There was a mass exodus of yachts and catamarans on the 16th February, as a decent but not perfect weather window had opened up. The evening prior, we had a drink with Graham and Ai, who were departing at 6am. Nobody knows how they got clearance to leave, as everyone else had to go through immigration in the morning and they didn't open until 8am. Nobody would have appreciated the loud music which played all night, even if it made a change from the howling of the wind. The two Danish boats (Rainbow was one) got away first, although not as early as they would have liked, Gael and Cecile were next and Mitch and Avi didn't depart until after 11am. Others anchored out also managed to get away early. We heard from Mitch and Avi, after they arrived in Cartagena, that the swell had still been quite high and rolling. Everyone else was heading to Panama, a longer sail.
After lunch, we headed to the pool at the Marriott and for once there wasn't a ripple, as there was no wind. There was a DJ and the music was extremely loud. I enjoyed it, especially the salsa beats but Pete wasn't best pleased. On our return, Pete did the laundry while I showered and washed my hair. Doing the laundry involves the drinking of beer, as the bar is close to the machines, which you need to keep an eye on, so Pete doesn't mind this chore. I joined him and then we were joined by Hugh and Debbie and Hugh's colleague, Nick. Pete and I returned to Ouzo for dinner. Most of the locals wear white when they go out in the evening, so I wore my all white, lacy designer dress; a bargain from a charity shop in Yarm. Overnight, there was again no wind.
On Monday, having failed to find any in the local shops, I ordered new walking sandals, for both of us, from Amazon for delivery to the marina. Pete had been persuaded to go diving in the afternoon with Hugh, Debbie and Nick, so in the morning he took his demand valve and computer over to the shop for servicing and a new battery respectively. There was laughter at his 40 year old kit, for which parts are no longer available. Pete would need to hire kit for the dive. Everyone left at 1.30pm and I headed to the captains' lounge to progress my Spanish and write a blog. At 1730 hours, the divers had not returned and the sun was getting ready to set. Should I be concerned? 20 minutes later, as I sat in our cockpit, I heard the unmistakeable sound of dive cylinders clanking as they were lifted from a boat. They were back and meeting in the bar at 6pm. They had been to the famous Taranga Park to dive and had actually done two dives, not one. Nobody seemed pleased with the quality of the dives though, from bad visibility to a lack of sea-life and bad dive management by the dive guide. Following a quick drink (smoothie for me), the five of us headed to Magdalena for dinner. It was very upmarket and there was a live band playing but it was still inexpensive. I stuck to water, being a Monday. The wind blew overnight, until 2am, when someone flicked the off switch.
On Tuesday we awoke to find that there was no power and no water on the dock, or anywhere in the marina complex. The day was taken up chatting with various friends and an afternoon trip to the pool. There was no wind again and it remained calm overnight.
Wednesday we went to Vivolo Cafe for breakfast and I had the biggest chocolate croissant I have ever seen. It's a shame that the coffee wasn't as good here as it is at Brot. To Pete's dismay, I spotted a flyer about events at Vivolo, which included a salsa and samba night on Thursdays. After provisioning at Exito, the big supermarket (you can even buy a motor-scooter there), we headed to a cervicheria for Pete to have some lunch. I wasn't hungry. The afternoon was spent researching Panama clearance protocols and places. Panama Cruisers and San Blas Cruisers Facebook groups provided plenty of answers but not many of them agreed. The day ended with most of our friends around the bar at Cambiante. It only takes one person to sit down there for everyone passing by to end up there. It continued to be calm overnight.
Thursday was all about the navigation and clearance options for Panama, San Blas and then the onward journey to the Bay Islands of Honduras and we eventually have a list of available options that we can make decisions on nearer the time. San Andreas, Providencia (both Colombian islands), Grand Cayman and the Swan Islands, off Nicaragua all have potential for stop offs along the otherwise long route, as it's necessary to keep away from the shallow water and reefs which stretch up to 100 miles off the northern Nicaraguan and Honduran coasts. We had lunch at Lulo and I discovered that I don't like arepas, a local corn-based pattie that comes filled or topped with anything and everything. To me, the pattie tasted like it had been made with sour milk, so I just ate the topping of chicken, salad and salsa. In the evening, along with Shane and Mickey, we went to check out the salsa night at Vivolo. It turned out to be a class and very basic. We joined in for 10 minutes but it was too hot and we were getting sweaty, so we left and went to Reses 13 for dinner. They had salsa playing there too, so I had a little dance while the boys were paying the bill. The four of us had a final beer on board Muirgen, before we headed to bed, ready for our early start to Cartagena tomorrow. It was calm again, overnight.