CHRISTMAS WITH MATTHEW

It's all about the Christmas tree!!

SAN BLAS, PANAMA

The local children from Tiadup loved  playing with "the gringo's" bocci balls; the veggie boat visited once a week  as we were anchored off Isla de San Blas. Huts on Miriadiadup or was that Naguargandup.....maybe it was Narrasgandupdummat....

BAHIA de PORTOBELLO, PANAMA

A group of children rehearsing for a Christmas pageant; Capt'n Jacks is a favorite among boaters;  The Black Christ of Portobello. The local saint is worshipped by followers thru-out Latin America. People walk on their knees to pay their respects every Oct. 21

SEASON 10 - GETTING THE BOAT ALL PRETTIED UP TO GO THROUGH THE CANAL

Now the work begins. Where are all those friends that think we're "livin' the dream" when it comes to painting the bottom, waxing, repairing etc.?? Some pretty intense electrical storms passing through and finally.... the boat in the water. Time to sit back & sip on a "Balboa"!

PETER'S 1ST PUBLIC APPEARANCE-SHELTER BAY PANAMA

Peter's debut at The Shelter Bay Marina in Panama. A group of cruiser's got together at the poolside one evening & put on a "jam session".  A good time was had by all.

TOURING THE ISLAND BY SCOOTER

TAKING IN A LOCAL BALL GAME

Top photos are what the locals call "Morgan's Head" & "Morgan's Crack"!

We attended a local ball game in Providencia with friends, Jim & Laura off "Naliha"

PROVIDENCIA, COLUMBIA

One of our favorite islands in the Caribbean. Not only is it beautiful, but the locals are so friendly & it's totally unspoiled.  A rare find these days!

SITES IN PROVIDENCIA

Scooters, scooters & more scooters. The preferred mode of transportation along with golf carts.

THE RUINS OF PABLO ESCOBAR'S SECRET HIDEAWAY

Took a hike on the tiny island of Santa Catalina to the ruins of a once beautiful home to the notorious drug lord, Pablo Escabar. 

FRIENDS WE MET IN BLOODY BAY-JAMAICA, MON

            Me with J.R., Peter with Leroy & our crazy friends Wayne  and 8-Ball

VENDORS, VENDORS, AND MORE VENDORS

            We had to run the gauntlet every day for our daily walk, but they got used to                       us & we actually became friends with a couple of the vendors.

BLOODY BAY, NEGRIL, JAMAICA

THE WORLD FAMOUS RICK'S CAFE

Famous for its cliff jumping,  this place  is wild! A local known as "Spyder" was diving from 60 ft. He was outstanding & we tried to talk him into forming an Olympic Team & give "Cool Runnings" a run for their money.

NEGRIL, JAMAICA

Yes, Peter had the cow's tail- he will probably choose not to have it again! 

MONTEGO BAY YACHT CLUB

We've been anchored off the yacht club for 5 days now & have the use of their facilities. Friday night over sundowners we got invited to race in the J22 fleet on Sunday. Defender, with skipper Jim, was a fun boat to race, but even with the "rock stars" on board, we got 2 firsts, a 2nd & a 3rd coming in second overall!

SANS SOUCI, OCHO RIOS

Met up with friends, Mike & Penny, who were staying at this beautiful all inclusive &spent the afternoon with them there. Nice to get off the rocky, rolly boat!!

FUN SIGHTS ALONG THE WAY

But, Jimmy should be ashamed of his Margaritaville along the "Hip Strip" in Mo-Bay!!

CRUISE SHIP HAVEN

There's no escaping the cruise ships in Jamaica. The ports of Ocho Rios, Falmouth Bay & to a lesser degree, Montego Bay usually have at least 2/day. This one here is at Ocho Rios in front of Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville.

EN ROUTE FROM PT. ANTONIO-MO-BAY, JAMAICA

We made stops in small bays along the Northern coast of Jamaica including St. Mary's Oracabessa, Ocho Rios, St. Ann's & Discovery Bay.  These shots incl. the  local fish boats, markets (local herbal remedies in this one) & eateries.

CHURCHES, CHURCHES & MORE CHURCHES

Peter & I figure that Jamaica has more churches per capita than any other island in the Caribbean. We have never heard more gospel singin' & preachin' at all hours of the day & night. 

SAILING TO OCHO RIOS

You can't tell by the photos, but the swells are quite impressive. It's been blowing pretty consistently (25-30kts) every day now since we've been here which makes for very rolly anchorages. We are pretty much on our own cruising along the north coast here in Jamaica.

FINE DINING

Some of the finer dining spots that Peter splurged on in downtown  Port Antonio. (Actually, the jerk chicken at Piggy's was great!)

THE FACES OF JAMAICA

ERROL FLYNN MARINA

The beautiful grounds around the Errol Flynn Marina in Port Antonio, Jamaica.

PORT ANTONIO, JAMAICA

After spending a month in Cuba with very little, we decided to treat ourselves to The Errol Flynn Marina which turns out to be a great spot as an introduction to Jamaica - I think I'm going to like it here!

SAN PEDRO FORT GUARDING SANTIAGO HARBOR

Our new friends, Brett, Teresa, Jennifer & Richard - crazy New Zealanders!
Rosa, one of the locals who opened her home to us.

SANTIAGO DE CUBA

                                           
                                                   Street scenes from Santiago

Taking advantage of the local markets.  How about pigs head for dinner tonight?
       YUM! A typical interior of a Cuban home - this one is our cab drivers.

A little salsa anyone? It's all abot the music in Santiago. Street music everywhere.  The young gentleman in the white even got the gringo to dance!! "Suave"......smooth is what he tried to encorage me to do. Good luck with that!!

SOUTHEAST COAST OF CUBA

 Cabo Cruz - a picturesque little pueblo where the locals bought us beers!!

 Another little town along the East coast of Cuba. This is Maria del Portilla. The locals were wonderfully friendly opening up their homes to us. They don't have much, but they share what little they have.

NIQUERO, CUBA

We had to stop here to pick up some diesel, only to find that we were not allowed to go to shore. Finally, Peter was granted permission, but I had to remain on the boat. It took him 2 hours to go 5 miles to pick up 10 gals. of diesel.  (and people wonder what we do all day!)

THE GREAT WHITE HUNTER

A lot of our food came from "hunting" So much lobster that we were actually sick of it!! The hogfish were excellent too. The sting ray buried in the sand (middle photo) - we left that one alone!

CAYO ALGODON, CUBA

This was probably our favorite cay in Los Jardines de la Reina (The Queen's Gardens) - beautiful beach & lots of lobster.

CUBA January 23

After 3 days at sea, we arrived at Cayo Largo, Cuba. Beautiful, empty beaches.

 Peter getting his monies worth out of Gorge, the barber & me with Piri, the manager of the marina.

Los Jardines de la Reina which were mostly mangroves. A fleet of local fishermen.

Our "Boat Buddy" friends, John & Anne off of Seahorse

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

From Meghan, Brett, Eileen, Matthew & Peter (aka Pedro)

Walking The Beaches & Hanging on the Boat

Hammock time with Matt, Meghan & Brett; a walk to West Bay Beach & a very sad Ace because the "Derelict Dock" (where our Sundowner parties happened) was washed away in a storm!

CRAZY SEA CREATURES

White Spotted Filefish; Porcupinefish; & the very rare Frogfish (right)

More Crazy Sea Creatures!

Underwater Art

Sponges; Banded Coral Shrimp; Pederson Cleaner Shrimp

Advanced Diving Class & Goin' Fishin'

A Roatan Christmas

(click on any photo to enlarge)

MORE FISHIES

French Anglefish; Hawksbill Turtle with Ramora; Scrawled Filefish; Queen Angelfish; Spotted Eagle Ray