One of the many rewarding things about cruising is the fact that you end up meeting all kinds of neat people. Many times, they are the locals that live wherever you have sailed to. Other times, it is other cruisers that you have anchored or docked near. As you sail around the world, you realize that the world is filled with such people no matter their culture, religious beliefs or ethnicity.

Today was one of those days when I got a chance to meet another very nice couple, Angela and Gabriel on S/V Pilar. They are actually parked right in front of our boat and have been here for a little while. Up until recently, they had guests with them so I would only chat with Gabriel in passing. I do not like to intrude when there a lot of people on board a boat as they may have their hands full. However, for the last day or so, it has just been Gabriel and Angela so I guess their guests have left.

Like myself, Gabriel enjoys a good cigar. Unlike myself, who just smokes one or so a day, he smokes five or six a day. He really enjoys some fine leaf! We had previously traded cigars and have talked about getting together to enjoy our cigars. This afternoon I took him up on his nice invitation and went over to S/V Pilar armed with three of my Cuban Montecristo's No 1s to give him. Once on board, I discovered that Gabriel takes enjoying cigars to a new level. He was armed with boxes of Cohiba Behikes. I further discovered that Behikes sell for about $100 a stick. Wow! This is one of the most expensive cigars on the market and is one of the world's finest. I must admit, it was a very exceptional cigar.

As we puffed on our Behike's, I got to know Angela (who does not mind the cigar smoke) and Gabriel. They are from the Chicago area and have been sailing for about a year. They never really sailed before stepping onto their Island Packet 55. They are planning on sailing around the Caribbean this year and then striking out to cross the Pacific next year after exploring the west coast of Costa Rica. I shared with them that I was envious as the South Pacific in my mind is the absolute best cruising ground in the world.

Before cruising Gabriel was a chef, learning his trade in Europe. He ended up owning three restaurants before selling two of them. He shared with me that Angela is also a fine cook also and they enjoy cooking together.

Gabriel is into extreme sports and has climbed the highest peaks in the world, including Mount Everest. He also has swum the English Channel.

They both were extremely nice and down to earth and I enjoyed my time with them both. Mary Margaret hopes to have them over to Leu Cat for sundowners, even though they both do not drink. Sounds like a spread of hors d'oeuvres might be in order. Yum!

We are still keeping an eye out on the weather. With a series of storms to the north of us and the tropical wave to the south of us, we are staying put for now. The tropical wave's chance of turning into a hurricane over the next 5 days has been downgraded to 50% by NOAA and the models that I use to track such beasts are now showing it to move just to the north of Grenada, traveling over the St Vincent/St. Lucia area on the 20th as a tropical storm. Time will tell.