01/30/2010, Christmas Cove, USVI
Since Don and I have spent the last few months here in the US Virgin Islands and probably will be in the area until May I thought I would post a few pictures and share a little about the islands and their history. Maybe more history than you want but feel free to just skip to the pictures!
The US Virgin Islands are made up of three large islands, St. Thomas, St. John, and St. Croix along with numerous smaller islets. Purchased in 1917 for $25 million from the Danish, the United States was concerned that foreign powers, namely Germany, would establish naval bases close to American shores. The US government also wanted to establish another military outpost in the Caribbean as a safeguard for the newly constructed Panama Canal.
Originally inhabited by the Arawak and Caribe Indians, historically Columbus is given credit for "discovering" the Virgin Islands in 1493 on his second voyage to the Americas. Having stopped in St. Croix for fresh water and seeing all the numerous islands visible to the naked eye he summarily christened the islands "The Virgins", encompassing all of the present day British Virgin Islands as well. In honor of St. Ursula and the 11,000 virgins who died in the 4th century in battle against the Huns at Cologne, the Virgin Islands became part of the Spanish empire. The Spanish used the many natural harbors and anchorages for traveling to and from the New World, bringing gold bullion from South America back to Spain. Eventually the gold supply from Peru dwindled and the Danish and British took over the Virgin Islands, hoping to colonize the heavily Spanish West Indies.
Plantations of sugarcane, cotton, indigo, pineapples, and of course production of rum raised the need for a cheap labor force, and the importation of African slaves began. Life on a plantation was extremely harsh and a slave's life short. Even with the increasing numbers of slaves being provided, the plantation economy did not thrive as it did in the United States. Drought, hurricanes, pirates and privateers, and the American and Napoleonic wars all made it difficult for the finished products to reach their destinations, mainly Europe. After the abolishment of slavery by the British in 1772 the ever increasing numbers of slaves in the Dutch Virgin Islands rebelled for their freedom at the same time the sugarbeet made sugarcane an over-priced commodity. For the next century the newly freed slaves struggled to survive off the land and sea, while the still prosperous European plantation owners fled.
Once again the geographical advantages of the Virgin Islands came into play in its prosperity. Ideally situated in the temperate trade wind belt and having literally hundreds of anchorages within a few hours of each other, the Virgin Islands are now the prime area for the charter and cruise ship industries. In an area where once Columbus, Sir Francis Drake and Blackbeard dropped their anchors, now thousands of charter boats and cruise ships take advantage of the turquoise water, balmy breezes, and gorgeous sunsets.
Don and I spend our time anchorage to anchorage, never more than a two hour trip, sometimes not even enough time to bother putting up a sail! While finding parts, fuel, water, and produce can take up an entire day, at least we are lucky enough to do it in paradise.
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01/03/2010, Virgin Gorda, BVI
Christmas holiday was spent in the British Virgin Islands where the Starship enjoyed a relaxed two weeks with our daughter Darci who came to visit over her break from college. Don and I were happy to have our third crew member back, complete with shrimp kabobs and sour cream apple pie for Christmas dinner, and onboard art lessons for mom. But Don, not to be left out, assisted Darci in taking apart, cleaning, and putting back together her malfunctioning laptop that accidentally sponged up a spilled Guinness! Dad is handy to have around when something needs to be disassembled and reassembled in perfect working order.
A wicked lightning and thunder storm on Christmas Eve had us scrambling for the foil and putting the GPS in the oven, all the while collecting rainwater for future use. We have been so spoiled these last few months with good weather and an uneventful hurricane season that it was a good refresher for our ever so important "Save The Electronics" drill.
As a perfect ending to the year, we lounged and watched 2010: The Year We Make Contact for 2010. We are still waiting! But mostly we were delighted that our DVD player still functions and that the depth sounder reads correctly!
Don and I hope that the New Year of 2010 brings much joy, happiness, and prosperity to you all. And remember, your cabin on Starship is always ready!
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01/02/2010, Christmas Cove, USVI
Happy New Year!
The first blog of the New Year finds us back in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. Following Deb's visit to California for Thanksgiving our friend Dave came to sail with us for two weeks and enjoyed some fabulous weather, sailing, hiking, and swimming. And as Dave is an extreme carnivore our BBQ finally got some much needed use and Daisy oodles of rib bones. The main delicacy in St. Thomas is definitely the BBQ ribs! We explored the sights of the main harbor of St. Thomas, Charolette Amalie, by foot, by car, and by boat, along with our other fellow trimaraner John on s/v Buddy. A major port of call for cruise ships and mega-yachts, Charolette Amalie has everything duty-free from Gucci to diamonds to rum. We stuck to the rum and have decided that while the views and beaches at the world class resort of Caneel Bay, St. John's are beautiful, the best Painkillers are at Joe's Beach Bar on Water Island. These are the important facts that we cruisers are so dependant on and feel compelled to share!
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12/10/2009, St. Thomas, USVI
After twenty-one days in the boatyard, the crew of the Starship has made our escape back out to sea. Each haulout Don declares is his last, and that bottom paint should be considered a controlled substance. Living on Benadryl and rum for a month I guess will do that to you. Poor guy, the itching, hives, welts, and flies were a reminder as to why we try to only do this once every four years! But now we are back enjoying our life and beautiful boat and Don's skin has returned to normal. Alas we already have a ding in the newly painted rub rail, bad docking form, my fault!
I left Don sitting idly at anchor in Culebra, Puerto Rico recovering while our daughter Darci and I went home to California to visit family and friends for the Thanksgiving holiday. Someone had to stay with the dog! This is my first extended visit to the Golden state in four years, and while I love the tropical weather, California will always be my home. The beauty of Big Sir, the hustle/bustle of the San Fransisco Bay Area, the organic farmer's markets of Berkley, and the soothing pace and view of the Santa Cruz beaches and mountains all made for a visual feast as well as the joy of seeing family and old friends. Thank you to all my family and friends who made Darci's and my stay so wonderful and blessed.
Now I am back on the boat and our direction is east, but the tradewinds have piped up again so we will enjoy St.Thomas and St. John with our friend Dave, and wait.
Happy Holidays, and come spend Christmas in the Caribbean!
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11/05/2009, Isleta Marina, Puerto Rico
Well it's week three of a two-week haulout, and most likely another week to go! But the bottom is clean and sanded, the hulls are sanded and painted, and now just a few projects and bottom paint left to complete. The sweltering heat, minimal breeze, and abundance of flies are making this particular haulout seem to drag on. Of course the fact that we are living on the boat during the haulout makes it extra fun, but we are getting excellent thigh muscle workouts from our numerous trips up and down the ladder, so there are health benefits as well!
Isleta Marina and boatyard where we are has a terrific little bar/restaurant here on site called Mango's, run by a beautiful repatriated Puerto Rican woman named Sonja. As is typical of many locals we have met, she spent 30 years in the states and has now returned to her native Puerto Rico to retire. It has been nice for us to have the restaurant so near, as it cuts down on the dish duty in a bucket. Another wonderful aspect of being in a marina facility rather than out at anchor is access to a Laundromat and hot showers with unlimited amounts of water. The simple pleasures keep us going, as does a lot of cold beer.
Our painting crew of Jose Carlos and the boss Francisco Garcia finished up today, both always with a ready smile and amiably following the directions of the jefe Don. Jose Carlos especially has been studious and hard-working and loves it when I crank up the tunes. He prefers reggaeton, a mix of reggae and Latin beats, but smiles big when I play JayZ and Bob Marley.
The plan is to splash on Monday, Tuesday, or sometime next week. Don and I are keeping our fingers crossed, as on a boat all plans are etched in sand and the only thing concrete is the dock!
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10/17/2009, Isleta Marina
clean, sand, paint, clean, sand, paint...................
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Rave on!
