We hung up our wet gear and went out for coffee and to buy provisions. We had lunch on board and hunkered down for the afternoon, listening to the rugby, as the rain continued. There were occasional dry spells but not much sunshine. At around 6pm, we were able to connect to shore power. We went ashore to shower, now that we had access to the marina facilities and I was surprised to have warm water. After a quick drink in the bar, waiting for a downpour to end, we returned to the boat to find that the power had gone off again. We were back to using the Luci light (inflatable, solar light) in the saloon, to save the batteries. We didn't have a bad night's sleep, despite the heavy rain, mosquitos and the fenders squeaking as they rubbed on the pontoon. Early morning, we heard a thud, as the side of the boat hit the wooden edge of the pontoon. The fenders had moved along the rails, due to the constant rolling, leaving the widest part of the boat exposed.
We headed to the bar for coffee but it was closed. As the WiFi was on, we stayed to take advantage of that and ended up stuck there for three hours, when a violent thunder storm hit, bringing with it torrential rain. The rain was cascading off the roof like a waterfall. We stayed put for lunch. There's no official dockmaster at the marina on Sundays but Pete collared one of the marinaras, who agreed to let us move to an inside berth which was now available. The Polish-flagged boat next door had a young German couple on board with their young daughter and two cats. They explained that many Germans register their boats in Poland as it's much cheaper. One of the cats, Minerva, gets on and off the boat and goes for walks around the marina. The other one stays aboard at all times. Before long, the power came back on. At twilight, we were chatting to Fabia, next door and we were bitten to death by mosquitos. We fitted the mosquito nets to the hatches, sprayed, lit a lavender incense stick, plugged in the mosquito repeller and turned the fans on, which we could now use with the shore power. We had dinner on board and played Backgammon for the first time in a while. I am easily winning this season's tournament, so Pete is not enjoying playing. There was another storm, with lots of thunder and lightning but no rain here. We had a fantastic night's sleep, with airflow, no rain and no rocking. I feared I would fall out of my bunk due to the lack of motion.
Now that we were in the marina, we could set to doing the maintenance jobs which cannot safely be completed at anchor. Today's mission was to change the motor in the anchor windlass and see whether we could turn the gypsy round, as the teeth have worn away on one side. The motor was changed without issue but Pete couldn't get the gypsy off the windlass. He had removed the woodruf keys but there appeared to be burrs holding the gypsy in place. Our neighbour lent us a bearing puller but it wasn't quite big enough, so Pete headed out into the boatyard to find someone with a larger one. With the right sized tool, the gypsy came off but unfortunately the plate on the outside was bigger than the one on the inside, so it couldn't be turned around. With the windlass in one piece again, Pete refitted it in the anchor locker, we tested it and it was working. The old motor, which had been repaired last season, went in the spares box. The work deserved a beer, so we went to Nancy's at the Blue House, on the far side of the marina grounds. Back on board, we measured our cabinet to see whether the new batteries would fit or whether we would need to add a platform for them to sit on. We were pleased to find that the batteries would fit nicely, without any work. We had another great night's sleep, with no rain.
On the 15th April, our cruising permit arrived. It had taken 35 days, way longer than the 20 days we were told. We were now legal in Panama, although it seems the only people who ever want to see the permit is the marina office staff. Today's job was to remove the heat exchanger, on the engine, to check for debris. Pete pumped the antifreeze out into a 3 litre coke bottle, then, having closed the engine seacock, removed the cover on the impeller, to drain the sea water, via the impeller, into a bowl. Despite the bowl, the bilge ended up full of dirty, brown water. Next, Pete disconnected the water inlet pipe. There was so much calcification that the pipe and therefore the water flow, was restricted to less than a centimetre. The end of the heat exchanged was also covered in calciferous material and shredded weed. It was no winder that the engine was overheating. I suggested that we soak the pipe in white vinegar, to dissolve the limescale, or whatever the chalky deposit was. To remove the heat exchanged, Pete had to move the alternator and the fan belt. Because they build the engine, then spray paint it red, all the nuts and bolts are covered in paint, making it difficult to undo them, so it was a beggar of a job getting the nuts on the alternator undone. This end of the heat exchanger was also covered in the calciferous deposit. I went to Charlie's to buy more white vinegar to fill another coke bottle, so we could stand the heat exchanger in it. As well as soaking everything, I used an old toothbrush to clean everything. Pete also wanted to change the pencil anode on the engine but the used one was well and truly stuck, so he went in search of a workshop with a vice and plenty of wrenches. By the time he returned, everything was clean and ready to go back onto the engine. We put everything back together, opened the seacock and started the engine. It sounded much better but there was a leak from the front of the heat exchanger. Pete drained the antifreeze again and the seawater again and moved the alternator, which was much easier this time and took the cap off the heat exchanger. The o-ring, which looked specially designed for here, with a ridge on each side, was not sealing effectively. Pete tried again but we had another, bigger leak. Everything was drained and taken apart again. This time, we decided to use an ordinary o-ring, both having come to the conclusion that the old one had started life ordinary and had been compressed to form the ridges. Third time lucky, there were no leaks. I then had the wonderful job of emptying and cleaning all the bilges. It was disgusting but they looked great by the time I had finished and I managed not to break any fingernails. We would be able to see next morning whether there had been any slow leaks. We went for a shower and then to the bar for a well deserved drink. Tom arrived and was planning to eat, so we stayed for tea too. There was only a choice of ribeye steak or a burger. I chose the latter and the guys had steak and I think I won, as the steak was small, thin and overcooked. The burger and fries were at least edible. We slept well again, pleased with our work that day.
The next morning, we treated ourselves to breakfast at Karla's Fruit. Pete loves the banana smoothie. I like the omelette, the ham and cheese toastie and the fresh fruit bowl, so alternate between the three. Back on board, we back-flushed the watermaker, necessary because we weren't making water in the marina and checked the bilges, which were nice and dry. Pete replaced the alternator and the fan belt and started the engine, which was running sweetly. We could see water flowing freely through all the transparent pipes and there were no further leaks. I spent the rest of the day catching up on writing the blog. Pete went to see Luis, as recommended by Alex, about modifying our A-frame to take an extra solar panel. Luis asked him to return at 6pm. We were having a drink in the bar and were joined by Alex, from the marine shop (Sudinapa), so Pete missed his rendezvous with Luis. We returned to the boat and Pete was asleep by 7.30pm. Our critical jobs were complete.