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July, 2008 - There’s only one way to keep track of things - writing more often. It’s great to see messages in our guest book, too. Just a reminder that we can’t see your e-mail address to respond so if you would like to hear from us personally, please write to roland693@yahoo.com.
Get More Exercise: We know we need to get out and walk more. It’s just a matter of getting ashore by 6:30 a.m. so we can walk in the cooler morning heat. Boy, that’s a tough one. So instead we took our exercise walking around town, the mall, and back to the anchorage one day. It amounted to probably four to five miles in all over a period of six hours.
50 Centimos Bus Rides(16 cents): One advantage of being over sixty here is the bus fare so we decided to try it. We had been advised to pay the driver when getting off the bus because if the bus breaks down, as they frequently do, you get off without paying and get aboard the next one. We had taken a taxi downtown first to get some B’s, and after walking around for a while, we hopped on a bus to the big mall. That worked out okay, and we thought we had the right bus to get home, but ended up back downtown. The routes are written on the windshield and side windows with white shoe polish, guess it’s waterproof. Next time we’ll try getting a bus on Avenida Bolivar to head to the mall. That way we’ll be able to tell what’s on the windshield so we get the correct bus back. Always an adventure
“She Who Dies with the Most Fabric Wins”: Kathleen saw this bumper sticker many years ago, and tried to live by that rule when she was a land dweller. It’s kind of hard to play the game onboard. However, there is a fabric store here in Porlamar that puts to shame any in the U.S. and Trinidad. Two floors of HUNDREDS of bolts of fabric Kathleen may just have to get some percale to make new sheets and pillow cases. It is curious, though, that you have to go to a different store to buy thread, etc.
Happy Fourth of July: The day started off routinely enough with a shopping trip to the Sigo market on the free bus from Marina Juan’s place. We had stopped to say hello to Bill and Soon on S/V Gaia with whom we had talked before in Grenada, but had not met in person. Soon took us up on a ride to shore to go to the market, too. Kathleen signed up for the Sigo Club Card, just like back home - one large card and two small ones for the key chains. After shopping and getting more food prices, Kathleen visited with Soon and Sue from S/V Jus’ Now, and among the three of them they cooked up a little pot luck to take to the beach that evening where there would be a beach party at dusk. We all took our own meat to grill, and shared three great salads prepared by the ladies. The entertainment was provided by several guitar players having a jam session around the bonfire. That was the first time in many years that we had sat on a beach with a fire like that.
Not So Happy Fourth of July: Whenever we leave the boat, even for a short period of time, we close and lock EVERY hatch for safety’s sake and in case it rains while we’re gone. However, when we returned to the boat at 9:15 p.m., the first thing we noticed was that the two large fenders on either side of the boarding ladder were gone. Further inspection showed that a third fender was missing from the port side of the deck as was a 30 foot length of dock line. On the aft deck 200 feet of nylon anchor line had been cut off the chain attached to the anchor. All items were on the port side of the boat. One of the wind scoops in front of the mast was laying on the deck. And worst of all our Plastimo life raft was gone. All of our recently filled diesel and gasoline cans were still securely tied down, and no one had tried to break into the cabin. It did not appear that anyone had gone into the cockpit where we leave shoes, hats, cushions, clothesline and clothes pins. After making a list of missing items and details (such as lines being cut with a rusty blade), we tried to get to sleep.
The Day After: On the Saturday morning cruisers’ net on the VHF radio we reported the theft, and also learned of the theft of two fenders off another sailboat. The two thieves in a local pinero were frightened off by an alert neighbor who shone a light on them. Unfortunately for us, there were no other boats on our port side, and all our nearby neighbors were also at the beach. Alex, another cruiser who had been robbed in December, offered to take us to the police station to talk to the same detective who had taken his case. A report was written, and we were told that an officer would come out the boat to look . We waited for him on shore for almost two hours, got hot and tired and returned to the boat for a late lunch. Skipping ahead to Tuesday - Roland printed out a report in English and Spanish to take to the Port Captain. While there, another man who is the Marine Policeman also made a copy of the original police report. That was as much as we could get accomplished with the local police.
Some Results: On the afternoon of the 9th we received a radio call requesting that we go in to Marina Juan as the detective (actually three detectives, one male, one female) was there and wanted to talk to us again. Juan acted as interpreter, but spoke so fast in Spanish that Kathleen couldn’t even make out more than a few words. The detective wanted us to know that the marine police boat would be moving around the anchorage, and that an effort was being made to ensure the safety of the cruisers in the Porlamar anchorage. This is supposed to be one of only two anchorages in Margarita that are deemed safe for cruisers. Unfortunately, out of all the good people here there will always be a few who spoil it. And as in Trinidad, the crimes of the local people against each other far outnumber those against visitors.
Another Boarding in Porlamar: Seems like we’ve been keeping Melodye (Caribbean Safety and Security Net administrator) busy this last week. We don’t want anyone to think that these things happen all the time or even on a regular basis. It seems that there are “rashes” that come and go, mostly go. A few days after our problem there was a boarding of a catamaran late in the evening by a man who apparently swam out to the boat. He took only cash, but had forced the lone crew member to tell him where it was. Two problems there: she had gone inside and neglected to close and lock the door to the saloon, and the owners opted not to make a police report. The marine police boat did patrol the anchorage several nights during that week, but we haven’t seen it now for over a week.
Tragedy in Porlamar: Midday on the 19th of July a Dutch couple had just finished provisioning for a trip to Puerta La Cruz, and were returning to their boat when their dinghy was hit by a young man speeding into the anchorage in a pinero. The lady, Fredricka, was thrown into the water, but the man, Peter, was hit before being thrown overboard. He died later that afternoon during brain surgery. The couples’s children arrived from Holland a couple of days later, and spent almost every day working with the police and the Dutch Consulate. On the 24th a dinghy caravan was organized to show our respect for and sympathy towards the man and his family. Even though many of us had never met these cruisers more than 30 dinghies carrying about fifty people left the dock at Marina Juan’s to take a slow pass out to and around S/V Stargazer where Fredricka and her son and daughter stood on the bow acknowledging each dingy as it passed. Later that afternoon we were all invited to Juan’s to meet the family where we paid our respects. It was gratifying for us that almost half the boats here were represented. Cruisers stick together.
Life is a Risk: We know the risks we take to live this lifestyle, and this incident is not much different than being hit by a speeding car while walking down the street. It shouldn’t have happened. We are all vigilant when we travel to shore or from boat to boat except that we are even more so now. What enraged most of the cruisers was that the following day, a national holiday here (National Children’s Day), we were all subjected to young men displaying their machismo by speeding through the anchorage, playing “chicken” with each other, coming dangerously close to the sailboats and dinghies, and in some instances sending up enough of a wake to swamp rear cockpits and dinghies tied to the boats. We want to stress that this is not the norm here or anywhere else we have dropped the hook, but occasionally it does happen.
On to Happier Subjects: Sunday afternoon dominoes are always fun. One Sunday after the game we joined friends aboard S/V Windancer, Lenny and Sue’s home, for great company and food. There is a happy hour aboard a boat about once a week when the ladies (usually) make some real goodies to share. No need for supper afterward.
Wash Daze: The price of laundry has gone up a little, but Kathleen is overjoyed not to have to wash all those tee shirts, sheets and towels. If you don’t want something to go into the dryer, you don’t send it ashore, so Kathleen still washes a few things by hand. One of the reasons for using the laundry service is that the humidity is so high here in the summer that it takes forever to line dry most items, especially when one of those tropical waves comes through. The wave may not bring clouds or squalls, but it’s not good drying weather.
Propane, Diesel and Gasoline: Gee, all that cooking and baking finally emptied the main propane tank. We can always tell when the gas is getting low because we have to use a Bic long barreled lighter to get a flame. One twenty pound tank lasts about five months, and when that goes, Roland connects the spare tank until the other is refilled. Up in Carriacou we had to take the tank to the Shell station where the owner then sends it to Grenada on the M/V Amelia. That usually takes several days and costs 45EC$ ($17.00US). Here in Venezuela it gets done the same day we take the tank to Marina Juan’s, and costs 55B’s ($18.00US). Not much difference at the current black market exchange rate, but Tulio, who takes care of the propane gave us a break because of the robbery, and charged us only 45B’s. Currently diesel is 2B’s for four liters, or almost $0.67 US per gallon. Gasoline costs a little more, 20B’s for 30 liters or approximately $0.90 US per gallon. Sorry to make you all feel jealous. We’re paying almost double what we did last year (only due to the poor strength of the US Dollar), and the Venezuelans get it practically for free. The men at the fuel dock on the other side of the bay are supposed to sell it to foreigners at three times the price we paid, but occasionally they will sell it at the same price as the Diesel Man if the Coast Guard isn’t there to see the transaction. The alternative is to pay a taxi driver to take you and your jugs to the gas station but that cost 10B’s each way so it is really very little savings.
Whatever Do We Do All Day : It’s a standing joke among the cruisers that everyone back home, land dwellers in other words, always ask “What do you do all day?”. Well, yeah, we do relax a lot and read a lot of books, but the temperature reaches 90 degrees almost every day, and without A/C, who wants to do anything We had a couple of days in a row with unplanned WORK. The galley sink had not drained easily for a long time so last year we bought a small plunger here in Porlamar. After Roland finished the dishes one morning, he had to clear the sink. Well, it was a good thing that the door to the locker under the sink was left open when he got out the plunger or we might not have known for several days that the lower part of the drain pipe had rusted through. You see, when he gave that plunger a real push, the rust gave way and water sprayed out on his legs. Out came all the plumbing supplies, the locker was emptied, extra hose was dug out of the sail locker in the V-berth, and the WORK commenced. So with a lunch break in the middle, it only took about three hours to get the job done and put everything away.
The day after the sink job the filter on the water maker decided that it wanted to be changed. That at least is a pretty straight forward task. Once the water maker let out a sigh of relief at having a nice clean filter, it decided to do its job of once again sending water to the water tanks.
Then there’s the planned work. On a very calm morning, Kathleen hauled Roland up the mast with all his tools to take a look at the anemometer to find out why it stopped working on our way to Margarita. He “played” with it for a bit while Kathleen kept an eye on the display in the cockpit. We’ll just have to wait and see how it works next time we go sailing. The steaming light on the front of the mask also needed work after having halyards tangled around it, but it also needed a new bulb. Since we hadn’t planned ahead on that one, Roland was lowered, and raised a second time. At least that one wasn’t as high as the top of the mast, only to the spreaders, and the pineros weren’t speeding by throwing wakes that would send the boat rocking back and forth like the pendulum of a grandfather clock. There was, however, a cruiser who came roaring up behind us in a go-fast dinghy, and Roland started yelling at him to slow down before he sent us rocking. In genuine surprise the fellow looked up, and said, “Oh, I didn’t see you up there ”. Of course not, he was too busy racing around the boats to pay attention to anything else.
There’s also our little dinghy that desires constant attention. It started leaking profusely along the bottom, and wanted to be pulled up on deck for a visit to the dinghy doctor. One visit wasn’t enough, follow up visits were required, but finally all the problems were fixed, and our feet are once more dry as we ride in the dink. Knock on wood, the outboard has been behaving nicely so we stopped threatening to throw it overboard on passage. Maybe the threats were what convinced it to behave.
Porlamar to the Golfo de Cariaco: We left Porlamar on Monday morning, July 28th, and had a downwind sail to the island of Cubagua, arriving mid-afternoon. After relaxing and eating an early supper, we hit the berth so we could get up early the next morning. When the sun comes up about 5:30 every day, it’s easy to awake at first light. So off we sailed to the Golfo de Cariaco, not much wind, pretty flat seas - until we got to the west shore of the Arraya Peninsula where the wind kicked up. We held a close reach in order to slide past a half dozen pineros which were anchored out line-fishing. The next thing we knew the wind died and we had to motor. Such are the vagaries of the wind along the Venezuelan coast. About 30 minutes into the Golfo the winds picked up even more. The auto-helm couldn’t handle the 35 knot gusts and the resultant waves. We opted to anchor in Puerto Real on the north shore instead of going the extra distance to Laguna Grande just to get out of the rough seas. Imagine our surprise when we heard S/V Moon Goddess hailing us on the VHF radio just as we got to the anchorage. Joe and Diane, on their way to Navimca for haul-out, took a chance calling us just in case we were in the area. We anchored in the quiet little bay of Puerto Real together, played a short game of dominoes, had snacks and drinks, and caught up on the news since we last saw each other in Porlamar.
Puerto Real to Carenero: In the morning we headed slightly to the southeast to another small anchorage called Carenero. It was like going from the country to the suburbs, going from a sleepy fishing village with goats walking the road to a not so sleepy fishing village with big trucks, buses and all sorts of vehicles speeding by on the highway almost at the water’s edge. Other than the rumble of trucks, it was a calm spot to spend Wednesday night. After motoring across the Golfo, NO WIND, we relaxed some more!
Carenero to Punta Tinajones: Short hops across the Golfo were a good way to spend the week since we knew that we wouldn’t be able to haul out until next week at the earliest. On the north side of the Golfo is a very small place to anchor with fishing villages about a mile away to either side, and it’s only five miles west of Medregal Village. Not much wind again on Thursday, but we did have dolphins playing along side for a while to amuse us. The water in the anchorage between the two points of land was calm, and no one else was around except for the pineros that passed by. We decided not to leave our anchor light on so as not to call attention to ourselves. That was when Roland discovered the fluorescent fish. There was so much bioluminescence in the water that we could see the fish chasing each other around the boat. Some looked pretty large. We’ll have to try lure fishing some night.
A quiet night and the end of another month! Tomorrow is August 1st.
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