Karnival

Carnival here in Bonaire is a very different animal than what we have seen before.

It is a very family oriented event compared to the last couple we have attended. 

No really loud sound trucks with skads of loosley clothed ladies hanging out of every opening.  No chest pounding Soca.  No whining or stab dancing either. 

The costumes are much more elaborate and it seems the participants put a lot of effort into their themes.  The speaker systems on the band trucks were so much smaller than anything we have seen in the past but they got the job done. 

It kind of reminds me of a local town parade and that is what this place is anyway.  Bonaire the island consists of about 15,000 locals and about 10,000 tourists.

It has a small town feel and the people are quite nice.  The language is all over the place and combines words from Dutch, Spanish, English and local dialects.  Impossible for me to understand.  Bonairians are fiercely proud of their island and it is reflected in how clean they keep it. 

The water surrounding the island is crystal clear with reef just off the beach which drops steeply within a few hundred meters from shore making this island an incredible dive destination.  Here the sea is rich in fish and I don't remember seeing so many turtles. See the lap pool in front of us.

Lot's of Boobies

Hello from Bonaire.  Not doing well at keeping the blog up to date so I will try and fill in the space between now and the last post

We spent the holidays in Grenada due to the great internet connection and planned our trip to the ABC Islands (Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao)  We found another boat doing the same, Stardancer III skippered by an Australian named Kieth.  We made plans to leave once he had mended his main sail.  Once his sail was mended we headed out of Clarkes Court Bay to the Western side of Grenada to preposition ourselves for a midnight departure and as we transited the reef out of the bay our steering cable snapped.  We quickly installed our emergency rudder system and in a few hair raising minutes we were safely back in the harbor looking for a place to anchor.  We spent the better part of a week getting that fixed and waiting for another window in the weather.  Kieth too lost his generator power so at least he didn't get stuck waiting just for us.

Once we finally departed Grenada, the wind was about 14 knots and the seas were very gentle.  It was a fairly slow ride but nobody was complaining as we all know a slow ride is better than a brutal one.

Arrived in the afternoon the next day in Los Testigos, a group of about 6 small islands with a few villages and a Venezuellan Coast Guard station. We checked in with the La Guardia Costa and spent a few days snorkeling the reefs, climbing the hill to the lighthouse and checking out the sand dunes.

It is a pretty cool place and one of those places that once you are there you want to stay, but we were not actually checked in to Venezuella and therefore not allowed to spend too much time there.   My next destination was Blanquilla 90nm west.  I was told it is a stunning and intriguing place to go, but alas I may never know because I was voted down on my plans by Sunny and Kieth.  Sunny wanted to do some shopping and Kieth had a friend on Margarita Island. 

Margarita Island is to me anyway a bit of a strange place.  Known as a resort island it boasts many hotel/condos and beaches with lots of US style shopping and restaurants.  I was told originally it was made a duty free zone and that attracted all sorts of investment in the area.  Once the boom was in full swing the zoning changed and left many people holding a bag of empty promises.  During the day the skyline is impressive but at night many of the buildings show no lights and a few show only one or two.  The large buildings are deserted or were never finished.  Shopping was good though.  Since the Bolivar has been devalued the buying power of the dollar was in full swing and Sunny managed to restock our boat with much needed beef and fresh produce.  One may not think beef is all that big of a deal.  But I like beef and the meat in the Caribbean south of Puerto Rico was horrible.  None of it is aged properly and most if not all of it is too old to be tender.  The hamburger tastes like soy burger.  Venezuela on the other hand does very well in the beef department and while the cuts are not great the flavor is fine.

While in Margarita we met up with Mike and Julie from the Flying Buzzard, whom we had previously met in Trinidad.  Had a great dinner with them and hope to see them again soon.  Sunny did all her shopping and with the exception of a few items which are apparently impossible (flour and  coffee)  to find in the country we got all of our necessities.  We thought about clearing into the country and staying a bit but our impression after talking with the local contact for cruisers, Juan Para, was that it would be a complete waste of time and money.  For a guy who makes his living by clearing boats into the country he has a funny way of selling his service.  Another big fan of Che I suppose. 

We took off from Margarita and made our way to the west end of the island.  Just as we rounded the cape our steering once again came undone.  This time it was my fault.  I made a poor job of the Nicropress. 

Fortunately we were able to piece it back together and Sunny and Kieth went to shore and found a guy who drove them all over the place to find some cable clamps.  Very nice of them and it goes to show that one should not judge a country by it's government but by it's people.  As a side note we were also warned time and time again not to cruise this area because of crime and government interference.  I've never been much of a listener and Sunny less so.  Thankfully we did make the trip and also we were fortunate not to have any problems some cruisers have experienced.  

We made our way on to the island of Tortuga and anchored in a place called Playa Caldera.  It is a great beach and fine anchorage.  There is a small airstrip and people fly out and sit on the beach.  Some very nice aircraft managed to stop by including two Bell 214's loaded with people just wanting a nice beach.  Venezuela is probably the only place where I could afford the fuel for one of those.  After a couple days we headed out but only made it as far as Cayo Herradura just 10 miles West.  Another great beach but it was quite rolly.  The reef did give up a fairly nice fish as we sailed in though.

From Tortuga we sailed on to the area of Los Roches which is a shallow sea encircled by some small islands.  We were immediately impressed by the water clarity as we entered Sebastepol inlet and set anchor for a couple days.  We made our way north to the island of Grande Roches and were impressed by the cool little town there.  The streets are sand and you can walk barefoot if you want.  Lots of neat little restaurants and hotels.  The interiors of the buildings are quite nice with very artistic entry doors and polished floors.  After an evening in town we sailed on west again to the island of Carenero which has a great anchorage tucked inside of a lagoon.  The snorkeling was fantastic with tons of squid, Spanish Mackerel, Blue parrot fish, Queen angelfish and Sunny claims to even having seen a seahorse.

No confirmations though.  It was hard to give up such a beautiful spot especially when our next anchorage treated us quite differently.  The island of Becqeve offered us a shallow and tricky approach with the clouds and shadows moving in the water.  Once we were set the boat never stopped rolling.  Stardancer chose to go south a bit to another anchorage but soon returned, as that one was even worse.  On the beach though it was a different story.  The island is a breeding ground for boobies and their chicks are very cute.  They look like little white overstuffed pillows with beaks.

Since that anchorage was not so comfortable we decided to move on to the Aves and leave the Roches behind us.  The short sail west 30 odd miles was a bit of an adventure.  The swell was still active and with 20-25 kts of wind the seas were very steep and the wave frequency was short.  10 foot wave were breaking on our stern and several times we got sent sideways by the odd SE wave.  Needless to say we were glad to get settled.  We entered the Aves de Barlovento from the north so we could run off the wind some and avoid any unwanted gybes.  The wind was getting close to 30 when we rounded the NW entrance and were immediately rewarded with a very nasty beat to the South side of the bank.  We anchored in the middle anchorage all by ourselves and were immediatly impressed by the unbelievable beauty of the water, reefs and the huge mangrove trees.  The trees were teeming with red footed boobies and frigate birds hatching chicks and hunting for food. 

The wind was cooperating enough to keep the smell well away from the boat.  Pebbles needed a bath and Sunny washed her on the back step in the water.  A small trunk fish came up and seemed curious if not a bit hungry watching her tail flip around.  We ended up having 8 of them swimming around the boat and us whenever we entered the water.  Normally these fish, while not very excitable, don't seem to be that curious.  We ended up meeting a family of Aussies on s/v Grace and together with Kieth on Stardancer we managed a great beach party with drinks and Boci Ball.  The girls won of course.   

As we left the Aves we had a much better time of it sea state wise and cruised comfortably on to Bonaire.  As we approached the southern point, the Bonaireian Coast Guard flew out to survey us and give us all some cool low altitude fly-byes. Turning north we had the wind on the beam and Slow-Mocean and Grace sailed together in a great run up the beach past the salt fields and kite surfers all the way to the anchorage in the town of Kralendijk.  I can't pronounce that either.  Met a Dutchman here who said that Dutch is not so much a language as it is a throat infection.  He said it.  We apologize for not getting any good booby pictures uploaded but we are having camera issues of the worst kind.  With luck we will recover at least part of the photos we've taken.

Ho Ho Ho and a Bottle a Rum

It's been a wild ride this year and we've had a great time so far. Looking back we have done quite a few things and met some fantastic people along the way.  As I was looking back over our path this year to recount our many fantastic anchorages and ports of call, it became clear to me that the most important thing was not so much the places, as beautiful as they may be, but the people we have met along the way.   For us the best part of this journey is not the scenery, the food or the peace we find along the way, but the people we meet on our path that enrich our lives and make us thankful for the time we have spent together.  Thanks to all of you and we wish you all a very Merry Christmas.  Here's looking to the New Year and many more exiting travels and friendships to make and share. 

The River

We have been absent from the net as of late because we have been without it completely.  It was simply not available. Can you remember a time when the net was not there and we actually put letters in envelopes and trusted our government to deliver them for us?  Now that we just email I guess there is no reason left to put trust in them.  I digress.  We motored south of Trinidad to the Venezuelan town of Perdinales and presented ourselves to the local Guardia National post to request permission to enter the river and Venezuela.  The trick here is that they don't actually grant you any clearance into Venezuela.  This is a problem when you move on to your next port and you don't have a recent clearance.  It is very suspicious in the mind of a customs or immigration officer in this part of the world.  The local agents are aware of the situation so they grudgingly accept it.  You may have to listen to some long drawn out lecture about proper procedure but simply do as I have learned; smile, nod and thank them for making you aware of the law.  It makes them feel important and that is after all why they do that job.  

Our trip started out as a four boat excursion but we were unable to make the start due to some engine issues which were taken care of the following day.  We wanted to travel in company due to the rumor mongering about Venezuela and pirates and kidnapping etc, this may be the situation in Caracas or elsewhere but in this particular neck of the woods it seems quite safe.  We were a bit apprehensive upon entering the river for a number of reasons.  The obtuse posture the US and Venezuela have taken towards each other was of course one consideration. We were not sure if the locals would throw eggs at us or be friendly.  Guess what, no eggs.  The river is poorly charted and what charts are available are not accurate.  I quickly learned that it was much easier than the ICW because here we didn't have to constantly dodge aids to navigation.  The river tended to be anywhere from 12 to 120 feet deep.  There were a few shoals but not the sort of thing to lose sleep over.  It's just river mud.  The river was damned in the 70's so the current is almost completely tidal. It is difficult to get to hard aground with a rising tide. 

The Bora was another issue.  It consists of floating water hyacinth which can form enough of a blockage in some of the smaller tributaries to allow animals to walk across it.  It is a mess if you get caught in it with your dinghy and it hangs on the front of the boat sometimes causing the anchor to break under the added weight.  Another concern is that it is home to all kinds of creature, snakes, scorpions, all manner of insects and huge rats.  We bought a machete for the purpose of cutting this stuff away from the boat so as not to get our hands in the stuff.  One boat we traveled with did pull a 4' snake up with the chain and it got caught in the chain wheel of his windlass.  He probably won't have guts enough to do that again. 

The last and most problematic issue we had to deal with was the bugs. 

If the bugs in the delta have one thing in common it would be that they all like to bite and or sting you.  We and by "we" I mean Sunny fashioned drop nets for the windows and made a large enough net for the cockpit we could sit outside at dusk with little bother.  That along with the sunshades she made prior to leaving really added to the comfort of the trip. 

I won't bother you with all the ins and outs of where we went primarily because I don't have a clue what any of it was called.  We used a sketch chart which had some gps positions of a shoal and some tourist lodges.  None of the local names of the small tributaries or "Canos" existed.  I was able to get a few of the names but lost them. 

I like this about the river it really has no official cruising guide.  Doyle would not be interested because there are no chandleries or restaurants to get bad food at an unreasonable price at.  You get the feeling that you are on your own to explore as you wish and that is exactly what cruising should be.  The three boats we were supposed to go with left as soon as they got there to meet a schedule and we spent a week in seclusion until another boat happened along which we immediately became friends with.  It is good to have a buddy boat here in case the worst should happen.  When you travel 10 miles up one of these canos and your motor fails or you get bit by a snake it is comforting to know you have a plan "B" rather than a long walk through the jungle.  We proved this point on our last long expedition which must have gone 14 miles.  We suddenly and for no apparent reason lost thrust and lost the hub of our prop.  Sunny says it's because I drive like a maniac.  Luckily we had a buddy boat to tow us if need be.  We did motor slowly back some 4 miles under a severe downpour and can say we did not need rescued.  Our buddy boat ran out of gas as he approached his boat but he also didn't require a rescue. 

We saw some amazing plant life in the river.  The morichee palms and mango trees lined the river as did all manner of vine and bush which produced orchids, and flowers of all colors.

Cocoa trees also are prevalent and the occasional snack on cocoa pods was always well appreciated.  The river also contained many varieties of birds, 4000 different varieties I was told call the Orinoco Delta home.  The scarlet Ibis was truly a grand sight as were the hundreds of parrots, parakeets, eagles, pelicans, toucans and macaws we encountered.

The highlight for all of us had to be while we were in some little cano miles from anything and coming face to face with a wild Ocelot or leopard.  It's one thing to see sharks, bears or cats in a cage, but to see them while your sitting in their environment is always a bit of a rush.  Another amazing sight and sound is the local monkey population. 

The Red Howler Monkey is is a fairly shy animal but in the evening they make the eeriest noise which would remind you of some sound effect from Doom or Silent Hill.  It is almost soothing to listen ti and now that we are out of their habitat I miss the howling, a much better sound than that of the nasty chicken which overpopulates most “quiet” anchorages. 

The Capucine monkeys were also a treat.  They stand maybe 18 inches high but get all bold and tough when they see you.  They break branches and bounce around letting you know their tough guys, very entertaining to watch.

The Waroa that inhabit the Delta are an indigenous people who are coming to terms with the modern world.  A few years ago they lived peacefully along the rivers paddling their canoes and catching fish.  Now they all have 40 horse Enduros which are too big for canoes so they built bigger boats.  They have satellite TV, washing machines, generators, a taste for soda pop and a new found desire for stuff, all while living in a river hut with a thatch roof and no walls.  The fuel is practically free so they run up and down the river constantly and chase sailboats around to trade baskets for clothes and food.  They are becoming dependent on outsiders which I fear will mean that they will demand exploitation of the delta for oil so they can get jobs to pay for their new appetites.  It is unnerving to see the same exploitation of a people that we in the US were guilty of.  Right down to the handing out of rum to the Indians.  They suffer from many medical conditions as well namely it seems Tuberculosis.  They are hesitant to trust a doctor and even when they get medical treatment they still see the shaman to get the real cure. 

They are a very friendly and curious people.  The kids melt your heart as they paddle out to see you and to just gawk at you.  I can think of no where else in the world where three young girls maybe 5 to 7 years of age would be given a leaky canoe and a paddle or two and sent off into piranha infested water to have fun.  They are extremely skilled with a canoe and it takes only a short time to notice how good they are at it.  If the Olympics had an event in canoeing I would put all my chips on Venezuela to win.

The last thing I would mention are the Venezuelan people we came to know.  While the language was an issue we seemed to work things out. 

  We made a good friend in Maria Taboud who along with her husband manage the Orinoco delta Lodge.  She made us feel welcome and was very enjoyable company.  The river guides Antonio, Alexis and Clement who gave us all great advice.  The prize must go to Luis the manager of the local fuel station who tirelessly took Sunny shopping and was able to get her the biggest chicken I have ever seen for Thanksgiving dinner.  Not quite a turkey but hey we weren’t exactly in Plymouth Harbor.
 
Don’t believe all the nonsense you hear about Venezuelans.  They are good people who have a tough situation.

 I certainly hope the best for their future and am glad to have had the privilege of seeing a small bit of what must be one of the most incredible places on earth.  Your mileage may vary but we had a great trip. 

The Scarlet Ibis

Currently Slow-Mocean and crew are in the Manamo River in the Orinoco Delta Region of Venezuela.  This is turning out to be the greatest trip we have ever taken.  Too many sights and experiences for my feeble mind to put into writing but I will try and write about a few.

The Scarlet Ibis is a beautiful bird reminding me of the white crane you see in Japanese art with the black wing tips.  This bird has at least one striking difference and that is its scarlet red plumage.  The bird seems to forage under the mangroves and along the beaches and low water estuaries.  They remind one of Pink Flamingos only smaller and a much deeper red.  One of the first species of birds we saw as we were entering the river mouth in Perdinales was the Scarlet Ibis as they foraged along the river banks and sat perched in low lying limbs.  Further up the river they flew ahead of the boat and perched high in the trees until we approached then they moved on again and waited as we caught up. 

Ibis Island is a small river island perhaps a half a mile long and eighth wide.  It is a forested island covered in thick branching trees.  It is at the south end of the island we were told we should anchor the boat and view the Ibis.  We anchored about 200 yds south of the island and due to current and water depth etc, I felt like playing it safe so we did not get overly close to shore, this time.  As dusk approached many Ibis could be seen perched high in the trees surrounding the island and a few were landing at the southern tip as we had hoped.  Truly a great place to watch this bird.  Then as the light began to fade birds started flying in from every direction in classic V formations much like Canadian Geese.  They would head straight into the island and land, five, ten, fifteen at a time.  It was great to watch and as we watched it seemed that a thousand birds were perched on the island.  The inevitable happened as the mosquitoes moved in for dinner and started moving us inside.  As we turned to run in, thinking the show was basically over, we noted a huge wave of birds in the distance headed directly for the island.  Amazing I thought.  I had never seen that many birds flying together at one time.  Not even starlings in a grain field had these numbers.  I looked around and the sky was filled in every direction with birds coming to roost and they looked like waves on the ocean as the lines of birds undulated and glided ever closer. 

As the evening wore on we watched the green trees transform into what appeared to be trees bearing giant red fruit.  As more and more birds arrived the trees started to resemble the red flamboyant trees in the island s and as the sun descended the island was nearly one shade of red.  Because we have such cheap and useless cameras we of course have nothing but grainy, poorly lighted and absolutely dreadful pictures.  So sad our good friend Trish decided she would not accompany us.  Her 200mm SLR would have had a hay-day. 

In the morning we awoke before the sun was up and we quietly went on deck to listen as the morning quiet was transformed into a cacophony of sounds when the Ibis started to wake up.  As with the night before a few birds here and a few birds there started flying off to points unknown.  Then as the sky lit a bit more formations of birds emerged and flew into the distance.  In the distance a motor was heard and a Warao Indian came rushing past the island to get a better look at us, and the great flock arose and dispersed into the morning sky. 

Pictures to follow, once we get enough bandwidth to send some, but to be honest they are not so good.

Festival of Lights

Were a little late on this post as the festivities have been over for a couple weeks now. We were fortunate to be taken to a Divali celebration here in Trinidad.


I don't imagine many people equate Trinidad with India or Hinduism or for that matter many people probably don't know what Divali is. I will not enlighten you here, I'm sure. All I have been able to gather is that it celebrates the return of Lord Raama from his battle against the evil Ravana.

On his return the people lit small clay lanterns along his path so that he would be able to find his way home. The lines of lanterns are called Divali and it is now called the festival of lights. If your a Hindu or listen to too many Cat Stevens albums and you wish to take issue with my interpretations please don't bother. The point of all this is that the people here in Trinidad are not only of African decent as many would imagine, but also of East Indian decent. It is because of this population that Divali is a big deal here.

We were taken to the town of Felicity which I was told consist of 90% Hindu and 10% Christians. We entered a local temple and were welcomed by the caretaker who presented us with a quick story of Divali over a squawky PA system, which when combined with his accent sounded like the teacher in a peanuts cartoon.

There was a beautiful young lady who danced to a couple of songs and then a trio of drummers came in and did a bit of drumming. They were all quite good. To be fair the caretaker was a very nice man as well and we had a great conversation after the mike was turned off.

Our host and tour guide, Jesse James had a traditional meal set up for us and it was served on Large leaves. The food was vegetarian and because it was a religious holiday we were asked to not eat any meat or consume alcohol that day. Most of the Hindus we met had been fasting for over a month. Luckily I love Indian food and can't get enough roti so this meal which would locally be called a bus-up-shut was just perfect despite the glaring lack of meat on my leaf.


Once we finished we were told to take a walk around the neighborhood. Not something one would consider doing at night in this country, or any unfamiliar town.

We were treated to some of the nicest people one could hope to meet. As we walked people were in front of their homes dressed up in their "Sunday best" lighting the Divali lamps.

Fortunately the wind was minimal and there was no rain. The lamps are fashioned from clay.

The lamps were often placed on the ground or on the wall in front of the homes.

Bamboo was also split and woven into different shapes with the lamps or other lights affixed. A simple two rail fence fashioned from bamboo was also common. The lamps are filled with coconut oil because it creates less smoke. With this many lamps burning, smoke would have been a concern.

Fireworks were also present as was the use of what we used to call spud guns. These were made from large bamboo logs and filled with diesel. They work like a cannon and apparently send quite a few people to the emergency room every year. As we walked along people would be quick to greet us and start conversation. They also will give sweets to the guests who come by.

The sweets consisted of hand made treat bags which contained a dough like sugar cookie dough and perhaps some pieces of fruit. Nothing fancy and nothing store bought.

You know this was one of the best holiday celebrations I have ever witnessed. It combined aspects of Thanksgiving, Halloween, Christmas and Independence day all in one. With the exception of the local cell phone company lighting up a block or two with posters in the background there was no commercialism and the spirit of friendship was abundant.

I wish there were more holidays like this one. It was beautiful, peaceful, and left everyone I saw that night with a huge smile. Perhaps because they didn't have a ton of new credit card debt.