Christmas on Stream
Stream
Darrell Jackson and Sarah Barnes
Sun 29 Dec 2013 18:43
Well our early morning departure from Nelson's Dockyard was slightly delayed by, would you believe it, more squally rain and lightening! We eventually left just before 7, with Sarah having visions of disaster on storm tossed seas, and set a full genoa and kept the main with 2 reefs in. The wind was light to begin with, but picked up quickly and we had a fast downwind sail with boomed out genoa and eventually only one reef. We had to be in Charlestown by 16.00 to catch the customs and it was always going to be a bit of a rush, so we motored the last 5 miles and dropped anchor off the small dock at 15.30. A rapid deployment of the dinghy and outboard by the ultra proficient crew, had the skipper ashore well before 16.00, but, this is the Caribbean, the offices were already closed. The spectre of being confined to Stream for 2 days over Christmas was not good, but fortunately, even though this is the Caribbean, the offices were to open over Christmas and in the morning we returned to complete the usual visits to Customs first, then Immigration, then the Port Authority and finally a return trip to Customs to prove you have visited the others and payed them varying amounts of money.
Christmas Eve on board was spent experimenting with cocktails and the top ranking one was X-Stream Pain Killer, based on the well known Pain Killer, but using Mango instead of Pineapple as we didn't have any pineapple. Sarah enjoyed her "virgin"*version just as much as Adam his full strength version which seemed to remove all pain from his "dodgy knees" but only until the following morning when pain of a different sort hit him and the skipper!
It was nice to wake up on Christmas morning after a short sleep, due to the loud music and wild street partying that goes on every Christmas Eve in Nevis. To open stockings, yes Santa had found us, in the cockpit. Sunshine and a breakfast of fresh fruit. Lovely, if somewhat flat presents had been opened and enjoyed. The bunting in the cabin, made by year 7 with all their messages for Sarah and the wooden cats are unusual decorations but all the better for it. Topped off with Adam's black Caribbean Angel hanging next to the robin in the salon. Definitely, a unique start to Christmas for all of us.
Christmas Day was not a normal Christmas Day! After completing customs formalities as a group (Adam and Sarah were shouted at by a customs officer for trying to go for a drink while Darrell completed the formalities on his own), we met Dave or DJ, our Rastafarian taxi driver who had agreed to give us a tour of the small island. Dave is at least 6' 6" very thin and wore the traditional Rasta wooly hat in black, red, yellow and green along with the obligatory black shades. Dave's demeanour, gait, language and sometimes even his driving, bore all the hallmarks of a man with a lifetime's association with ganja, yeah man.
Local knowledge is normally a valuable attribute in a guide. Dave seemed to know most people along the roadside, as indicated by frequent exclamations of unintelligible patios out of his window to pals, but factual and historical knowledge could be less reliable. Apparently the volcano (in effect, the entire island) Nevis Peak, 3,232', was named by Columbus because it reminded him of his favourite mountain Ben Nevis. Subsequently, we didn't know what to believe. Some information could be confirmed by our guidebooks, for example, the marriage of Nelson to local girl Fanny Nesbit. Yeah man. But as for dates of events, well, "Island time" is a highly flexible concept.......
Large expanses of former sugar plantation have been taken over by scrub and we haven't yet found out why alternative agricultural uses even as small holdings are not widespread. After visiting the ruins of one sugar mill, Dave took us to two other plantations, Hermitage and Montpellier, that have experienced renaissance as exclusive hotels with fabulous grounds like botanical gardens. Princess Di used to frequent the latter. Yeah man. No, really. Though well outside our usual budget for eating out, it was Christmas Day after all, and we enjoyed lobster salads, root veg and guacamole, tomato with mozzarella caprese and Earl Grey in proper china and hence tasting substantially different to that drunk from a Morrison's thermal mug. Yeah man.
The few hotel residents we saw seemed somewhat bored in their exclusivity.
Back at the dockside Dave expressed a preference for payment in US dollars which meant a quick dinghy trip back to the boat for greenbacks. A swell had built and the dinghy and stern only came into alignment but briefly. Adam's attempt to grab hold of something resulted in an inelegant belly flop overboard. Only pride was hurt, but his trusty Olympus has been decommissioned by the experience. If you have to fall in, what could be better than sea at bath water temperature? Yeah man, as DJ Dave would say.
Once Adam had dried off and Sarah had managed to lose a mug of precious Earl Grey over her hand and the work surface (and thence into the fridge and freezer!) there was a unanimous decision to move somewhere else due to the full-on rolling we were now experiencing which made the Atlantic crossing seem calm. We motored north past the Four Seasons Hotel resort and it's recliner lined beach and into Tamarind Bay where not only was there less swell, but also a more pleasant beach view of palms and sand.
Sarah is still struggling to find her sea legs, as the numerous bruises and bumps will attest to. Her magic watch is keeping the worse of her seasickness at bay. But the unpredictable swell is still a problem. But she was up for a planned swim around the boat with Darrell, at least it cured the pain of her scalded fingers. The water was warm and clear, not sure a swim in Kielder water on Christmas Day would have had the same appeal.
Adam prepared a masterpiece Christmas meal, well two really; one for the boys and the other for the fussy eater. The boat was filled with delightful smells as he conjured up stuffed chicken breasts and a variety of vegetables, that would not have been out of place being served at Montpellier exclusive establishment with its three chefs of varying nationalities. The boys settled to the post Christmas meal drinking and music in the cockpit, putting the world to rights, while Sarah tried to sleep - she has not quite adjusted to Caribbean time, the heat or the new carefree lifestyle - a tough challenge, but she will soon master it!
Not sure when we might next find wifi so this may arrive nearer New Year than Boxing Day so if it does, "Happy New Year". Yeah man.
* I should explain for those confused by the cocktail term "Virgin". It refers to a cocktail without alcohol so Sarah's preferred option and one Darrell and Adam will never experience.