The Green Flash

Yes I have seen it! Third time round I have witnessed the green flash in the Caribbean. the first time I tried to witnessed it in Turks and Caicos and I missed it, as well as in Dominica. Just as the sun was sinking into the ocean, I could see this green little light on the surface of the ocean where the sun dipped in, it just took a second if at all.
Today we went over to Pigeon Island again, this time we took Sven along. We had a classic experience while we paid our entrance fee to the park. Sven ordered tickets for two adults and two kids. The lady at the counter asked him about the age of the children. Sven said 6 and 8 and Carlos and Julia protested loudly and made sure the lady knew that our children are 8 and 9. It was kind of funny to see the confused look on our kids faces, how could we get their age wrong, as they are so proud of it and counting every day of their age. However it made no difference as the park fee for children was EC $ 2 (Caribbean Dollar) and we have now given our contribution to keep the maintainance of the national park of Pigeon Island alive and ongoing. We walked all over the island, including the two hilltops of the reserve. When we came back down again, Sven requested to have a little rest, and both, Julia and Carlos cried out, "yeah lets have rest, lets play tag". Our question is, what kind of energy drinks are there on?Again we had a magnificent view over Rodney Bay. We took a little refreshment in the little restaurant before heading back to our JUCA. Later that evening we were invited for a BBQ on SV "Sandy Dreams" and enjoyed a great evening with nice company and great food.

Welcome SV "Sandy Dreams"

They have finally caught up with us and arrived in Rodney Bay on Monday; our friends on SV "Sandy Dreams". They have announced their arrival here in St. Lucia a week too early and we had made the mistake and told Julia and Carlos that they will be here soon. Since then they have been asking every day; are they here yet, are they coming today....will they be here today....when will they arrive...Luckily they arrived on Monday morning 7 o'clock, it was a great wake up call. As soon as I mentioned Sandy Dreams has arrived they opened their eyes and shot out of bed to welcome Ryan, Jen, Marilyn and their dog Sissy on deck. Usually it takes hours to get them out of bed. I know Jen that you are reading this blog,.... so let me tell you that..... it is so nice to have your here as neighbours in St. Lucia, we welcome you warmly to Rodney Bay. Since yesterday, George from SV "Rosante" has joined our little community and it feels like being back in Luperon again. Today we went over to the Bay Gardens Beach Resort for lunch and while we enjoyed a drink and each others company, Julia and Carlos had a little play and swim in the beautiful swimming pool.

Pigeon Island

We have done another little trip while Sven was lying in bed bathing in his own fever. One afternoon we went to Pigeon Island equipped with our fishing nets which were suppose to catch butterflies today and with George from SV ”Rosanante” . We met George while staying in Luperon and have met him here in St. Lucia again. Pigeon Island is a park reserve with crumbling barracks, magazine and ramparts of Fort Rodney, built in the late 1700s and named after British Admiral George Rodney. From the fort’s excellent vantage points, George Rodney was able to monitor the French fleet in Martinique. The national Landmark used to be an island until the 1970. When the lagoon for the Rodney Bay Marina was dredged and established, the material was deposited between the mainland and the island, which created a causeway connecting the two landmasses. We managed to hike to the top of Pigeon Island in a short amount of time and even Julia and Carlos were surprised by this pleasant short walk. They did not find any butterflies, but plenty of hermit crabs. The view from the top of the fort rewarded us with an amazing view of the lush landscape of the Caribbean side of St. Lucia and the rugged terrain of the east coast. Unfortunately we got chased out of the park, as it was closing for the day, but I went back the next day at six o’clock to take some early morning shots. That morning I realized that there is much more to see, so I might take Sven there when he is feeling better to enjoy this well maintained and magnificent park as well.

Carnival in Castries

Sven is still sick, but that did not stop me or the children to drive in the bus to Castries to experience the Carnival in St. Lucia. I have always been intrigued by the carnival in Rio, so I thought the likely hood of me going to Rio is slim, so I better attend the Carnival in St. Lucia while I have the chance. We packed our bags with water and a few muesli bars and off we went. I had ripped the articles out of a newspaper to show the bus driver where we needed to go. No worries, the bus was stopping at the right place. We were early enough and had plenty of time to walk over to the City Circuit of Castries and to watch the bands in preparation with their costumes. The energy was high, busy and colourful and when the music started to play the whole crowd was moving their hips to the rhythm of the beat. I was excited and happy to be part of it, Julia and Carlos were not that impressed by it all……it was too noisy and too boring for them. However when we walked along with the crowd through the township of Castries I have to admit at some location the music was very loud even my ears started to hurt and my whole body was vibrating to the pumping beat. After hours in the scorching sun we had a little rest in the Tranquility Park before heading back home to Sven who had waited patiently for our return.

Dengue Fever

Finally I get to fill you in with some news from us. As already mentioned for a clean and polish of the yacht we moved JUCA into the Marina. After cleaning our JUCA thoroughly and doing some maintenance to be once more inspected by a potential buyer, we enjoyed a couple of extra days in the Rodney Bay Marina. After the family fun day the Marina put on a free breakfast for the cruisers, which we enjoyed very much. Unfortunately it was a rainy morning, still I got the chance to talk to some interesting people. Julia and Carlos made the most out of it staying so handy to land. Every morning they got up and went out to search for some friends to play with, some crabs to catch and experiencing land underneath their feet. The day we were ready to leave the marina we did our last minute grocery shopping and Sven already mentioned that he did not feel that great. However he managed to do the shopping with me and when we came back he said he would just lie down for a minute ….and that was it he did not get up until 6 days later. He had Dengue Fever! Dengue Fever is also known “as break bone fever. It is an infectious tropical disease caused by the dengue virus. Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint pains, and a characteristic skin rash that is similar to measles. Dengue is transmitted by several species of mosquito. The virus has four different types; infection with one type usually gives lifelong immunity to that type, but only short-term immunity to the others. Subsequent infection with a different type increases the risk of severe complications. As there is no vaccine, prevention is sought by reducing the habitat and the number of mosquitoes and limiting exposure to bites.”
So there is not much you can do other than riding the fever out, and that what Sven had to do. Luckily I believe that he got away mildly, don’t get me wrong he has done his bit of suffering, but we did all we could to keep him as comfortable as we could. He got foot massages, lots of Reiki, made him fresh chicken broth, Vitamin C, water as well as plenty of TLC, hugs and rest. I think Carlos was really concerned and all of us are really happy that he is roaming among us again.

Kids Fun in the Marina

Rodney Bay Marina

Our JUCA is cleaned and polished and is ready for inspection. It rained all day yesterday and this morning and I was a bit stressed out that I would not get all the things on my "to do list" done. Luckily the sun came out as soon as we motored into the Marina, where we will be staying until Sunday. Once we tied our Yacht to the dock, we got started. Vision was organised to polish and clean the hull and we managed to clean, wash and varnish all the things we needed to to. Julia and Carlos were left to their own device, but luckily found other children in the Marina to play with. Late in the evening we had finished everything and we had the luxury of a warm shower. The last time I had a hot shower on land was in the Dominican Republic, that is quiet a while ago, I cannot tell you how much of a treat standing under a hot shower was. We will be enjoying this treat until Sunday, including power on our JUCA as well as fast internet. It is always interesting what little things can "make my day" living on a boat.