St. Martin, Monday, 28.02.2011, 23:00 UTC-4
First thing this morning I took the toilet apart to see what's wrong and
what parts I need. But once I had unmounted the bowl and could inspect it I
didn't had to look much further. The electrical pump was completely
corroded. That confirmed my decision to go for a toilet with a manual pump.
Simple and reliable (and they don't flood the boat even if the seacock is
broken/open and the boat is heeled over). Because after three weeks without
a toilet I know one thing ... having a quiet place to "do your business" is
one of the more important parts of a comfortable and sociable lifestyle.
With a shopping list in my pocket I had a little time to kill before Scott
would come to pick me up in his dinghy, and I used that time to review the
pictures. From the 1200 pictures taken on the trip there are about 100 good
ones, of which 30 are special. Well, to me at least ;-). I hope that I can
upload them to the blog tomorrow. But it's a little awkward without fast
internet on bord, only the 0.002 MBit(!) Iridium connection. I went to
Burger King today because they seem to have the most reliable wifi around
(and nice toilets), but there were so many emails to answer that I didn't
get to upload the pictures to the blog.
Fortunately I am now the proud owner of a Dinghy and independently mobile!
The experiences with the Dinghies that came with Vespina and Gudrun had been
very depressing - both lasted only 2 days then spontaneously self-deflated.
Not wanting to see such a sorry sight again I was adamant to invest in the
best - a Caribe 9X RIB. Surprisingly it took the whole day to get everything
sorted out and rigged up and I have yet to install the Hydrofoils. Therefor
I didn't get to do much else. But now I can go places, and fast too. I love
it :-)
For example I can go shopping! The first thing I bought was the new toilet.
The second and third were anchors, a Delta and a Fortress. I only had one
anchor (CQR) so far, which is absolutely adequate ... if you don't anchor
and only stay in the marina. But with three strong anchors (and chain) I
should be fine. And with a little luck I will finish installing the new
toilet tomorrow. Then I'm set up and can relax and take it more slowly with
the rest of the repairs. As Gerd pointed out already I'm in the Caribbean
now! Beer, Rum & Cocktails, right? ;-)
Incidentally, from March 3rd to 6th the 31st Heineken Regatta is happening
here, and the motto is "Serious Fun" ...
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