Cabin Boys Party
Blue Sky's Voyage
George & Michael
Sun 10 Jan 2010 13:02
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Hello Friends
"8:54.5N 79:31.5W"
We've enjoyed an entertaining Christmas and
New Year in Las Perlas and also enjoyed some considerable success with fishing.
We caught a mackerel on the way round to Espiritu Santo and once anchored, we
had much success casting with a rod and spinner from the foredeck.
here's a pic of Matt's very first fish - not
bad for a first but we're hoping he can find a bigger one next
time...
 We're not sure exactly what this fellow was,
possibly a 'corvina' a type of bass; but certainly very good eating with white
flesh much like sea bass. Encouraged by Matt's success, Michael decided to have
a go and sought instruction from George, the master angler. George made one
cast, then turned back to talk and then the line twitched and .... well we
caught another like the one above, just on a single cast. By this time
the freezer was full so we gave it away to a neighbouring boat.
One day we held a beach BBQ and also took
the opportunity of clearing up and burning all the plastic trash which washes
up, so we left the beach a cleaner place than when we arrived. An essential
component of a Blue Sky BBQ is the hammocks, so that snoozes can be held after
lunch.
 Low water exploration was fun too and here's
a shot of the far side of Espiritu Santo at low water whilst we were
beachcombing and rock scrambling (sometimes challenging in
flip-flops)...
 Sorry about these pics - we know that our
friends in the UK are all snowed in! Hopefully the sight of all this blue sky
will warm you up a bit.
We sailed back to Panama City (we had a
great sail) and anchored just by Flamenco Signal station at the Pacific end of
the Canal so that Alex and Matt could go clubbing as part of Alex's birthday
celebrations. Having carelessly arranged to have a birthday on Tuesday, clubbing
was rather unsuccessful and the phone rang at only 2330 for a pickup at the
dock. The boys resolved to party properly all Friday night when they were sure
the clubs would be busier.
... Except that today (Saturday) is Martyrs' Day**, which means that all bars are closed. So
going clubbing on Friday night meant just that and at midnight everything shut
down. The boys had the wisdom to find a hostel for the night, rather than
attempt to wake the skipper after midnight. The search for a long night out
continues..!
[** Martyrs' Day commemorates an event in
1964 when US students had removed and destroyed the Panama flag flying next to
the US flag on Ancon Hill (a prominent landmark at the Pacific end of the canal
and within the 'canal zone'). The treaty obligation was for both flags to be
flown. There were some disturbances following this insult to Panama and
subsequently Panamanian students entered the canal zone to attempt to replace
the Panama flag. US forces opened fire and a number of students were killed. A
very large Panama flag now flies on Ancon Hill.
I think I have the details right on this,
but if you know better, let me know.]
At the moment we're attempting to extend our
3 month visas at the slightly ridiculous cost of $100 a head. If that works,
we'll hang on in Panama for a while and if not, we'll head up to Costa
Rica.
Good luck with the weather wherever you are
- it's still seriously hot here in Panama.
Best Wishes
George, Michael Alex and Matt.
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