George Town BG (Before Guests); March 6-9:

It was nice to wake up and tune into "the net" at anchorage the first morning in Elizabeth Harbour. We're anchored off of Sand Dollar Beach with great holding. "The Net" is an information sharing service over the VHF radio managed by a volunteer cruiser. We all (300 give-or-take boats) tune into channel 72 at 8:00am after Chris Parker at 6:30(the weather guru who broadcasts on the Ham radio). This year, Herman from the sailing vessel White Wings is in charge. He does a great job. The information is divided into different sections including "today's activities", "activities in the near future", "local businesses", "weather", "boater's general", "shout outs" and "arrivals and departures". Different cruisers call out their boat name, Herman acknowledges them, and they share the information they have. I announced the arrival of Nancy Lu! I also heard about the cruiser's arts and crafts show to take place at 10:00am that morning on Volleyball Beach.



I thought about the plaques that I had made with sea treasures for Nancy Lu, but had not yet hung...why not!? It's always fun to participate! That morning I was happy to see A.J. still making conch salad at the conch salad bar! I knew he'd be there since I keep up with him on facebook. We met a nice couple from Texas and visited for a while. We couldn't linger too long because we had so much to do to get ready for ClAiRe, KaY and KeNnY! First on the agenda was laundry. We had heard on "the net" about a laundromat about 2 miles from downtown George Town--Baranki Wash. The owner offered a free ride and free internet while you wash and dry your clothes. That sounded good to us so that's where we headed after lunch...as soon as I hung my art work on Nancy Lu!

The next day, Mark spent most of the day in town running some errands and using the internet to take care of some business including posting blog entries. One of our favorite places to use the internet is Pet's Place, a restaurant that offers free, fast WiFi. He made a hair appointment for the two of us. While he was gone, I practiced guitar for the first time since we boarded Nancy Lu. I made ClAiRe'S and KaY's beds...ExCiTeMeNt for their visit mounting!

The day before the BiG DaY, Mark and I dinghied across the harbor (1½ miles) to our hair appointments.



Mark went first. We had a yummy cheeseburger at Pet's Place, checked email, and then did grocery shopping in preparation for OuR GuEsTs!!

On ThE bIg DaY, we woke up early and dinghied over to George Town to catch the bus tour to a few historical spots and have dinner and fun at Exuma Point before OuR GuEsTs ArRiVeD!! We had signed up for this excursion on "The Net". It was a good way to pass the time as the ExCiTeMeNt over OuR ViSiToRs grew.



I had wanted to see more of the island since we were here last year! The food was DELICIOUS--the best I've had of authentic Bahamian cuisine! We met another nice couple over lunch.



It was a pleasant day especially with what we had to look forward to--OuR GuEsTs!! When we got back to George Town, I did a little last minute grocery shopping and we dinghied out to Nancy Lu.



BeFoRe We KnEw It, the water taxi that we had arranged for ClAiRe, KaY and KeNnY arrived!!! It was so great to finally see them! That night, after some tuna salad polynesian, we had hot tea and did some stargazing. It was a great week for stargazing since there was no moon.



It was a good feeling to be at the very beginning of a full week with our daughter and friends!!

There are many more photos with captions in the photo gallery under the title "George Town"