12-14-16

Cayo Quemado, Guatemala

Sunny, hot and humid (oh boy!)

Actually, the weather has fluctuated between sunny and then a huge rain cloud will appear and empty all its contents on US.  Which means we are scrambling to close all the port holes and hatches. 

Cayo Quemado, is the last bay before the river enters the gorge.  There is a small community here and several “gringos” have helped get schools going in the area.  One woman, Kelli, raised three thousand dollars (the benefit was located at RAM Marina in Rio Dulce) to get a music program started and to buy instruments.  There is a Mayan village up the mountain that produces woven baskets.  I have been told it is an arduous climb for an hour to get there….I don’t think my knees will let me do that…damn! 

At 3:00 today, Charlie and I took the “Colibri” back up the lake, passing 2 more bays to visit, Jennifer.  Jennifer is a gringo that has lived here for 25 years and has a beautiful open air home with lush gardens she has planted.  She lives here with her cat and her dog….Dog (pronounced “dee OH gee”).  Jennifer is an artist that dabbles in all sorts of mediums.  We have commissioned her to use our collected sea glass (from Isla Mujeres, MX) to add to a turtle shell.  She has decorated many cow skulls with coins (“Cash Cow”) and seeds, glass, etc.  Besides her talent she is an interesting woman to talk with.  At any rate, I joined her and two other women for a yoga class up the hill from her home and under a beautiful palapa. (Kathe and Janice, you would have loved this). 

Back to the boat by sunset, buying a loaf of fresh bread from the community restaurant.  Again, we grilled on our new BQ pit and movie for the night….Dead Man Down.  Buenos Noches mi amigos y amigas. 

Starting Again

Cat Spring, Texas

December 4, 2016

Time to go again.  While the weather today is cold and rainy, the weather in Rio Dulce, Guatemala is sunny and warm.  Charlie has been on Island Sol now for over 3 weeks trying to get her ready for this season's sailing.  Our "cruising" friends are all returning to their boats and getting ready for new adventures as well.  So my last few days at home are being spent trying to put all the parts and food, that Charlie has ordered for our boat, into 2 pieces of luggage, which I am sure have already gone over the weight limit.

Enjoyed last minute fun with friends, family, and my yoga buddies, I will miss you all.  But the sea calls..... (that was corny!)

Rio Dulce, Guatemala
December 7, 2016

So 2 bags grew to 3 bags and one was way overweight, but the airlines love your $$$$.  I also threw my back out the day before I left making the trek very uncomfortable.  I had a little bottle of vodka with me to add to some OJ for the trip.  I didn't realize that was against the law...the stewardess told me it was like bringing liquor into a bar, she then told me to put it away and not get it out again....OK..so I put the rest away in my drink...that was a stout screwdriver....but it sure made my back somewhat better.

Charlie met me at the airport in San Pedro Sula, Honduras (now the 2nd "murder capital" of the world) and with our wonderful driver, Giovanni, we made the 3 hour trip back to the Rio.  We met our buddy John at the dock at Bruno's and after dinner made our way in "Solita" (our 14' runabout) back to Island Sol.  It was a beautiful night full of stars and the lake was like glass.  So our new adventure begins for our 5th season....thanks to all the gods for our many blessings.

Bobby and Haley's Visit

Isla Mujeres
6/2/16 ~ 6/8/16

The weather in Texas and (elsewhere) has been horrendous with massive flooding and property destruction.  Haley was so tired of the rain and couldn't wait to get to "fun in the sun".  Their 9:30 a.m. arrival in Cancun was delayed until around 2:30 p.m. due to the plane being grounded because of weather and then engine problems.  It was a long and hairy day for them, but we finally swooped them up at the ferry and got them to the island.

Little did they know that the weather has followed them!  In the next 2 days we were expecting thunderstorms for the first time in a good month.  So the 2nd day of their vacation we got them on a boat for a whale shark tour.  It is a little over an hour to get to the spot where the whale sharks feed on an upwelling of plankton due to the current and sea floor landscape here.  Unfortunately, no whale sharks were spotted that day....the incoming weather has driven them down deeper.  But....not all was lost as they got into a school of huge manta rays and were able to swim with them.  Not something Charlie and I have experienced.

So, the rain arrived, but in between showers Haley and Bobby used our scooter and Haley gave her sweet husband a tour of the island.  There was a lot of laying around and reading and then at night some fierce "Farkle" (or 10,000) playing was going on.  The week was up way too soon and they were back to Austin and work.  We so enjoyed their visit and I think they had a good time too!

Isla Mujeres....2016....Catching Back Up!

May 30, 2016
Marina Paraiso
Isla Mujeres, Mexico                                                                          

Here I sit again in beautiful Isla Mujeres.  As you can tell I have not entered a post for a year.  Last season (April 2015) I had a bicycle accident, trying to avoid an iguana I fell off my bike from a raised platform and subsequently tore my ACL and meniscus on my left knee.  
My two lovely friends, Sarah and Maggie arrived the next day for a week of fun in the sun.  Luckily I was able to get a hold of them before they left the states and they delivered a knee brace and cane to help me hobble around during their visit.  Hated that I put somewhat of a damper on their trip...The sisters, though had a great time and it was wonderful for me to have my favorite friends here with me.
                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                       
I confirmed my knee issue in Cancun with a MRI and a visit to a local orthopedic, then flew back to the US for surgery and 3 months of Physical Therapy.  Meanwhile, after being nurse, Haley flew down to Isla to enjoy a week with her Daddy, while Sean became my nurse at home.  Love you, son, but your nursing skills need a lot of improvement...But I am truly grateful to have them both take care of me!  So, then Sean bailed and flew south to help Charlie move the boat back to the Rio Dulce, in Guatemala.  Six weeks later, my husband was home for hurricane season with s/v Island Sol safe in her slip at Luv's Marina.

Jerry and Susan (s/v Vida Dulce)

Our trips home are always too short for me and before we knew it, it was time to head back to Guatemala and prepare the boat for the next sailing season.  Again, we were fortunate to sail along with s/v Vida Dulce (Jerry and Susan) back to Mexico.  It took us a good week, stopping in at beautiful anchorages in the middle of nowhere.  We enjoyed our respite in the Bahia de Ascension and the little town of Punta Allen.  Then made our way back to Isla Mujeres.

My sweet mother, Beth

On November 23, 2015 my mother, Beth, had a stroke which required surgery and at 88 that was a very scarey thing.  Charlie and I made a hasty trip back to the states the next day.  To make a very long story short, my mother had a second stroke after successful surgery on the first, went back for a second surgery and then a third surgery to repair a leak from the first surgery.  Then a month in rehab.  We were blessed with her recovery, she had a g-tube inserted for feeding as her swallow was not good enough for her to eat or drink.  So with just the loss of her short term memory and using a walker to get around, she is back at home and happy.  My many prayers were answered.


I returned to Mexico, January 15, with a lot of guilt for not being there with my parents.  But, thanks to Haley, she is taking good care of them for me.  So, we have gotten more familiar with the island and have met some really nice people along the way.  The food here is amazing and in general it is an easy place to be with many amenities at hand.  I joined a knitting club - thank you Dody for the invite - and have met some great women who are very talented.  Charlie has been having fun with his drone and has gotten some amazing pictures of the island and the beautiful water that surrounds it....that is why it is called the Mayan Rivera.

We were also fortunate to take an 18 day trip to Cuba with Jerry and Susan.  That will require a post of it own (soon to be posted). And, 2 days ago the whale shark season started and we were one of only 6 boats out there swimming with these amazing fish.  Last year, there must have been 40+ boats out there, but it was later in the season and then the number of sharks were much larger.  If you are not aware of these gentle giants, google them....they are astonishing and to be at arm's length from them is pretty thrilling.

Haley and Lys

toasting to Linda's arrival

Haley and her girlfriend Lys, came for a week in March.  And, our good friend John also spent some time with us, after our visit with him in Tulum. Toward the end of this month, Linda joined us for a week.  All she needed was "vodka and the beach"....we had plenty of both.  We had a wonderful time with my "Siter".  We did do a whale shark tour and Linda, swam with the "sharks".  It was pretty darn thrilling. So, in just 3 more days our daughter, Haley and her husband, Bobby will arrive for a week's vacation.  We are so thrilled to be able to see them both on s/v Island Sol again.   Then we will be off to Guatemala, unfortunately s/v Vida Dulce will be leaving today and we will not have the pleasure of sailing back with them.

  Sean and Devin dropping us off at airport

        

           Charlie on our scooter

              

                  Visit to Chichen Itza

dinner at El Varadero

Isla Mujeres

March 10, 2015

Jerry, Susan, Charlie and I were all at the Port Captain's office by 9:00 this morning.  Thank god, Jerry is fluent in Spanish, it was a big help all through the day.  By 2:30 we had completed all our paperwork.  Jorge, who worked with the Health Department, chastised (we received no fine,thank goodness) us all severely for not checking into the first Mexican port we had come to.  He said, "you have been in Mexican waters for a week and could have been spreading Ebola all up the coast".  Hmmm....well we knew we were all very healthy, because he took our temperature and made us stick out our tongues!  But, like he said, if he was in the USA and did this he would have been deported immediately....and he is right, so we promised to not do that again.

So with official legal papers in hand and a 90 day visa, we made our way across the street to Social Justice to celebrate with more cerveza and coconut fried shrimp...as only the Mexicans can do.  It is getting close to Susi's arrival time on the ferry from Cancun, so we walked to the ferry dock.  Susi arrived with her beautiful smile at 5:30...and her vacation begins!


March 11, 2015

We had a leisurely morning, but soon headed in the dingy back to shore and rented a golf cart.  Golf carts and motorcycles are the major mood of transportation on the island, at least by the tourists and cruisers.  We dropped off our laundry at Ave. Juarez and Ave. Matamoras and paid $40 peso/per kilo.  Next stop was a history lesson at the Estate of Fermin Mundaca.  Fermin was a pirate, who at the ripe old age of 40 decided to settle down on Isla Mujeres, in 1880, where he met a beautiful young Mexican girl, Prisca Gomez.   He fell deeply in love with her and built a 2 story home on his "plantation" in hopes to win her heart.  But she loved another and his heart was broken.  There of course is more to this story, but it was a very hot day and we walked around and saw what still remains of his home.  The price of admission was $20 pesos each.

Oh our way out of the "estate" we saw an elderly couple selling sea shell wind chimes.  I remember this couple from 2 years ago, the husband makes trumpet horns out of conch shells and Charlie had to have one.  This gentleman had to take the conch shell, that Charlie picked out, back home to plaster the hole where the conch was removed from, in order to make a horn out of it.  So we will return another day to pick it up.  Charlie just can't wait to wake the anchorage up early in the morning with his horn.

the last word.....salad

Our next stop was the Chuedauri....the large grocery store on the island....for a few grocery items.  Then a stop at Lolo Lorana's to make reservations for Friday night dinner.  Lolo is famous on the island for her gourmet cuisine.  We had met her briefly 2 years ago, trying to make reservations, but she was going to Europe on vacation, as she is from Brussels.  While having a wonderful breakfast at Mango's, we heard that Lolo had an accident and they were not sure if she was cooking. We made it to her house and a young boy ushered us back through her 2 kitchens and into Lolo's bedroom.  We were somewhat reluctant to enter for we could see Lolo laying on the bed, but she waved us in with her wonderful laugh and French accent.   She indeed had a terrible accident, breaking her upper arm bone and lower leg bone with a cast and metal pins sticking in everywhere...oh my...but still a smile on her face.  What a wonderful spirit she has.  Susi and I were somewhat taken back by all of this, which came out in hysterical laughter when we retold it to Charlie in the cockpit that night with cocktails.  So more to come on the dinner....

Cozumel to Isla Mujeres

March 9, 2015

We left Cozumel by 7:30 and had a nice motor sail up the coast to Isla Mujeres.  The Mexican "Gold Coast" stretches out for miles all along this northern route.  We kept thinking we were close to Cancun, but the hotels go for miles and miles.  We finally anchored in Isla Mujeres around 2:30. Now it is time for check-in.  As you check out of one country you must then check-in to the next.  We had managed to by pass checking into Belize by sailing along the outer cays.  As luck would have it the offices were closed, but just across the street is the Restaurant Social Justice, which has the best ceviche in town.  So the four of us ordered up Ceviche Mixto (shrimp, octopus, conch and some local fish) and plenty of ceverza to wash it all down.  Now with our bellies full we went back to our boats and fell blistfully to sleep.  Thanks to s/v Nikki Wikki, we now know to anchor in the sand near the reef, as this area is know as the "Drag Strip".

Social Justice

San Miguel, Cozumel

March 8, 2015

We arrived in Cozumel and made our way to the only anchorage around 2:30 p.m. and went to shore in search of sim cards for our phone and internet sticks, now that we are in a new country, but no such luck since it is Sunday.  We got a few things at the Mega Mart, it was air conditioned and we really wanted to hang there for a while, but we were all just too tired.

After arriving back to the boat we noticed a "ship" anchored near us....m/v "A".  Come to find out this boat is owned by a Russian and it is just over the top!  I have added a link to a You Tube video which gives you a inside tour. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbucJO3zDCE Susan took this great shot of Island Sol in front of  "A"....thanks Susan!

This was a horrible anchorage just north of the ferry dock.  Swells all night long and ferry wake constantly....we are so ready to get out of here!