Heineken regatta

I worked on the water taxis Fri morning and all day Sunday. When I reported for duty on Sun morning at 0700 in Marigot Bay Martine, my boss, told me that one of the engines was broken. All I did was ask what was wrong with it and, from this, she assumed I was a mechanic! I had nothing to lose by taking a look at the outboard & it didn't take me long to work out that the in-gear start-protection linkage had simply been incorrectly installed. It really was a simple little job to "fix" it but, by the reaction of the guys running the show, you would think I had performed black magic! It was a satisfying start to the day anyway.

Each taxi had a driver and an assistant to help with mooring & to help passengers getting on and off. I was teamed with a pleasant (& quite hot!) Spanish girl for most of the day & we took turns driving. There were plenty of breaks and food and drink and it was quite enjoyable. The action switched to Simpson Bay in the afternoon and Susi  soon turned up the yacht we used as a base to partake in the free food n drink. Late eve was not so good due to the large number of fat, drunken, male passengers & ,by the time I finished at 0130 I was looking fwd to my bed.

So was it worth it? Well Susi & I ate & drank for free all day, I made 30 US dollars in tips, it was social, freebies included Tshirts, caps, glow-sticks & we all get to go to a free party tomorrow. Oh, & I get paid 5 bucks per hour as a "thank you for volunteering". So, yeah, it was worth it & it made a change but I wouldn't want to do it too often.

St Kitts - St Maarten

After 3 nights tied up in a marina with the luxuries of a cold shower and a bed thatstays pretty much still it was time to say goodbye to the kittens of St Kitts & give them one more square meal before heading for Statia (St Eustatius).

A pleasant sail with the wind from behind and the trawling line out - caught nothing, of course.

On arrival in Oranje Baai we picked up a mooring (same fee as anchoring, 10 $US) & headed for customs & immigration. We wanted to leave early the next morning but were disappointed to learn that we couldn't check in & out at the same time & would have to return at 0800 the next morning. We just hoped it wouldn't take too long as the next leg to St Maarten was 35M.

Anyway, next up was a look around Oranjestadt. It's the sort of place where you ask where the centre is only to be told that you are already in the centre. It was not without charm though & the locals were v friendly. We treated ourselves to veggie burgers & fries &, later, a pina colada! Then back to 1494 & the reason why few yachties stay long: The anchorage was terrible! We were rolling so much that Susi had to sleep on the floor!

Never mind, the next morning all went smoothly and quickly & we were off at 0830. We needn't have rushed: It was bloody windy!Our course was almost due N &, with the trades blowing strongly out of the NE or ENE, we were hard on the wind the whole way with 2 reefs & half the genny. There was plenty of solid water comming over the decks & whoever was helming was soaked within minutes. But we were quick, making about 6 knots we arrived in plenty of time in Philipsburg.

We weighed anchor & headed downwind to Simpson Baai the following day (Tue 04/03). Following a tip from Eve & Michel I signed up as a water taxi driver for the Heineken Regatta &, as a result, got wasted on free Heineken & have to show up for work tomorrow at 0700!!! Watch this space.......