The San Blas Island Life

After leaving behind the bustling streets and ubiquitous infrastructure of Cartagena, we sailed almost due west to the San Blas islands of Panama for a few days of learning about life the way it has been for centuries.

Our second stop in the Archipelago was in the Dutch Cays, at anchor in a bay between two islands. One of them was lush with coconut palms and uninhabited. The other had a small Kuna Indian village with three houses and out structures. The water was calm and clear, and the only sound was wind in the trees.

We rowed the dinghy to the hull of a shipwrecked sailboat that was sitting on a reef its port side, almost completely out of the water. It was an eerie reminder about what can happen after a simple navigation or piloting mistake or uncontrollable weather phenomenon.

Near the wreck was a group of shallow coral heads that made for incredible snorkeling. I had never seen such a variety of colorful fish! We swam around until we were a little cold, and then got back in the dinghy to row around the Kuna island. We were not sure about the etiquette or customs, or even if these Kuna spoke Spanish, so we approached slowly until we saw a group of people gathered outside a palm frond thatched hut with a smoking fire. A couple of men approached the shore, and greeted us in good Spanish, asking us what had happened to the motor for our dinghy (we don't have one).

They invited us ashore and we exchanged some pleasantries. I saw a bucket of fresh red Pardo fish, and asked if they would be willing to trade for some tasty edible items we brought from Florida. They tossed three fish into the bottom of the dinghy and waved us goodbye. I had dinner in mind before we even got back to the boat; we would inaugurate our recently-purchased charcoal grill!

We attached the grill to the stern pulpit, gave it a quick cleaning, and lit the coals. I put diced eggplant, green pepper, and onions on the grill on a folded tin foil barge and then added some Caesar dressing. Then I rinsed the fish, basted them with olive oil and some seasoned salt, seared the outside until crispy, then put them on top of the vegetables to steam. We were using hardwood charcoal, although harder to start than the briquettes sold in the U.S., it is more pure and burns for longer. So after dinner we still had plenty of hot coals. Alan's aunt had sent him a s'mores kit for Christmas, so we roasted the marshmallows and enjoyed a classic American treat. Then we sliced up and grilled a pineapple. Why not?

It was easy to adjust to the simple and relaxing lifestyle of the San Blas Islands. We hope you enjoyed the photos and posts!

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A Look Back at Cartagena

My first time in Cartagena was in 2007 for a conference. The hotel, museums, tours, banquet, and entertainment were all arranged and paid for by the State Department. We had little time to explore the city by foot, as talks and meetings dominated the schedule. It was an excellent trip to a beautiful city, but I wanted to return and have more time to explore the streets and experience it from a different perspective.

When we stopped in Cartagena last month, circumstances had definitely changed. I was living on a boat at anchor after a 5-day crossing from Jamaica, and on a budget. As we rowed ashore the first morning, I was anticipating the moment when I would recognize surroundings and be able to locate myself on an old mental map of the city.

For the next two days, we walked around the entire walled city and visited almost every plaza, making sure to stop frequently to sample the outrageously delicious and inexpensive street food: shrimp ceviche, grilled cheesy arepa muffins, homemade ice cream popsicles, fresh tropical fruit salads, sno cones, and fried plantains. We walked until we had blisters, and then taped the blisters until our feet looked like mummies, then we swapped shoes until they gave us different blisters.

We met up with some Colombian friends I made during my first visit, and we caught up over a small pizza dinner. It's hard to describe how vibrant and colorful the city is. Combine scenes from Pirates of the Caribbean and South Beach Miami, and fill them with friendly, beautiful people and delicious food.

Of course, there is much much more to Colombia than the preserved and tourist-oriented Cartagena. There are diverse landscapes and cultures across the country and places where extreme poverty and armed conflict still dominate daily life. In Cartagena, it was difficult to imagine this other side, but it is important to realize that these contrasts exist.

I felt like we made the most of our time in Cartagena. I definitely hope to be back someday, and to be able to explore more of Colombia in the future. For anyone looking for historical, romantic, and relatively inexpensive vacation spot, Cartagena is a great option!

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High Seas Humor

Sometimes I wish we had a transcript of everything we say on board here- sometimes it is really really funny. Sometimes we have lots of time to ourselves on watch to think of really really funny jokes.

The jokes on board span many different genres. One category is bathroom humor, which we will be outgrowing any day now.

Not surprisingly, each and every one of the three of us has a different style of humor. Adam combines words. For example, the other day Alan was commenting on the bay bottom being “sandy and grassy.” Suddenly Adam yelled “sassy.” That’s how it works.

Sometimes I like to combine phrases. I find two, two-word phrases that share the same middle word and then combine them and imagine the resulting item. For example- “fly paper” and “paper towels” makes “fly paper towels”: an insect-covered roll of large adhesive towels that would you would hurriedly and unsuccessfully attempt to unravel to clean up a kitchen spill. Ridiculous! The middle words can just be homophones- words that sound the same. Think “rip cord” and “chord progression”- “rip chord progression”- synchronized musical sky divers. Or how about “petroleum jelly fish” or “bean bag pipes” HAHA! If you think of any really good ones, please email them to me. Thanks.

Because we mainly hang around the same crowd each day, we used to repeat the same jokes again and again and again and again. But no longer. Instead, we have now codified our ongoing repetitive inside jokes through a sequence of numbers. This practice is actually not crazy at all- it is efficient and hilarious. Especially after sitting in the galley for a while if the propane stove is lit.

Here’s how it works; the number 5 signifies the beginning of a codified joke. From there, each joke has a number. One of the most popular jokes on board is the “impression” joke (number 6), where we do an impression of one of the other crewmembers and then we have to guess which one of us it is. It’s pretty easy to guess most of the time because of the small possibility pool and because the “impression” is usually just standing or sitting in that person’s berth (bed). Under the old way of doing things, Alan would walk into the V-berth (where I live), and say “who am I?” The correct answer would be “Trevor.” Now, Alan simply walks into the V-Berth and says “5-6?” Again, the 5 is to signify the beginning of a codified joke, and the 6 to signify the specific joke. The correct answer is still “Trevor,” but this way it is much better. You see?

We could fill a blog with the numbered list of excellent jokes, but we will spare you. Also, I have some intellectual property and copyright ambitions here. It’s never too soon to think about your career. In the meantime, don’t worry- no quitting of day job is planned.

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