Waiting for weather in Georgetown

Weather system passing through Georgetown from Cuba, which was not predicted. We got an abnormal two days of consistent rain and this morning we decided to just catch rain for our fresh water tanks so we wouldn't have to fill up from the dinghy dock using our two 6 gallon water tanks over several trips. On top of the fact that the rain water we caught was much better than the reverse osmosis (RO) water that the island provides. We talked with another cruiser and he told us what we already knew on the water quality. Luckily, I brought a Brita water filter to help purify the water to drink and we have another water filter for the sink to help remove particulates. The water is free to anyone so that is nice. On the other hand, diesel is $5.05 here in Georgetown and gasoline is even more expensive. We see a long line of people waiting to refuel on the single gas station in town. There is no longer Bahamian bread available in Georgetown as the people we bought bread from last year went out of business and the person who normally makes bread during the high cruising season doesn't come around anymore. :( We liked the spicy chicken sandwich from the Driftwood cafe, which was relatively reasonably priced at $6.50 for just the sandwich. It was a quaint, cute little cafe with A/C. :) The Pet's Place (blue) deli/internet cafe has super sweet freshly squeezed lemonade for $3, but free wifi is really nice! :) During the times without wind or with very little wind results in swarms of no-see-ums along with mosquitoes and other bugs. We have been dealing with these hungry bugs on the boat as they got in our cabin due to their small size fitting through the mesh that would keep out mosquitoes and other larger insects. We have resorted to wearing long sleeves and pants with socks so we have less exposed skin, but they will go after any exposed flesh such as ears, necks, and hands. My mosquito netting is not protection enough against these tiny but ferociously poisonous bugs. They do sell netting to keep out no-see-ums, but you may as well use a sheet because it will not allow wind to pass through and in the summer it is a coin toss between the heat or bugs. I think I would choose the heat over the bugs because bug bites last longer with itchiness and scars. I wonder what feeds on the no-see-ums?

Being back on the boat has its pros and cons. Pros being in beautiful places with a pool at your doorstep and enjoying nature and nice weather and having peace and quiet, away from the hustle and bustle of daily routines and working. Cons being limited freshwater supply, limited fresh foods that can be expensive to obtain, no air conditioning, no refrigeration to keep foods fresh, no shower aside from the ocean, and of course bugs. :) The boat is a slow method of travel, but we are moving faster now that we dropped our fin keels and some bad food. :) I definitely overstocked the boat with food and I think we will even have food left for the rest of this summer trip and the next time we return to the boat with some to spare. In my own defense I was stocking the boat to be gone for a year or longer so it is not too bad. :) Needless to say when we are on land we eat completely differently than on the boat for many reasons. We are limited in our ingredients as well as cooking methods with our two burner stove in the galley and a small grill on deck. It is interesting to try out different things with what we have here on the boat. However, we have yet to make acceptable bread on both land and water. :) I would love to learn how to make delicious breads and of course any other foods for that matter. Yum! :)

Back on the boat again! :)

We splashed the boat this morning and brought the boat back up to Georgetown to refuel and get more water. We are enjoying the air conditioning along with coffee and lemonade in the Blue deli that has free wifi.

It was windy and rainy last night and today it is just rainy with little to no wind. Frodo is doing well and all systems are go with respect to the engine and the other electronics. We encountered no problems putting the boat back in the water and the lift dropped us in the water in less than 20 minutes. :)

We enjoyed lunch (grilled chicken sandwiches & fries) along with a few Sands & Kalik's at Chat N' Chills before setting our anchor outside Georgetown.

We checked our food and fuel inventory on the boat and had to throw a good bit of food away and removed about a gallon of fuel. We also dropped our bilge keels and repainted the bottom while at Master's Harbor Marina. They charged $400 (!!) for a gallon of paint with tin to help prevent growth. After we left the harbor we found the boat was much more maneuverable and swift! :) We were traveling at 5 knots with just the engine going (maybe at half speed or so) and with just the head sail and very light winds we were going at 2.5 knots. This is much better than before with the fin keels attached! :)

We look forward to our travels ahead this summer and much more so now that we have lost some "fat." :) We hope for fair winds...