Friday, March 20, 2009
The first day of spring and a very happy birthday to Grand Baby Lyric!

We listened to the Cruiser's Net at 8am and all the announcements and weather. What a cool way to find out about what's going on in this little gypsy harbor. They give the weather and what's going on for the day in the various places. Then they have any community businesses announce or advertise, then who's leaving, who's new, and a type of want ads of who needs what or who has what, ending with a question/answer session.

After that we lowered the dinghy, collected our garbage and went over to Georgetown. It seemed a long ride across the harbor. Wayne says it's about a mile and a half to two miles and it seemed quite a stretch. We hauled our garbage with us and found the garbage bin then walked around trying to find the post office, grocery store, etc...

We met some people on the dinghy dock getting water and I asked about the post office, where to get copies, etc... I think the boat name was Moonlight Serenade (Sheila) and they said they were returning to the states Monday if we had mail we needed taken back. We may take them up on the offer. We went to the tourist office to find out about where to make copies but they were all in a meeting so we decided to head to the Post Office to see if they had access to a computer printer or knew where we could get print outs. After trying to give me directions, they discovered we were new to the island and after 20 questions we figured out where to go (J&K Productions). Back past the straw market (I have to return there too) and past the tourist office and up the road past Mother's Breads and the Hot Dog Stand that sells Conch Fritters.

We found the place and were able to get our printouts ($.25 each). I noticed the internet pricing was $2/minute there (cough cough) so internet access may have to wait until I can find a cheaper source.

We chatted with a guy from Sail Magazine wanting to put together a book about the Intercoastal Water Way (Chris?). We both recognized him from somewhere; Wayne later decided it was probably from a picture in the magazine. He was busy chatting up an older Bahamian Woman, kidding her about trying to steal Steven from his wife (in the book "An embarrassment of Mangos") and I kind of jumped into the conversation. I couldn't believe that this was that woman. She had her grand daughter there, and her daughter was the Bread Lady - Mother. While we were having hot dogs and conch fritters under the mango tree at the hotdog stand next to moms bread truck (yes I bought some and it's good bread - not as good as Bimini Bread but close) a couple we met at Warderick Wells (Pete & Camilla) - families hailing back to West Point came by and sat with us and had hot dogs (I got the last of the conch fritters).After chatting with them for a while we went over to the market and I bought some fresh vegis and fruit then we dinghied back to the boat. We got a little salted on the way back to the boat. The fetch was against us but the water spray felt good.

I had discovered that some coke bottles had leaked all over the icebox and spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning it out before putting my new stuff in. In the process, I discovered that I had some produce that was loving the cool damp moisture in the bottom and was growing all kind of lovely things for me to clean up, so out came the bleach and I now have a clean frig.

Moms bread, Smithfield smoked pork, apple sauce and oranges were the dinner items in the cockpit tonight. It was a mighty fine meal and another beautiful sunset greeted by the conch horns. There was a meet and greet over at a beach but we just decided to hang out here and do nothing. It felt good. We looked at the charts to see where we should go to formally meet the Tropic of Cancer and have lunch. I believe we have pin pointed a spot. Now we just need to sit through the weather that's supposed to be heading our way this weekend.

It's dark in the cockpit as I write this. I just looked around and all of the anchor lights in the harbor look like little twinkling stars only closer than the heavens. The anchor lights are white lights at the top of the mast that you turn on when you're at anchor at night. That way any passing ships are aware that you're there. Here with all the boats so close together, there are hundreds of little lights in the sky when you look up. It also looks like little fireflies dancing around the harbor. The wind is picking up and we're swinging about on our anchor.