Read: Bahamas Shakedown or Refit or Caribbean or en Francais
ChickenFish
Catherine
01/23/2007, Le Marin, Martinique

Today was a productive day at trying out local things and getting equipped for fishing. No fancy breakfast this morning, but we decided we had to go get croissants tomorrow.. too good to pass while we are here. We set off with a list of daily things to do - from laundry (drop a load for 6.50 euros and pick it up wet an hour later) - to getting lunch things at the local market. We bought a fish called "bourse" (red snapper we think) that we were told tastes like chicken. We figured that may help Shelby start liking fish. We also got something that looked like a Chernobyl zucchini (huge), and a very heavy watermelon (I carried it back - can you tell!). The fish did taste like chicken to all of us but Shelby - bummer. The zucchini was no zucchini - more like a gourd - did not taste too good either, but we were pleased to make a discovery. Spencer went to the fisherman shop where the lady was incredibly nice at explaining to him what he needed. She had a cuban reel (called 'yoyo') that you put on a winch while you are trolling so that you don't have to monitor your fishing line, but Spence settled for several colorful skirts (squid-looking plastic thingies) as dorado are attracted by very bright colors, and a kit to make his own lures. She was so nice she lent him drawings on how to make your own lure, which we went photocopied to return back to her. It is so refreshing to see how trusting folks are here. Shelby has been taking naps after naps - makes us wonder how hard school is pushing those teenagers. We don't hear much English spoken here, it is French everywhere - some very easily understood, some too creole to understand - I find women easier to understand. Tomorrow we will rent a car to see more of Martinique...

Caribbean
Martinique!
Shelby
01/22/2007, Le Marin, Martinique

First day of vacation! (not including the plane rides) How wonderful it felt to sleep like a rock and for at least 10 hours! We were going to need a good night's rest for the big day that lay ahead of us. First, we had a very cute breakfast on the terrace with a gorgeous view. And man those croissants and baguettes were to die for! We then went to the Capitainerie to visit Norska, who was wedged between two mega-yachts. And we thought OUR boat was big and comfortable! Then we went on the daily adventure. To find bread. And boy what a tiring and hot adventure it was. Sweat was pouring down our faces, our feet black and blistered, and we could barely walk.....ok, not that drastic, but it definitely was a HUGE change from the mountain of snow found in every cul de sac in Boulder. And now we are ready to treat our tastebuds to the wonders of wonderful, sweet, and ripe tropical fruit!

Caribbean
Let it begin!
Spencer
01/21/2007

A quick breakfast and we were off to the airport, again. No problemo with the one way ticket deal. After staying 25 minutes in the plane and the engines going on, off, on, off we received clearance for takeoff. Through the magic gypsy windows, we saw our trip backwards. That was, seeing the islands from Puerto Rico to Martinique. Lunch had Mamy (my mother's mom) at the gate and we heroically hailed a taxi. 30 minutes later, we found the Capitainerie closed, so we missed out chance to see Norska, so we'll have to wait till tomorrow. Papa was bummed, and we finally found out if our tequila was abducted by the Homeland Security Inspector. I went for a quick swim in the complementary pool, and we missed out on dinner, because it is sunday and everything is closed. In case you're still wondering about the tequila, it's still there. We plan to give it to the dockmaster tomorrow for unloading Norska for us.

Caribbean
Arrived in Puerto Rico
Catherine
01/21/2007

We left Boulder yesterday just before another snow storm arrived. Dodged that one this time! After our first flight to Atlanta, where Shelby won the in-flight trivia (pretty fun game they have on the Delta Song planes where passengers can sign on and play against each other), we got to Puerto Rico last night where Shelby got to practice her Spanish with the cab driver. It was 79F and he said 'hace frio'... wow... I think we landed at the right place. I am posting this page from El Canario By the Lagoon hotel that has wireless. My mom is on her way to Martinique and we should meet her there today. First we have to explain to AA why we don't have a round-trip ticket to Martinique.....we printed all kinds of papers to try to convince them we truly will come back by boat, but somehow I think we are in for one of those refundable tickets...

Caribbean
Norska in Martinique - Happy New year
Catherine
01/02/2007

Norska arrived in Martinique on January 1 (less than a week after being loaded in Florida) where she will patiently wait for us to arrive in less than 18 days !!!!. We are making final arrangements and found a delightful housesitter who will take care of Willa our cat back home. I am trying to convince my mom to come visit us while in the French Indies. We seem to have convinced Bill's parents to come visit us when we'll be in St Martin early March. Any more takers? room for 2 additional camping-compatible guests, or anyone wanting to rent a beach villa somewhere!

Caribbean
Dockwise
12/27/2006

Two independent events, the Denver blizzard of 2006 and Dockwise logistical failures, made for a nightmarish week as we tried to get to Norska in time for loading, get the kids to Austin for xMas, and find some way to join them. American Airlines and Dockwise are on our shit list. Continental and United Airlines were most helpful. In the final analysis, Dockwise slipped our original Dec. 3rd date, bit-by-bit until the last slip, just days before the departure, landed us on 7 AM Dec. 25th. That's right, before sunrise on Christmas morning. I can't tell you how many flights we booked, canceled, and rebooked trying to meet the transport: all very difficult because of the blizzard and the time of year.

We missed Christmas with the kids as we awoke at 5 AM to get on our way to the ship during a blustery frontal passage. We made allowance for missing a bridge opening or two, but all went well (except for bumping the bottom trying to figure out, with the spotlight, whether that unlit marker was red/triangle or green/square) and we arrived at 6:30 only to wait circling in the ditch until 11:00, four hours late, because the ship was having trouble submerging. At this point, I felt like a torpedo with do nicely to help the submerging. The crew was excellent at the loading operation. We left Norska in their hands (as you see here, tied up in the port bay of Super Servant 3) and scrambled to get out quick so that we wouldn't meet yet another flight - this time to Austin to spend what was left of Christmas with the kids and family.

We're now chilling out and look forward to getting back to Colorado for final preparations before taking a jet to windward and beginning the adventure! (As if it hadn't been adventure enough at this point...)

Caribbean
Rather Pathetic Christmas Dinner
12/24/2006

Exhausted from blizzards and sleeping in airports, this is all I could muster for dinner. (Notice the new ultra-leather settees though :) The main feature of this dinner is the wine, which we had no trouble finishing: unusual for us. To bed and wake up earlier to get out of here at 5 AM to make our loading time. (If we had known that the loading was going to run 4 hours late, we could have slept in. Grrr.) Guess we'll have to open presents later...

Caribbean
Blizzard of 2006
12/21/2006, Boulder, Colorado

In theory, we would be in Ft. Lauderdale about now preparing Norska for loading onto Super Servant 3 for her trip South. (We'll be doing the 747 to windward thing.) No go, grace a the Blizzard of 2006. Somehow the logic now is we dig out, while DIA digs out, we finish when the buses to the airport start running again and the airplanes start flying again, Cath goes somewhere, I go to LA, and somehow we meet up in Ft. Lauderdale and load the boat the next morning - Oh boy! Cath, being French, has difficulty in summoning up a respectable American Gothic pose...

Caribbean

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