Kissing Confusion

When you greet someone in Canada you may wave, shake hands, or maybe even a short hug. International greeting is a little different, especially here on the island where there are over 114 recognized nationalities.

Options:

1. Hug then single kiss on the cheek

2. Hug then kiss on each cheek

3. Hug then three alternating cheek kisses

Now here's the problem...everyone does something different and if you do the wrong one it can get awkward and sometimes even insulting. The Dutch do three kisses, the French and many other Europeans do two, and the Latin's do one.

So say you try for three kisses when you were meant only to do one, or maybe stop at two when you were supposed to do three. Then you have the locals who do whatever they feel like. You see how this kind of confusion occurs?

My recommendation? Sorry, I don't have one!!

Recent Pictures

Gotta love waking up to this.

Me n my Cuda.

Kelley Mae and I on a random island we found.

Back to Bequia

We are now in one of my favorite places in the Caribbean, Bequia. I first came here on Argo in 2010 and immediately fell in love with it. It is tiny, roughly seven square miles with a population of about 4000. It is part of an old whaling community that is still apparent through the whalebone necklaces, knives, and other assorted jewelry scattered among the few shops that line the main street.

It is always nice to come back to places. To see the familiar streets (or street, singular, in Bequia’s case), restaurants, and fruit stands. Last night we went to a bar called Beige, named after its owner. It is small and local but before long Beige was dancing right alongside the “gringos” and everyone having a good time.

Today I am looking forward to having pizza from the shack (the best in the whole world!), adventuring over to the other side of the island to visit the turtle rescue center, and checking out my favorite fruit stands. It’s good to be back!

Life As I Know It

Today was as incredible as any other but it was very special in the fact that I had a realization. Let me give you the background before I give you my recognition. We were on the way back from exploring up in the hills; we hiked up to a small waterfall and spent the better part of the day chilling (or as the locals say, “liming”) there in the refreshing cool of the jungle. On our way back we began sampling all sorts of fruits growing on the side of the road. It all started with Kelley Mae holding down a branch of an orange tree as I leapt off a small incline attempting to snatch two of the oranges. We eventually succeeded just as an elderly couple passed us with comments of the “crazy gringos” (foreigners). We then proceeded to taste a wide selection of guava, coconut, juplones, and bananas.

There I was: walking between my two best friends, fruit juice dripping through my hands, rinds, peels, and seeds scattered among our footsteps, gazing out over the bluest of waters under a cloudless sky when I realized….

I could be sitting in an office. HA!

Life, is good J

Living Off Sunshine

Once again I find myself in a living dream. I awake each morning to blazing sunshine and first thing is a dip in the ocean blue. We spend our days free diving, surfing, spearfishing, playing guitar on the beach, fishing, or making friends with the local Rastas. We have discovered the local watering hole; Moon Over Water. It is the Rasta hangout on this part of the island, the place they converge at the end of the day to drink Shantees, play pool, and discus the surf waves.

Yesterday we sailed the boat to Blue Bay for the Blue Food Festival, an annual celebration for the food and culture of Tobago. On our way there we could clearly see the paradise we are in: warm clear blue waters, lush jungles filled with waterfalls, parrots, and coconuts. We are currently in Pirates Cove near a town called Charlottesville and will be provisioning here for our next big sail.

Buying provisions for us means bread, eggs, butter, maybe a few vegetables, and coffee. Other then that:

“We collect fruit off the trees

And fish from the seas

No one having any big needs

We live off the sunshine”

Travel Bug and Cold Allergies

I have made a very important self-diagnosis; I have been afflicted with a severe case of the travel bug and have recently discovered I have a grim allergy to the cold. No jokes. This is extremely serious.

I am once again on the move after a short visit in Canada and the US of A. Currently I’m making the twenty five hour journey to Tobago (via Dallas, a nine hour overnight stint in Miami, Trinidad then a

puddle hop flight to my final destination).

Once in Tobago I will be joining the small mono haul sailing vessel Sparrow. Myself, the Captain and owner, Alex, along with two of my other best amigas (Kelley Mae and Kiki) from St. Maarten will be crewing Sparrow up to St. Maarten. It is expected to take roughly a month with the hopeful arrival date being the beginning of November.

The plan is to surf, sail, and sun ourselves up through this lower region of the Caribbean, island hoping along the way. None of us have copious amounts of cash lying around this year, unfortunately, so we will mainly be fishing and ricing for the next month which is exactly what the doctor would order for my poor stomach after the rich western food I have been inhaling since short spurt back in Canada.

After my arrival in St. Maarten I will be there for another season working at Ocean Explorers, enjoying full moons on the beach, and adventuring with my Maartian Monsters. Life is sounding pretty damn good right now!

Also, I would like to mention at this point a couple of thing:

1) the high in Calgary tomorrow is 7.

2) the high in Tobago tomorrow is 35.

3) I went through the airport today wearing a long sleeve t-shirt, hoodie, leather coat, jeans, and boots. I look ridiculous.

4) Tomorrow my surf board is waiting for me for a sunset surf when I get off the plane.

I am so happy I am finally going to be warm I can barely contain myself in the airplane seat J

Watch out Caribbean, here I come!

Gypsy Cat Stops

Even though this is a fun sail it is still a delivery and as such we have been forced move every day or so and as a result we have visited many islands in only a short amount of time. We have been to: St. Barths (Antilles), Virgin Gorda, Ginger Island, Norman Island, Cooper Island, Tortola, Salt Island (all British Virgin Islands), St. John, St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands), Culebrita, Culebra, Fajardo, Salina, Mona Island (all Puerto Rican Islands), Samana, Luperon, Santo Domingo (Republico de Dominicana), Santiago, Holguen, Havana (Cuba), Grand Inagua, Little and Great Exuma, Barracouta Rock, Staniel Cay, Waderlick Wells Cay, Allens Cay, Highbourne Cay, Nassau, Freeport (Bahamas, We are now is Beaufort (USA) and next stop Annapolis!

A Boat is a Boat After All

Sailing can be the most relaxing, even boring sometimes, thing one can do. Under bright blue skies, calm seas, and beautiful beaches flashing by one can easily adapt to this lazy freedom. However, one must remember that “a boat is a boat after all” and all this can be taken away in a mere instant.

On our crossing from Samana to Luperon we had one of those moments that reminds of just how quickly things can happen. The sky was a moldy grey colour with lightning off in the distance but we figured we would make a run for it. Our “run” ended up consisting of us on a tricky tack heading straight for the rocky coast. No problem, we’ll switch on the motor and make a quick jibe out of the danger zone. That was the plan, before the engine failed. Okay, Plan B. Let’s roll out the headsail and use that for some extra speed so maybe we wont have to jibe over at all. At least, that was the plan until we heard a giant ccCCRrrrACCCKKKKK!!!! That crack was the headsail splitting straight down the center, completely destroyed. During all this we began taking on copious amounts of water in both hulls. Eeeerrr…I think it’s time to turn back. We made a hasty retreat and spent the night switching sails, pumping out the bilges, and tinkering with the engine. So much for clear sky and calm seas!

Dominoes

I have been adopted! There is a group of old senors who sit along the pier in Samana all day every day, play dominoes, and drink Bohemias. One evening I was walking past and said my usual “Buenos Senors” when one called out. Soon enough I was sitting in among these old men; the men who had seen the road through their town be built, the men who had witnessed the developments as the “white man” came to bask in the “Bonita de la Republic de Dominicana”.

And so I found myself on a Friday night in the D.R. slamming down domino pieces as I tried my best to understand their rapid fire Spanish banter. “Lo siento senor pero es possible tu hables mas despasio porfavour!” was said more then a few times.

Back of a Bike

We are now in what is easily my favorite stop on the trip so far, Repulico de Dominicana (D.R.)! Customs was an excruciating procedure but we are finally cleared in. Today it was my job to go and get propane for the boat and I have never had so much fun with such a “simple” task.

Going to get propane goes something like this. Dingy over from the boat and lock up at the dock. Walk maybe 50ft before twenty different guys each rush me wanting to take me for propane. After wading through the crowd of adoring men “Mamasita I am best!” “Baby I take you!” “Mi amor tu es muy bonita!!” “Me me me!!!” I finally make it through to where the transportation is. Transportation consists of motorbikes, or motorbikes with carts on the back, very, very few are actual car taxis. I tend to pick the person with the fastest bike J

I hop on the back of the chosen bike, whose owner is beaming ear to ear that he is the one to take me, and try to familiarize myself with how to hold on before he races off . Bracing myself with one hand and holding on to the propane bottle with the other can sometimes be a bit interesting seeing as the motorbikes are all small and ancient but pushed to the maximum speeds every day. The world whips past me in a blur as I am raced through the streets dodging cars, people, dogs, and other bikes. Just as I am considering freeing a hand to wipe my eyes we arrive at the station. Because I am young, white, and female we wait only a few minutes before my tank is filled and we are once again on our way. The trip back however is much more interesting. I am now holding on my lap a considerably awkward, heavy tank and we are now RACING down the hill that before we had struggled to come up. Hair flying in every direction and holding on so tight my fingers are turning white I look up in time to see us squeeze down the middle line on the road between a large truckload of workers (whose hoots and hollers I can only briefly hear) and a large bus full of tourists.

“Only in the D.R.” has become a familiar saying on our boat.

Swim with Manatees? Yes please!

We are now in beautiful Puerto Rico after bouncing around a few of the surrounding islands including Culebrita and Culebra. We also managed to go to Salinas, a small island just outside of Fajardo (on the mainland), where I was put up the mast. At forty five feet above the deck, sitting in the “bosons chair” which is clipped in to the main halyard, it was my job to fix a line. Simple task turned extremely hard with winds that, on deck felt like a slight breeze, up top felt like a howling wind that shook the mast, and me, with each breath. I eventually succeeded and it was time to focus on my next task, scouring the waters for manatees! Unfortunately, I didn’t see any while up the mast (or maybe that’s a good thing, I probably would have been way too excited for it to be safe), but as soon as we were anchored we took off in the tender in search of them. We managed to find several groups and were able to go for small swims with some. The water was incredibly murky and they move very quickly for such lazy animals so it was a little difficult but also very rewarding.

Diving in the BVI's

We have been able to do two dives so far. One was Alice in Wonderland, a fifty five foot dive of the coast of Cooper Island. The other was the RMS Ruin, a 200 year old, 150ft ship lost by Salt Island. It was a double tank dive (90ft and 60ft) that allowed us to explore the two main parts of the ship. My Captain, Chris, is the only one on our vessel who is certified which ended up working out perfectly because he only has two sets of equipment. We have been snorkeling every day and I have since been able to get over my “scuba snob” status as I have been practicing freediving. We are hoping to catch lots of fish and lobster this trip so freediving has become essential.

A Pirate I Shall Be

Ever since I was little, as all my family and long time friends will attest to, I’ve wanted to be a pirate. I have dressed up as a pirate every second Halloween for as long as I can remember. On a trip to Disney World I went in to a gift shop, after having saved all my birthday and Christmas money, where a salesman tried his very best to sell me some princess something or other. Of course, I gave him a steely gaze and set out for the pirate section where I proceeded to purchase a very formidable skull piggy bank and a wooden shot gun. I have various eye patches from different years piled up in my basement along with a large collection of swords my father patiently made out of wood for me. I can make the freshest of bruises and cuts appear out of makeup in only a few minutes. My childhood heroines were Anne Bonney and Mary Reed, the two most famous (and ferocious) women pirates in history, who crewed on Captain Jack Rackhams sloop Vanity. I can remember whispering the lyrics of “Dead Man’s Chest” and other pirate ballads to my horse, Sassifrass, as I rode her on the “wild open ocean” of the fields behind my house.

And now, sixteen years after my fantasy began, I am sailing the very same waters the pirates I had idolized passed through. We sailed the Sir Francis Drake Channel passing by famous pirate spots such as Blonde Rock, The Bluff, Buck Island and Dead Mans Chest (the island made famous by the pirate ballad “Fifeteen men on a dead mans chest, yo ho ho and a bottle of rum”). We spent the afternoon snorkeling a pitch black cave where hundreds of pirates attempted to steal the gold and jewels allegedly hidden inside.

That evening we made our way to Tortola (a pirate central according to Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean) where my day of exploring pirate waters came to a close.

If I don’t make it home it’s most likely because I ran away to be a pirate J

Lighthouse off the Puerto Rican Coast

Perfect Day

Start off with a snorkel among the colorful corrals off the coast of one of the British Virgin Islands. Climb out of the water with fins and mask to explore caves and hidden bridges then race a stingray back to the boat. Sail out of the perfectly clear, flat waters of the cove and round the island heading off to scuba dive an old 380ft ship, the HMS Rhone. After this amazing two-tank dive take the same path thousands of pirates hundreds of years before your took. Then sail to a secluded island with white sand beaches stretching as far as the eye can see. Hike up to an old lighthouse only to race your way down to the waters edge and splash happily as the perfect temperature of the water cools your body. Spend the rest of the afternoon alternately fishing and climbing coconut trees. Feast your evening away on fresh fish, rice, coconuts and mangoes. Crawl in to bed thoroughly tired and fall asleep to the sound of the waves lapping the hull of your home.

Light Up The Night

We left St. Barths early evening heading off to the BVI’s. There were a few dark clouds on the horizon but nothing that looked too terrible. Four hours later we were passing St. Maarten and I got a call from Alex saying there was bad weather on the way. We assessed the situation and figured we would be able to outrun the storm, if not we would be stuck going back to St. Maarten for two or three days to wait it out. It would be an overnight sail so we split up the watches from 9-12, 12-3, 3-6. I went to sleep around 12:30 hoping to catch a few hours of shut eye until my next watch started at 3am, I got just over an hour before the storm hit us.

Just before 2am I awoke to an earsplitting bang. My first thought was that our mast, or some other piece of my new home, had come crashing down. I held my breath until my ears were no longer ringing and slowly, slowly I began to hear sheets of rain pouring on to our tiny deck. The next thing I knew, the whole boat was lit up as if someone had turned on a floodlight off a movie set. My eyes, similar to what my ears had just experienced, took a few moments to adjust past the sparks of light that played along the lines of my vision and only seconds later I again heard the crash of thunder.

Still in shorts and a tank top, I bolted from my bunk to run outside only to make a hasty retreat from the now pouring rain. After grabbing my rain jacket I crept, though this time much more cautiously, out of the dryness of the interior. I was astounded by what I saw. The seas were no more rough then usual and there was little wind but this time instead of the stars I was used to seeing when I gazed upwards past our sails, I could see only an angry black sky opening only to let buckets of rain empty through. Within moments of taking in the light show that now played out before me I was soaked to the skin. Chris, my Captain, and I watched as lightning struck over and over again. It was the most spectacular and frightening thing I have seen in a long time.

Around three the strikes increased in urgency until they were hitting between twenty and thirty times a minute. We had managed to surround ourselves completely; every direction I looked there was flashes of light closely followed by earsplitting thunder. The closest strike happened in that hour, only one and a half boat lengths (about 50ft) away. It was at that point that Chris

and I accepted we would be hit, that all of our electronics would be fried in a split second, roughly $15 000 worth of damage. We stayed well clear of any metal.

Our biggest problem was there was only a slight down wind so we were making only 1.5 or, sometimes if we were lucky, 2 knots. As a result. we decided to start the engine because we were basically a bobbing cork that was floating in small circles. At least with the engine we were able to keep moving forward.

Unbelievably, Gypsy Cat survived. The storm lasted about six hours and at her worst were strikes of 40 per minute. It was a humbling experience and I was reminded of mother natures power and the raw energy she wields.

Jana on St. Barths

Our first stop on the trip was St. Barths, a French island only a few miles from St. Maarten. It was a good primary place for a number of reasons but the largest being its close proximity. It was a decent enough distance that it would take a few hours, four was

what it ended up being because of a lack of steady wind, giving everyone time to find their sea legs and get adjusted to the boat. Martin and Marketa left Czech around six months ago and have been traveling in France and then, more recently, the Caribbean. Their English is still very much a work in progress so for ease of communications and speed we made a subtle arrangement that they would be doing more of the interior work (cooking etc.) while Chris and I would be doing most of the sailing. As such, the sail to St. Barths gave me an opportunity to learn about Gypsy Cat and how she sails.

Shorty after we arrived and cleared customs we went to the place Jimmy Buffet famously sings about in his song “Cheese Burgers in Paradis” although if I am to be truthful, they weren’t all that wonderful. St. Barths is one of the most expensive islands in the Caribbean, the cheeseburgers were seven euro each and a soda four euro!

While we were eating we bumped in to one of Chris’s friends who he hadn’t seen in about two years. Jana works and lives on St. Barths year round and she opened up her heart and home for us. The following day when we arrived on shore

she was waiting for us in her Jeep to take us to her home. She lives in a private villa outside of town complete with a backyard

and swimming pool. She made an exquisite breakfast with fresh baguettes, special French cheeses, homemade jams, tea, coffee, and fresh orange juice. We spent a large portion of the day their relaxing and splashing in the pool. And of course, me being me, I fell in love with the cat who has adopted them. Jana’s parting gift to us was a leather bracelet for each of us made in front of our eyes.

I am always astounded by the generosity I have found while traveling. When I talked with Jana about it she brushed my thanks off by saying “When I start traveling again I am hoping others will treat me the way I have treated travelers.” She deserves all this and much more!

New Adventure

At 33ft long Gypsy Cat is a sailing catamaran perfect for the Caribbean. She is captained by Chris, one of the sailors who spends high season in St. Maarten. I have known Chris for most of the season and when my friend Tess told me about his upcoming delivery to the US it seemed like a perfect plan. In the days following turning down the job on the Mega Yacht I had no idea what I was going to do but one evening at Open Mic Night at Lagoonies, a local bar where many of the sailors hang out, I learned Chris would be delivering his catamaran up to Annapolis, Maryland. Tess was going to accompany him as well but in true Caribbean style plans change and she accepted another job.

So now I am officially First Mate on Gypsy Cat! Chris is our Captain and we have two Czech people with us as well, Martin and Marketa. The trip is expected to last around six weeks, the rough plan being to sail from St. Maarten to St. Barths, the British Virgin Islands, the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Bahamas, then Maryland. What I am extremely excited about with this trip is that it will very much be a “Hey that island looks cool, lets go check it out!” or “The surfing and diving here is awesome, we should stay a few more days!” So, even though six weeks is our guessing point who knows how long it will be! Based on weather and adventure!

So this Saturday afternoon I will say goodbye to the island that has been my home for over a year. I must say I am definitely going to miss it! It has become my home and community. Many of the people here have become like a family to me. I have met the largest mix of people on this island; the strangest, most intelligent, most eccentric people I have in my life. But on to a new adventure for the summer and I will be back in the fall.

New Home :)

Gypsy Cat.

A New Chapter is Opened

I have been living and working on St. Maarten now for just over a year. Coming back in to low season was hard, almost all of my friends that I had made during high season left as their yachts make their journey across the ocean over to the Mediterranean (which is now in full swing of high season). The island is now taking a much needed breather from the chaos of the last six months. As things began to slow i began to think about my options. I love diving and everything that surrounds it but after a year I am beginning to get tired, not of diving but of the tourists. I have learned that common sense is not very common at all! Diving is my passion but by the end I really did feel like I was going to work, something that I never wanted to happen. So I have decided to take a break from diving, and from my island, for the summer.

My first thought was to turn to yachting, after all, most of my friends from this last season were "yachties". That was a plan short lived. I got an offer on a 156ft yacht that is heading down to Venezuela for hurricane season. It seemed like the perfect option! Starting salary $3000 a month, free room and board, free food etc etc. It was exceptionally good because they were willing to hire me with no experience and no STCW (a course that is mandatory in most of the yachting world). My job title: Stewardess. I was extremely excited about the opportunity and planned to do that for three months then travel. It was a wonderful plan, an incredible opportunity...that all came to a screeching halt at the end of my first day. I have always said that I could do anything for a year, I have recently been humbled and am now enjoying a delicious meal of my own words. I have to say I have a huge amount of respect for the work that a Stew does. Basically I was asked to clean the shower every time after it is used, toilettes three times a day, when serving a meal never look them in the eye, new toothbrush every day, if they try on five shirts and choose one rewash the other four and reiron them, iron boxers and swim shorts, don't speak unless spoken to etc etc etc. On my first day they had me polish a brass bowl for four hours with special rags and earbuds, turns out that bowl was for fruit in the CREW quarters. If you know me, even a little, you will be able to understand how I turned the job down. I was almost in tears at the end of the day realizing that I was going to be paid $3000 a month to kiss rich peoples asses and be a slave. Thanks, but no thanks.

By this time I felt I was running out of options. I no longer had my house on the beach so pretty much was couch surfing through whoever was still on island. I had quit my job and so no longer was making money so couldn't reason renting a new house. I had no plan, little money, no place to stay, and no job. And that was when Gypsy Cat found me...

seeing orange

about a month ago a good friend of mine, manon, flew me to holland. i was there for two weeks and had a wonderful time. manon is originally from holland but works on a mega yacht that during the summer is based out of st. maarten (hence how we met). her family is in lieden which is where we stayed for most of the time.

she toured me around on her scooter and we visited many of liedens historical places. it is a beautiful place.

after the first few days we took the train to amsterdam and stayed in a small hostel just off the main area. we were there for queens day and i have never seen so much orange!!! everyone had something orange on. it was a bit overwhelming going from my small caribbean island to a big city with SO many people (over 300 000 appeared in one square over the course of the day). there were times when i could hardly walk!! but the music was great and it was definitely a fun atmosphere to have experienced.

after the queens day weekend we toured around doing lots of different things. beaches (which were FREEZING), going to different festivals, and trying every kind of dutch food manon could think of to give me.

just before i left i was able to travel inland and up to the west end of holland to visit my friend yasmin. we met in st. maarten and had a lot of fun together, i was very said when she moved to holland so it was wonderful to have the opportunity to go and see

her. it was just like when she was in st. maarten, lots of laughter and silly pictures. we rode her bicycles everywhere and did lots of exploring. shes now living in a very small town so it was really nice to get out of the city and away from so many people.

overall an amazing trip and a nice chance to get off the island for a little while. it was strange to be back in "reality" and having everything running smoothly and working well. lots of fun, freezing cold (even though everone else was in shorts), good food, and good times!