The morning is the time to get work done. Been getting started around 7, working till noonish, taking several hours for lunch/siesta/internet chats with friends (glad that several are on google chat so we can chat in real time) and then back to work until 5:30 or 6. Then up to one of the harborside restaurants or our apartment for a drink, then dinner in an hour or so.
Workers started trickling in on Thursday so things are moving again.
It’s fascinating being in a ship repair facility. There are probably a 100 or so boats here “on the dry”, so I get a chance to see a lot of different designs up close. Working on Tom’s boat, talking to the workers and other owners who are having work done gives me much more of an appreciation for how much maintenance is required to keep a boat going. I find it very interesting that all the workers laugh when I ask if they own boats; to a man they say they would never own one.
The opinion amongst owners gathered for drinks or dinner or gazing at work being done in the yard is that there are 2 types of boat owners: those that actually use their boats, and those who are posers. The first type knows that ownership requires constant time and money to maintain the boat, some say as much as 3 hours for every hour sailing. The second group owns boats, has parties, sails occasionally, talks like sailors…then sell the boats when the accumulated needed repairs become overwhelming.
I suspect by the time I’m done with this experience I’ll have solidified my position on owning a boat. The more I do and see here the more I lean to being a sailor and less to being an owner. As one crusty French couple puts it, “nobody in their right mind buys a boat to just live on it. You buy a boat to move about the world freely; you accept the cost of maintenance to have that freedom.”.
I came here hoping to clarify where I am on sailing, looks like that will happen.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Wed Feb 6 - aftermath
OOOWWWW, do I hurt…..
No, not my head, silly, an acquaintance has taught me how to drink equal shares of water with my alcohol, I seldom get hung over anymore. My feet and legs. Standing on pavement for 8 hours is way more than I’m liking.
One sad bit of news of Carnival aftermath.. a 28 yr old man was stabbed 4 times in the stomach and back, fatally, by a 23 yr old woman because he engaged in "wining" with her. He allegedly grabbed her by the hips during the dance.. seems to me a simple slap would have sufficed. I think I'll just read my books while I'm here..
Boat work started in earnest today.
Hahahaha, that was a great plan….
This is Ash Wednesday in a very Catholic society and the Indians (as in from India) take advantage of that also. Let us not mention that it is also the day after a 5 day long party. We heard from everyone “..he was going to come today, but…..mebbe tomorrow mon, for sure Friday or Saturday”. Driving Tom crazy.
We worked on what we could to shorten the list of things that need to be done before we hit the water and before we leave up island.
This is one VERY complicated boat, set up to be a blue water cruiser with A/C, water makers, bow thrusters, electric winches, etc, etc, ad nauseum. And it has problems, some serious, some irritants. Looking at the list I wonder if we’ll get it all done.
But….. it’s 5 o’clock somewhere, the sun is setting and my feet are up and I’m still in the tropics….
No, not my head, silly, an acquaintance has taught me how to drink equal shares of water with my alcohol, I seldom get hung over anymore. My feet and legs. Standing on pavement for 8 hours is way more than I’m liking.
One sad bit of news of Carnival aftermath.. a 28 yr old man was stabbed 4 times in the stomach and back, fatally, by a 23 yr old woman because he engaged in "wining" with her. He allegedly grabbed her by the hips during the dance.. seems to me a simple slap would have sufficed. I think I'll just read my books while I'm here..
Boat work started in earnest today.
Hahahaha, that was a great plan….
This is Ash Wednesday in a very Catholic society and the Indians (as in from India) take advantage of that also. Let us not mention that it is also the day after a 5 day long party. We heard from everyone “..he was going to come today, but…..mebbe tomorrow mon, for sure Friday or Saturday”. Driving Tom crazy.
We worked on what we could to shorten the list of things that need to be done before we hit the water and before we leave up island.
This is one VERY complicated boat, set up to be a blue water cruiser with A/C, water makers, bow thrusters, electric winches, etc, etc, ad nauseum. And it has problems, some serious, some irritants. Looking at the list I wonder if we’ll get it all done.
But….. it’s 5 o’clock somewhere, the sun is setting and my feet are up and I’m still in the tropics….
Tuesday Feb 5 - Carnival
Up early, no ill affects from the rum, umbrella firmly in hand (I know, I know, I’m a fucking pussy, but I’m from SoCal, I could melt, or corrode, or tarnish. Wishing I had some pals here to tarnish my reputation with…;-p) and I’m off to party hardy.
OK then. No rain so no rust. Stuck my umbrella through my belt like a sword, quite dashing if I do say so. Lost my Carnival Kup after 2 fillings, although it may have just corroded away, who knows. Had to beg, on my knees, for a replacement from a drop dead gorgeous swamp-thing. Think she was gorgeous, all brown mud and tendrilly looking… she had mercy on me; I only had to beg in front of thousands of people, someone else had to dance around her until she was satisfied. That could have been truly ugly.
Carnival was a kick. And it lasts forever! We got there at 8:45 and it was chaos already. Left at 5:15 and there were no signs of it slowing. Endless parade, although it moved slowly and stopped in place for 10 minutes or so frequently, usually when the loudest music truck was next to us. Not sure I have the superlatives right now to do it justice, maybe later as it sinks in more. Colors. Dancing. Music. They had music by the 18 wheeler load, so loud that my abdomen and chest vibrated like a drum head. Even with earplugs my eardrums hurt. Imagine the biggest speakers we’ve ever had at a SD dance, and put 30 of them on a semi, full volume, 10’ away.
A major difference was the lack of floats like they have in Mardi Gras. Everyone marched, some dressed in incredible costumes that required 3 wheel bicycle-like carriages to transport, some in more traditional costumes, some in… interesting…costumes. One large group in white sailor uniforms throwing baby powder over all their exposed skin. (This group had the largest number of Caucasians, maybe 2%) One interesting group covered in thick, brown, mud.
No bead throwing either. Didn’t prevent risqué activities though, the most outrageous is called ‘wining’, and it does NOT refer to any type of beverage. Imagine an attractive (loose definition, Carnival ya know) woman bending over at the waist and presenting her buttocks as though to an amorous young man to take active, VERY active, advantage of. Now imagine the afore mentioned amorous young man approaching as though to take VERY active advantage of the amorous young woman…groin to buttock touching is encouraged. Prude that I am, I doubt that anyone could actually be that active and rambunctious and stay coupled in reality. No touching is allowed by either partner with any other part of the body, to do so is a major social no-no.
What I thought was culturally interesting was the number of, spectator, pre-pubescent children imitating their elder’s actions, although singly, not as a pair. The wining is from the soca, a very fast calypso dance.
Many more picture and videos to come.
All in all a tremendous experience, glad I was here for it. Dead tired, well passed inebriated into that buzzy-I’m-not-drunk-anymore state. Did NOT make the mistake of loosing my kup again. Did have it filled numerous more times (damn those bacchanalian temptresses) by a variety of alcoholic beverages, mostly drinkable, although one grouping of several types of rum and beer was destined for pavement enrichment.
Wow! It’s only 8:00, I can go have dinner. Now, what goes well with spicy chicken leg, mystery meat on a stick, and hot dogs…..? I know! A rum punch….
OK then. No rain so no rust. Stuck my umbrella through my belt like a sword, quite dashing if I do say so. Lost my Carnival Kup after 2 fillings, although it may have just corroded away, who knows. Had to beg, on my knees, for a replacement from a drop dead gorgeous swamp-thing. Think she was gorgeous, all brown mud and tendrilly looking… she had mercy on me; I only had to beg in front of thousands of people, someone else had to dance around her until she was satisfied. That could have been truly ugly.
Carnival was a kick. And it lasts forever! We got there at 8:45 and it was chaos already. Left at 5:15 and there were no signs of it slowing. Endless parade, although it moved slowly and stopped in place for 10 minutes or so frequently, usually when the loudest music truck was next to us. Not sure I have the superlatives right now to do it justice, maybe later as it sinks in more. Colors. Dancing. Music. They had music by the 18 wheeler load, so loud that my abdomen and chest vibrated like a drum head. Even with earplugs my eardrums hurt. Imagine the biggest speakers we’ve ever had at a SD dance, and put 30 of them on a semi, full volume, 10’ away.
A major difference was the lack of floats like they have in Mardi Gras. Everyone marched, some dressed in incredible costumes that required 3 wheel bicycle-like carriages to transport, some in more traditional costumes, some in… interesting…costumes. One large group in white sailor uniforms throwing baby powder over all their exposed skin. (This group had the largest number of Caucasians, maybe 2%) One interesting group covered in thick, brown, mud.
No bead throwing either. Didn’t prevent risqué activities though, the most outrageous is called ‘wining’, and it does NOT refer to any type of beverage. Imagine an attractive (loose definition, Carnival ya know) woman bending over at the waist and presenting her buttocks as though to an amorous young man to take active, VERY active, advantage of. Now imagine the afore mentioned amorous young man approaching as though to take VERY active advantage of the amorous young woman…groin to buttock touching is encouraged. Prude that I am, I doubt that anyone could actually be that active and rambunctious and stay coupled in reality. No touching is allowed by either partner with any other part of the body, to do so is a major social no-no.
What I thought was culturally interesting was the number of, spectator, pre-pubescent children imitating their elder’s actions, although singly, not as a pair. The wining is from the soca, a very fast calypso dance.
Many more picture and videos to come.
All in all a tremendous experience, glad I was here for it. Dead tired, well passed inebriated into that buzzy-I’m-not-drunk-anymore state. Did NOT make the mistake of loosing my kup again. Did have it filled numerous more times (damn those bacchanalian temptresses) by a variety of alcoholic beverages, mostly drinkable, although one grouping of several types of rum and beer was destined for pavement enrichment.
Wow! It’s only 8:00, I can go have dinner. Now, what goes well with spicy chicken leg, mystery meat on a stick, and hot dogs…..? I know! A rum punch….
Monday Feb 4
The last entry was actually SUNDAY Feb 3, it’s the time and culture change….
Made my way through Port o’ Spain in a wild taxi ride around revelers preparing for Carnival to Chugauramas, Trindad, where I’ll be staying with Tom Frankie, owner of Awaywego, a 47’ Tayana cutter rigged sloop.
We had a quick lunch and returned to POS (Port of Spain) to begin the Carnival experience. Glad I’m not driving here. The natives move along quite unconcernedly weaving and bobbing in, out, and around stopped cars on a narrow 2 lane road at a rapid rate. I just gave myself to the experience and watched the scenery go whizzing by.
The country’s #1 DJ, Lalo, was killed in an auto accident last week on his way to a Mas band event. I’m told it cast a somber pall over the proceedings for all of 2 days before it was decided to make this Carnival a tribute to him and blow it out even more. I like the way they think. As close as I can figure, Mas bands are like Krews in New Orleans during Mardi Gras; they get together year after year, dress to a theme and march together. There was a huge party Sunday night to choose the winning bands. Some of the steel pan bands have over a hundred pans, all tuned differently. Sounds chaotic but it’s great If you like that unique Caribbean sound. I do… and it was.
If Carnival is anything like pre-carnival….. WOW….Oh, do I wish I had a group of my party animal friends down here. Talk about a party. I didn’t quite get pulled into the parade like I did in Rio in 1970, but I did get my Carnival Kup filled with rum several times. Being a sober type individual, I of course emptied it, discretely, on the ground. Well, I emptied it at least. ;-)
We only spent 3 hours there today. We have a ride set up for 8AM tomorrow, returning at 5. I’ll wait and describe the festivities after that. Lots of colorful pictures to share when I figure out how to upload them. Took a number of videos too, they show the pageantry and sound much better then stills. Hope I can figure out how to upload those publicly this time.
Just returned from a stroll around the docks overlooking the harbor. Balmy tropical night, lightning flickering on the horizon like ghostly faerie lights off south towards Venezuela, can’t quite see the coast, but it’s only 7 miles away. Calypso music still ringing in my ears, rum and sweat oozing from my pores in equal shares… did I mention that I really, REALLY like the tropics?
Made my way through Port o’ Spain in a wild taxi ride around revelers preparing for Carnival to Chugauramas, Trindad, where I’ll be staying with Tom Frankie, owner of Awaywego, a 47’ Tayana cutter rigged sloop.
We had a quick lunch and returned to POS (Port of Spain) to begin the Carnival experience. Glad I’m not driving here. The natives move along quite unconcernedly weaving and bobbing in, out, and around stopped cars on a narrow 2 lane road at a rapid rate. I just gave myself to the experience and watched the scenery go whizzing by.
The country’s #1 DJ, Lalo, was killed in an auto accident last week on his way to a Mas band event. I’m told it cast a somber pall over the proceedings for all of 2 days before it was decided to make this Carnival a tribute to him and blow it out even more. I like the way they think. As close as I can figure, Mas bands are like Krews in New Orleans during Mardi Gras; they get together year after year, dress to a theme and march together. There was a huge party Sunday night to choose the winning bands. Some of the steel pan bands have over a hundred pans, all tuned differently. Sounds chaotic but it’s great If you like that unique Caribbean sound. I do… and it was.
If Carnival is anything like pre-carnival….. WOW….Oh, do I wish I had a group of my party animal friends down here. Talk about a party. I didn’t quite get pulled into the parade like I did in Rio in 1970, but I did get my Carnival Kup filled with rum several times. Being a sober type individual, I of course emptied it, discretely, on the ground. Well, I emptied it at least. ;-)
We only spent 3 hours there today. We have a ride set up for 8AM tomorrow, returning at 5. I’ll wait and describe the festivities after that. Lots of colorful pictures to share when I figure out how to upload them. Took a number of videos too, they show the pageantry and sound much better then stills. Hope I can figure out how to upload those publicly this time.
Just returned from a stroll around the docks overlooking the harbor. Balmy tropical night, lightning flickering on the horizon like ghostly faerie lights off south towards Venezuela, can’t quite see the coast, but it’s only 7 miles away. Calypso music still ringing in my ears, rum and sweat oozing from my pores in equal shares… did I mention that I really, REALLY like the tropics?
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Trinidad Sailing
Monday Feb. 3
Arrived in Port of Spain Trinidad mid evening after an uneventful flight. Delta miles got me first and business class travel so flying was enjoyable.
I’m staying at the Bel Air Hotel… this place gives the term dump new meaning. I haven’t been in a room this poor since…well…never. All for the bargain price of $130 a night. Sigh. My first initiation to the realities of Carnival.
Speaking of which… As I sit by the 10x15’pool, in the warm tropical evening (OK, I DID mention I love the Tropics didn’t I) I can hear and nearly feel the bands (called Mas bands here) practicing, and I’m told that they are over 2 miles away!
After a shower in a stall with more cracked tile than whole, and rusty fixtures with a broken handle, I’m off to bed ..hoping my feet don’t hang over and bump the 3 station TV.
Giants won? Did I go through a dimensional warp as well as a cultural?
Arrived in Port of Spain Trinidad mid evening after an uneventful flight. Delta miles got me first and business class travel so flying was enjoyable.
I’m staying at the Bel Air Hotel… this place gives the term dump new meaning. I haven’t been in a room this poor since…well…never. All for the bargain price of $130 a night. Sigh. My first initiation to the realities of Carnival.
Speaking of which… As I sit by the 10x15’pool, in the warm tropical evening (OK, I DID mention I love the Tropics didn’t I) I can hear and nearly feel the bands (called Mas bands here) practicing, and I’m told that they are over 2 miles away!
After a shower in a stall with more cracked tile than whole, and rusty fixtures with a broken handle, I’m off to bed ..hoping my feet don’t hang over and bump the 3 station TV.
Giants won? Did I go through a dimensional warp as well as a cultural?
Saturday, December 22, 2007
…and then it was over
Spent several more days playing around Quepos and south to Uvita and then it was time to return. Flew back to San Jose for one final night. I wandered around San Jose by myself for several hours, into the less touristy parts and more into the street markets and locals areas. “Too dangerous” said my friend, but felt relaxed and friendly to me. Got a nice hit of the local population. Friendly, happy people. Had a beer at a hole-in-the-wall cantina, laughed with the locals as I tried my Spanish and they tried their English. Bought the house a round and they treated me to some local food dish, never did find out exactly what it was. Tasty though. Watched as a man carted two halves of a butchered pig over his shoulder from his truck in a parking lot to the local restaurant. Decided that pork wouldn’t be high on my list of foods.
Flew home the next day, Tuesday, hour late out of San Jose, missed our connection in Dallas, got into LAX 2 ½ hours late. Some things never change….
Dominical and Uvita
We took a day trip south because we had heard that the beaches south of Quepos were some of the best in the country and a friend of mine has a piece of land near Uvita, near being a relative term as it turned out.
The road between Quepos and Dominical is 25 or so miles of rugged dirt and gravel, crossing numerous streams and rivers on… sort of bridges. I’ll come back to them in a second.
The first 18 miles is through oil palm groves, monotonous at best, but the drive was exciting. I thought I was doing well until I began being passed, left and right, by locals who obviously had no thought for suspensions or kidneys. See, there really weren’t lanes as we would normally think of them…it was a 60’ or so wide stretch of scraped earth, notice I didn’t say ‘graded’, that would have been a vast improvement, and you just choose the best path through, what ever side of the ‘road’ you think that is on. Made for interesting driving especially when you came to a bridge. The ‘road’ narrows at the bridges to what will be the standard 2 lane width when the road is completed. The adventurous part is that they don’t tell you it’s narrowing until about 50’ before it does, and there is nothing in front of you but a short fall and quick stop in the river. I was fairly sure the insurance wouldn’t cover that so I drove reasonably, but still quickly enough to raise yelps from my companion. Faint heart.
And the bridges themselves….
Generally several feet wider than a small truck, say an F150, made of railroad track laid horizontally, with NO guard rails. None. Zippo. Exciting in the rain and at night as it was on our return trip. This is not a good road to drive under an altered state. The best one was a suspension bridge that an SUV would have had trouble fitting on and swayed when I walked across it. My partner refused to ride in the car and walked it.
At Dominical the road abruptly becomes paved, great quality 2 lanes road. Go figure. We didn’t spend much time in Dominical, just a quick stop for a cool one after the dusty ride. We stopped at several playas or beaches in Belleno National Park, a long stretch of park made up of beaches and an underwater reef system.
Arriving in Uvita we were just in time for lunch and the grand opening of a La Corona market, a 3000 square foot store that is now the biggest thing in town. Music, dancing, people still stocking the shelves.
My friend said the mail address of her property was Uvita so I thought we were close. Silly me. 40 some kilometers further down the road we got to the turn off according to the instructions, went the 200 yards to the left turn at the school, a two room building, from there it got a little ambiguous, “go straight until you get to loto de cielo”. Hmmm, 6 km later we were deep into beautiful country, on a single mud track, with no sign of ‘loto de cielo’. Too far? Not far enough? I’ll never know. Just another adventure. Great views though…jungle on one side and ocean on the other, with the occasional 300’ waterfall to add spice.
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