From Providencia

Just a quick update since the internet here is painfully slow. We´ve been in here an hour trying to upload some pictures that aren´t worth it I don´t think! We had a nice trip here. It took us about 30 hours and except for getting around the tip of Nicaragua, it was a fine passage. We love the way our boat sails and how comfortably it carries us from place to place.

We like Providencia. The landscape is strinkingly beautiful, the people are friendly and they have a beautiful park on a adjacent island with a cute walkway and trail that leads out to a point called Morgan´s Head. The first day we were here we walked the trail, then yesterday we took a 3 1-2 hour snorkel along that same side of the island which was really fun. We saw an octopus living in a conch shell, an eel out swimming around hunting with 2 fish following along hoping for scraps and 3 lettuce sea slugs which are beautiful. The name doesn´t do them justice.

Providencia is also home to a stunningly blue lizard that we saw on one of our walks. We hope to get a good picture of one. This will be a great island to bike on so we plan to do that and tomorrow we´re taking a hike with another couple to the highest peak here called Pico. Today we´re walking to the other side where there´s another park that we´ve heard good things about.... if we ever get out of this internet place.

I meant to mention that when we were sailing to the Hobbies, we had the new fishing pole that Chickcharnie gave us out along with our hand line and we actually caught 2 barracuda. We let one go and kept one which we ate with some reservation about ciguatera but it was fine. We made ceviche, grilled it, made fish sandwiches and we´ve still got more left. Rosie also taught me how to make a curry, and we made that one night with some lobster and conch and it was SO good!

Well, that´s what we´re doing lately. We plan to spend a few more days here and then head to San Andres, another Columbian island 50 miles South of here for a quick stop to refuel and reprovision and then on to the San Blas Islands. The season is moving briskly so we need to also.