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Christmas in the Caribbean

So this is Christmas. It’s blowing like stink this Christmas Eve, and we are settled on board baking cookies and preparing a pot of seafood soup for dinner. The aromas are wonderful! Nancy has been spending her free time painting. Her abstracts are quite good. She’ll have to put on a show sometime. I’ve done some sewing repair to the mainsail cover and assorted rigging work. Andrew, from North Sails came over to measure us for a new G-0 (light air off-wind) sail, but there has not been too much maintenance the last couple of weeks so we’ve been out and about around the island.

We’re still in Antigua and enjoying our time getting to know more of the locals. We joined the Antigua Yacht Club (it’s not as fancy as it sounds) and have met several kind people, locals and expats both. We enjoyed a fine evening of dinner and dancing at their annual Christmas party last week. Sunday is always Steak and Jazz night at the Club House Restaurant, so we even get to have date nights occasionally. Of course, Omari gives us both a good haircut and update on the doings of his cousins (1/4 of the islanders are his cousins, we think). The Salty Dawgs have begun to disperse or fly home for the holidays so there aren’t as many gatherings in that group. Life has really settled into a pleasant rhythm for a while.

Jackie O’s Boat
Mansfield, the great guy and fantastic basket weaver
Another beautiful Shirley Heights evening
My Caribbean Queen

Nancy’s sister Sue came down for a week and once she fought her way through a series of flight snafus it was smooth sailing for a few days. We took her up to Shirley Heights for the Sunday blowout and we ate and drank and danced the night away (until 8pm, that is). We travelled around to Green Island where Sue mastered the art of the Stand-up Paddleboard. Nancy took her for her first snorkeling adventure and we hiked across the island to watch the kiteboarders careen around the reef. It is pretty isolated over there so the stars were bright and plentiful. We had a sweet sail back to Falmouth with good winds and 8-10 kts of boat speed all on a nice reach. Sue even took the helm to keep us on course.

Girls day out
Captain Sue

So we’ll hang out here for a bit longer. More friends are arriving after the first of the year and we’re trying to get a bit of fabrication done to solve a mast-head problem. We’ll putter around to some of the quieter anchorages and do some diving, then off to points south for the rest of the season. Don’t forget to subscribe, check out the Book Nook, the Art Studio, and let us know if you’re interested in joining us along the way. Merry Christmas to everyone. By the way, if you are expecting a Christmas card, we have been unable to get to the P.O. when they are open. Their hours are a moving target and we have had bad aim.

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4 Comments

  1. Charlotte

    Reply

    Sure looks beautiful and the sun is shining. We’ll miss you this year again. Hugs

  2. Chris

    Reply

    Looks like a fine life you’ve got going! More in 2023 I trust, happy new year!

  3. Barbara Walters

    Reply

    We enjoyed talking with over our beer at Nelson’s. The picture we took of you and the one you took of us will remind us of our chat. Happy New Year.

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