Blogs from Ponce, Puerto Rico, Central America Caribbean - page 2

Palmas Del Mar and Salinas Puerto Rico, we had really only seen the road to the airport and the marina at Puerto Del Rey, so we had decided to cruise down the coast a bit further. We left Culebra on a very calm morning and headed on down to a place, which in our pilot book, showed an anchorage. We arrived, and as we got there realised that the anchorage was no more and in it’s place was a large marina. We rarely go alongside, for several reason. The main one is the heat, I like to be able to swim around the boat, to cool off, we like to be anchored on our own, so we don’t worry about noise, or more importantly that vermin can come aboard. Ok, Alan I have to put up ... read more

Fin d’une autre étape…. De retour au bateau après trois jours d’auto, nous découvrons que nous rapportons plus que des photos de notre périple….. Jean-Pierre d’abord, puis moi, sommes affectés par une diarrhée carabinée!! Nous cherchons la cause; nous croyons que c’est le petit déjeuner pris dans un kiosque au bord de la rue, dans La Vega. Une pochette de poulet frite dans l’huile et un grand verre de jus frais (bien recherché par les mouches….lors de la préparation) sont, il nous semble, une source probable de quelque chose qui ressemble à une salmonellose. Nous nous bourrons d’Imodium (efficace sur les symptômes mais non curatif). Le lundi 18 mai, nous faisons nettoyer la coque d’Absaroque; les coques et les vers ont tapissé sa coque malgré qu’elle soit recouverte d’une peinture anti-salissure supposée très efficace. Le mardi, ... read more

We've anchored in Mayaguez, Boqueron, Ponce and Salinas Puerto Rico. We plan to sail to the Virgin Islands, the Dominican Republic, Bahamas, Central America, the Rio Dulce in Guatemala or Cartagena Columbia. Then we plan to go thru the Panama Canal in January 2010 and circumnavigate with the World ARC (maybe). We'd like to wish everyone Merry Christmas. ... read more

Acerola : Acerola (Malpighia glabra) or Acerolla, also known as Barbados cherry or wild crapemyrtle, is a tropical fruit-bearing shrub or small tree in the family Malpighiaceae. It ranges from southern Texas south through Mexico and the Caribbean to Peru and Bahia in Brazil. It is also cultivated in India. It grows to 3 m tall, with a dense, thorny crown. The leaves are evergreen, simple ovate-lanceolate, 5-10 cm long, with an entire margin. The flowers are produced in umbels of 2-5 together, each flower 1-1.5 cm diameter, with five pink or red petals. The fruit is bright red, 1.5-2 cm diameter, containing 2-3 hard seeds. It is juicy, often as much sour as sweet in flavor, and very high in vitamin C and other nutrients. Mamoncillo or Quenepa: The mamoncillo (Melicoccus bijugatus), also known as ... read more

Cool Change is a 27 ft Catalina with a single hander, Juan Cuartas. Juan's Father is Cuban and his Mom is Colombian. His home is in Augusta, Georgia. Juan is getting ready to leave Ponce this week behind Ike. He needs to get back to the US. He has traveled to Margarita Island, in Venezuela, where he was boarded by bandits, beat up, robbed of clothes, money and auto pilot. David Smedley, is from Kemah, Tx. Where he was a realtor for many years. Then he moved to Dunedin, Fl for 9 years. It is a small world, he knows Laurel Nash from our sail club. David is presently looking for a companion and sailor to continue South until he can no longer do it, or runs out of money. David's boat is Calixta, a 36 ... read more