Central America

El Salvador (June 2004-August 2004)

June 19, 2004 - Sitting at the bar at Bahia del Sol using some land energy instead of our precious energy produced by the sun.  I have really fallen behind on these updates—so I’m going to do this in episodes so as not to inundate you with a big long e-mail.

Lou and the children arrived safely back from the US.  They had a wonderful time with family in the states.  When they returned we took a trip into San Salvador and explored some ruins nearby.  One of the ruins is called the Pompeii of the Mayan world.  A volcano erupted and covered this Mayan village in 400 AD.  Of course, there are many Mayan ruins of the ceremonial centers, but this is unique because it is more of a depiction of daily life.  They also have found a ceremonial center nearby that is only partially uncovered.  It is surprising to me that they don’t use volunteers to help dig up these sites.

We also went to the Anthropology Museum that is very well done and organized.  We visited the Romero museum on the Universidad de CentroAmerica (UCA) campus.  This university is run by the Jesuits.   It was here in 1989 that six Jesuits plus their housekeeper and her daughter were shot and killed by the government.  The museum, probably for political reasons, is more a testimony to the way they died (displays of clothing they were wearing when they were killed) than in their life and philosophies.  The men that were found guilty of the crime (part of the military) were imprisoned only a couple of years for their roles and then were let out of prison as part of a general amnesty program that was intended to put the past behind the people of El Salvador, so they could focus on the future.  From what I’ve seen, it seems like this has been successful—the putting the past behind you.  The people seem to be peace loving (who isn’t?) and don’t seem to hold too much animosity for others.  

Every morning, we have fresh bread delivered to the boat via  panga .  The bread man, Misael, has become a good friend to our family.  The first day I met him I talked with him whether there was  an opportunity for Martin to play soccer.  He has been organizing this soccer game every week now. He picks Martin up and then stops at the school to pick up more boys to play soccer.   Misael was raised in this area on an island in the Rio Lempa.  During the war,  the guerillas took over the island and his family and others left the island because they were in a no win situation.  Later, he ventured to the United States for  work and money.  He found his best opportunities in Minnesota where he learned how to make bread.  His uncle and family has returned to the island.  We went to the island via panga with Misael and got to know his family and had fried fish and tortillas with them.  They still cook over a wood fire.  In fact, I was left with the impression that for the lifestyle in such a remote village, not much has changed from the Mayan days.  They do have motors on their pangas and they do have a generator on the island.  We saw many in dugout canoes.  Misael is a good person.  He is well loved and respected by his community.  He works very hard for his family.  

August 2, 2004 - We returned from Honduras to Bahia del Sol in El Salvador, and many of our friends had left their boats for visits to the States.  But there were still many boats occupied with Canadians and US folks.  Lou prepped Ace for his long absence and before we knew it—it was time for him to head off for his Pacific Cup adventure.

While Lou was gone our days were pretty routine.  Our mornings started with the sun waking us up at about 5 a.m. or maybe it was the wake of the pangas as they went by our boat on their way out to sea.  Martin and Emily usually fell back asleep.  I usually got up and watched the sunrise over the volcanoes.  The breadman would arrive at around 6:30—honking his bicycle horn madly!  I would take a 14 mile bike ride with a friend about three times a week—as early as we can go since it is so much cooler in the morning.  I love being out on the bike and dodging cows, pigs, turkeys, and dogs and most importantly greeting everyone along the way.  Many times they responded to our “Buenos Dias” with Adios (which is meant in a nice way, not in a pejorative way-at least they said it with a smile) or Vaya Bien- which I have begun to say because it means “Go Well”.  Once Emily and Martin got out of bed, we would have breakfast and do some school work.  We continued to do math through the summer.  Then we usually had lunch and just enjoyed each others’ company.  I tried reading Watership Down to Emily and Martin but we just didn’t get grabbed by it—like I hoped.  At around 3 p.m. they had volleyball on shore and I would bring the kids in on the dinghy and then I would enjoy doing computer at the bar/ restaurant. There was too much carnage on the volleyball court for me (yet I allowed my children to participate)  We would have happy hour at 4 p.m. and have some time talking and laughing with each other.  

If we go into the closest town—that usually would take  at least half a day.    I have been working with some other cruisers at the clinic in a nearby community development that was funded by Catholic Charities.  The other cruisers (a dentist and a dental hygienist) have their portable equipment and they do check ups, fillings, extractions etc. while I work with the children in the hall talking about brushing teeth and taking care of our teeth (Yes, I can do it in Spanish!)   Among the younger children, there was about 60% bottle rot—where the front teeth have been rotted out by having sweet stuff in the bottle.  These are country people and I’m told it is different in the cities.   My parents and cousins, Gene and Grace Savage brought toothbrushes donated by their local dentists and I gave them out to each child.

We had some wonderful celebrations in Bahia del Sol.  We had a summer solstice including a fun jam session with the kids coming up with a song about the cruisers.  Emily and a friend sang and Martin played guitar.  It was a grand evening—but it ended in a thunderstorm.  Martin had a wonderful 9th birthday on July 4th.  We even had fireworks!  Lots of fun!  Fried chicken, potato salad and apple pie.  Sounds pretty red, white and blue to me.  Martin only wanted a jam session for his birthday—and that is what he got.   His guitar skills are really taking off, and he loves to play for a crowd.    The new cultural experience that we had was that the Canadians have their birthday celebration on July 1.  It was an enlightening day.  I know probably less about our neighbor to the north than I do our neighbors to the south.  For example, I’ve wanted to look this up on the internet—but the Canadians claim that the first “This Land is Our Land” was written for Canada.  I had never heard this before.   We also went to a fair in San Salvador that was an amazing display of commerce—although we didn’t see any pigs, chickens and cows.  Guess they were left at home to cross the road at inopportune times!   And we made a wonderful seafood soup with some of the local ladies in a restaurant kitchen.  I sneaked them some wine while their boss looked the other way.  Yummy!

My cousins, Gene, Grace, Brett and Brock Savage visited from College Station, Texas and my cousin, Tomas Males from Sweden.  We had a good time and it was wonderful to be with family.  I showed them a little bit of El Salvador.  It became clear to me that this country doesn’t have a lot of developed tourist attractions.  But, it has only been 15 years since their war—a civil war—that destroyed their relationships with each other and their highways and bridges.  These all have been rebuilt—to a new and improved state.  But, I think my cousins enjoyed touring around .    I know I enjoyed having family here.

My parents visited and we went to Antigua, Guatemala.  I decided it was safe to drive so we rented a car.  It was very nice to have the car and Antigua is a beautiful town.  We stayed at a gorgeous hotel.  Unfortunately, my mom—who never gets sick—got very sick.  Fortunately, the rest of us weren’t hit as hard.  Mom did get one morning of shopping in—I know that Guatemala would have enjoyed having her healthy.  As usual, Emily and Martin really enjoyed being with their grandparents and were good nurses when Grandmother got sick.

So, the exciting thing about Lou having the experience of the race and my staying on the boat is that I think we will make an even better team.  Lou has learned a lot about sailing across the pond and I have learned a lot about my own self sufficiency and taking care of the boat (minimally).  Daily, I am thankful for the beautiful way Lou has set things up on our boat.  The things that failed (Ipod and TV—of all things) have become operational with a little thought.    And Emily and Martin have become better partners on the boat.  They have become more aware of what sounds different and our energy consumption.   It really is nice.  

When Lou got back from Hawaii, our watermaker started acting up.  Though the watermaker is still under warranty, we would have to pay for shipping outside of the United States, which is extremely expensive in El Salvador, even if the package is not very heavy.  We analyzed our options (one of which was sending me back to the States with the watermaker) and we hoped that the simplest would work out and it did.  Some cruising friends have a relative who is a pilot for TACA airlines—and he was flying into San Francisco.  We had the necessary replacement parts delivered to a friend, Ted Crocker,  who lives near the hotel where the TACA crew stays. And Ted delivered the package to the hotel.  The pilot picked up the package and brought it to El Salvador.  Then my cruiser friend picked it up from the pilot at the gym where he was working out!  She brought it out to Bahia del Sol.  Then we picked it up from them with our dinghy.  Doesn’t that sound complicated?  But it worked!  These human connections are amazing and I’m constantly in awe and invigorated by them (okay- most of the time—I won’t Pollyanna you—most of you know me too well and my struggles).  Lou rebuilt the pump with the new parts, and then all was well.  

Thanks Ted!

So, we left Bahia del Sol, southbound for Nicaragua.  No tears shed.  But, close.  I had developed a close relationship to many El Salvadorans and it was hard to leave and not be able to answer the question of when we would return.  Hasta pronto (literally- Until Soon: See you soon).

From Lou:  The race to Hawaii was a great experience.  It’s very nice to sail on someone else’s boat, and not be responsible for all the decisions and all the problems, small or large, that usually pop up.  Thanks, Michael Moradzadeh! (Michael is the owner of Cayenne, a Passport 40’ that was our racing machine.)  We took 14 days from San Francisco to Oahu, Hawaii.  Cayenne has done the same race before in 12 days, and we had hoped to improve that time, but the wind just did not cooperate.  However, the light wind made for pretty relaxing and enjoyable racing.  We only changed spinnakers once or twice a day, and hardly ever jibed, so I enjoyed lots of reading and sleeping and eating.  We had many home-cooked meals frozen on dried-ice, so it was easy to prepare and delicious to eat.  With Cayenne’s watermaker, we were even able to shower fairly often (OK, every 2nd or 3rd day), which is a lot better than most of the racers on other boats.   (Compared to the real race boats, our experience was a luxury cruise!)  With Cayenne’s short-wave radio transceiver, I was able to talk with Mary and the kids every other day, all the way to Hawaii.  That helped me feel less like a deadbeat dad!  With 6 crew, we each would be on watch for 3 hours, and then off for 6.  I had so much fun, and enjoyed the other crewmembers so much, that I was a little sad when Hawaii appeared on the horizon.  I easily could have continued for another week or two.  Though we were the first boat to cross the finish line in our division, our handicap knocked us into 3rd place.  The whole experience definitely left me more excited about taking Ace across the Pacific.  

Reading:  We’ll catch you up with our reading list next update.

¡Vaya bien!  ¡Hasta pronto!

Xela Guatamela (May 2004)

May 20, 2004

Sitting at anchor in Bahia del Sol (but with all this rain I think it needs to be renamed Bahia de Lluvia),Costa del Sol, Departmento Zacateccaluca, El Salvador, Central America.  Lou, Emily and Martin are in Denver, Colorado celebrating niece Katie Dietz’s wedding to Matt.  I’m taking care of Ace and enjoying having the whole boat to myself.

There are about 25 boats in this anchorage— 6 boats with kids.  The river is not attractive for swimming.    There is a hotel here that acts as our cruising headquarters/marina.  They have a swimming pool and restaurant/bar.  And there is a pupuseria just up the street about ½ mile where we get pupusas—cornmeal or wheat tortillas stuffed with cheese, frijoles or meat or all of these.  Our family can eat and drink (beers and sodas) for around $5.00 to our fill.  

We spent a week in Quetzaltanengo (Xela), Guatemala.  I think Guatemala is like India for my soul.   I feel completely comfortable with the people and the pace of life.  We immediately got into backpacker travel mode.  I had done a little research and had talked to some people about Quetzaltanengo—but mostly was going on intuition.   On Sunday morning (Mother’s Day), we caught a bus outside of the hotel and headed for San Salvador, changed buses there to Guatemala City,  then changed buses there to Xela.  It was a full day of traveling but all of us kept in good spirits.  Lou enjoyed counting the number of people they crammed into this microbus for a ride into San Salvador (28—in something slightly larger than a minivan).  Emily and Martin were fantastic travelers-reading and talking as we went along, .   We got into Xela around 7 p.m. and went to the Language School that had been recommended by another cruising boat.  They were still open and arranged for us to stay with a family for the week and start school Monday morning.  We stayed with a family of four.  The family was amazing—and you could see that they are going to be successful as a family.  They had two children- Carina (age 9) and Daniel (age 5).  The father, Andres—is a very caring and conscientious man.  He is a marimba player, so he is not on a normal schedule, but he is definitely a partner in running the home—he cooks, he washes dishes and he does laundry.  The mom, Asuecena, is a very kind and intelligent woman.  She has goals for her family and herself- yet she keeps a very good and loving spirit.  Her family is Mayan—last name Toc (a common Mayan last name).  However, she understands the Mayan language (Quiché) but can not speak it.  Another situation where the mother language is lost due to assimilation and fear of reprisals for being “native”.  

Each day we would walk to school.  It took us about 10-15 minutes.  The weather was cool, not cold—kind of like San Francisco.  We definitely did not pack enough warm clothes.  Its hard to pack when you are sweating when you wake up in the morning.  Each of us had one on one instruction in the morning 5 hours!  Emily and Martin mostly did field trips.  They seem to speak Spanish more confidently now.  Lou and I worked on grammar.  Oh boy!  I haven’t lost my ability to not be able to sit too long and work on grammar and so I talked my teacher into a couple of field trips—both to my favorite places—the public market.  We went to a large public market that was probably 15 city blocks full of stalls selling everything from live pigs and chickens to bras.    It was in a town called San Francisco El Alto  As the name decribes—it is up in the mountains.    There were tons of people and for the first time in my life—I could peer over the heads of many of the people ahead of me in the crowd.  I felt like a giant.  My eyes feasted on beautiful colors.  And someone took about $5 from my pocket—I had that easily accessible, but had hidden my other  money.  I’m still not able to bring myself to purchase things very readily.  I did find my mom some fabric and bought some things for Lou to take to his family.  I really wanted a Mayan blusa—but I don’t like “flowers” on things—but am more a geometric person.  I didn’t find any blusas sin flores.  

In the afternoons we would have special field trips sponsored by the school.  These included salsa dancing and cooking.

We went to a couple of marimba concerts.  The marimbas are huge.  Seven people play at one time.  Lou and I got to have a close up look at the marimba.  I got to play chopsticks on the marimba.  Amazingly, our host, Andres, did not know this classic!!!  The marimba predates the Spanish invasion!

The day after we arrived, was May 10th.  In Mexico and Central America this is Mother’s Day and it is a BIG DEAL--- without Hallmark inflicting their push to make sure that you do it “right”.  It was also our hostess’s birthday.  We were warmly welcomed to the family party.  We feasted on avocadoes, pork ribs, rice, salsa, tortillas and cake.  And we drank—caldo de fruta (a drink of fermented mixed fruit) and a creamy rum drink.  We toasted many times “El día de la madre”.

On Saturday,  we went with our host family and some other family members to a hot springs.  It was up in the mountains.  Beautiful.  We were amazed although a little concerned to see all the small (less than an acre in some cases) farms along the hillsides.  One town we went through claims to be the Vegetable Garden of the Americas (in English).  The hot springs were very nice.  It did rain on us while we were there so we huddled in the outdoor restaurant and drank hot toddies.  Emily found a puppy and fell in love with it.  She tried to plead her case, but she knows that Lou and I won’t be swayed.  We met some twenty something travelers and they really thought it was fantastic what we were doing with our children.    Our kids enjoyed hanging out with these young adults.

On our way back, we stopped in a small town and walked up a path to a special shrine for a saint that is purely a Guatemalan highland custom.  This rum drinking, cigarette smoking saint, San Simón, is revered.  We walked into a bare yard where there were chickens, turkeys and dogs running around.  There was a stand (looked like the fireworks stands that crop up around the Midwest just before the 4th of July) where they were selling candles, rum, firecrackers, and cigarettes.  We were then shown into the room where San Simón is kept.  The room was hot from all the candles burning on the floor.  And there at the front and center of the small room was a mannequin sitting in the chair—decked out with sunglasses, cowboy hat, and a scarf around his lips and some towels to catch the rum that they try and put down his mouth..  People would come up to the saint—with their unlit candles and whisper  in his ear.  They would come endearingly to him and touch his hand.   They would ask for freedom from their afflictions (physical, monetary and even other people).    There was also a fortune teller in the room.  She wanted to tell my fortune—I shied away from that one (I can imagine the misinterpretations I couldget from having my fortune told in Spanish).  In the room, a young woman had her baby girl on her back.  The baby was about six months old.  She looked at me deeply in my eyes.  She held my finger for a long, long time and I would look at her and she would slowly return my gaze—I would smile and then she would smile back at me—deliberately, yet restrained.  It was a magical encounter in this mystical place.  Lou took some pictures—although it was “not allowed”  He got caught once and it cost him 10 quetzales (about $1.25).  

We had a wonderful trip and I look forward to some more traveling when the family gets back.    Another storm is building.  It keeps things cool, but my morning ritual is de-watering the boat.  Tomorrow I’m going to wash some things with the rain water.  One of my friends has captured about 20 gallons of water.  I’m trying to keep some swifts from building a nest in our main.  I’ve talked to them, I’ve taken the sticks out—but they just don’t get it.  They spent a fair bit of time scoping this place out.  And when they were—I told them—LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION.  

Books we are reading:  

Mary- Neotropical Companion (An intro to the animals, plants and ecosystems of the new world tropics),  Beyond Fear, and listening to Havana Dreams.  Finished The Only Girl in the Car.  

Lou- Bitter Grounds, The Only Girl in the Car, and Living History (some editorials about Mexico, Central and South America)

Emily- Mercedes Lackey book (I can’t remember the title) and Archie comics.  I know she will come back from Denver with loads of books!

Martin- Redwall some more and Archie comics!!!

Nicaragua (August 2004)

Update August 24, 2004

In preparation to leave Bahia del Sol, Lou cleaned off (and I helped a little bit) many barnacles and other critters off of the anchor chain, the lightning cables and the dinghy bottom.  But, Ace was finally ready to go and we were more than ready to go. We attempted to leave Bahia del Sol on Friday, August 6 but it was deemed unsafe-due to high waves breaking over the bar that we would need to cross to get out to sea.    On Monday, August 9, we left Bahia del Sol through the mouth of the river, we had good ride, although we did touch bottom once at the trough of a wave.  We sailed through the day and night and got to Puesta del Sol in Nicaragua on Tuesday afternoon.

Puesta del Sol is a beautiful luxury marina—the dream of a Nicaraguan who moved with his parents at the age of six to the states.  He lived in Los Altos and knew Mountain View well.  He got into sailing and came back to Nicaragua with a dream to build a marina.  They also have a beautiful resort hotel in this same facility.  Surrounding Puesta del Sol are the villages that have been there for many years.  They are subsistence farmers and fisherman.  Puesta del Sol is trying to employ the locals and it is working to some extent.  But it is clear that the education system is greatly lacking to give the people the basics for survival in the modern world.  They are fine in their world.

At the dock, with access to fresh water and stable surfaces, we spent three days madly working on the boat.  Lou has a list of maintenance items and we had gotten behind on them.  So, we took the list and started checking them off.  Emily and Martin did school and helped with the chores.  I love making Ace shine—she takes such good care of us—I want to do the same for her.  And do you want to hear it again—I’m so thankful for the way that Lou cares for this boat.  I know that it is a huge responsibility for him.  I try and share it with him, but he does it so well.

Then, we took a nice trip into Nicaragua with the crew of two other cruising boats.  One of the couples we traveled with are Irish and they love to sing songs.  So, Emily and Martin learned a couple of Irish drinking songs that they will be performing at the next St. Patrick’s day festivities.  I know Emily and Martin are getting exposed to many facets of life and experiences—some they might not have exposure to at home. We do talk about it because we have time with each other to talk about it—about what is appropriate and what is not appropriate.  And the choices that people make in their lives.

We enjoyed Granada, Nicaragua, a pretty old colonial town.  They were having their annual Hipica- a parade of horses through town showcasing the Andalucians.  The parade was not the most organized affair.  And along the route, the riders got free beer (and maybe some rum too).   Some riders lapped back for another (or two or three…) pass through the beer stand.  There were a few inebriated riders that needed to be propped up by their fellow riders--- acting as bookends!

All of the Ace crew had a blast on a canopy zip line tour through the forest at Vólcan Mombacho!  We did the superman and upside-down tour!  I was a lotta nervous on the first two and then I didn’t want it to end!  

Then we went to Isla Ometepe in Lago Nicaragua.  Lago Nicaragua is a huge lake, almost connecting the Atlantic and Pacific.  This was the first intended site of the canal.    Tuesday, August 17 was Lou’s and my 13th wedding anniversary and the entire Ace crew summited Vólcan Maderas without  a whine or a complaint.  Volcan Maderas is one of two volcanoes that make up the island of Ometepe.  Martin was a real trailblazer.  And Emily was an amazing show of perseverance.  Emily is a self anointed “non-hiker”.  I used to be able to get her to hike by encouraging her to dance as we walked.  Guess what—she doesn’t fall for that anymore.  But she defines hikes as any walk up a hill.  This was a 4500 foot climb, and a descent through mud and heavy rain, so it was quite an accomplishment.  

It was a nice trip—but I know we were all anxious to get out cruising again.  To be on Ace in water we can jump into and go snorkeling, fishing and just have a good time.  So, we returned to Ace and did some more work on her and headed off for Costa Rica.  

We had a little choppy, but not bad, passage from Nicaragua to Costa Rica.  We encountered one squall during the day and the wind gusted to 35 knots for about ½ hour.  We had the engine off for only 10 hours of the 31 hour passage, mostly motor sailing into strong headwinds.  Martin did part of a night watch with me.  Its nice to have company in the night.

Entering this stunning bay (Bahia Santa Elena)  in Costa Rica we had a dolphin escort—which makes the world seem enchanted.   And it is!  This anchorage is surrounded by a national park and nature preserve, so it is uninhabited and isolated.  We had the anchorage to ourselves for a couple of hours.  We are hoping for more.  Another cruising family who we haven’t seen for a few months met up with us there.  They have a 12 year old girl (ballerina) and a 10 year old boy.   We loved seeing our friends.  We may stay here for awhile!   

What we are reading:  Lou just finished The Blue of Capricorn by Eugene Burdick.  Mary finished Massacre at El Mozote and decided to read something light—so she is reading Under the Tuscan Sun.  And we’re reading all the guide books about this wonderful country!    Martin is reading Pearls of Lutra—continuation of the Redwall series.  Emily is reading Terri Blackstock “Evidence of Mercy”.  

Northwest Costa Rica (September 2004)

We arrived in gorgeous Bahia Santa Elena on Sunday, August 22.  We all felt like we had finally 

arrived with our dolphin escort!   This bay is ringed by green hills, in every shade of green you can 

imagine.  We set the anchor and quickly jumped in and enjoyed the cool water.  

The next day we waited anxiously for another cruising family, the Millers (Joel, Richelle, Kimberley and 

Nathaniel) on Amorita.  Amorita is a gorgeous 50 foot Kettenberg- wooden boat..   Kimberley is 12 

years old and a ballerina.  Nathaniel is 10 years old.  Our families seem to get along quite well.  We 

met them in Tenacatita Mexico and have had a good time encountering each other along the way.  

They have spent the last three months in this area and were our excellent tour guides.  

Our days were glorious.  We hiked up to a waterfall and all jumped off the rocks into the pool!  The 

hike was not on what you would call a trail—no it was straight up the stream.  On the way down, Martin 

and Nathaniel attempted to make it all the way down without getting their ankles wet more than 5 

times.  Neither was successful but it made for a good challenge.

There were some small islands (aka rocks) at the entrance of this bay.  We snorkeled around these 

rocks and saw a variety of fish and other critters.    The males were spear fishing.  They saw a nurse 

shark, but left it alone.  They all came back with stories about “the one that got away”.  I kayaked with 

Richelle to the beach and looked for paper nautilus shells.  We didn’t find any but enjoyed the soldier 

(hermit) crabs.   When the rest of the group came in, we had a crab race.  Richelle’s crab won the first 

race and my crab won the second!  Yes, I’m proud to be a good crab picker.

We had a bonfire on the beach with another cruising family, Sea Kardinal.  We had hot dogs and 

smores and RAIN (not exactly in that order)—but fortunately Sea Kardinal brought a tarp so we could 

continue our festivities even with the rain.  

We had another day of fishing and enjoying our environs.  Richelle and I kayaked at low tide (not our 

choice but that’s when it worked out with everybody else) up a river/stream.  We had a nice adventure 

through what looked suspiciously like crocodile habitat.  We did not see any logs moving though!   We 

first heard and then saw some howler monkeys.  Richelle and I decided to see if they would talk back to 

us.  So, there we were in the middle of the jungle howling to the monkeys.  And you know what… they 

stopped howling completely.  I think  the males do the howling in that species and well, I think they saw 

that we were females and did not like our intrusion.  Or maybe we said something rude like—“You look 

like a human and you smell like one too!”

We did get boarded by the Coast Guard.  We had not checked into Costa Rica yet because the first 

port of entry is in Bahia del Coco about 40 miles south of Bahia Santa Elena.  As we saw the Coast 

Guard approach, Lou and I went back forth about what we should tell these guys.  The truth (we 

wanted to enjoy this beautiful bay and so we pulled in here) or a lie (one of us was ill or something was 

wrong with the boat etc.).  We opted to tell the truth and nothing but the truth.  And guess what… they 

didn’t ask!  There have been some recent changes in the fishing regulations so the Coast Guard is 

going around educating and informing the local fishermen.  Costa Rica does not have any armed 

services.  They were all very cordial and welcoming.  And they enjoyed my freshly baked raspberry 

squares (thanks cousin Grace!)

We were getting kind of low on supplies (read this as we were running low on beer) and so we upped 

anchor and went to Cuajiniquil (pronounced Cwa- HEENEY-KEEL).  Sounds Hawaiian or maybe 

Gaelic.    There was a nice supermarket although it was quite a hike.  We also dinged our dinghy 

propeller on some rocks.  Yes, another thing for Lou to put on his list to fix!  We will celebrate when 

that list gets to less than 10 items.  We will make it a quiet celebration so that boat doesn’t understand 

what we are doing and decide she needs something major fixed.

On our way to the next anchorage we were swarmed by bees (momentarily).  I guess they didn’t like 

what they saw.  And then we were swarmed by dolphins.  There were 30-50 of them playing around our 

boat!  We also saw turtles mating.  Its that time of year and we’ve learned a lot about these creatures.  

There is still one mystery about turtles and if you are a turtle enthusiast, write back to me and we’ll ask 

you our question.  

Another nice anchorage was in the Isla Murcielagos (Bat Islands).  We didn’t see any bats, but we did 

see a bat ray make multiple attempts to use his wings to become airborne.  The snorkeling was good.  

My favorite at that location was the barberfish.  The Barberfish is a yellow fish  with black circles 

around his eyes.  He is a groomer fish, which means he picks stuff (parasites and such) off other fish.  

Yummy!

We spent a couple more days in Portrero Grande where there is a surf break.  This surf break is called 

Ollie’s point.  Yes, Oliver North had a training camp for the Contras near this beach.  Emily and Martin 

enjoyed getting a chance to try out surfing.  Martin now has surfing on the brain 24/7.  In the cracks, 

he fits in guitar.  Emily is more balanced.  Portrero Grande is also where turtles nest.  We saw several 

nests that had egg shells around them.  We saw several indentations in the sand that looked like 

possible nests.  But, we didn’t see any turtles lumber up the beach to make their deposit.  I still really 

hope we can see this!

We arrived in civilization- Bahia del Coco.  The Ace crew had been here before on a short vacation trip 

with the Heeney family in 2000.   Bahia del Coco gave us an opportunity to provision.  They had good 

old country sausage (and I’m not talking chorizo).  I treated the family to sausage, biscuits and gravy!  

They had other delicacies like root beer and Fritos (only a small bag but that made Lou very happy!)    

Are you hungry yet?

There still seems to be a lot of prejudice from the Ticos/Ticas (Costa Ricans) against the Nicos/Nicas 

(Nicaraguans).  We encountered it when we were here in 2000 and it seems present still.  

We took a bus trip to Playa Tamarindo to find a surfboard or two.  We found a surfboard for Emily and 

Martin.   And we brought it back with us on the bus.  Tamarindo is a big surf and backpacker hangout.  

More about the surfboard in the next update

Then we escaped to Bahia Huevos (that’s “eggs” for your 411).  We spent a lovely two days exploring 

the river by dinghy (this time at high tide), snorkeling and fishing.  Lou is enjoying getting to spearfish.  

He also cleans and cooks the fish!  Wow!  

What we are reading:

Mary just finished Castaways in Paradise.  Short stories about people who have lived on deserted 

islands.    She has just started reading From Grandmother to Grandaughter:Salvadoran Women’s 

Stories.  And she finished listening to Havana Dreams about Castro’s wealthy mistress who had a 

daughter by him, but then was cast aside and basically has lived frozen in the time before the 

revolution.

Lou just finished An Island to Oneself by Tom Neale who lived on Suwarrow for over 20 years as a 

hermit.  Although he says he is not a hermit because he likes people.  

Emily is reading more of Teri Blackstock’s books.

Martin is reading his surfing magazine over and over again!

Central Costa Rica (October 2004)

We are anchored next to Punta Leona in the Gulf of Nicoya, about halfway down the Pacific coast.  Our days have been filled with just hanging out on the boat and it has been wonderful.  Okay - I'll be truthful.  Some days, Martin (whose school uniform consists of his boxer shorts-which just goes to show you have to pick your battles) is the biggest pain!  And Emily gets a bit of a teenage attitude and her cabin is a mess.  And the kids fight.  And Lou and I have our fights. In fact, I was thinking how Emily and Martin will never be misled.  When I was growing up, I thought my parents never fought.  But I grew up in a 4 bedroom house on 80 acres.   When you are in a 42 foot boat-there are no secrets.   So, okay its not paradise.  But, sometimes-and more times than when we were on land--   it is so magical.  

We are enjoying our buddyboat- Amorita.  All eight of us get along with each other.  It really is very rare.  They have been so kind in showing us all their special anchorages in Northern Costa Rica.  

We have been extremely fortunate to be introduced by Lou's aunt, Sister Theresa Dietz to one of her former students from Costa Rca, Audrey McDermott Liscano and her husband, Gustavo, their daughter, Melissa, their son, Mauricio, Melissa's husband, Victor and Mauricio's girlfriend, Suner.  Not to forget-- a ferret named Mustafa and a dog named Bacchus!  They are delightful people full of energy and love and enthusiasm!    They have been so kind in showing us around this rich coast.  

Their whole family has fascinating stories-which I love to hear!  Audrey's father worked for the United Fruit Company in Golfito.  The executives' children were sponsored by the company to attend schools outside of Costa Rica-room, board and tuition.  Audrey took a banana boat through the Panama Canal and arrived in New Orleans where she attended St. Mary of the Pines in Chatawa, Miss.  This is where she met Sister Theresa (Anthony Ann was her name in those days).  Sister Theresa was the youngest nun and was much loved by the high school students.  Sister Theresa has continued her friendships with her former students in Costa Rica and other parts of the world.  

So, what do you want to hear about?  

We caught three dorado coming down the coast.  Lou has gotten quite handy at filleting fish.  And we are discovering more and more recipes.  

Martin, Lou and Emily are enjoying learning how to surf.   Well, Martin is really enjoying it and talks about it 90% of the time.  Lou and Emily are taking advantage of the opportunities as they arise (literally), but are finding there is a huge learning curve.  

We anchored at Playa Tamarindo where there is pretty good surf.  Emily will tell the story of our misadventure in Playa Tamarindo below…

I'm enjoying kayaking.  I think one of our best "fluff" purchases was the inflatable kayak.  It gives us one more mode of transportation.  Man-handling the dinghy onto shore by myself is not my idea of having fun.  I have found it is pretty easy to take the kayak to shore.  I had one very challenging beach exit.  I thought I was getting the set right-but I got swamped.  I headed back in to shore and a local guy helped me swim the kayak out over the breakers and got me on my way.  I think one of my favorite experiences of travel is accepting the kindnesses of strangers.

Still in the company of Amorita, we have been enjoying the Gulf of Nicoya.  Although, because of rainy season, the water is pretty murky.  We have enjoyed the shores.  

One of our favorite stops has been Playa Curu.  There we took a wonderful horseback ride through this reserve!  We saw deer, coyote, iguana, scarlet macaws (in flight) and monkeys (the white faced capuchin and howler).  This was not the "sign a waiver and release" trail ride where you ride nose to butt through the trails.  No way-we were fording swollen streams, having the horses "wade" through thigh-high mud and then cantering and galloping over a marsh.  We had a ton of fun and everyone was a little bit sore after the ride.  I think I won the mud award.

After a nice sail across the Gulf of Nicoya, we anchored at Punta Leona where our friends, Gus and Audrey have a beautiful beach house.  This is a nice resort community where there are 3 pools and access to some beautiful beaches.  Gus and Audrey have opened their home to us and we are so grateful for their hospitality.  We hope that we can meet up with them as we head down the coast and cross the Pacific.  

Lou and I are going to a lot of trouble to get our absentee ballots here and taken back to the USA so we can vote for Kerry.  We ask you to be kind and not cancel out our votes.  It may not matter-we are voting in Florida, so they may find a way to throw out our votes anyway.  (Such a skeptic!)

What we are reading:

Guess what Martin is reading-Surfing magazines.

Lou finished "Short History of Just about Everything" and "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson.  He enjoyed both books a lot.  One of Bill Bryson's speculations is about DNA and how DNA is just using the earth and its inhabitants to "take over".  When you are walking through a rainforest in the rainy season, where everywhere you look there is life- and we can't even see half of it - it makes you ponder this theory.  Lou also read "Dude, Where's My Country" by Michael Moore.

Mary finished, "Holding the Line" by Barbara Kingsolver.  This book was about the Copper strikes in Arizona that were mainly staffed by women.  It was an interesting read especially when Emily, Martinand I are studying Economics in a book called, "Whatever Happened to Penny Candy?"  The author doesn't  take kindly to unions and suggests that unions disrupt the natural economic cycle.  I'm also reading, "Life is Good" a biography of George Dawson, a descendant of African slaves who was born in 1898.  It has been very interesting reading about his experiences growing up in Texas and then traveling around the country catching rides on trains in the 1920s.  He went to Mexico and was baffled and then really enjoyed that he could drink from any fountain he pleased and go into any restaurant.  

Emily is reading some of the Bible (we read the Book of Ruth and the Book of Esther).  She is also reading, Sharon Creech Books and At the Back of the North Wind.

Here is Emily’s account of the Tamarindo adventure:

Hi!

Costa Rica is a great place for surfing, so we're all having fun learning. A few weeks ago we were in a place called Tamarindo with Nathaniel and Kimberly, whose boat, by the way, is called Amorita, and Tamarindo is a great surfing spot. The day we got there, we did a little bit of shopping and then dropped my mom off on our boat, because she didn't want to surf. We got our surfboards, piled them into our little inflatable boat called a dinghy, and went in close to shore, dropped an anchor so it would still be there when we returned and paddled in. We had a blast! A few hours later as the sun was going down, my dad decided it was time to start paddling back out to the dinghy. We were surfing nearby the river mouth, and it was going to high tide, so there was a pretty strong current sucking you into the river. I gave my brother Martin the surfboard and he gave me the boogie board and we started paddling out. A few minutes later, I was far ahead of him. I kept paddling, paddling, paddling, but the waves kept knocking me back! It was very frustrating! Then I looked back and I couldn't see Martin!! I yelled to Nathaniel that I couldn't see Martin. He stopped paddling and looked back. Finally we saw him, directly in the middle of the river mouth! "Nathaniel, what'll we do?" I asked him. "My dad's coming" he replied. I felt suddenly calmer. Of course our parents would get us! How could I think for a second they wouldn't? Just as the sun sank below the horizon, leaving the sky pinkish red, I saw Joel and Richelle, Kimberly and Nathaniel's parents, swimming in. They told us to go to shore and start walking to where there was no current, because it wasn't directly by the river mouth. Joel took Nathaniel's surfboard and paddled back out to tell my dad what we were doing. We walked down the beach and stopped where we had landed the dinghies earlier that day. When we started paddling out then, it was a billion times easier than next to the river mouth! We got home and had hamburgers and then fell into our beds. As Shakespeare says "All's well that ends well" .    

Bye!   

Emily (Galley Wench)

P.S. I think it's time for me to get promoted, don't you? All who're with me, please email!

Costa Rica 3 (October 2004)

We have continued to enjoy Costa Rica immensely.  We stayed in Punta Leona in the Gulf of Nicoya for two weeks.  Audrey and Gus (our Tico friends) have a beautiful and comfortable beach house in Punta Leona.  They very graciously opened their house to us (including our buddy boat- the Millers on Amorita).  On the weekends, we would have the pleasure of their company.   And during the week, the gave us the keys to their house and ATV.  This was a wonderful blessing!    

Our friend, Kathy, visited us from California.  Kathy’s flight was diverted to Panama due to fog over San Jose, Costa Rica.  Instead of arriving at 9:00 p.m., she arrived at 12:15 a.m.!!!  She had to borrow a cab driver’s cell phone to call me to let me know that she had arrived.  Melissa (Audrey’s daughter) and I had tried to get information on the flight from American Airlines.  Melissa spoke to a person at the American Airlines counter twice and they didn’t have an update on the flight.  There was a good possibility that they would stay in Panama and fly in the following morning.  American Airlines did a very poor job of communicating to the people waiting for the flight and the passengers.    Anyway, Kathy arrived safely and we started to have some fun.  I took Kathy to the market in San Jose, since I enjoy markets.  This was the first time she had seen a Central American market. Audrey and Gus took Kathy and me on a tour of Vulcan Poas and the mountain region just outside of San Jose.  Beautiful country.  Melissa and Victor hosted Kathy and me in their comfortable home.    This was a very clean market in comparison to many others I have seen in Mexico and Central America.  We had a good time discussing everything—like we used to when we would bike ride to Fiesta del Mar Too in Mountain View!  

We enjoyed having Kathy on Ace.  We didn’t go anywhere on the boat, but enjoyed the anchorage at Punta Leona.  Kathy and I enjoyed kayaking to a beach with a waterfall and we also enjoyed kayaking to another beach and then rock climbing to get to another beach. We were BEACHIN’!  

Lou’s birthday was October 13th.  We started celebrating his birthday the weekend before.   We went to a beautiful hotel on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean and watched the sunset.  Audrey’s mom, Doña Maria was with us.  Then Gus showed us how they celebrate Christmas in Colombia by building and launching three hot air balloons.  Check out our website in a few days and there will be pictures of this—because it is just too hard to explain.

While Kathy was with us we went to a turtle beach.  After many unsuccessful attempts at locating a turtle beach and a turtle guide—we found one!  The turtle guy (Raul) picked us up—some of us less enthusiastic than others.  It was another case of “trust me this will be a good experience”.  Fortunately,Lou is very kind to trust my instinct (Okay—I know what some of you are thinking—does Lou have a choice when Mary gets something in her head?)  Picture this== we ‘re driving out to a deserted beach, its raining and its 9 p.m. at night (Past the cruiser’s bed time of 8:30).  Our guide dumps us out at a parking lot on a very dark and did I say RAINY beach and tells us he is going to go park the car down the beach and he’ll meet us.  We are to follow these people and just walk down the beach, in the dark and in the rain and look for turtle tracks.  So, we head off—getting wetter by the minute.  The people we are to follow don’t seem very enthusiastic about us following them.  I think they were biologists who have spent years studying turtles and we are just tourists who in their mind are just trying to check another item off our list of what we have seen.  There is a point that I’m thinking—they are trying to lose us.  All the time trying to keep my enthusiasm up because it is through my instigation that there are 7 of us walking down this dark, did I mention RAINY beach.  And then, our guide shows up and whispers to us that there is a female turtle just up the way.  Didn’t you see her tracks?  And she is getting ready to lay her eggs.  We come up to her just as she is finishing up the hole digging and ready to go into a trance as she lays eggs.  At first, I feel very voyeuristic as she begins to lay her eggs.  It seems like such a personal thing to be watching.  And initially it makes me think I’m watching some animal go to the bathroom instead of participating in viewing the circle of life.  But then you get caught up in the miracle.  In the absolute beauty of the moment.  This beautiful creature (an endangered Olive Ridley turtle) has been out in the ocean living her life.  When she is mated, the male gets on top of her and holds on to her with his claws.  We’ve seen them out in the middle of the ocean.  The male submerges the female.  And then, having to go to shore.  Shore—driven by instinct to leave the familiarity of the ocean.  To trudge up the beach and use her flippers not for swimming, but for digging.  She sighed as she released each egg.  And after about 10 minutes she was finished.  She had deposited 95 eggs.  Then she very meticulously started scooping the sand back into the hole and patting it down with her whole body.  This lasted for at least 10 more minutes.   Then she rested just a minute and started heading back to the ocean—not looking back once.  We all got to touch her.  I felt such respect for this turtle—even though she was just doing what comes naturally.  The biologists gathered up the eggs and took them to the hatchery where they would be taken care of and predators wouldn’t be able to get to them. It will take about six weeks for these eggs to hatch.   Then we had the honor of releasing about 100 newly hatched turtles into the ocean.  We helped them head the right direction and get into the surf.  It is very important for them to make the walk down the beach so the females know where to return.  It was sad to think that maybe just one or two would make it to adulthood.  And in the midst of this, it stopped raining—but we didn’t even notice.  

Emily, Martin and Lou are enjoying getting to learn how to surf.  They are taking advantage of every opportunity.  Lou got to go surf at Playa Hermosa and he got a surfboard for his birthday.  He compromised with something between a short board and a long board.   

I’ll update our reading list on my next installment.

Costa Rica South (October 2004)

We left our nice anchorage in Punta Leona and met up with some friends on the sailing Vessel Cloud 9 (Michael and Jeri).  We anchored in Herradura, Costa Rica.  The kids and Lou got to do a little bit of surfing.  We had a nice reunion with Cloud 9 since we hadn’t seen them since May.  They love our kids and vice versa.

Lou, Michael, and Martin went out fishing in the Cloud 9’s dinghy.  They were close to some rocks on a peninsula when a set of waves swept in and flipped the dinghy, tossing the people and fishing gear all overboard, into shallow rocky water.  Lou and Michael were scrambling to keep the dinghy close by and gather accessories, such as the fuel tank that were drifting away, and Martin swam into the shore and a beach that was quickly disappearing with the incoming tide.  Of course, sunset was approaching, and nobody knew they were likely stranded here!  Michael and Lou were able to get the waterlogged outboard started again and they raced off of the shore through the big surf, and then the engine sputtered, just making it back to Ace before it quit entirely.  In the meantime, I had been on the boat and heard Lou yell from the beach shortly after they flipped.  I didn’t know what they needed- but I knew that they didn’t have oars.   Our dinghy didn’t have the outboard on it.  Emily and I tried to row to them, but we were not getting anywhere with the current.  Then I went to launch the kayak.  Then I saw that they had made it off the beach under their own power.  They lost quite a few things from the dinghy—Martin’s fishing pole, a bunch of lures, our Cutco filet knife.  Lou and Michael went the next day at low tide and found a few things including the fiberglass top for the outboard motor.  After surveying the rocks that they managed to swim and bounce over to the beach, they felt lucky not to have been badly injured.

We headed on down to Bahia Drake to meet up with Amorita who was having a great time there.  We brought some nasty seas with us.  It was the most nerve-wracking experience we have had so far in our cruise.  After a nice afternoon in the anchorage, the seas built gradually until there were 6 and 7 foot breaking waves coming into the anchorage.  It rained so hard, we got 2 feet of rain in one night.  Therewas debris including huge logs floating out of the rivers nearby.  When the waves picked them up,  they were rammed into Ace.  We had one breaking wave set Ace momemtarily on top of our dinghy, Ketchup.  Yikes!  Some of her floorboards were broken by that.    We stayed two nights—intermittently having some discussions that it is better many times to be out at sea than at anchor.  Ace did drag anchor, we think after a log tripped the anchor, and then reset.  So, finally we left.  We had to tow the dinghy because we couldn’t lift it onboard in such conditions.  Amorita lost their stern anchor when the rode chafed through, and on the passage out of Bahia Drake, they lost their dinghy too.  Ketchup (our dinghy) is fine—but we’ll need to replace the floorboards soon.

We headed for Golfito.  And were welcomed with a beautiful, calm anchorage.  Golfito was the company town for United Fruit Company (that’s Chiquita banana to you!).  United Fruit Company had their problems—parasites destroying banana trees and striking laborers—and they closed up shop. (It’s more complicated than this, of course).  When United Fruit left, there wasn’t much left for the people of Golfito to do to make money.  Certainly, there was fishing, but nothing that was as predictable as the steady paycheck from United Fruit.  So, the Costa Rican government helped subsidize a back to work enterprise—DUTY FREE SHOPS.  So, each Tico (Costa Rican) can come down to Golfito and spend $500 duty free every six months.  When they first instituted this enterprise, you could come down and make the purchase and leave.  Now, you have to pick up your ticket authorizing to make purchases, the day before.  So this means people have to come down the afternoon before and spend the night .  So, more money gets infused into the community.  

I met a fellow cruiser, Raewyn (from New Zealand) who would get up every morning at 5:30 and walk the dog.  I went with her and we would hike up the hill (a Kansan would call it a mountain)  that overlooks Golfito.  We would see parrots, monkeys, poison dart frogs and blue morph butterflies on our walks!  Very nice.  I learned a lot from her and loved hearing her stories.

We were anchored in front of a cruiser’s hang out, Land and Sea Services.  Katie and Tim were fantastic hosts.  You can use the dinghy dock and their HOT showers for $3 per day.  Plus Katie has fantastic connections and arranged for us to go on a trip to a surf camp/nature lodge Encanta la Vida.

We went to this beautiful, remote resort on the Osa Peninsula.  It was a fantastic two days of surfing for Lou and the kids and hiking and enjoying nature for all of us.  We also enjoyed the great conversations with the other guests and the manager.  Martin found a great new adult friend named Paul with whom he schemed about making a trip on a catamaran to all  the surf spots in the world.  Paul is very enthusiastic about this trip and I’m sure his wife, Lynn and his grown children will miss him a little bit.   Lynn works at Trader Joe’s and had me salivating for all the wonderful food at Trader Joe’s.  I suggested she could subsidize trips to any place that cruisers were anchored by bringing Trader Joe’s supplies to the cruisers.

The wildlife was breathtaking.  We saw toucans, scarlet macaws, monkeys (spider, capuchin, howlers and squirrel) and iguanas.  You would spot movement in the trees and you would see one monkey and then a whole tribe of them.  Martin and I were walking along the road up to the resort and we saw some squirrel monkeys in the trees above the road.  We were looking up and then I heard some water coming from above and heard one of the Ticos nearby say, “Urina”—and it slowly came to me that URINE was flowing down from the trees just inches from Martin’s head.  I told Martin to move toward me and he did---without getting wet!  I guess we know what the monkeys think of humans.

The kids organized a Halloween party and went trick or treating by dinghy among the other cruising boats in Golfito.  They were well treated!  Then we had a party where among other things Mary, Emily and Martin tried to teach people the Time Warp dance from the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

What we are reading:  Mary has been on a reading frenzy:  Book of Puka-Puka (about living in the South Sea Islands in the first part of the 20th century), With Eyes you can See (about a Catholic priest in Guatemala during the 1970s that got very involved in the struggles of the people), The Valkryies.  

Lou has been reading The Wonder of Girls (about raising daughters), 

Emily has been reading the Terry Patchett books, Martin is reading the Redwall books very slowly.    And thinking about his surf trip with Paul and others on his catamaran.

Panama (November 2004)

Happy Holidays.

Here is a quote from “A Pilgrim’s Almanac” by Edward Hays:

December 15th- Halcyon Festival- Traditionally seven days before and after the Winter Sostice, this feast was believed by ancients to be a time of great peace and calm.  It was named after the halcyon bird who was said to calm the winds and waves.  

Here’s hoping the halcyon brings calm to your holiday season so you may enjoy the ones that you love and that love you!  The Ace crew wants you to know you hold a very special place in our hearts!

Look for two different articles by Emily and Mary in the December issue of Latitude 38.  We haven’t seen them yet, but heard they were published.  And check our website for recent photos:  www.malindi.com

We arrived in Panama on November 2.  We were to meet our friend, Alex at Isla Parida, an island near Pedregal- a suburb of David on November 4th.  Alex was given only vague e-mail instructions about how to meet up with us.  He was up to the challenge.   And on November 4th—almost like clockwork, in comes a fishing boat to our anchorage with Alex aboard!  It happened to be a national holiday and a guy was just going out to fish and Alex asked for a ride and they gave it to him!    I’m glad Alex accepted the challenge.

We then headed to Islas Secas (that is “dry” to you!).  We had a great time with Alex—fishing, snorkeling and he taught the kids how to play the blues on their guitars.  We ate from the sea every night.  Alex reminded us how to harvest scallops, as we had done with him in the channel islands a year before.  The scallops here are not as meaty as California scallops, but we enjoyed the challenge of free diving and picking them off of the rocks.  Islas Secas is owned by a rich Californian that is trying to build a luxury resort on this island.  He has several yurts (the round tents used by Mongolians).  He is going to charge people $600 per night.  The biggest problem is—you guessed it on an island called Secas—WATER!  I mean, think about it, if you are going to spend $600 per night, you want a shower (and a hot shower) when you want a shower.  You probably wouldn’t accept the lame excuse, “Hey, its dry season and we don’t have any water!”  But, we had lots of water while we were there.  I think it was because I arrogantly said, “Hey, I think I know why they call this place the Secas—it hasn’t rained for several days.”  And well, for the next couple of days straight it rained!    Now imagine, being cooped up on a 42 foot boat with 4 other people.  Just wanted to let you know that it isn’t Paradise all of the time!    Alex was a great sport—he was probably very happy to go home to bachelor life.

Once Alex left, we had another deadline, my parents were coming to visit on November 20th in Panama City.    Lou and I love passages.  The rhythm of life at sea under passage is very invigorating.  (Okay, ask me after 25 days when we make our passage from Galapagos to the Marquesas how invigorated I feel and maybe I’ll have a different opinion!)  So, although we had planned to stop at a couple of places, if we were sailing and the rhythm was right we just kept going through the night towards Panama City.

We did find a nice spot for surfing and met some French cruisers who are cruising for 8 months of the year and giving ski lessons (to make money) in France for 4 months of the year.  Lou and Martin enjoyed the waves at this spot.  And the both caught the “best waves of their lives”.  Emily and I walked the beach and found two beautiful sand dollars.  Unfortunately,  they are so fragile they crumbled before we got them home.

My parents arrived safely in Panama City and stayed at a hotel adjacent to the Balboa Yacht Club moorings where Ace is tied up now.  Emily and Martin moved right in to their hotel room and enjoyed being spoiled for a week.  Emily is delighted that they have Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia in a store here.  The problem is that it costs $5.84 per pint.  Yikes!  

Mom and I went by bus to a town that has a Sunday artist’s market.  We had a good time traveling by bus and it gave us time to talk.  We have had only e-mail communication with them since we left El Salvador.  It was nice to have time just to talk—and I didn’t have to tell my mom too many times that I had heard that story before.  The drive through the countryside was beautiful.  

One morning there was a lot of commotion- helicopters flying over and boats speeding by the moorings.  Lou and I looked out of the boat and there was a submarine gliding past headed for a canal transit.  We headed into the hotel to pick up mom, dad, Emily and Martin and rushed over to Miraflores locks to watch the submarine transit the canal.  When we got to the gate at the Miraflores Locks, we were told by the security guard that we wouldn’t be able to see the submarine because of security reasons. Well, after a 15 minute delay he let us in and we reached the observation posts at the Miraflores locks.  And what would be there but the submarine preparing to go through the lock!  We have pictures to prove it!

Another great experience that we had with my parents was going to the San Blas Islands (in the Carribean)  where the Kuna Indians live.   I had heard that it was better to go to the more southern islands of the archipelago.   We took off from the national airport in a DeHavilland Twin Otter.  Lou, Dad, Martin and I enjoyed sitting behind the pilots and watching them make their short take off and landings.   Each island has a chief and a separate economy.  So, therefore, each island (practically) has a runway.  It is from the planes they receive many of their supplies and newspapers.  On our way to the islands we made three landings.  On our way back to Panama City, we made five landings!  One time Lou and I looked at each other and agreed that this was a one way runway and that we would certainly taxi back to the other end before taking off—not these guys!  They took off almost straight into a hill and then immediately banked to the right.  What a thrill!   

The Kunas moved from present day Colombia to the eastern coast of  present day Panama  around the time of Columbus’ arrival on these shores.  They moved out to the islands gradually.  Now they live very densely on these small islands.  We stayed on Uaguitupo (Dolphin Island). We had tours of the islands that made us feel like the Pied Piper of Hamlin.  As we walked through the maze of walkways through the huts, we encountered many Kuna women selling their molas (beautiful handsewn tapestries used on their blouses.  They developed these blouses in reaction to European pressure during colonialism to cover their bare breasts.  So, they decided to do it with finesse!).  The children joined us, much in awe of Emily and Martin.  They do have fair haired Kunas.  They are called moon children and treated very well.  They are not offspring from Europeans, but rather a genetic mutation, a bit like albinos, but not with pink eyes.  Their eyes are very sensitive to the sun.  

It had rained so much a few days before we arrived, that it had busted some of the water pipes in the village.  So, the people had to go in their dugouts (“cayucos”) and sailboats (dugouts with sails) to the freshwater river.  We saw many older women paddling with three or four children in the dugout plus every container imaginable to retrieve water in.

Emily, Martin and Mary got their noses decorated in typical Kuna fashion.  I had been warned that it would stay on for four days.  I thought that I could wash it off if I didn’t like it.  Well, you guessed it… it stayed on for four days.  Lou told me mine looked like Frankenstein stitches.  He has no sense of high Kuna fashion.  Emily tried to rub hers off with soap and ended up rubbing it raw.  The scabs on her nose lasted longer than the decoration would have.

Mom and Dad took everything in wonderful stride.  Mom bought molas to make a bed spread.  She enjoyed the negotiating.  Every one they encountered—fell under their charm!  It continues to be a joy 

to travel with them.  Emily and Martin blossom under their love.A week is always too short a visit!  But, thankfully, they have their fully engaged lives in Topeka.  

What we are reading:  Mary-  The Blue of Capricorn,  Lou- The Wonder of Boys (about raising boys).  I’m now re-reading the Pilgrim from Tinker Creek.  

Update (March 2005) 

March 6

It has been too long since I have done an update.  There are many reasons for this—preparing Ace to cross the Pacific, visiting the States, and basically being around a big city like Panama City where anything you want can usually be accomplished but it takes a whole day!  We are learning the secret of asking the right question!  

So now to get you caught up on the adventures of SV Ace:

We had a great time during Christmas with our cruising friends, but then felt a need to be off on our own.  We had a quiet New Years Eve-- just Ace all alone in an anchorage.  The next morning we left for the Darien Province.  This is a very remote area of Panama that borders with Colombia.  It has a huge bay (in size reminiscent to San Francisco Bay) and is fed by several rivers.  Previously, this area was inhabited by indigenous people, but they have all moved to the city or moved to the major population centers of the Darien (major isn’t major—like 4,000 people).  We anchored in many beautiful rivers—completely secluded from the outside world, surrounded by parrots and other bird life.  We would take our dinghy up to the shallow rivers and meet the people in the tiny villages.  Then, they came to visit us on the boat.  They basically have a dugout canoe that takes at least two people to handle—one to row and one to bail! One evening we had 15 people on board- eating popcorn and watching Finding Nemo in Spanish.  

We brought them some medical supplies, clothing and Martin gave them his soccer ball and basketball.  We visited the most populated town in the province, La Palma.  And just around the point were some Embera Indians who make beautiful baskets.  They came out to the boat with their wares.  We bought some beautiful baskets that we gave to family and friends in the States.  Emily traded one of her dresses or a basket that a young girl, Emily’s age, had made.  Martin and Emily got to play soccer with the local kids and were very popular.  The kids didn’t want them to go.

We headed back to Panama City from this very simple life.  We knew we had a lot of work to do before we headed to the States on February 1.  We hauled out Ace and put a fresh coat of bottom paint on her.  Martin had a good time with the local workers and even talked politics with them!  We did have a minor glitch—our cutlass bearing on our prop needed replacement (well, it was borderline whether it needed replacement- but we thought we should do it here).  Fortunately, we found a replacement very quickly.  

However, it took almost 8 hours to remove the cutlass bearing!    Then, we were just doing some routine maintenance and broke a seacock (a safety valve on our cockpit drain).  This replacement was not so easy to find.  We would have to be hauled out again to replace this. Okay, okay… you’re getting the gist of our life after the Darien—work, work, frustration, work, work.  Welcome to the real world!

During these times, I am in constant admiration of Lou and his wonderful ability to think through all of the operations of the boat.   I just try to help out by keeping the kids occupied, taking care of logistics andhaving a cold beer ready when he is ready to relax for a minute.  

The night before we left for the States we said goodbye to our friends on Amorita who were heading through the Canal and to the Caribbean.  Emily was especially sad to leave her friend Kimberley.  I sympathize with her—these goodbyes are so hard.  It is another part of the cruising life I did not fully appreciate.  Panama is a huge transition area where we will be saying goodbye to many of our cruising friends.  

Our visit to the States was highlighted with the celebration of  Marge, Emily and sister-in-law Melissa’s birthdays.  All of my siblings, nieces and nephew were in Kansas City to celebrate.  We went ice-skating and Emily really enjoyed doing that.  She did get her favorite- Cherry Garcia (Ben and Jerry’s) ice cream.  Mom and Dad were wonderful hosts.  They have a 2-bedroom/one-bath apartment in downtown Topeka.This is spacious to us.  The 2nd bedroom was stacked with stuff we had ordered to take back with us.  We all lived very well together.

We went to Denver to visit Lou’s dad and other family members.  Lou’s dad has been in and out of the hospital and is in a care facility now.  We had a great time with Lou’s sister, Theresa and her family and Lou’s brother, Den and his family.  We are grateful to Theresa and Den for being there for Lou’s dad.  Lou spent 10 days in Denver.  I returned to Kansas with Emily and Martin.   Lou enjoyed having time with his Dad and enjoyed watching movies with him.  

So, we came back to Panama—weighted down with new sails and lots of other STUFF!  We put on the new main sail and it was cut too long!  So, we had to send it back to a sailmaking loft in Miami.  There are no sailmakers in the Panama area!   The sail is back and we’re hoping to blast out of here by Wednesday! It will take us about 8 days to get to the Galapagos.  We hope to spend between 20-30 days in the Galapagos.  Then, we’ll head off to French Polynesia.  We haven’t decided where we will make landfall—in the Gambiers or the Marquesas.  

What we are reading (have read):

Mary- Stone Diaries, Fatu Hiva (by Thor Heyerdahl- a great read—I highly recommend!), and now I’m reading “The Beak of the Finch” about Darwin and the study of evolution that is continuing in the Galapagos.

Lou- The Pirate Hunters, Quantum Theology, Rescue in the Pacific

Emily- Shadwomancer (a book given to us by Shane Allen), Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret.

Martin-Marlfox, BFG and The Twits