D-day in Aruba

S/Y KO-KO
Haakon Dyremyhr / Ellen Bjerknæs
Tue 21 Jan 2014 20:59



Emne: D-day in Aruba

A little more than one week ago, last Monday, KO-KO had to declare (as you all may know by now) "Houston, we have a problem", and take port of refuge here in Aruba when the steering system broke down. Yesterday, the magical box finally arrived in Aruba, after a journey via Puerto Rico among other destinations. 
Through the FedEx tracking system, Haakon has been able to follow it's journey with FedEx from Lewmar in UK all the way here. Hopefully it will be delivered in The Renaissance Marina after customs clearance today. 
When the new reduction box is installed, we are finally ready to go!
In the meantime, life is good here in Oranjestad. We have explored the west coast of Aruba, either by boat or bike. Glenn & I went all the way up to California Lighthouse. A beautiful bicycle ride up north, with huge Hotel Resorts, white desolate beaches & big private beach houses. 
Long strolls along endless beaches with torquise water & white sand, while watching pelicans dive to catch fish & flamingoes wandering amidst sunbathing tourists on Renaissance Island. Even observing the ugly & a bit scary iguanas & geckos, wrapped in colors from verdigris green to grey/brown, melting into the environment on lawns & rocks along the Marina harbour. 
We are improving our sailing skills theoretically, working on deck to adjust & prepare for the next sailing trip from Aruba to Castries, Panama. Hopefully we can go tomorrow morning. Unfortunately we will have to leave without Karl Otto & Maren. They have to catch the next flight back to Norway, where work, school & other obligations are waiting. We will miss them deeply, but are happy to have spent time with them. They really are a super couple, and Glenn & I feel fortunate to have made new friends.
Yesterday we went to a cool beach restaurant nearby, one that Karl Otto & Maren suggested. Good choice! We ended up ordering lots of starters, buckets of Chills & the local beer Balashi, topped with some white wine. Great evening!
With provisioning, laundry, fresh vegetables & everything else taken care of, we look forward our journey ahead. Ellen takes care of all the paper work, and does a great job checking us all in & out of new & unforeseen places. So folks, fingers crossed!