Holiday Season.....2009

What a rough year it has been with the economy.   We have all been touched.   But, we do have so much to be thankful for.   

May this holiday season be one that you truly enjoy the real meaning without the hustle and bustle.

 

Today Sonny and Richard (S/V Tisha Baby) tried to troubleshoot our SSB radio problems.  We will need more time...it is not resolved yet.

About 3 p.m. Aaron and Lyla (S/V Blow Me Away) arrived in the anchorage from San Blas.   It is always so good to see them.   We have shared many anchorages and memories together in many different places along the way.

This morning we woke up at 4:30 a.m. to prepare Valentina and wait for the water taxi.  We are going into Cartagena, about 20 miles away, and leaving Valentina on anchor in Cholon while I (Kay) have cataract surgery on my left eye.

He picked us up at our boat at 5:30 a.m. and we arrived in Cartagena at 6:30, after a bumpy ride.  We went to our hotel to drop off a bag, then we walked over to Old Town to enjoy breakfast and the parks.

We arrived at the clinic at noon, as scheduled, to begin the preparation for the surgery.  At 2:20, I was in the surgical room and completed at 3:00. 

I was somewhat nervous during the surgery, because I was awake and could hear them talking, but could not understand all of their medical Spanish terms.  I remember myself nervously repeating several times during surgery....."Estas bien?"

The surgeon, who speaks limited English reassured me, "Yes, everything is perfectly fine".  Whew!

After the surgery was completed, they asked me to roll over to my left side.   They gave me a shot for pain for later.   It hurt worse than the surgery.

Our friend, Martha, was there with us and drove us to our hotel so I could rest.

After he took my patch off, I could immediately begin to see and focus.  It took my eyes a few hours to adjust but we are pretty excited.

We were invited over to our friends' home in Boca Grande to spend the night.  They are going to Cholon in their vehicle tomorrow and are taking us, so we do not have to ride the bumpy water taxi.

Sonny spent the 'whole' day chasing around, trying to get our check card to work.   We have to pay for my other eye surgery by tomorrow.  He called on Skype and the VISA representatives said, "no problems here" but the card still does not work...very frustrating.

After traveling down the bumpy road and along the sandy beach with a high tide, we all arrived at Cholon at dark.  The new road is being constructed, but it is a long ways from completion.

We had a potluck dinner on the Manatee at 3 p.m.  Sonny cooked corn-on-the-cob.  There was a good group of cruisers who attended the dinner.

I like that theory!  They place baby Jesus in the manger at Christmas.

We spent the morning with Gilberto, Martha, and Efrain swimming in the water, then after a siesta, we will return for paella dinner.

Martha greeted us on the dock placing lei's around our necks to begin the festivities.  DJ and Kate from S/V Hello World were also invited.

Efrain, Martha's father, was the paella chef for the evening.  The paella is such a production and work of art to create.   Efrain will be 85 years 'young' next month and is very much loved, respected, and cared for by his children. 

He used onions, carrots, peas, green peppers, lobster, shrimp, mussels, calamari, fish, octopus, crab, and rice for his paella.   It was delicious!

My full-time job lately is resting and putting drops in my eyes.  One eye, for after surgery precautions, and the other eye for pre-surgery preparation, I put drops in one or the other.....20 times a day.   But, it will be worth it. 

It took longer than anticipated for Sonny to get our account fixed, so he missed the returning launcha and bus to Baru.   Carmen gave him the number of a working supply boat that would leave Cartagena around 2 p.m. headed slowly to Baru, loaded down with cement, cement blocks, and lumber.

So, Sonny agreed.  It was a rough ride, as the boat was very long and narrow.  It first went to the Rosario islands and unloaded at several different stops, then finally on to Baru.

Sonny then got a motorcycle taxi to bring him down to Cholon, and then D.J. (S/V Hello World) brought him to Valentina from the dock.

Nothing is easy.

The 20 mile trip took him over five hours.  Upon arrival, he was very hungry and tired and I was sure glad to see him.

	At 5:30 a.m., Negro Zapata arrived at Valentina in his big launcha, loaded with people, to pick us up.  He had saved two seats, next to him, in the back, for a smoother ride for me.  He takes good care of us.

We arrived in Old Town and went to a restaurant for breakfast.  We were being brave and ordered something we did not know what it was on the menu.   The waitress mentioned the dish had potatoes and ribs.   Sounded good to us.

When she brought our breakfast, it was a bowl of soup with meat and potatoes.  Not quite what we expected, but tasty.

We walked around looking at Christmas decorations before we had to check in at noon at the clinic.

After all of the prep, and tons of drops in my eye, surgery was performed at 2:10 p.m.  No problems.  I was not quite as nervous this time as last week, because I knew more what to expect.   Yes, another shot in the hip.....afterwards.  Ouch!

Then, we were sent home with a patch on my eye to return tomorrow morning for evaluation and to remove the patch.

Dr. Gilberto and Martha had invited us to stay in their home after surgery to recuperate and then drive us to Cholon again on their way Friday.   They have been so gracious to us.   And, the hammock in their bedroom with the view of the bay has such healing powers.

I just rested today, while Sonny ran errands trying to get parts needed for more boat projects.

Their nephew, Romix, is visiting them from Spain, and he came with us to Cholon.  He is a very nice, 29 year old young man.

We all arrived at Cholon around dark, pretty tired.  It is always good to return to Valentina.

Cayeye   1)  Cut off the ends and place one slit down the middle of the very green bananas and boil until they turn dark 2)  Mash two hot bananas on your plate and spread with butter    3)  Add shredded cheese and chopped onions 4)  Add two soft fried eggs on top 5)  Mix well and enjoy!

Later, we all sat in the water and visited.   It is very relaxing....then, this afternoon, all the cruiser's met on Robert and Carmen's M/V Manatee for another delicious pot luck dinner.   I think it was the largest group we have had so far.

This morning, early, Sonny emptied the quarter berth so he and Richard (S/V TIsha Baby) could troubleshoot our SSB radio some more.  Whenever we talk on it....it cuts out and we are clipping.  After much trial and error, they determined it was not our grounding, connections, or tuner....it was our radio, itself.  Of course, the most expensive. But...

We are going to take it in to Sven, an electronic guru in Cartagena.  Hopefully, he can repair it.

I am just taking it easy these days.   No cooking (but I can put it all together), no swimming (but I can sit in the water), and no lifting (but, I can supervise... ☺).  I am trying to stay out of the sun and wind until my eyes heal.  My right eye is still some dilated, 4 days after surgery.   But, I am doing very good.  It is nice to be able to see again, without glasses.   ♥

On the 12th Day of Christmas, my Captain gave to me:

12    Ports a Leaking 11    Friends at Anchor 10     Overnighters   9    Sandy Beaches   8    Heads Not Flushing   7    Sailors Sailing   6    Knots of Current   5    Solar Panels   4    Country Flags   3    Bilge Pumps   2    Running Lights And....        A Motor for my Little Dinghy

After washing and storing away our produce, we went over to visit with D.J. and Kate.  They watched Valentina while we were gone, and also, Timbo spent the night in the cockpit for us.   This time of year, lots of thefts occur.

We sat in the cockpit tonight listening to Christmas carols and admiring our lights.   

It just does not take a whole lot to entertain us.

Just in time, the supplies just arrived.

The village is such a poor one, but there were Christmas decorations everywhere.  Some were as simple as plastic grocery bags tied to wire hanging over the streets. 

Smiles on faces and friendly people greeted us on every street.  Such a lesson for me.  Happiness truly is within you and shines to others around you.

 

A new boat, S/V Seraglio, arrived in the anchorage with two pirates still on board.   ARRGH!

We just sat on the deck tonight with our Christmas lights on around us.  It is nice.

I was a nice calm trip going, but on our return, we were going into the wind and waves.   It was nice to return to the calm refuge of the Bay of Cholon.

George, Melinda, and Josh on S/V Southern Bell invited the anchorage to their catamaran for milk punch and Christmas carols.  It was so much fun.   George played the guitar and Sonny played the harmonicas and we all sang carols.

We made two pecan pies for Christmas dinner tomorrow; two batches of Jeanie's no-bake cookies to give to our local friends; and a pot of chicken soup.

We saw and talked to four of our kids and families, who gathered together for Christmas Eve festivities.  How cool is Skype?  It was so special to be able to see them and talk to them.  It helps being so far away...a little easier.

As the sun began to set, we turned on our battery zapping Christmas lights on Valentina.   It pulls 29 amps....ouch.....we will need sun tomorrow!

We heard a loud bang, and went above to the surprise of fireworks, here in the bay.   There were a lot of them, bright, beautiful colors and loud, intermittently throughout the night.  Our own fireworks show.

Then, we had Santa Claus and a slew of elves come to Valentina in four dinghies to sing Christmas carols and wish us a very merry Christmas.

12/25

We sincerely wish you a very blessed Christmas Day today.    May it be everything you had hoped for and dreamed of.

We are preparing deviled eggs, along with our two pecan pies, to share at the Christmas pot luck dinner.

The dinner was excellent and 28 people gathered together. 

The boats that participated were: 

Hello World

Blow Me Away

Southern Bell

Simpatica

Lizzy Jean

Blue Fox

Escapade

Dream Ketcher

Jupiter's Smile

Wooden Shoe

Manatee

and, Valentina

We had fun with the white elephant gift exchange. 

Sonny unwrapped a ladies dress, which DJ swapped his hand massager for.  His wife, Kate, modeled the dress and it was a perfect fit.

I unwrapped a nice set of Christmas spread knives, but, Marilyn on S/V Dream Ketcher, wanted them when it was her turn, so we traded.

So, I got to open another package.   I got a large conch shell with a light inside.

How fun that was.   A huge word of thanks to Robert and Carmen for sharing their home with us.  It was a memorable Christmas.

Our friends, Dr. Gilberto and Martha, came down to their house for today only.  She called and invited us to come over, so after our dinner we went to see them.

A very nice Christmas Day.....

A thought....when we were all in the States, Christmas involved gifts of jewelry, but one of my friends today said,

"For Christmas this year.....my gift is new sheets on my bed".

Ken and Marilyn (S/V Dream Ketcher) are enjoying the anchorage now after having extensive boat work done in Cartagena.

We made a dinghy trip into Baru this morning with Aaron and Lyla (S/V Blow Me Away) and Katy (S/V Hello World) and Ken and Marilyn (S/V Dream Ketcher).

The beautiful, old Catholic Church in the village of Baru.	It is laundry day.  He is moving the portable washing machine around the village.	The sign at the Hardware Store in Baru Your body is the gift of God, Value It. Do not allow sexual tourism Promote sexual education	The donkey and cart at the garbage collection area.

I put a coat of paint on the bottom of the shower and a coat of varnish on the shower grate while Sonny took off the parts on the motor to take into Cartagena tomorrow.

He also was able to do a little shopping and caught the return launcha at 10 a.m.   Back to Valentina at 11 a.m.   A long morning for him.....but productive.

I put another coat of paint on our shower and shower grate.

Sonny went over to help Robert on Manatee for a while today. 

We played farkel in the cockpit this evening and both won one game.

The Christmas trade winds have kicked in and it is blowing like 'stink'.   At about 2 p.m. the wind kicks up to 20-25 knots out of the NE and blows until the middle of the night.   Then it lays down and it somewhat calm....until 2 p.m.

We gathered up our trash, dropped by our neighbor's boats to pick up theirs' and headed to the village of Baru.

This little cowboy could do commercials for Crest toothpaste or Billy Bob's of Texas.

We picked up Ken (S/V Enoramada) to give him a ride in with us.

We walked around the village, completed our shopping from our lists, and ate lunch at the local restaurant.

This gentleman's business is re-stringing old chairs.   He carries his twine around with him and works wherever he is needed.   Here, he is sitting outside one of the stores in Baru, working away.   Reminds me of potholder projects years ago in Vacation Bible School.

We love the village of Baru.  Everytime we go....we discover different things. On the left, a donkey is hauling water and on the right, is a cockfight auditorium.

On the way back, the trade winds had picked up and the seas were white capping....inside the reef.   We were all soaked before we got back to our boats.

Another adventure....

Birthday wishes were heard on the VHF radio, telephone, email, and Skype from friends and family all day.

Some of our friends in Cartagena, Dr. Gilberto and Martha, had a birthday cake delivered to our boat by water taxi.

It survived the 20 mile trip and was delicious. How thoughtful.

The boats in the anchorage of Cholon gathered on Robert and Carmen's Manatee for a New Year's Eve party, and birthday party.   There were, I think, 27 people.  It was a nice evening, topped off with a beautiful full moon glistening on the water.

We toasted New Year's in Britain, and then in Spain, but we were asleep on Valentina by 10 p.m. in Colombia. 

We wish you a very Happy New Year and may 2010