Barra de Navidad and Beyond

It's been a very full week! I moved from the lagoon into the marina, took bus trips with friends to Melaque, La Manzanilla and Manzanillo, got a surprise visit from a friend from Ventura, helped my friend Curt celebrate his birthday, and even sqeezed in a couple of boat projects! Whew!

Once in the marina at the hotel I was able to explore the hotel more. It's kind of a three-dimensional maze. Very elegant. Had an amazing dinner with my Ventura friend Joseph and his two crazy shipmates in the hotel's upscale restaurant. Quite an experience in more ways than one.

I went with Curt and Mary into Melaque to check out the St. Patrick's Day festivities. (St. Patrick's Day is highly celebrated in Mexico because a battalion of some 175 Irish ex-pats fought as part of the Mexican army against the U.S. in the Mexican-American war of 1846.) Being early birds, we came back long before the insane fireworks which didn't start until almost midnight.

In La Manzanilla Curt, Mary, Terri, Jay and I had a nice lunch with a great view followed by a visit to the crocodile preserve. While waiting for the return bus, we set a new record for cheap beer in a restaurant: nine for 110 pesos (about $5.50). Although one was a small one, it was so cheap that a local who overheard us talking about it on the bus wanted to know where we had gotten it as he had paid almost twice that.

The purpose of the trip to Manzanillo was to go to Walmart to pick up food and supplies that are hard to find locally. I got a bunch of items I needed, so even though it took the whole day, it was worth it.

It was in the midst of all this that one morning I heard someone call my name outside the boat. When I pop my head out I see my friend and neighbor from Ventura, Joseph! Quite a delightful surprise! While there was a good deal of eating, drinking and telling of tall tales involved in our catching up, I also cajoled him into belaying me while I climbed the mast to replace the steaming light that had burned out again after only a couple of night's use. (He's one of the few people I trust to do that.) He was helping a friend bring his boat up from Acapulco and they had stopped here to repair a starter and alternator. As soon as that was done, they were off again. I'm sure Joseph will be glad when the voyage is behind him as one of the other crew was not the easiest person to be around in general, let alone within the confines of a sailboat.

As if there weren't already enough eating and drinking happening, last night was Curt's birthday, so a group of us went to Manglito's for a celebratory dinner. (The running joke: “If you're gonna drink all day, you gotta start early!”)

Curt and Mary moved back out to the lagoon two days ago, and Jay and Terri just left to head up to Paradise Village in Nuevo Vallarta, so my social scene should quiet down a bit now. And that's probably a good thing! I need to eat healthier, drink less, exercise more and start catching up on the boat projects.

Speaking of boat projects, while I was up the mast replacing the steaming light bulb, I also lubed the mainsail track.  But my big project triumph this week was to free up a seacock in the head that had suddenly seized up. My options for dealing with it were limited without hauling out, so I tried spraying the valve shaft externally with PB Blaster twice a day for four days. It moved slightly the second day, and a little more each day thereafter. By the fourth day it was operating normally. I had also been spraying the plug on the side in the hope that I could unscrew it to lube the ball inside if the handle remained seized, but that proved unnecessary. (Sometimes you do get the bear!)

I've also spent some time making plans and arrangements to fly back to LA to visit Carol, get my visa renewed, taxes done, teeth cleaned, doctor visit, etc. I'll fly out of Puerta Vallarta, so I need to make slip reservations and plan the sail back north.  (I need to get to Puerto Vallarta to get a survey done so I can get insurance that covers me through hurricane season.  But that's another story....) 

It's never boring!