Hanging Out with Old Friends
27 March 2014 | Buenavista Bay, Rio Dulce, Guatemala
Beth / so grateful to be able to jump in the water and cool down
What fun to be back in the neighbourhood! We headed ashore midmorning to visit, arriving at Martin and Karen's just in time to help celebrate Kevin's 19th birthday. He is the younger brother of Martin's guardian, Marbel, and we joined them to snack on Karen's yummy banana fritters and sing Happy Birthday. The age of majority here is 18, so his big celebration was last year. We were all happy to hear that he is one of the scholarship recipients for the Cayo Quemado program, and got 96 on his last English assignment in his pre college course.
Next stop, Jennifer's relaxing porch. I always love to sit there in her comfy, cushion-piled chairs with plants and paintbrushes all around, and a glittery new disco-bull on the coffee table. Jennifer covers animal skulls with coins or paint or bits of mirror and this one is a beauty. With icy lemonades in hand, and Dog curled at our feet, it felt good to be here.
We moved on to the next bay for a quick hello to Casey and Linda - and workers, Che, Bilo and Jossue - and to see that our dock is waiting for us! Linda's presence has sure made a difference in that place! She brought all sorts of new pieces of décor when she came back - colourful dishes and textiles and lights, and the living space looks more like a home!
And then it was time to head over to Texan Bay to check out the new roof at Burnt Key Marina. When we left in January, they had just torn down the old building so we were excited to see the new one. The thatched roof rises high on concrete pillars, funneling hot air up and out the top and making it a lovely cool oasis. While more work remains to be done, the kitchen is open, and it's business as usual. Unfortunately the internet was down so we weren't able to use it. We've been feeling quite out of touch with no service on our phone or TiGo stick since leaving Honduras.
Back at the boat, we napped, swam, cleaned ourselves up and got ready to be picked up in Martin's lancha for dinner at Casey and Linda's. Jennes and Danny (Arwin) and Marie and Jean Mark (Solei) joined us for drinks, and then Martin and Karen, Jim and I lingered with Linda and Casey long past cruiser's midnight (9pm) over delicious baked chicken, rice, salads, and banana fritters.) Casey was full of stories, Linda's table was set beautifully, and the teasing went back and forth among these old friends. We felt privileged to be among them all.
We'll take Madcap to town on Friday to get time on the phone, a few fresh fruits and veggies, and see who's around town.