2009/02/09

2009.02.05

Thursday 5th February 2009 
 Well it’s a few days since we last wrote anything and since today is freezing for this part of the world and we are inside, bundled up in jeans , turtle necks, and , in Catherine’s case, even socks it seems like a good day to bring you all up to date. Not that there has really been an awful lot happening here. We have walked and worked and then walked some more. Sunday 8th February 2009 Gee !!! I didn’t get very far with that one did I? The weather has been very poor over the past week and quite cold, no, very cold for this part of the Bahamas low fifties in the morning and only up to the upper fifties by Noon. Lots of cloud and little sunshine until today . Now I know that we should not be complaining when our nearest and dearest are mainly in Canada and (latterly the U K) and would probably consider our weather as a heat wave but still……….!!! We have had to break out our alcohol heater and have been wearing jeans for the past three days…. Catherine has even succumbed to wearing a pair of my socks. I haven’t gone quite that far. Perhaps all this cool weather is preparing me for my trip to Montreal on the 17th February. This is a trip that I am not willingly taking, but feel that I must in order to sort out a few things. I am going to be away from the boat (and Catherine) for four sleeps and there has been much discussion as to where she would prefer the boat….. should it remain on our mooring here in Hope Town or will she feel more comfortable at a dock in Marsh Harbour. I have told her it is her decision and she needs to tell me in time to move the boat if she wants to be in Marsh Harbour. So far no decision… stay tuned !! On the one hand, here in Hope Town she has a good support system with friends etc but she has to get herself around the harbour in the dinghy. The electricity must be monitored, generator started as necessary etc etc In Marsh Harbour she has no dinghy to worry about , electricity by the kilowatt, fresh water plus shops etc, but knows few people, although hopefully Mary Helen and ‘Gone Away’ would be there. Decisions, decisions!! I shall be away from the 17th afternoon to the 21st afternoon and shall fly Marsh Harbour to Fort Lauderdale by Twin Air Calypso and the Air Canada from Fort Lauderdale to Montreal, reversing the process on the 21st. Should be easy as I will not have any baggage to check but am intent on just travelling with a small back pack. Whilst there I shall hope to have a Dell techie repair Catherine’s computer which has been a paper weight since Christmas Day and will also try to get her pair of Maui Jim sunglasses repaired. The sea air rotted one of the arms which broke. Yesterday. we, David and Hannya from “Dovolena” went the Harbour Lodge for lunch as they were having a Louisiana shrimp and crawfish special. Delicious it was too washed down with a couple of Kalik beers !!! There was entertainment too in the form of the ever popular Brown Tip doing Rake and Scrape. Brown tip, for those of you who have followed the blog over past years is the man who scrubs our bottom for us once a season and replaces the zincs on the propeller and shaft. There are pictures of him here last year. He is also an accomplished performer singing, dancing (and boy does he have some moves) and playing a number of different saws, he bangs them and runs something like a plug up and down the teeth, hence the “rake and scrape” .
Catherine, despite having some back pain, has been busy making delicious bread and more recently about eight or ten jars of sour orange marmalade once again, and wonderful it is too! Had some on home made bread toasted for breakfast this morning… now if we could just grow our own tea and maybe churn our own butter we could be quite self sufficient at least for breakfast !! I think that supper is just about ready….. prosciutto e melone with home made bread and an Arugala salad grown locally here in Hope Town, can’t be bad can it? Bibi.
We are now at "The Edge" where D&D do their worse over a cup of soso coffee but excellent wifi!
In an effort to try to "live off the land" since we are not fishing and therefore not living off the sea we are doing different things such as picking coconuts....after we devoured the "killer" that tried to do me in but tasted delicious, we have picked another one which the skipper has attacked and low and behold came another sweet little face, but I was not allowed to keep a little brother for my "petit mousse" so we are eating it!
Deborah, this one is for you...
You always ask "where are the people?" when we post pictures of those deserted beaches...well I don't know but here are their foot prints!
Maybe they are ghosts!!!!