We are sitting on anchor in Rodney Bay. We have been here for over 3 weeks now and this week we head west. As I write we are sitting watching the sun set and imagining ourselves with sails flying following it over the edge - an ever diminishing spot until, pop, we are gone in a green flash.

Rodney Bay is a large anchorage (about a mile long) and a transit point for boats moving to and from Martinique. Its also large enough for medium sized cruising ships and we often find a Club Med hybrid (sail and motor) or luxury tall-mast as our neighbour. The budget cruiser only gets a day trip into Castries which is the main port and town in St Lucia. From there they are dispersed in minivans and buses to the Pitons, sulfur springs and let loose on the local markets. At the end of the day these enormous vessels cruise out into the night like wombats foraging for their next meal.

Beneath us is an aquarium - or I should say we are the aquarium (the red hull perhaps?). Our favourites are the tiny striped Sargent Majors which have taken up residence on our rudder. They are quite territorial and make a fuss when Paul tries to clean the hull around them. No doubt they would like to come to Bonaire but I can't see them keeping up - shame, it would be nice to watch them grow.

You might think from this that all we do is sit and watch sun sets and float around under the boat. Not at all, we do socialize on occasion. Last Sunday the St Lucia National Trust held an International Food Fair at our local, Pigeon Island. There were lots of people - mostly locals - and donut, icecream and cocktail making competitions. We bumped into our Trini friends Mo and John who are on Iolea's sister ship Yellow Rose. There are quite a few of the Trini cruisers here but most had left before or just after Xmas New Year. John and Mo left Trinidad a couple of days after us and they too had the passage from hell - with the added pain of having to handsail the whole way - much harder. But even they can't beat Amanda and Patrick on Egret who lost their rudder 500 nm from Cape Verdes and had to sail with a drogue (basically a dragged bucket) the rest of the way across the Atlantic.

Oscar and then Gudrun joined us at Crews Inn in January. We planned to sail up to St Lucia (hopelessly optimistic as we found later). Gudrun had been in Germany for 2 months and she and Oscar were looking forward to seeing each other and having a relaxing couple of weeks with us.

Oscar arrived on Thursday - well actually it was Friday around 1.30am because American Airlines decided they had to repair a hinge on a toilet door before the plane left Miami (this was after everyone had embarked and were ready for take-off). By the time we arrived back at the boat and had had a few drinks to celebrate Oscar's arrival it was 4am. The next day one of our cruising friends asked if we wanted to join Jessie on a lime night that would include visits to the Mas camps (where costumes (masquerade) are made and sold) and steel pan yards where they were practising for Carnival. We had heard this tour was not to be missed so off we went at 6.30pm to the first mas camp. Five hours later a reluctant Jessie and we three tossed down our rum on the rocks (Jessie wasn't drinking) and tossed away our roasted peanut packs and wandered back to the bus to the percussion of Phase II. On day 3 of Oscar's relaxing holiday we went to dinner and a classical concert in Trinidad with Zelander (Suzanne and John). We went to Joseph's and sat under a covered patio looking out at the garden - very colonial and enhanced by Suzanne who has a 50s movie star glamour. The next day we let Oscar rest. Then it was Gudrun's turn. She arrived on Monday and arrived with an equally full bag of goodies and duty free so that by the time we left Trinidad we probably had enough food and alcohol to get us half way to Oz.

With G and O we went to Makaras beach for the best shark and bake (Richard's) and G was sent on a lime night - poor girl was bug-eyed but made it through. Next it was the Taste of Trini which is an anything goes of food around central and north-west Trini - they left at 9am and arrived home around 9pm full and exhausted.

It was time to leave - except the weather didn't agree with us. High winds and seas all from the north-east which was the direction we wanted to sail. We picked a possible lull and headed to Scotland bay to stage for the trip the next day. Next evening we headed through the Bocas (channel) and into the Caribbean sea and the arms of a waiting storm. It didn't hit immediately but crept up from behind slamming us down, howling and bucketing on us for what seemed like hours - it just followed us north. Oscar passed out on the couch in the salon but Gudrun stayed in the cockpit one arm clinging to the bimini rail and the other enfolding the shoe box which she used as her pillow - she actually slept!

Suffice to say we were all a little under the weather by the time we got to Grenada but pleased to be there. We had forgotten how blue the water is after so many months in Trinidad where the Venezuelan rivers keep the waters green. Paul arranged necessary repairs to the genoa furler and power outlet and the rest of us had a day in St Georges which is very pretty and heaven if you are looking for touristy oddments or clothes.

Next morning we were off to Carriacou. First we had to navigate around a container ship coming into port then it was an easy sail along the Grenada coast - then out into the wind again, but not too bad. We spent the night at Sandy Island and snorkeled with the anchovies and diving pelicans and hid from the wind in cockpit while we watched the sunset.

Another day another island and so much for G and O's relaxation. Every passage was much longer than we had anticipated because the wind remained steadfast in the north east. We arrived at Union island in the Grenadines the next day and decided that a couple of days at the Pitons in St Lucia was better than O and G spending another fews days being battered on the boat. We had a lovely lunch together before they left and plied Gudrun with drink since she had been obsessing over flying in a small plane and had been tracking every light aircraft that flew in and out of the airport for the past 2 days.

G and O had a wonderful time at the Pitons in St Lucia and we almost caught up to them in Iolea. As is always the case the wind died down the following week and as we travelled through Bequia, St Vincent and St Lucia we kept wishing we had had another week.

Anyway we loved having them and special for us is being able to refer to such and such cruiser or something on the boat and knowing they will know exactly what we mean.

The start of the mas parades was heralded on Sunday night with Soca blaring from a bar across the bay at 4am. "Mas" comes from (mas)querades of early European settlers and the (mas)k tradition of Africa. Throughout the year communities hold mas camps where all ages join in designing and constructing their costumes for the next Carnival.

The first mas is the J'ouvert (day break) parade. This is the parade of devils and the macabre but has gone through some reinterpretation over the years. Horns have given away to gas masks and molasses to sump oil and paint. Vicky woke us for the J'ouvert at 5am. She and Bob were staying with us because their boat had been dumped by a wave onto a reef and was now on the hard for repairs. We clambered into our shabbiest clothes and headed down to Lagoon road and the sea of throbbing reds, blues, greens and black.

The next parade is the Pretty Mas and this is where all the hard work of the mas camps is put on display. For 6 hot hrs men, women, and children from 3 to 83 bob and grind and rotate to the beat of Steel bands, Calypso, and Soca.

The evening parade is the Band Mas and we have joined the Caribe Band. At 7pm we pile into mini buses that take us to the brewery and our starting point. It is dark and 200 flashing hats and swords vibrate behind our Soca band (a semi trailer with a DJ). For 5 hours we shuffle, jump and grind to the beat, waving our swords like a tribe of flaky Zulus. Young couples girate and pump in unison - ever more erotic as the night progresses. A beer truck follows behind and Paul routinely disappears for a refill - even he is vibrating to the beat by midnight. Finally, we arrive at the marina entrance and decide not to continue on the next 2 miles to the stadium. We're vibrated out and the marina pool is looking very inviting.

Emily, as she is now known has passed us by and invoking anxiety to the west of us. She seems to have difficulty getting her act together which is a relief because she is such a large system. We had a heavy downpour for an hour or so but otherwise a non event for us. Further north they had heavier rains which can be destructive but no fierce winds.

We are settled at the megayacht dock at Port Louis marina and awaiting start of Carnival. This morning J-dock organised a bus to take a dozen of us to the Caribe distillery to register for their float on Monday night. We get flourescent flashing hats, a wand, necklace, t-shirt and as much beer as we can drink on the night - Paul is in heaven.

Well looks like August is going to start with a bang. The first tropical depression that looks like turning to a hurricane before it gets to the Caribbean. If so, whe will be Emily. It should not come near the southern Caribbean but we are taking no chances and heading to Grenada this morning - as are quite a few other boats. Keep you posted. PS: the map is from the US hurricane centre. They dod 6 hrly updates.