We are still in English Harbour anchored off Nelson's Dockyard. We have some battery charging issues and wanted someone to have a look but it has closed down for Christmas so we have been forced to stay here! A great hardship!

Nelson's Dockyard was built in 1745 as the main British naval station in the Antilles. Nelson was stationed here under a man called Sir Richard Hughes, who had recently blinded himself in one eye while chasing a cockroach with a fork. Wouldn't you like to have seen that??! It's a national park now and gets lots of visitors off the cruise ships and the hotels because it's got lots of old building and a museum and there are old cannon and anchors dotted around. It's still very much used though. The buildings now contain chandleries and sail makers and there are bakeries and bars and restaurants.

They had a Christmas party there on Christmas Day. There were selling champagne in aid of charity (this year's charity was for the prevention of violence against women). It was various prices to suit all pockets. (We had the cheapest!) There was also a barbecue and a reggae band played all from midday to 6 pm. The band didn't even stop between songs, just merged from one to another and different band members joined in and left throughout the day. Excellent. We dinghied back to the boat at sunset for fresh tuna and several more glasses of Christmas cheer. Quite a different Christmas to the usual. Not a turkey in sight to say nothing of all the trimmings!

We met a few more cruisers last night and joined some for dinner at the Mad Mongoose which is a cracking little bar/restaurant. You can take your lap top there and it has free Wi-Fi. You don't even have to buy anything. Lots of people were sitting outside phoning home on Skype. You could here them all telling people back home in England how hot it was. Very unfair!!

We're off to a firework party on New Year's Eve so will put photos on here if and when I get them. Hope you all had a great Christmas and a very Happy New Year.