Out with a Bang!
Our last hours in Turks and Caicos were quite eventful.Danny and I got a few things done on the boat while Marci and the Creatures went exploring. I love it when I raise him up the mast in the bosun’s chair so he can work at the top of the mast, and then when I lower him down I can keep him hanging just out of reach of the deck so he is stuck! I can harass him, tease him, act like I’m going to leave him there, and all he can do is sit and patiently wait. You’d think in that predicament he’d agree to anything I say, but he STILL gives me a hard time!
We all made our way over to the Beaches all inclusive Resort, and walked in to play in the water park. We tubed down water slides, relaxed on the lazy river, splashed in the kids fountains, swam in the ocean, and enjoyed all you can eat pizza, cupcakes and ice cream for free! The creatures thought they’d died and gone to heaven!
The creatures have decided that we need a Hobie cat as a second dinghy. They loved sailing around in it.
While walking the neighborhood we ate these delicious sea grapes right off the trees. They are so tasty.
Finally yesterday at about midday we set sail for Dominican Republic.
We passed West Caicos where there is an entire abandoned town. It was sad and a little eerie to see so many beautiful abandoned homes. In about 2006 they ran out of money and walked away from it all.
We are still hand steering since the autopilot is on strike, so we arranged the watch schedule and sailed through the night. Marci and I were a team, and had our earphones in as we listened to audio books while we worked the helm. Jude and Glade were a team and by the sounds of it they talked about food for their entire 2 hour shift. Mycah, Sierra and Aidan were team number 3, and had fun too. Danny and Emma were the final team. Since Marci and I had the 10pm-midnight shift, it meant we also had the 6am-8am shift, and we got to watch the gorgeous sunrise.
Glade and Aidan are so full of energy. You can’t keep them down even when in the middle of the Atlantic. They jumped around for a while and Aidan almost became airborne off Tanda Malaika. It was pretty funny.
Finally late this afternoon Marci yelled ‘Land Ho!’ The tall coastline of Dominican Republic could clearly be seen off the starboard side. After 38 hours of respectable winds and a beautiful sail, we are anchored in a little bay called Punta Rucia. Since there is no place for us to check in here, we will not go ashore, but in the morning will sail the last 15 nm to Luperon where we can check in with customs and immigration and stay a while at anchor to explore. It will also give Marci a chance to wash and dry her and Glades bedding. Their hatches weren’t closed properly so their beds got soaked on the crossing!
Since we anchored in the dark I am so excited to wake up in the morning to look out and see what out surroundings look like. I love our life on the water. It helps me keep things in perspective as I am constantly reminded of just how small I am in the universe.
Adventures of a Tribe 