Fw: Moving On
Meryon.bridges
Fri 1 Jan 2010 14:48
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Tried to send this on Boxing Day but failed to
transmit so this is New Years Day update.
The 10 days up to Christmas were spent in
completing repairs after the squall at the remarkably lethargic pace of which
only this part of the world is capable. This was by no means cheap but
hopefully we are now set up for the next few thousand miles. When not repairing we managed some sightseeing in a
hire car. Antigua is a place of generally scruffy appearance but charming
people and we've encountered a number of very nice fellow sea gypsies as well;
from the US, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand, as well as UK. English Harbour
and Falmouth are lovely, as are some of the bays on the East coast. Green
bush covered hills, pristine white coral sand beaches, and amazing azure
seas.
The Officers Holden and Douglas deserted us
before Christmas to return to the fleshpots and the ice of the UK. Holden
plans to return for the trip to Panama.
Christmas was more fun than we had expected in
that we had the run of the Yacht Club bar and had a very convivial drink there
on Christmas Eve. Next day, having missed church because we were give the
wrong times, we had a swim and were back in the Club for lunch with our new best
friends. Later that evening Jo and Wes arrived and we had Christmas dinner
together in a local restaurant.
We set off for some local cruising on Boxing day,
working slowly anti-clockwise round Antigua, and yesterday sailed north to
Barbuda. For the first 5 days the weather was perfect but yesterday we had
heavy rain and strong winds from the East. Arrived at Barbuda in 40 knots
of wind (a gale), and though we anchored under a windward shore, the island is
so low it affords no shelter from the wind. All last night the boat
gyrated round her anchor grinding the chain in the fairlind and making life
tedious through the night. Not quite the traditional New Year's
celebration.
Happy New Year to all our
readers
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