shutters and walls have been decorated with historical facts about the island. We didn’t take the camera as we were afraid everything would get soaked even in plastic bags. Otherwise we would have some pictures of the island. When Roland went back the next morning for the fuel, Kathleen opted to stay home. After lunch we headed back to Hillsborough Bay, less than two hours this time.

Getting Ready to Check Out: As we write this it is Sunday, the 25^th, and our visas expire on Tuesday. Last week we had the pleasure of hunting for a notary public for Roland. In all the Caribbean only attorneys are notaries, and on Carriacou the available lawyers are not necessarily "on-island" every day. We did find one whose secretary told us was home "resting" after returning to the island, and he agreed to meet us at his office at 4:15. As it was only 2:15 we had a couple of hours to "lime". By the time we got the paper notarized, the post office was closed. Long sigh! Tomorrow morning we will go ashore, visit the post office, and perhaps check out so we can go to Union Island in the afternoon.