Mar 2–23 Dominican Republic Cap Cana Resort was great, but when the weather is right, you gotta go with it. We left on March 2 for Samana, further north but still along the east coast of the Dominican Republic. People go to Samana specifically to see whales this time of year, so we were almost guaranteed to see some. Sure enough, when we got close, Jim spotted whale watching boats packed with tourists. He followed them and soon we were watching humpback whales spouting and surfacing. Now we realize the whales that we saw in the BVI's a year ago were humpbacks. We actually got a better view of them there than in Samana, but they were still impressive. They're enormous.
We anchored in Samana for about a week waiting for the next weather window. Samana's a lively place with constant activity along the waterfront - shops, bars, music and dancing. Cruise ships stop there, so the local people are out to find a way to get your money. Linda and Jennifer said a lot of "no gracious's", Jim on the other hand would say "Hola" and start up a conversation in spanglish and gestures to see what he could bargain for. He was constantly approached by guys selling Cuban and Dominican cigars and he thinks he got some pretty good deals. While Linda and Jennifer were working on school, Jim was on shore checking out the market, buying fruits, vegetables and meat. He drank beer with the local guys and even got a local woman to try to teach him the meringue. He knows his cruising time is coming to an end and is trying to get in as many Caribbean experiences as he can.
The next good weather window took us 140 miles around the NE corner and along the north coast of the Dominican Republic to Luperon, where the water is dirty, the people are friendly and the prices are cheap. Yes, the water's dirty here. It ate the galvanization off the chain when we were here 2 years ago. This time we took a mooring for $2 a day so we didn't have to put the anchor chain in the water. Jim normally cleans the boat bottom himself every few days, but he gladly paid Poppo and Handy Andy, the boat boys, to do it. We definitely didn't bath over the side here either. We took showers in town at Steve's Place.
Steve's is a one-place-does-it-all for cruisers: restaurant/bar/laundry with free fresh water showers, free internet, a swimming pool, pool table and foosball table, plus comfortable chairs and a good breeze. All they requested was that you give them your business in terms of food and drink and laundry. That was pretty painless since they had 100 peso ($3US) breakfast, lunch and dinner specials every day that were good and filling. It hardly made sense to buy food and cook it on the boat. After eating a 100 peso lunch, we didn't need much more than a light snack for supper. Our favorite meal was deep fried grouper fingers with beans and rice and a salad. Steve's is a family run place with a very relaxed atmosphere. Steve runs the place and cooks and his wife Annie waits tables and does laundry, often with their 2 year old in tow. Their 6 year old, Stephanie, plays with customers and helps clear the empty plates. They live right in the restaurant. They work long hours with little privacy, but they make it work. We appreciated the good food and having a comfortable place to hang out.
One of our goals while in Luperon was to get our dental work done. A cleaning was about $15US, as were filings. Jim had to have a root canal and a crown and that cost less than half of what we would pay with dental insurance in the US. Plus, whenever we made an appointment, we got one for the next day.
Did you ever wonder what happened to all the clothes sent to Haiti for the earthquake victims? The Haitians bundle up the excess, take it to the Dominican Republic, and sell it on the street. All three of us got new shorts courtesy of the relief efforts. Hopefully they are sending the money back to their family and friends in Haiti.
Besides our 100 peso specials, we had a couple of really nice meals out. The Puerto Blanco Marina hosts a dinner and dance Friday nights mostly for all the ex-patriots who live on "Gringo Hill" or live permanently on their boats. We paid about $10US for fillet minion (2 actually), a baked potato, vegetables and a salad. No seconds on meat, but Jim got extra on everything else. Our second $10 meal was freshly prepared schnitzel at a German restaurant. It turned out to be a candle light dinner, because for whatever reason, the electricity was out. We'd been to the restaurant 2 years ago and knew it was good. Since then it had relocatd several miles out of Luperon. To get there Jim hailed a motoconcho, and for $1.50, a guy took both Jim and Linda on his motorbike. It cost $3 on the way back because it was after dark and the driver had to know all the pot holes along the way so he didn't lose his passengers. He got us safely back to the city of Luperon before he ran out of gas. He had just enough momentum to coast into the only gas station in town. After he filled up, he took us the rest of the way to the boat dock.
Jennifer had a fun time in Luperon. Her friend Sine, who she met 2 years ago, was waiting for her. We were barely anchored before someone came past in a dinghy and told us where we could find Sine and her dad on shore. It's a close boating community and they knew we were coming. Jennifer and Sine played together every day. During our second week in Luperon they were joined by two more boat kids, Desi and Dori from Nereus. It was great to hear all the giggles and laughter when all 4 girls got together. Jennifer and Sine went with their dad's to get their eyes checked and surprisingly they both needed glasses! Maybe they took advantage of the gringos, but at least they weren't too expensive.
Jennifer and Linda celebrated their birthdays in Luperon. Jim bought a cake and brought it to one of the cruiser bars in the afternoon. He served it up to everyone including the customers and staff. They sang Happy Birthday, half in Spanish and half in English. It didn't matter, the tune's the same. That evening Jim cooked a special meal on the boat and gave the girls some laramar jewelry he bought in Samana. He had another special necklace and earring set for Linda that he bought off a woman on the street. Yes, "off". She was wearing it and he told her he wanted it for his wife. Regardless of where it came from, it's beautiful and it's Linda's colors.
Jim loved Luperon. He brought beer at Steve's Place and the other cruisers bars in exchange for internet access, but he really preferred mixing with the local people. Even though they often didn't speak English and he didn't speak Spanish, he was able to get his point across. How else would he have reserved a chocolate cake for the next day and bought the jewelry the woman was wearing. He knew a few key words to get by. He claimed knowing "esposa" for wife and "nina" for daughter kept him out of trouble with the pretty women. Everyone in Luperon was very friendly. Hola and a smile went a long way.
Mar 4–31 Moving North We got a good weather window to leave Luperon March 24. The first leg was 145 miles to West Caicos in the Turks and Caicos. We had a light wind that made for a comfortable sail almost the whole way. At the very end of the trip, while we were trying to navigate a poorly marked channel, we ran aground on some rocks and coral. What an awful sound and awful feeling. Luckily a local boat was nearby and quickly pulled us off. After resting for an afternoon and evening, we headed out again for Mayaguana in the Bahamas 60 miles away. There was no wind so we had a very smooth motor boat ride. Jim spotted something red in the water and changed course to check it out. It turned out to be a plastic kayak that was adrift. We rescued it and Jennifer cleaned it up. It was in good shape so we decided to keep it.
The light winds continued so we motor-sailed or sailed 35 - 50 miles per day. Jim caught blackfin tuna in the Crooked Islands. By that time we were almost out of ice. Rather than let the extra tuna go to waste, we gave it away to 2 other boats in the harbor and made some new friends. The same day we were visited by a pod of dolphins that played in our bow wave. Jim and Linda saw them jumping completely out of the water before they came over. It was almost as if they were saying, "Hey guys, look! It's a small boat. Let's go play.". We stopped in Clarence Town and treated ourselves a 1/2 pound burger and fries on shore, our reward for getting 331 miles closer to North Carolina over the last 6 days. From Clarence town we moved on to Rum Cay. Weather conditions made it prudent to stay at the marina. We joined other sailors for drinks on the dock at sunset. Two boats were heading for Luperon and were eager for any information we had. We had a lot. Jennifer thought it was great fun to be the expert on Luperon and was very talkative that night.