Blogs from Sint Maarten, Central America Caribbean - page 4

So I guess I have two things to write about. I'll do so in two posts. I've been getting quite a few emails from Mom asking about the boat show so I guess I should post about it. Unfortunately I have almost nothing to write about. The boat show is a very exclusive event. It's easier to get in to Chretien's bedroom then it is to get into the boat show but I guess that isn't saying much. The four day event is not open to the public at all. It would apparently even be unusual to see another person on the dock at the same time as you. It is instead all about brokers. It is a chance for the boats to roll out the red carpet to brokers and charter companies in the hopes ... read more

Yeah mom, I'm still alive. There really isn't much to post about. The bridge into the lagoon has been down for repairs since I got here and it's not supposed to be up for another week. As a result, there are no boats in the lagoon and subsequently no work for anyone. It's supposed to pick up pretty soon since the boat show is coming up. One issue we face as well is that you can't dockwalk. For those who don't know what that is, it's where you just walk around all the marinas during the day and talk to people on boats and hand out CVs. The security at most of the marinas is pretty intense so you'd be lucky just to get in. If you do manage to get in you are always on ... read more

Alright, So I guess it is time for another post. Pictures forthcoming. We'll start with the rest of the course. Most of the course has been a lot of common sense stuff they have to teach you anyways however we did get to do some fun things like practising with the life rafts and immersion suits. To do this, we went to a pool and had to jump in and tread water for 15 minutes. We weren't allowed to just wear a bathing suit and had to wear normal clothes since that would probably be the case in a real emergency. After that we practised using life-preservers as well as how to swim out of an area of burning oil slick. Then we practised using life rafts and immersion suits. The firefighting was pretty standard. We ... read more

I'm pretty busy right now so I can't do a full post however I'll put up some updates. I shall call it "And now, some questions from Mom" "First off what do you think of the course, are you learning new stuff or is it same old same old?" The first aid was kind of useless. I thought it would be oriented somehow to a marine environment however it was just another first aid course which by now is quite routine and identical to the last. The Emergency survival was pretty good. It was mostly common sense however it did include a lot of new information like how to use all the different survival equipment and how they all work. The best part was when we were at the pool and used all the equipment like ... read more

Where to start. How about the flight. It was cramped. I have never been that cramped on a plane before. My shoulders were too big for the seat and therefore it was pressed up against the fuselage. I can't really comment much more on the flight since it was uneventful and you couldn't really see anything because of the clouds. Dad, I couldn't get my own seat because the plane was pretty much full. Now the landing. It's different. And by that I mean its odd to fly by a strip of hotels level with the second floor. The crew house is pretty nice. Really nice actually. Nicer than the places I lived in Chapleau and Guelph. There are only four of us in it right now. Two of them are on the course with me. ... read more