ISLA MUJERAS 1/14 - 1/20/2018
Last week got off to a pretty exciting start. A week ago Sunday morning I was walking on my way to "workout". Speaking of which, I have completed 20 of 28 days. So unless Tabitha has some surprises for me, I think I should finish without cheating too much, at least as far as I'm concerned. Anyway, I was on the sidewalk heading south when three dogs about 15 yards in front of and coming towards me began barking. They included two little wire haired terrier like dogs, one black and one white, as well as a good size golden retriever. There are a lot of dogs on the island, so I didn't think too much of it. As we passed each other, the little black one jumped up and nipped me on the butt and then a split second later the retriever laid into my upper thigh. Sorry Paolocci's, but so much for this "Golden retrievers are so gentle." myth. I hit the retriever on top of the head with the bottom of my fist. Otherwise I think he would have taken another bite. At this point the dogs ran onto a nearby porch and continued barking. After my "workout" and the walk back , I showed the bites to Inga (the grumpyish German receptionist/book keeper) and Julio (the hotel's 'fixer'). Within an hour, Dr Salas and his assistant were at the hotel, on a Sunday morning no less. He cleaned/bandaged the bite and gave me prescriptions for cream, and a couple pills. Dr Salas said there were no rabies on the island. That was to good hear. Julio and I then went to locate the dogs, so we could report them to animal control the next day. Inga said that the same dogs had bitten three other people in the past couple months, chased bicyclists and ate iguanas (I didn't like the sound of that).
After Julio and I returned from successfully finding out where the dogs live, I took Grace and Stephanie snorkeling. They also did some biking, before going to the north end of the island. Grace and Stephanie left Monday morning. It was really fun and good having Grace here, as well as Stephanie.
After Grace and Stephanie left, Julio and I went to the Department of Sanitation (Health). Julio had a photo of the bite, which he showed to everyone. I got a tetanus shot there and am supposed to get another one before I leave for Belize. We than went over to the Department of Ecology (Animal Control). From there four guys piled into a pickup and followed Julio and I to the dogs. The dogs' owner claimed that they were always kept in the gated yard and that they would never bite anyone. You won't believe this, but the owner's name is Tabitha. Anyway, the dogs really did look pretty harmless sleeping on the patio. The animal control people put a collar on the retriever, whose name is Roco, and told the owner that Roco wasn't to leave the yard and that they were going to come back in 10 days to see if he had gotten sick. Also, the local Dog Whisperer was going to see if the three dogs could be rehabilitated. That was a much more progressive approach than I expected. The 10 days have just passed and I haven't seen the dogs in their yard for at least five days. The bite has healed up fine. The only repercussion, is that I now have an urge to raise one leg when I pee. The total cost for Dr Salas, his assistant and the two shots was $80 cash. A pretty good deal.
The rest of last week was uneventful. I stuck to my schedule, though I haven't started Spanish or breath holding classes yet, and got a few projects completed (i.e., consolidated fuel to free up more jugs to be filled here, where fuel is of good quality and relatively inexpensive; double filtered and stored 35 gallons of Ft Myers Beach water in jugs for drinking; filled up the boat's water tanks with water for showers, cleaning, cooking, etc.; did some cleaning; worked on blogs; etc.)
This past Sunday I went to my first Cruisers' event, but more about that next week.
Some other stuff:
1. There seems to a pattern to the weather. We have 5 days of sun, highs in the mid-80's and mild winds; followed by 3 days of clouds, occasional rain showers, strong winds and highs in the low to mid 70's. It does get very humid at times, when almost everything of cloth and paper is damp, but it doesn't seem to last for more than half a day.
2. I don't think I shared the right link to Tammy's "My Salty Suitcase" blog. Try this one http://saltysuitcase.blogspot.mx/2018/01/hey-there-readers-this-post-comes.html.
3. This was the first week I really struggled to remember what day it was. Kind of disconcerting, but kind of nice too. I bet if you went down the dock and asked any three cruisers what day it was, you'd get three different answers. I'm not wearing a watch anymore either.
4. Via the Cruiser's Net I learned of a seminar about Belize and Guatemala. It was put on by a couple who just sailed up from there. It was very interesting. I'm really glad I went. I guess the charts are pretty worthless. However, the Cruising Guide that I already have, is supposed to be the best one. It's the size of a large text book, so one more thing I need to fit into my schedule.
5. There really isn't reliable mail service from here, so the cruisers send their mail back to the states with departing hotel guests, who are nice enough to mail it..
Nick from Calgary, his son Spence from Toronto and I went to check out the lagoon, which is connected to the bay by a narrow channel.
After Julio and I returned from successfully finding out where the dogs live, I took Grace and Stephanie snorkeling. They also did some biking, before going to the north end of the island. Grace and Stephanie left Monday morning. It was really fun and good having Grace here, as well as Stephanie.
After Grace and Stephanie left, Julio and I went to the Department of Sanitation (Health). Julio had a photo of the bite, which he showed to everyone. I got a tetanus shot there and am supposed to get another one before I leave for Belize. We than went over to the Department of Ecology (Animal Control). From there four guys piled into a pickup and followed Julio and I to the dogs. The dogs' owner claimed that they were always kept in the gated yard and that they would never bite anyone. You won't believe this, but the owner's name is Tabitha. Anyway, the dogs really did look pretty harmless sleeping on the patio. The animal control people put a collar on the retriever, whose name is Roco, and told the owner that Roco wasn't to leave the yard and that they were going to come back in 10 days to see if he had gotten sick. Also, the local Dog Whisperer was going to see if the three dogs could be rehabilitated. That was a much more progressive approach than I expected. The 10 days have just passed and I haven't seen the dogs in their yard for at least five days. The bite has healed up fine. The only repercussion, is that I now have an urge to raise one leg when I pee. The total cost for Dr Salas, his assistant and the two shots was $80 cash. A pretty good deal.
The rest of last week was uneventful. I stuck to my schedule, though I haven't started Spanish or breath holding classes yet, and got a few projects completed (i.e., consolidated fuel to free up more jugs to be filled here, where fuel is of good quality and relatively inexpensive; double filtered and stored 35 gallons of Ft Myers Beach water in jugs for drinking; filled up the boat's water tanks with water for showers, cleaning, cooking, etc.; did some cleaning; worked on blogs; etc.)
This past Sunday I went to my first Cruisers' event, but more about that next week.
Some other stuff:
1. There seems to a pattern to the weather. We have 5 days of sun, highs in the mid-80's and mild winds; followed by 3 days of clouds, occasional rain showers, strong winds and highs in the low to mid 70's. It does get very humid at times, when almost everything of cloth and paper is damp, but it doesn't seem to last for more than half a day.
2. I don't think I shared the right link to Tammy's "My Salty Suitcase" blog. Try this one http://saltysuitcase.blogspot.mx/2018/01/hey-there-readers-this-post-comes.html.
3. This was the first week I really struggled to remember what day it was. Kind of disconcerting, but kind of nice too. I bet if you went down the dock and asked any three cruisers what day it was, you'd get three different answers. I'm not wearing a watch anymore either.
4. Via the Cruiser's Net I learned of a seminar about Belize and Guatemala. It was put on by a couple who just sailed up from there. It was very interesting. I'm really glad I went. I guess the charts are pretty worthless. However, the Cruising Guide that I already have, is supposed to be the best one. It's the size of a large text book, so one more thing I need to fit into my schedule.
5. There really isn't reliable mail service from here, so the cruisers send their mail back to the states with departing hotel guests, who are nice enough to mail it..
6. It has been quite a while since I've spent much time in salt water, but I don't remember it being so buoyant. Of course that may have something to do with my Body Fat Index. I really think it would be difficult to drown.
7. The evening of 1/9 I was woken by the VHF radio. There was a warning of a potential tsunami following a 7.4 earthquake in Honduras. I don't think it amounted to much, even nearer the epicenter.
8. As far as nightlife goes, there is a joke that 8:00 PM is the cruisers mid-night. That's pretty close to true. By the time we all meet for sundowners and conversation, people start heading back to their boats by 7:00. I think I've been off the boat past 10:00 twice since I've been here and I'm usually in bed before 9:00. Of course at the north end of the island things don't even get going until mid-night, so I've heard.
9. Over the past two weeks there's been an excuse for a party about every other day, including three birthdays, two going away and one welcome back party. These are usually pot luck deals. Since I don't cook, everyone knows I'm good for the chips and salsa.
The latest itinerary:
1/27 - 2/4 In Isla Mujeras sightseeing, snorkeling and exploring the mainland - Full, with Chance and Katie on-board
2/5 - 2/10+/- In Isla Mujeras sightseeing, snorkeling and exploring the mainland - Room for four
2/11 - 2/12+/- In Isla Mujeras preparing for sail to Belize - Room for one with Ted and Chip on-board
2/13 - 2/19 +/- Sailing from Isla Mujeras to Belize, including checking-out at Majahual, Mexico and checking-in at San Pedro, Belize - Room for one with Ted and Chip on-board
2/20+/- Sailing from San Pedro to Cay Caulker - Room for one with Ted and Chip on-board
2/21 - 2/23+/- In Cay Caulker - Room for one with Ted and Chip on-board
2/24 - 3/4+/- In Belize sightseeing, snorkeling and exploring the mainland – Full, with Harpo, Jaynece, Pete, Elaine and Ted on-board
3/5+/- Flex time in Belize
3/6 - 3/11+/- In Belize sightseeing, snorkeling and exploring the mainland – Full, with Katie, Cindy and Brent on-board
3/12+/- Flex time in Belize
3/13 - 3/19+/- In Belize sightseeing, snorkeling and exploring the mainland - Room for four
3/20 - 3/21+/- Flex time in Belize
3/28 - 4/4+/- In Belize sightseeing, snorkeling and exploring the mainland – Full, with DJ, Jennie and Delana on-board
4/5 - 4/11+/- In Belize sightseeing, snorkeling and exploring the mainland – Full, with the Nelsen party on-board
4/22 - 4/25+/- Flextime in Roatan
4/26 - 5/1+/- In Roatan and other Bay Islands of Honduras sightseeing and snorkeling – Full, with Nita and family on-board
5/2-5/6+/- Flex time in Roatan
4/26 - 5/1+/- In Roatan and other Bay Islands of Honduras sightseeing and snorkeling – Full, with Nita and family on-board
5/2-5/6+/- Flex time in Roatan
5/7 - 5/13+/- In Roatan and other Bay Islands of Honduras sightseeing and snorkeling – Room for four
5/14 - 5/20+/- In Roatan and other Bay Islands of Honduras sightseeing and snorkeling – Room for four
5/21 - 5/27+/- In Roatan and other Bay Islands of Honduras sightseeing and snorkeling – Room for four
5/28 - ?/?? ?????, Stay in Roatan and then most likely head to the Rio Dulce in Guatemala for hurricane season, explore the Guatemalan Highlands and make trips back to the States to visit family and friends – Room for four most of the time
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| Dr Salas doing his thing. |
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| You can tell Grace is pretty concerned about her Dad's near fatal dog bite. |
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| A couple days later. |
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| Stephanie and Grace in the dinghy on our way back to the marina after snorkeling. |
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| Ricki Martin's house, supposedly. |
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| You can tell the girls really like sailing. |
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| Pelicans are my new favorite birds. They're kind of characters and are really good at what they do. |
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| On the other hand, I do not like Frigates. They're pretty ruthless. |
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| One day the hotel crew removed a bunch of coconuts. Now and then one would fall, so everyone had been pretty careful about sitting below them. |
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| The fresh coconut water was very good, especially with rum and ice. |
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| The fresh coconut meat was not like any coconut I've eaten before. Very sweet and moist. |
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| Home of the Isla Mujeras Pescadores (Fishermen). I haven't seen any evidence that they practice, but they do play on Sundays at 1:00. I'll make it to a game before I leave. We have had a couple big rains. |
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| This is the boat from Leon, France that arrived a couple weeks ago. It had started in France, sailed to the Eastern Caribbean, to ANTARCTICA (no thanks), up the west coast of South America, through the Panama Canal, to Columbia and then here. The crew consists of the 72 year old Captain, who has circumnavigated the Earth three times, his wife, 15 year old son and two Spaniards. It's a serious blue water sail boat. Starship is docked on the other side of it. |
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| Now that's a nice dog. |
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| This is the islands waste management system in action. There'll be a half dozen or so black trash bags hanging from utility poles waiting to be picked up. |
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| This is the fish camp next door. Hotel guests sometimes buy lobster or fish directly from the fishermen and have the hotel staff cook them. |
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| These ae a couple pretty nice spiny lobster. The fisherman catch them by diving and using a hookah system, which consists of each boat having a gas powered compressor on deck that pumps air down to the diver. |
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| Taken from the end of the dock while having sundowners. |
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