Back in the Saddle Again

It feels good to be back on Blew Moon after our unexpected extended stay in the U.S.. Barry’s Dad is doing remarkably well after having been hospitalized for ten days in August. We thank God for that! One thing led to another, and we decided to buy Barry’s folks cabin in Idyllwild. This was a mutually beneficial transaction in that it allowed Bill and Shirley quick access to the funds needed in order to buy a new home off the mountain. Dad’s days living at an elevation of 6,500 feet are over because of his health. The other benefit was that it gives us a home to return to when we are not cruising. This was not in our plans, however we believe this was the right thing to do. We look forward to once again having a home to enjoy the company of family and friends in. We intend to spend late May through late November in the U.S. each year and spend the rest of the year cruising. We’ll keep this schedule as long as we continue to enjoy traveling aboard Blew Moon.

We returned to El Salvador on November 18th and were greeted with 92-degree heat and 86 percent humidity! This was quite a change from the dropping temperatures in Idyllwild. Flying over the lush landscape was incredible because everything was so green. Thankfully, we arrived just as the wet season was ending. On our third day back it was like a switch had been flipped. Overnight the air was dry and the temperatures were about 15 degrees cooler. I can’t tell you how much more comfortable it is! However, it seems that the mosquitos and no-see-ums are worse than we remember. We are both covered from head to toe with bites. Welcome to the tropics!

Right away, we got to work putting the boat back together again. She was barely livable for the first five days, but now she feels like home again. Thankfully, we had very little mildew to deal with. Overall, she weathered the rainy season quite well. We have some minor issues to deal with, but so far we haven’t discovered anything major. Barry has been busy daily checking all the mechanical and electrical items on board. All in all, we feel rather grateful that we are only dealing with minor problems. Several other boaters that returned recently were dealing with major problems. Two boats actually contacted us just before we flew back and asked us to bring some boat parts with us for them. Fortunately, we were able to deliver!

Everyday we get a little closer to having the boat ready to leave. We are hoping that we’ll be able to connect with my brother, Dan, in Costa Rica during his last few days there. Numerous factors need to come together at the right time in order for us to do that. If he leaves Costa Rica before we are able to get down there (it’s a 2-day sail) then we have a back-up plan. We may take a bus to Guatemala from here and sight-see for two to three weeks. Right now, we are truly taking it one day at a time. Then we would head to Costa Rica and possibly spend some time in Nicaragua on the way. We plan to spend at least two months in Costa Rica, before going straight to Ecuador. From there we would like to do a bit of inland travel in South America. This being season three of cruising, we are learning not to plan too far in advance because things can change (usually our minds, but also circumstances!). One of the awesome blessings of this lifestyle is that you can go where you want, when you want (weather permitting). You tend to be significantly influenced by what other people are doing. You develop relationships with other boaters, listen to their plans and think, "Maybe we should do that, too!"

The highlight of our time back in El Salvador was a great Thanksgiving potluck. Well, it was Thanksgiving to those of us from the states anyway. We had a very international group. The countries of France, Germany, Gianna, Ireland, Sweden, Canada and Newfoundland were represented. We have found there is a greater number of international cruisers south of Mexico. The people you meet is one of the best parts of the cruising lifestyle.

One other thing bears mentioning. I was on deck the other morning getting ready to rinse out our coffee press when what I thought was a tour boat came through the anchorage. As soon as I was spotted, the boat made a bee-line for our boat. I noticed a guy with a video camera in the front of the boat and figured they were just a group of Salvadorean tourists visiting this popular seaside area. The tourists find us boaters of unusual interest and are always taking pictures of anyone they spot on one of the many boats anchored in the estuary. Well, as soon as this particular boat got closer I could see that this was no ordinary video camera the guy on the bow was pointing at me. As this boat with about six locals pulled beside Blew Moon we exchanged greetings and I was surprised that they actually stopped to talk with me. Usually, polite greetings are exchanged as tour boats slowly go passed with the tourists gawking and snapping pictures (I think I now know how zoo animals feel!). One time a tour boat actually came along with cameras clicking while I was showering (with my bathing suit on) on deck. Nonetheless, it felt like an invasion of my privacy. Anyway, come to find out this boat contained the crew from a local T.V. station. A woman with a microphone asked if they could come aboard and interview me. How do you like that?! The cameraman, the woman interviewer and an interpreter positioned me on the foredeck and interviewed me for about five minutes. They asked questions like, "Why did you come here, did you know anyone here, how did you hear about this place?", etc.. Now, that never happened to me in the U.S!

Barry and I just returned from having lunch up the street at a small restaurant. While sitting at our table we enjoyed the changing scenery on the road through the barred wall. First, several dogs meandered by; then a herd of cattle passed with a man on a bicycle herding them from behind; then a horse wandered passed and tried to walk in the restaurant toward the large head of cabbage sitting nearby (the owner shooed the horse away); trailing not far behind the horse was a young foal who got spooked by a passing bus and I thought for sure was going to be hit! Just another day in El Salvador!

There’s more to come, so stay tuned . . . . Stacey