Since we left the boat in Curacao ( June 2017), it has been a hectic period, to say the least. We were lucky that we could stay in houses of dear friends who went on holiday and were so kind to accommodate us with a roof over our heads. Being homeless is a new experience for Dick!
Dick went for a six week period to South Sudan, surgery in Bentiu, and Monique went to CAR (Central African Republic) for two months. Both for MSF, and both countries not easy to work in.
Straight after CAR, Monique went to Canada, family visit together with 91 year old mother. Dick did some recuperation in Holland, after some nasty diseases he picked up in South Sudan. We both went to Cape Town for a lazy and relaxing 13 days of holiday, and at return back to Holland, we had to start organizing for our return to Curacao. We arrived here on 30th of October with five suitcases and two pieces of hand luggage, grand total was over 120 Kg… and yes, we managed to store it all somewhere on the Umnyama.
 
That was the easy part… Then the hard work and major frustration started. We did rent a lovely home in Willemstad for 12 days, and from there we started to get organized, or so we thought. The list is too long to mention here what went all wrong. In summary: Engine problems, the famous MDI (Mechanic Diesel Interface) black-boxes packed up again, and yes , not available on Curacao. Volvo Penta dealer gave us extreme slow service, resulting in endless waiting for the MDI boxes to be delivered. In the end Dick contacted Chris in Holland, who contacted Volvo dealer in France, et voila, within three days this set of MDI boxes were in Curacao. The set ordered by the Volvo dealer in Curacao still has to arrive…
Outboard engine problems, resulting one day after yet another breakdown, to peddle across the sea arm leading to the harbor. Lucky no big cargo ship came through when we peddled across this wide bit of water.
Solar panels installed and wire being pulled through to batteries was done in well, hm, incorrect manner, resulting in no charging at all from the big solar panels. With some help from other sailors and clever thinking by Dick, the problem got solved, but we might still have to put in a thicker cable in, as to fully optimize what the solar panels are producing.
 
While this was happening, there was a lot of cycling from the Spanish Waters, up and down to shops for much needed supply of food and booze(!) to keep the spirit going. Cycling in Willemstad is a health hazard as nobody cycles and no attention is given to a little person on a small bike. But we survived. On the positive side, we were able to catch up with the crew of Agaath, Zahree and Bojangles. Floating bar and drinks at Santa Barbara resort were the fun part of being in Curacao while every day provided us with a new challenge.
To complete our mishaps, Dick’s mother (92) died. We watched the service live on the internet…
 
By the 21th of November we gave up on waiting for the MDI ordered by the Volvo dealer and decided to hoist the anchor and leave Curacao and start sailing to Colombia. We had two nights of sailing with at times choppy seas and a good bit of wind. This is considered to be one of the worst sailing passages in the world (?), so we were lucky. We even flew the Parasailor again > 10+ knots! Today we arrived in a beautiful bay close to Santa Marta which will be our next stop.
Finally, we have arrived in Colombia, and so far... all is still in working order!
 
Dick and Monique