We've spent the last week out on the hard at Power Boats doing all the things that need doing while Coromandel is out of the water: antifouling, seacocks, MaxProp etc. We also took the mast off again and re-did the spreader cups which Marcello made such a hash of in Salvador. In doing that we found a real horror at the top of the mast in the form of a fractured bracket and toggle - the ones which hold up the forestay. So that has been done as well.

One of the good things about Power Boats is that most yachtie things are within easy walking distance: chandleries, upholsterers, sail lofts, engineers etc. It's just a matter of finding someone who can do the work and then standing over them so that it's done to one's satisfaction. And so far we have been satisfied with everything that has been done.

So far Trinidad continues to be a rather nice place and we're managing to get a number of boat jobs done. We're at anchor off Power Boats and it's usually quiet at night although the days can be busy with a variety of vessels coming and going. We've been for walks, tours of the island, tours of the chandleries and other yachting facilities and my passport has arrived in Washington DC just in time to be held up by Hurricane Sandy. The scenery around Trinidad is a mixture of wooded hills, coconut groves and cacao planatations, with the odd swamp thrown in for good measure.

We had a super day out with Jesse James on his Taste of Trinidad tour, going around the island and eating 64 different Trini foods, as different as toolum - molasses mixed with dessicated coconut - and cow heel soup - delicious broth but the chewy bits reminded me of the razor clams in Loch Aline. It was all good fun, though I was on a sugar high when we got back to Coromandel which dissipated rather suddenly so that I fell asleep at the chart table.

Well here we are in Chaguaramas having a rest before pressing on to Grenada. We find that this is a hive of activity after the quiet of the Brazilian anchorages, so we're spoilt for choice between shopping (!), visiting caves, playing Mexican Trains, bring-and-braais and a host of other activities. Still, might as well try 'em all!

The passage from Recife was mixed, with flat calms and winds up to 32 knots, so plenty to keep us busy, although rather wet from time to time.

We had an iffy passage from Guarapari to Recife, first too little wind, then too much, then from the wrong direction, but we had two lovely night sails with flat seas and a nearly full Moon to make up for the dodgy days when seas were crashing over the bows.

We arrived in Recife just before midnight and anchored in the river next to the Pernambuco Iate Clube and I know that it's comforting that one's bank is so eager to prevent fraud that it stops what it thinks are fraudulent transactions, but when one has spent one's last Brazilian reals on a taxi to the supermarket to stock up, only to find that not only will the ATM not give one any money, but one can't use one's card to pay for shopping, I feel quite cheesed off with Natwest at the moment.

From here in the river Recife is not very attractive, tide rode, yet with a crosswind howling over the harbour wall. There is only one other cruising yacht here, a Polish one on its way to Argentina. The Pernambuco Iate Clube was full yesterday, the seas were crashing over the harbour wall and people were packed like sardines onto the beaches as the tide came in.

All being well we'll check out tomorrow and will leave for the Caribbean on Monday or Tuesday.

Here's a picture of me in my new bikini, bought in Guarapari.

Having run into a northeasterly weather pattern, which moved faster than predicted, we came into the bay at Guarapari to get some shelter from a northerly which promised 25+ knots - right on the nose! This is a pretty bay, with excellent shelter from the north east and north, but open to the south east. We are tucked behind the nature reserve at Morro do Pescaria, so are out of the swell and the chop. It is very peaceful. Guarapari seems like a family-orientated holiday town, so there is no loud music, the beach is very clean and it is a pity that the water isn't more clear. There are a number of restaurants and several well-stocked supermarkets, a laundry and a do-it-yourself laundry.

All being well we will leave here over the weekend to try and make it in one hop to Cabedelo on our way to Grenada, which is where we plan to spend some time while I get a new passport.

We now have two lots of rivets on the way here. The set from David are on their way from Rio to Salvador as I write this. The others, from Andy at Robbie Storrar in Newcastle upon Tyne, have been sitting in Miami - yes, MIAMI in the USA - for over a week allegedly awaiting customs clearance. I think the US policy of homeland security is getting ideas way above its station, remit or authority.

In the meantime we are sweating it out in Bahia Marina, which is expensive. Salvador is the first place we have been in all our travels where I want Andy to put a lock on the companionway hatch so that we can lock ourselves in at night.