Yes, we’re still in La Cruz. We had planned to head south to the Gold Coast on New Year’s Day, but the forecast was not a particularly good one for where we wanted to go. So we asked ourselves what was pushing us to keep going? We decided there was no reason! Instead we will be heading out early tomorrow morning to go around Cabo Corrientes on the way to what should be a one-night stop in Ipala, with a more extended stay in Chamela. Each destination takes about 8 hours of sailing (or motoring) – approximately 50 nautical miles with an average speed of 6 knots. I realize this doesn’t sound very fast for those of us raised in the modern, speed-is-everything culture, but the whole idea with us is to slow down and smell the tropical flowers.
Speaking of speed, or lack of, we motored two hours down to Marina Vallarta yesterday, which is the only location on this large bay that offers diesel fuel. We had only one of two tanks full, which allows us about 400 miles of motoring. Since we are heading down to some out-of-the-way places, where fuel may be hard to get, we decided it would be wise to fill up the second tank to give us an additional 400 miles of range. We had been told not to get to the fuel dock before 10AM or we would be competing with dozens of pangas filling up for the daily fishing trips, parachute towing, banana boat towing, etc. So we got there about 11AM and had to stay out of the way for about 45 minutes as a succession of large fishing boats came in for a fill-up. They load up with 500 gallons of fuel, which takes quite some time, while we only needed 37 gallons (142 liters) when we finally got our chance. Then, because the weather was not good for going on south, we had to use up a gallon or so of fuel to get back to the anchorage, which took another 2 hours. Can you imagine having to spend 5 hours to get gas? Our economy in the U.S. would be grinding to a halt!
We took a day to be tourists along the Puerto Vallarta Malecon with Ed and Cornelia Gould, and had a good time seeing sand sculptures, watching people, and turning down dozens of requests for us to buy things to “take back to the family” – it was difficult to convince them that we aren’t going back home right away and there is no place to store hand-carved sling shots, dramatically colored serapes and blankets, and dozens of different hammocks in a boat – just to name a few items. Here are a couple of shots:
The Ed and Cornelia Gould and Sheilagh Sand carvings appropriate for the Christmas season
We also found out that Richard Burton had purchased a house for Elizabeth Taylor in Puerto Vallarta that was right next to his and connected by a bridge – apparently while they were filming Day of the Iguana here in Puerto Vallarta. So we had to track down the house with the use of a map designed to lead tourists there to spend 100 pesos each to see the house. We found the house and noted that it was now called Casa Kimberley, which we captured on film to show to our daughter Kimberly. It was not something that stood out from the surrounding buildings particularly, and we were not Burton and Taylor devotees; so we passed up the tour and now show below only the name on the building and the bridge between the two. I’m not sure how one sneaks over a bridge that is that exposed to see one’s lady love, but perhaps they wanted to be seen.
Here's the sign on the front of Elizabeth's one-time house Here's the aforementioned bridge between
We joined a group of cruisers for a spaghetti potluck on New Year’s Eve on a boat larger than ours, where nine of us adults squeezed into their fairly roomy cabin (at least roomy for a boat). The couple who hosted the potluck have two small boys, about 7 and 5, and their room in the bow was a kid’s dream. They had a television screen at the very bow of the boat, which was the foot of the bed for each, connected with their own DVD player. Surrounding them were an uncountable number of toys along the bins on either side, which didn’t include their boogie boards and outdoor equipment stowed on deck. Their days were filled with unique experiences, and punctuated by only 3 hours a day of classes. The parents were using an educational program developed for cruising, although the subject matter at this early stage in their lives was relatively simple.
I look back and remember the wasted hours in school waiting for everyone in the class to get a chance to read a few paragraphs, while I had already read the whole book, and I am jealous of the opportunity these kids have to complete a day of lessons in just 3 hours. I remember pulling out other books to keep me busy, but I always had to hide them and be ready if the teacher suspected something and called on me to continue where the last student left off. When I think of how much more I could have learned by not having to wait for the slowest kid in class, I get upset. Some will say that the social interaction with the other kids is a valuable experience to have, and I don’t disagree. However, I remember being bullied from the 1st through the 6th grade, and that only prepared me for bringing down bullies wherever I might find them. These kids pal around with another cruising family with three boys, and they play with the Mexican kids on the beach as well. I think they are getting plenty of social interaction, and imagine the connection with their parents and the value system they are learning from them.
The last event to discuss is a messy one, so you may want to skip this last paragraph. On our way back from getting fuel, when we were well out in the bay, we attempted to empty our holding tank and found that nothing would pump through. When we got back to the anchorage, Sheilagh, who has been the designated plumber throughout our married life, started trouble shooting from the bottom up. I would have started from the top down, but she got up to her elbows in the holding tank to see if there was an obstruction that was preventing the outflow. That was not the problem, but the stench was overwhelming and Sheilagh claims she could smell it on her arms even after washing vigorously for some time. We finally excluded everything but the hand pump as the problem and found that the inlet and outlet seals were not closing and opening correctly. After a quick change of all the seals, we had to motor back out in the middle of the bay to test it and it worked perfectly. Now we are waiting for the skin to slough off of Sheilagh’s arms before I will allow her to touch me again. More later . . .
I look back and remember the wasted hours in school waiting for everyone in the class to get a chance to read a few paragraphs, while I had already read the whole book, and I am jealous of the opportunity these kids have to complete a day of lessons in just 3 hours. I remember pulling out other books to keep me busy, but I always had to hide them and be ready if the teacher suspected something and called on me to continue where the last student left off. When I think of how much more I could have learned by not having to wait for the slowest kid in class, I get upset. Some will say that the social interaction with the other kids is a valuable experience to have, and I don’t disagree. However, I remember being bullied from the 1st through the 6th grade, and that only prepared me for bringing down bullies wherever I might find them. These kids pal around with another cruising family with three boys, and they play with the Mexican kids on the beach as well. I think they are getting plenty of social interaction, and imagine the connection with their parents and the value system they are learning from them.
The last event to discuss is a messy one, so you may want to skip this last paragraph. On our way back from getting fuel, when we were well out in the bay, we attempted to empty our holding tank and found that nothing would pump through. When we got back to the anchorage, Sheilagh, who has been the designated plumber throughout our married life, started trouble shooting from the bottom up. I would have started from the top down, but she got up to her elbows in the holding tank to see if there was an obstruction that was preventing the outflow. That was not the problem, but the stench was overwhelming and Sheilagh claims she could smell it on her arms even after washing vigorously for some time. We finally excluded everything but the hand pump as the problem and found that the inlet and outlet seals were not closing and opening correctly. After a quick change of all the seals, we had to motor back out in the middle of the bay to test it and it worked perfectly. Now we are waiting for the skin to slough off of Sheilagh’s arms before I will allow her to touch me again. More later . . .
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