Thursday, June 4, 2020

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, USVI
18.20.016 N
64.55.440 W

Happy 6^th Birthday Liam!

Happy 10^th Birthday Adrianna!

Congratulations Graduates!

This virus shouldn’t have been named Corona, it should have been named Mad Dog.  Mad Dog 2020. 

Learning to Swim

We’ve settled into a bit of a routine again; Dale joins Gerry and Nicky for a walk around the marina early in the morning and then into a shop for coffee.  Savannah sometimes joins them; sometimes she sleeps in; sometimes she stays back and has pancakes with Grandma, who doesn’t drink coffee.  She’s allowed free time for games or her iPad until we break for a couple of pages of math, she bounces on the trampoline for a while, we have lunch, usually on the boat but sometimes we’ll go in for a Wendy’s sandwich or this week a 20” pizza; which she immediately peeled everything off before eating the bread. We do a couple of pages in her Summer Brain Quest book which consists of all sorts of subjects, math, language, social studies, science.  Grandma has been known to review the answers in the back of the book to make sure she was on target before trying to “teach” the munchkin.  We’ve been careful about her swimming lessons as she’s so fair that we don’t want her to get sunburned.  She loves the water and never wants to get out.  Her mom called the lessons “Dad’s tried and true, go to the end of the dock and throw them in” method.  Not true!  She jumps in with her mask and life jacket on and swims to the other side a couple of times.  Then she jumps in with just her mask on and swims a couple of times.  Then he takes off her mask and has her jump in.  I haven’t witnessed the throw her in method as yet but I’m sure it will come by the end of the summer.  Sometimes we do her math flashcards or practice her piano.  Her mom found a rubber roll up keyboard that has color coded keys that when its turned on gives a pretty good impression of playing the piano.  I was impressed.  We finish each day with writing in her “journal.”  We try to make suggestions as to all the things she did each day so that she can have them to refer to when she returns to school (and maybe when she’s a lot older) but she has her own ideas as to what she wants to put in it. 

A couple of days ago, we had tried to visit the Virgin Islands Children’s Museum but its closed until July.  I called the number listed on the door to see when they planned on opening and the lady said that they might have a couple of “soft openings” allowing just a few families in prior to July.  If that happens before we leave on the 12^th, she’ll give us a call. 

Dale walked a bit down the street to see if the Pirate Museum was opened but it was closed as well.  That’s when we decided to find one of those famous 20” pizzas.  It was so big we were full after just one piece each.  Well, that is Dale and I had one piece each; Savannah had 2 stripped pieces. 

s/v Blackbeard's Revenge

Blackbeard's Castle

Today was rather special.  Gerry and Nicky joined us when we went into town for a roti for lunch in the park below the Hotel 1829 but bowed out of the hike up to Blackbeard’s castle as Nicky is nursing a torn meniscus.   The castle was closed for repairs but we thought we would walk around it anyway.  I’m glad we did.  She counted the famous steps (97-98) as we had a different number going up than we did coming back down.  We saw the 3 queens statue and the bird girl statute inside a locked courtyard before heading back down.  Once back down to the main road, we found a second set of stairs leading back out to the main square that we ate in a month ago when the lockdown went into effect.  Today there were a lot more people in the square, although we’re all still required to wear masks inside each establishment, many don’t while on the street.

Passing the Hotel 1829, a hotel we stayed in previously about 20 years ago, we thought that it might be for sale.  Getting back to the boat, we learned that it is actually part of Blackbeard’s castle walk being the tasting gallery of the rum factory and a collection of pirate statues.  Glad we stayed in it when it was still a hotel.  I remember fondly the mosquito netting over the four poster bed with a balcony overlooking the harbor.  Rum blurred but romantic times. 

Stairs leading to 

Blackbeard's Castle

We’ve heard from Texas Crewed about “Sailor Jail” (mandatory quarantine) in Grenada.  When they arrived a week ago, the authorities were using infrared thermometers.  The kind you use on an engine.  Everyone’s temp was shown as being lower than normal.  This week they’ve switched to regular thermometers; oral or rectal, your choice.  Yesterday, the coconut telegraph as well as the VHF radio, was apparently on fire when they started confusing the orals with the rectals and the cruising community went ape shit.  I suggested when we arrive, we take our own thermometer in; Dale suggested we just take in our own alcohol swab to clean them ourselves.  I reminded him that, if I remember correctly, they were supposed to be soaked in an alcohol bath for 20 minutes to disinfect.  I don’t know what’s going on in this world anymore.  I suppose they could be using a completely different method by the time we get down there.  The big question now is: how many will come down with Corona after the big temperature check and how many will come down with e.coli? 

Our main concern now is preparing for the 4 day transit and the 2 week “Sailor Jail”.  We’ve rented a car for our round the island shopping trip.  Our first stop will be the dentist I saw back in April.  I sent in my dental insurance claim but it was returned due to some missing information that can only come from the dentist’s office.  It has to be submitted by either mail or fax.  When I called to make an appointment to drop off the form, the dentist’s front office person, didn’t want paper, she wanted the insurance company to call her.  Catch 22:  she doesn’t want paper, they won’t make or accept a phone call with the missing information.  So, I’m just going to just pop in and drop off the insurance paper and pray that she completes it and sends it in. 

Next, we’ll be grocery shopping for the approximate 3 weeks we’ll be without.  I’ve been comparing recipes trying to find ones that have similar ingredients so that I won’t have a ton of one time only things that I hate to throw out but have no room for. 

I know the guys are planning trips to the various marine stores again; probably for those just in case moments.  Dale has been keeping the water topped off but with the off and on rain this past week, we’ve run the generator several times and a top off of the diesel is probably in order as well. 

Savannah is excited to go sailing but has no concept of what this transit really means.  Heck, I barely have any concept of what it really means.  She was too young to remember the last time she was aboard the boat for an overnight transit and mommy was with her.  She’s been a trouper this last week though and doesn’t seem to mind being on the boat most of the time.  She loves sitting on the front watching the water for turtles or just letting the wind blow through her hair.  I’m hoping we’ll see some more turtles, dolphins, or right whales on the transit.  Its always a hit and miss for those sightings. 

Guess that’s it for this week’s post. 

I leave you with an interesting observation:  it used to be that one would cough to cover a fart. Now, with Corona, one farts to cover a cough!