April 1, 2009   Carti Islands

As we were taking a stroll on deck this morning, a school of baby squid were swimming by our boat.  Lots of them, not longer than three inches in length.  The water is so clear you can see the bottom and a couple of stingrays cruised by.  The weather has been so calm these last few days, and again this morning it is dead calm. The mountains in the distance are much clearer to see.  We follow Koukla out of the anchorage, and motor the 10 miles to the Carti Islands.  These islands are close to the mainland, and a stop for small cruiseships as well.  So, the Kunas are used to having many tourists come to their island and buy molas.  That is one thing I have noticed this time, that there are more tiendas (Kunas homes) selling whatever they can and more signs.  These signs are just made out of cardboard and are written in Spanish no more than two or three words. For example, Hay huevos, (we have eggs) Hay pollo (we have chicken). 

John, a resident of Carti, comes out in his ulu to greet each cruiser who anchors there. Similiar to the "Walmart greeter".

It only takes us a couple of hours and by noon, we are anchored right off Carti in about 16 feet of water.  The water is not as clear here and it is not the best protection, but the weather is suppose to continue to be calm for the next few days so while we are gone, the boat should be fine.  John comes out to greet us.  We remember him from last time.  He speaks English very well, since he used to work on the Panama canal.  His son also lives on the island and has a tienda and is able to get items from Panama City.  There are many flags flying, the presidential election is soon, and the flags represent different political parties.  I also find a shirt for Aaron that has a mola design, so I can't resist and buy it.

Our transportation to Panama City has been set up by Tristan and Cosmos. There is a man called Grande, a Colombian, who owns a jeep and charges $25 each way.  Donna has a dental appointment, and Cosmos needs a new hose for his hydraulics, and Aaron has a doctor appointment for 430pm tomorrow.  So, all four of us are making the trip.   We have Donna and Cosmos over for dinner and explain to Cosmos how to start the generator.  He will be looking after the boat while we are in Panama City.  We plan on being away for two days, so the generator needs to be ran twice a day to chill the refrigeration and charge batteries.  There are no marinas in this area.  There is a small airport and there is a flight that arrives from Panama City once a day.  I don't know how much the flight costs, but it is an option.

April 2nd   Big Big City Here We Come

Grande picks us up at our boat at 615am with a launcha (big canoe with motor), and with Donna and Cosmos, the launcha takes us up the river and to an clearing where Grande's jeep is parked.  The road is a gravel dirt road for the first hour and 15 minutes.  Construction is being done, new bridges, and a wider paved road is underway but for now, the road is bumpy and wanders thru the jungle mountainous region.  The road then becomes paved and smoother for the next hour and at the city of Chepo, we have to stop for the passport check station.  As we get closer to Panama City, there is much more traffic, and the horns are blaring away.  The only thing I like about cities is what they have to offer in the way of purchasing supplies, and of course, today, the availability of medical facilities.  We drop off our alternators to get them fixed, Cosmos finds his hose, and Donna has her tooth checked. We shop at the Super 99, a huge grocery store.  Oh wow, the prices are so much better than Cartagena.  We buy a case of rum and have Cosmos and Donna take it back with them to the boats.  Grande then drops us off at our hotel before leaving the city to return to Carti, and we bade farewell to Donna and Cosmos for now.

Our room at the Hotel Marparaiso is simple, $40 a night, which includes breakfast.  At 345pm, we hail a taxi and just as we arrive to the Paitilla Clinica, our phone rings and it is Dr Duran's receptionist calling to inform us that he cannot see us today due to an emergency.  I ask for another doctor explaining that we must see one today.  I am placed on hold, after 10 minutes, a gentleman answers and speaks English.  He asks what the situation is, and I tell him that we are in need of seeing a doctor for Aaron's hernia.  He says to come up to his office and he is with a patient at the moment but can see us shortly. I am surprised to be talking directly to the doctor! Wonderful news.  We find his office, enter and just as promised in a few minutes, he ushers us into his office.  He examines Aaron and confirms the hernia.  He then sits down at his desk and proceeds to ask questions, first being our names. He says that he covers for Dr Duran if needed, that they are not partners, but will be glad to help us out.  For the next hour, Dr. Alfredo Navarro, a nice looking gentleman in his 50's, explains how a hernia happens, (drawing pictures), what the surgery procedure is, and then asks what our schedule is.  We tell him our situation, our boat is in Carti, and that we need to have this taken care of as soon as possible.  He replies, how about tomorrow morning at 7am?  Aaron wasn't expecting it to be so soon, but it's best.  We are here now and have friends looking after the boat, so we proceed.  Forms are filled out, surgery is scheduled at the newest hospital Punta Pacifica, and the total cost of the operation will be less than $2000US.  He says that in general surgery, the three most common operations are the gallbladder, the appendix and hernias.  He says he performs at least 80-100 hernia surgeries a year.  We are feeling more confident with him by the minute which is important.  Aaron asks him if he can take his appendix out while he is in there, and with a smile Dr Navarro replies that that is not such a good idea and asks why.  Being sailors if and when we transit the canal and head for the South Pacific, medical attention is far far away and so it is recommended to have the appendix taken out.  Dr Navarro tells us that although he can understand that, it is not good to have two surgeries at one time, infection is greater.  I agree, one is enough.   Aaron needs to have a chest xray and blood work done tonight, so Dr Navarro escorts us out of the building and gives us walking directions to the hospital.  It's faster to walk than to take a taxi at this hour.  He says that he is trying to place himself in our shoes, being in a foreign country, needing medical attention, not knowing Spanish very well, and so he feels extra care is needed.  He is truly a gentleman and appreciate his concern.  And I think, that he will not forget us, the American sailing couple with a dream of sailing around the world.

We arrive at the hospital, it is a new beautiful building, and proceed to the Admissions office.  Dr Navarro had called and set up for us to see someone who speaks English and what tests are needed.  We meet Luis, who speaks English fairly well, and the necessary forms are filled out.  The bill is tallied up, $600 to Dr Navarro, $200 to the anesthesiologist, and $1120 to the hospital and we pay the balance with our credit card.   Everyone we have met has been most helpful and gracious.  The chest xray costs $25 and the blood work another $17.  At 730pm, we start walking back to the hotel, stopping at the grocery store for a couple of cuba libres in a can, and try to hail a taxi.  It is not like Cartagena, where yellow taxis are everywhere.  No taxis are available, so we keep walking.  Finally, we find a taxi and arrive back to our hotel after 8pm.  Tired we both are and needing dinner, we are please to see Damon s/v Bruadair in the lobby.  He is returning from visiting the states, and is flying back to Nargana tomorrow morning.  We have dinner at the restaurant in the hotel and catch up with what has been happening in the last year and a half.  He gives me the internet addresses to the two airlines that fly to the San Blas.  I believe that after Aaron's surgery, taking a flight would be the better way to go rather than the 2 1/2 hour bumpy jeep ride.

April 3rd   Surgery

This date is turning out to be not so good for Aaron.  Six years ago today is when he was arrested in Ft. Lauderdale after we had sailed from the Bahamas for drug possession, a bogus charge that was later dropped and today he has hernia surgery.  Arriving at the hospital at 6am, it is still dark outside and no one is here.  We wait at the Admissions office until a nice lady comes to whisk Aaron away and prep him for surgery.  At 720am, Dr Navarro meets me in the waiting room and says that he will begin surgery shortly.  At 9am, he returns to inform me that Aaron is doing fine, the surgery went well.  The hernia was a bit deeper than expected, so he will be sore a bit longer, and his assistant joins us and she says that he is still droggy but asking for a rum and coke!  He hasn't changed a bit!  As Aaron was being wheeled out of the hospital, the admissions assistant came out and stopped us and asked us to please come to her office.  She needed our credit card once again.  A refund of $214.00 from the hospital needed to be charged back onto our credit card.  She apologized for the inconvenience.  No inconvenience at all as I am amazed at this.  Maybe Aaron required less medication or equipment!  Although, he is pretty well drugged up at the moment.

Back at the hotel, Aaron is resting comfortably.  I make plans to have our alternator delivered to the hotel, for only a $10 charge, which is worth it.  With internet access, I use Skype and call the Simrad dealer in New Hampshire and after being on hold for 15 minutes, I speak with Craig the technician, who helps me with our autopilot problem.  Our autopilot, a Robertson AP3000X quit working right before our arrival into the San Blas on March 15th.  Aaron cleaned the connections, but it still fails to work properly.  So, the manual says that the control head unit needs to be replaced and this is where Craig steps in.  The control head unit we have has been discontinued, but another unit is interchangeable, the AP11.  He gives me the part number and phone numbers to a few distributors who sell them.  Very helpful guy. It would be hell to try to hand steer all the way to Bocas so this is an important part to obtain.  So my mission continues...... Meanwhile, I call the airline, PanamaAir, and reserve 2 seats for the flight out on Sunday morning at 6am.  Aaron ought to be up to traveling by then.

April 5th   Back to the Islands and Home

We awake early, 4am, catch the shuttlebus at 430 to the airport, check in, secure our seats and  wait for the flight at 6am.  It's a small aircraft, seats 20 people, and right on schedule.  The sun was just rising as we took to the air, a beautiful view of greenery and mountains below.  In just 25 minutes, we land on the small airstrip and taxi to the terminal.  The terminal is a shabby building with many Kunas standing outside.  The wind is blowing a good 20 knots, the sea whitecapping.  I carry our bags to the terminal and ask for a ride out to our boat.  Aaron is hanging in there, and looking forward to lying down in his own bed. I pay $6 each and write our names on the list.  The launcha is about 20 feet long, a long wooden canoe, and the two Kunas hand us a plastic sheet to aid us in not getting wet.  They place a plastic sheet over our backpacks on the floor and off we go.  The ride is brutal, poor Aaron, as we slam into the waves and spray comes back and lands on our plastic sheet.  Back on board safely, everything is in order, our case of rum is there waiting for us, thanks to Cosmos and Donna.  The generator is running, the ice is being made, and Blow Me Away now becomes the floating recuperation center.  What better place is there? Aaron slips into our bed and sleeps most of the day.

April 6th  Dinghy Excursion to Rio Sidra

It's a beautiful day and so a great idea comes to one of the three of us (Donna, Cosmos and me) to dinghy to the island of Rio Sidra to see Bellisario and the Diez sisters, two of the master mola makers.  We get out the charts and figure it is only 8 miles, doable in a dinghy in good weather.  So, off we go in our dinghy since it has a 25 hp motor while Aaron will stay and watch the boats.  Halfway there, the seas get a bit more choppy and the ride becomes longer that we originally thought.  45 minutes later, we arrive at Rio Sidra and tie up to the public dock.  After that ride, a cold beer sounds good.  We walk to Bellisario's and he remembers Donna and Cosmos from last year.  Bellisario is an albino, and in the Kuna community, albinos are regarded as blessed and called "moon children".  He stays inside his home while he talks to us to avoid sun exposure.  We enter his home, dirt floor with hammocks hanging along side the walls, clothes draped over the timbers above and a makeshift kitchen area; it's very simple living conditions.  He brings out his molas and Donna and I look thru them and decide on a few to buy.  I chose a blouse that has a different color of green, more of a khaki green thruout the design.  The price is $50, reasonable price for two molas, and ask who made it.  A girl of about 15 years of age, Bellisario's niece, steps forward and I ask if I can take a picture of her and her mola.  She quickly goes inside her home, puts on the customary Kuna dress, which is the blouse displaying a mola on the front and back and a wraparound skirt.  She smooths her hair and comes and stands by me.  She is so shy as she poses for the picture. I thank her and we move on to find the Diez sisters.  Donna explains that these two sisters are the best in Kuna Yala.  The Chief, (Sahlia) is our guide and speaks very good English.  He used to work for the Panama canal, but now he takes care of Rio Sidra and his village.  There are alot of children and we ask how many are there.  He says about 80 young school age children.  We believe it as they are everywhere we look.  The Diez sisters are home and display their molas over a clothesline.  There are only about 10 of them, and they are exquisite.  But the price is way more than we are willing to pay.  $100 per mola!  and no pictures can be taken as they take pride in their designs and want to keep them from the mass public eye.  As we walk back, I decide to buy a beaded bracelet for $5, and while the Kuna woman is placing it upon my wrist, Cosmos hands out more pencils.  The children come out from everywhere and flock around him, jumping up and down, in pure excitement of receiving a gift. 

Afterwards, we walk to the only restaurant on the island, and for $4, a piece of chicken, rice, salad and a piece of cake is served.  Beers are lukewarm so we drink it fast. After lunch, the Chief is waiting for us outside and walks us back to our dinghy.  He looks out towards the anchorage and asks where our boat is.  We reply that we dinghied all the way from Carti.  He is amazed at this and thanks us for coming.  We pile in and prepare for the 45 minute ride.  It's a little bit better going with the waves, but it's still a long ride.  We make it back safely, and concur that we will not do another long dinghy ride ever again.   

   April 7th  A change of scenery does us good

A happy reunion with s/v Glide, Pam and Denis, happened yesterday.  Haven't seen them since Cartagena three months ago, so much to catch up on.  But today, we decide to follow the pack to a new set of islands just 5 miles away towards the mainland called Isla Robesons. A whole group of boats is meeting up, Sonny and Kay on s/v Valentina, David and Sidney s/v Hannaday, Rick and Ami on s/v Taravana, David and Damon s/v Bruadair and our group Koukla and Glide.   Aaron needs to see Dr David on s/v Hannaday. Some swelling is occurring which doesn't look good.  After anchoring, Dr. David makes a boatcall and examines Aaron.  He reassures Aaron that the swelling is normal and that eventually the body will absorb the fluid. Just keep doing the ice packs and wear underwear for support.  Underwear? What cruiser wears underwear?   David ends up staying the rest of the afternoon per Doctor's orders,  enjoying rum and cokes with lots of ice.. We meet Bredio and the Sahlia Chief and pay $5 for anchoring. These fees are to support the Congresso on the island to benefit all.   Canoes full of kids keep coming up to our boat and I give each of them a piece of candy after they have told me their name.  The young kids are so shy, but so cute.  I believe I have met every child on the small island of Gerti.  The word spread rather quickly!

Rick and Ami have invited the whole group over to their boat, a catamarran, it has room for 14 people for happy hour.  It's great to see Sonny and Kay again.  Last time we saw them was our arrival into Cartagena on Dec 10, 2007! They look great and have a couple of good friends visiting from Oklahoma, Jim and Pat.

April 8th   Up the river and a dinghy drift

Each  morning the Kuna men paddle their ulu's to the rivers to fill their water jugs and collect any fruit they may see.  On their return,  they stop by the boats anchored and sell avocados, pineapples, bananas and limes.  So, their is no scurvy aboard our boat!  The children are out of school for Easter break, so in the afternoons, they paddle their Daddy's ulu out to the boats anchored to see if candy can be had once again.  We help out also with charging cell phones.  Gerti island has two solar panels allowing two lights to be lit up at night, but other than that, there is no electricity.

Donna and Cosmos come by to pick me up as we head into the small island of Gerti.  There is a young Kuna lady by the name of Ingui that has a good reputation as a mola maker.  So, our curiosity gets the best of us and we have to see what she has.  We tie up at a rickety old dock and walk just a short ways to find ourselves in Inguis' courtyard.  She is petite, with short black hair, pretty features and around 25 years old.  She brings out chairs for us and we all sit and chat for awhile.  This is a different as normally the Kuna women just get right to the task of selling molas.  Ingui does speak some English and is curious about our lives and asks many questions.  We are just as curious about her and find out that she spent 15 years in Panama City, going to school there and living with extended family.  She returned to Gerti just 5 years ago.  Ingui is very independent and smart.  She is not the normal Kuna woman, she is not married, and says she is in no hurry.  She then brings out 4 buckets of molas and displays each one.  As she is doing this, other Kuna women come around and display the two or three molas they have.  One lady is even selling her daughters blouse and the 5 year old daughter looks on with sadness to see her favorite blouse for sale.  Although, it is a cute blouse, there is no way we could buy it and cause sadness to this little girl.  Donna and I decide on which molas we are going to buy and tally up the sale.  Cosmos brings out pencils and he soon becomes a very popular man.  The children all huddle around him, and when receiving a pencil, they turn away with a huge smile on their faces.  During our meeting with Ingui, an older lady came and sat behind us.  We asked Ingui how old she was, and it's roughly around 80 years old.  Cosmos brings out a pair of reading glasses and gives them to this older lady.  She places them on her face and smiles.  She doesn't take them off, but wears them proudly.  Cosmos tries to explain that they are for seeing close up, and she nods in agreement. We thank Ingui for her time and ask if we can walk around the island.  Sure, no problem.  It is a small island, one very small tienda, the Congresso house with the two solar panels providing power to two lightbulbs and a basketball court. The tour takes all of about 10 minutes and soon we are back at Inguis, saying goodbye, and dinghying back to our boats.

  There are three rivers close by and so I hop into Valentina's dinghy and off we go up the smallest one to explore.  The others have left earlier to do their laundry in the clear stream.  The river becomes shallow the further up we go and eventually we have to get out and pull the dinghy.  We finally make it to where the others have left their dinghies on the river bank and walk the rest of the way thru the shallow river.  Soon we see laundry buckets and water jugs being filled.  Busy little sailors!

Later on, to celebrate happy hour, we tie up all of our dinghies and just drift.  We pass around appetizers, open the coolers and make drinks and watch the sunset.   A full moon is rising just as the sun is setting, which happens every time there is a full moon.  Did you know that?  And of course, we just had to break out singing the song "That's Amore".  Deano would of loved it.

April 11th   Off to the Lemon Groves

Time to move on after a restful few days. Yesterday, Donna and Cosmos came by and picked me up and dinghied to Gerti where we met Ingui, a beautiful young lady who makes molas.  In a small courtyard outside of her home, we sat and over a delightful conversation she and the other women on the island showed us their molas.  The annual Congresso meeting is on May 5th.  The Kuna Yala islands are divided into three regions, and the section that Gerti is included in, their meeting is on Gerti.  Ingui showed us her molas that she has made specifically for this occassion.  They are well done and one is comical showing two turtles in a precarious position.

The wind is blowing out of the northeast so it is a beat the entire 10 miles to the Eastern Lemmons.  This is a beautiful spot, with several islands all around the anchorage.  Bruadair is here waiting for their order of groceries along with several other cruisers, from Mr. G, who lives here.  Mr. G is a Kuna, who speaks English very well.  He spent some time in Utah with the Mormons on a missionary trip some years ago.  He wants to cater to the cruisers, so he has began a grocery delivery service, where orders are placed before Friday at 4pm, then Mr G calls his friend in Panama City with the orders.  The orders are then filled and shipped back to the island of Carti, where a launcha then motors out to the East Lemmons. After organizing the shipment, the cruisers then can pick up and pay for their groceries on Sunday.  He charges about a 10 percent mark up.  It's a great way to buy those items that were too expensive to buy in Cartagena, like cheese and alcohol.   

We are never without some kind of "problema" these days.  I think we should change our boat name to "It's Always Something".  Today, we tried to make water, but when Aaron started the watermaker, the lights did not come on and then smoke started coming out of the main box.  Uh oh, shut it down and see what is going wrong.  But, in times like these, misery loves company, so we called Koukla and they came over.  Cosmos and Aaron began figuring out what part is now damaged, but couldn't find where.  Donna and I left the men and dinghied ashore to where a volleyball game was beginning on the beach.  It's been quite awhile since I've played but I am not the only one.  Afterwards, a few talented cruisers started playing their guitars and the crowd sang along.  Mr G quickly ran out of cold beers.

 Donna and I return to BMA to find Cosmos and Aaron in the cockpit drinking rum and cokes and the sound of the watermaker running.  They figured out that water can be made by using the manual override.  Aaron tested the water before it went into our tank and the TDS showed 191.  Any number less than 700 is  drinkable.  The TDS only tests for the salinity of the water.  We still need to find out what is exactly wrong with the watermaker so it will run correctly.  

I still do not have email onboard.  I keep asking fellow cruisers for help, but so far I haven't had any luck.  And our autopilot still has issues.  The control head unit needs to be replaced, but the one we have is no longer made and a replacement is hard to find.  After talking with Tony on s/v Andiamo, he referred us to Complete Yachts out of Florida.  We have a phone now, Digicell is the service, and the signal is strong so Aaron makes the call.  Maureen was very helpful and within a couple of hours, she had located the part we need.  She said that it has to be the very last one available because it was so hard to find.  Don't we know it!  Pam on s/v Glide is traveling back to New York in the coming week and offered to bring it back with her if we mailed it to her address in New York.  Maybe our luck is changing! 

 April 12th   A Tropical Easter Celebration

Koukla invited the group over for an Easter dinner at 6pm, the main dish being a fillet of salmon.  Everyone brought a dish over to complement the salmon.  Aaron made scalloped potatoes and I produced a delicious pecan pie.  It was another wonderful evening with good friends.

April 15th   Three Year Anniversary of Cruising 

Can you believe it?  It's been three years since we left Madeira Beach, Florida and headed out into the Gulf of Mexico crossing over to Isla Mujeres, Mexico and down the Central American coast.  We have visited six countries so far and have enriched our lives in many ways.   We have taken our time and have moved slowly, seeing as much as we want to see.  Our favorite place so far are the Albuquerque Cays, a pair of islands with a reef surrounding them, 25 miles south of San Andreas.  Not very many cruisers make the stop since conditions need to be calm to enter the cut and you have to weave your way thru the coral heads to the best spot to anchor which is in between the islands.  We enjoyed being the only boat anchored there for a month, we love our solitude.  Our days were filled with spearfishing everyday, visiting the Navy boys on one island and the fishermen's camp on the other.  We helped each other out, the fishermen needed water one day, and I needed a crab most days.  Swapping was a great bargain, everyone is happy.  The Navy boys, 12 young men,  spoke Spanish only.  With our electronic dictionary, one of them, was able to spell out that they considered themselves to be "soldiers on vacation".  We gave them any extra fish we speared and I was able to practice my Spanish.

 The San Blas islands where we are now, is a favorite as well.  With over 350 islands to choose from, beautiful reefs to snorkel,  this tropical paradise is hard to beat.  The local Kuna Indians are easy to get along with, and I have bought more molas than I need, but I can't help myself! 

Where are we going next?  Well, our plans are written in the sand and seem to change with the tide. Our ultimate goal is to sail around the world, but as for right now, we feel we have not fully explored this side yet.  Once you go thru the canal and enter the South Pacific, it is an entirely different place.  Tides are 18 feet or more, the islands are further apart,  supplies are less available and more expensive and air travel back to  the USA becomes more challenging and costly.  So, for now, we are living each day right where we are. We might venture to the Eastern Caribbean and see what is there.  If Cuba opens up, we are definitely visiting that jewel of an island.  And being from Kansas, there is no place like home and our home is a mobile one.

April 16th   Goin to Margaritaville

Steve and Lili on s/v Liward have invited a group of cruisers over to their boat to enjoy listening to Jimmy Buffett's live concert in Atlanta, GA via Sirius satellite receiver at 6pm.  A couple of hours before, Cosmos had brought over a huge red grouper that he tried to convince us that he had spearfished.  But, knowing that he has been nursing a sprained ankle this past week, knew it couldn't be true!  He actually bought it from a local Kuna boy who had harpooned it.  Aaron cleaned the fish and I made a mango salsa and after sauteeing the grouper spooned the salsa over it.  Yummy.

At 6pm, with our fruitcake hats on, cooler full of ice and a bottle of tequila and cointreau, and the dish of mango salsa grouper, we made our way to Margaritaville onboard s/v Liward.  Steve had set a kedge anchor so that his boat could be always facing north.  Just a few quick turns on the wench and the signal comes in loud and clear.  We join a crowd of parrotheads and pass the tequila and cointreau to the bartender to make margaritas.  Lili has made a buffet of tacos and all the fixings.  The concert began at 8pm and we were well into Margaritaville singing along with Jimmy.  Around 10pm, the signal was lost never to be regained and shortly after the parrotheads flew back to their own nests.

April 20th,  Back to the Big City Again

We have been anchored in the East Lemmons, (Lemon Groves it is affectionately called, but there are no lemons), and have made plans with Mr G for transport to Panama City and back.  This is a better anchorage than Carti, better holding and protection,  where we anchored before when we traveled to PC.  Aaron has his follow up check up with Dr Navarro today, so we begin our day at 530am and run the generator for an hour. (Donna is looking after our boat while we are gone).  Our personal ulu picks us promptly up at 630am, and we also have Cosmos along for the ride.  He recently sprained his ankle a week ago and now has a case of gout, so he is traveling to PC to see a doctor also.  Here I am with two disabled men!  The ride to Carti takes over and hour, it's uncomfortable sitting on a piece of wood after the first 20 minutes, then the seas are a bit rolly and the wind is up, which means we get wet.  (note to self, it's just best to anchor at Carti and go from there).  We arrive at the airport dock and meet our driver, Augusto.  His car is a SUV, nice ride, air conditioned and comfortable and there is another cruiser, Susan, who is also making the 2 hour trip.  Before heading to our hotel, we drop off the propane tank at Tropigas to get it refilled, but are told it will not be ready til Friday.  So, we ask Augusto if he can pick it up for us and deliver it to Mr G, who in turn, will notify us.  We check into the Marparaiso, drop our bags in our room, hail a taxi, and head to the Clinica de Paitilla.  It's noon so we eat at a restaurant close by and patiently wait for the Dr Navarro to call when he is out of surgery.  As we were walking along the street, we happened chance to meet Mary, s/v Fandango.  What a nice surprise!  Doug is back at the hotel and she just finished up with the dentist.  She asks us to join them for dinner, a special occasion, their 46th wedding anniversary.  Of course we will.  We make plans to meet up at their hotel later.  Dr Navarro calls and recommends Cosmos to the WellMed Clinic just two blocks away.  He sees a doctor and has blood work done and in the span of 2 hours, he has the report and indeed it is gout.  The doctor writes him a prescription and sends him on his way.  Meanwhile, Aaron has his appointment with Dr Navarro at 2pm, and after the exam, declares Aaron fit for anything, but swimming, spearfishing, and lifting heavy objects.  Good report, really.  He has to be patient a bit longer, until the incision heals completely before returning to the water.  We meet up with Doug and Mary at Hotel Latino and all five of us cram into a taxi and take a small tour of the historical part of PC. We end up at a restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean waterfront and take in the view of all sizes of boats anchored there.  Doug and Mary are headed back to Canada for the summer and will return in November for another season of cruising. We also celebrate Mary's birthday, number ?, who cares, which is tomorrow.  It was great seeing them one more time and glad we could share their special day with them.

April 21st   The Trip Back to Home

Last night, Aaron and I had stayed up late doing computer work, answering emails, researching our watermaker problem and autopilot.  This morning we have much to do before our taxi arrives at noon. After breakfast,  Cosmos, Aaron and I hail a taxi and head to HydroMundo, a watermaker dealer, and picked up two bottles of crankcase oil for fellow cruisers back in the San Blas. Next, it's a provisioning stop, a Super 99 grocery store, and for the next hour and a half, Aaron and I cram full two shopping carts of supplies.  We needed more time and could of bought two more cartfuls, but our time was limited.  Cosmos had taken a cab back to the hotel earlier, so we hailed a taxi and headed back.  At the hotel, I rushed upstairs to our room, grabbed my computer bag, and rushed to the internet cafe two blocks away.  I had 15 minutes before our taxi was scheduled to leave, so I hurriedly updated the website, checked our hotmail account for any last minute emails, and rushed back to the hotel just in time.  We stopped for lunch at the city of Chepo, and checked out the Chinese grocery store as well.  I ended up buying two whole chickens and crammed them into the insulated bag I had brought with me.  At the Kuna Yala checkpoint, we each had to pay $6 to enter.  This doesn't sit well with us cruisers since we have to pay a Kuna Yala fee when we check in at Porvenir of $28, but what can you do. We didn't have our receipts with us to prove our point.  When we arrive at the airport, where our launcha is waiting to take us back to the E. Lemmons  to where our boats are anchored, we have to pay $2 each, an airport user fee.  We didn't fly in, but we are still using their docks.  The Kunas are becoming more clever and resourceful in their ability to extract money from foreigners.  We pay Augusto $50 ($25 each for the taxi back) and give him another $10 for the propane tank and a tip.  He says he will pick up the propane tank on Friday and bring it to Carti, where Mr G, then can make arrangements to have it brought to the E. Lemmons.  We pack our grocery bags in bigger black plastic bags to protect them from getting wet and Douglas and his son place them in the middle of their ulu and place a tarp over all the baggage.  This ulu is bigger but the motor is smaller, only 8 hp.  The ride back takes an hour and a half, and by the time we arrive at our boats, our butts are numb and we are soaked from the spray.  We would definitely place this experience as one of our dumbest moves.  Next time, we will just anchor in Carti.

April 28th   Renewal of Cruising Permit

Donna and Cosmos had us over for happy hour last night since they are headed to Shelter Bay Marina in Colon to haulout and fly back to their home in Canada for the next six months. During the conversation, Cosmos brought up the fact that his cruising permit was only good for a month and it was expiring on the 30th.  Since we had checked in on the same day, we checked our permit and found to our dismay that it was also expiring on the 30th.  Normally, the cruising permit is issued for three months at a time.  We don't know why we were only issued a month, but we have to make the trip back to Porvenir to renew.  So, we follow Koukla out of the anchorage and the eight miles over to Porvenir.  Our GPS chartplotter fails to receive a signal from the satellites above, so just add this to the growing list of things to be fixed.  The anchorage in Porvenir is deep and not good holding, but thankfully the wind is not blowing hard.

 We have decided to stay in the San Blas and continue cruising and not return to work this year.  Our original plan was to head back to work in late March, but since our escape out of Cartagena was delayed by a month, and Aaron had to have surgery, and now our autopilot is not functioning properly, and our GPS chartplotter has taken a vacation; we consider this to be an omen.  One that says "maybe it's best to just stay put".  Sometimes life has a way of steering you in a direction, a detour, and it's best to just go along with the ride and not try to stop the course.  So, we renew our cruising permit for another 6 months, $138 in all.  It's $20 a month, plus an additional $18 fee for Alexis's time. 

With our business finished, we say so long to Donna and Cosmos and vow to keep in touch.  We have been cruising with them for the last month and a half and we will definitely miss them.  We wish them a safe journey and haul anchor and sail back to the E. Lemmons. 

While we were gone, a Kuna had gone around the anchorage looking for us.  We didn't really get a good report as to what he wanted or if he had our propane tank.  We have been in touch with Mr G who is busy with filling grocery orders for cruisers and checking on our propane tank.  As of yesterday when I called TropiGas in Panama City, our tank was still sitting there.  I don't know for sure what is happening, but Mr G says he will take care of it.  Mr G is providing a service for cruisers who are iin need of groceries.  He takes orders up until Friday at 4pm, then if all goes well, the groceries will be ready for pick up on Monday morning.  But this time, things went all wrong.  Now, you have to remember, that these groceries are coming from Panama City.  Mr G has to call in the orders to his cousins or friends, who then do the shopping, and load up all the groceries into the jeep that is hauling the cargo back to Carti.  At Carti, the groceries are then loaded into an ulu and make the final journey to the East Lemmons.  The logistics are challenging for a Kuna who doesn't own a jeep or an ulu.

April 29, 2009  Cheeseburgers in Paradise

Mr G calls us this morning and very excitedly tells us that he will be back on the island tonight with all the groceries and to tell everyone there will be cheeseburgers served for dinner.  In the anchorage, there is about 20 boats in all and each of us has been waiting patiently for Mr G's arrival and the cheeseburgers in paradise night.  Bill and Gail onboard s/v Another Road, hail us on the radio as they enter the anchorage from their little excursion to some resort last night.  Gail informs us that as they were walking around on the island where this resort is,  Bill looked into a hut and saw a propane tank with Blow Me Away written on it, our propane tank!  So they retrieved it and brought it back to us.  How it got there we haven't a clue.  But it is another lessoned learned, don't leave your propane tank to get it filled at TropiGas with the hopes that you will ever see it again.

A volleyball game commences at 4pm, and Aaron makes his debut.  He is feeling fit these days and has fun spiking the ball over the net right at me.  Is this the kind of payback I get for all the nursing care I have done these past weeks?

 Mr G arrives at 5pm, and cruisers pitch in with the unloading.  Soon, with the help of cruisers, cheeseburgers are being grilled on the stove inside Mr G's hut.  Mr G doesn't have a griddle but someone does and soon there are even more burgers on the grill.  The buns are enormous and the burgers are quite small, so to even it out, it's two burgers for every bun for the special Mr G price of $4 complete with chips.  It's such a treat to be served cheeseburgers in such a tropical setting.  Soon the band, Los Gringos, start strumming away on their guitars and everyone sings along to the favorite Jimmy Buffett tune, "I like mine with lettuce and tomato, Heinz 57 and french fried potatoes, a big kosher pickle and a cold glass beer, so good God Almighty which way do I steer, for that cheeseburger in paradise!"