The Grand Tour 2011

Ron and I are off on our travels round the UK again. We'll be visiting family and friends starting on Friday in Topsham and ending in Ely at the end of August via Manchester, Bradford and the Lake District (and possibly a few other places along the way). It doesn't look like outdoor Shakespeare or cricket will feature this time round but we couldn't pass up the opportunity of racing at Newmarket.

Providing I manage to remember the camera and the lead to connect it to the PC, we'll be updating the blog periodically.

Kate and Tim's Wedding

The REAL Wedding

Well, we did it, it was wonderful, words cannot describe the emotion of the day. The weather was worryingly wet first thing, but our combined meteorological might ensured it dried up in time, but bright rather than sunny which is why the photos look a bit flat, but hey, it is the tropics......!

If you are wondering why why we don't have sand between our toes, we realised the villa was so beautiful and the view so stunning, and the champagne easier to keep cold, that it was a bit of a no brainer to relocate the ceremony to Tamarind Villa (http://www.bequiatamarind.com/photo.htm)

In the days since the wedding, we've done very little other than eat very good food. We arranged for a local lady to prepare a meal a typical West Indian meal for us one evening and ended up with enough food to feed a large family (or us for at least a week).

We return to Zahara tomorrow and we leave for St Lucia on Thursday. After a few days in Marigot Bay putting the boat to bed for the hurricane season, we return to the UK on 13/14th May.

Mr and Mrs Greig-Dunn

Return to paradise

The trip to St Lucia went remarkably smoothly and although I had been concerned about making the connecting flight to Bequia, I couldn't have asked for a better transfer....in fact, I now know how celebrities feel. I was met off the Virgin flight, taken straight through immigration and once my bag appeared on the carousel, it was straight on the 8 seater islander aircraft. We actually took off 10 minutes early! The other 5 American passengers were going to Canouan so now I've been, albeit briefly, to a Carribean island that Ron hasn't visited yet. A short hop later, just me clearing through customs and immigration, and I was being met by Ron in arrivals. It was a lovely taxi ride into Port Elizabeth (the Bequian taxis are open pickup trucks with bench seats in the back), the calm and sunny weather in stark contrast to what Ron had been experiencing for some considerable time! We had time to take my bags to the boat then return ashore to Coco's place for a creole kingfish dinner.

The days have flown by, the weather has been fantastic and we've been surprisingly busy getting ourselves prepared for the week in Tamarind Villa. We did manage a day sail last week, circumnavigating the island, which eased Ron's desire to go sailing (at least for a while!). We decided to give the regatta a miss this year; in the end the conditions would have been perfect for a small boat with a clean bottom but there's always next year..... We arrived at the villa yesterday and it is even more beautiful than the photos on the website suggest (http://www.bequiatamarind.com/), despite the rather cloudy skies and frequent showers.

The photos are of Montreal Botanical Gardens on St Vincent which we visited early last week. It's taking time to upload them, there will be more, promise!

Counting the days

If truth be told, I have been counting the days since I arrived back in the UK on 22nd January. It started at 83 and we're now down to 12 and I am manically writing lists so I don't forget anything (I don't fancy a repeat of last time where forgetfulness meant I missed my train to the airport!). Ron is managing to keep himself busy (apart from writing lists....there's even a list of lists now...!) and we're both very excited about my arrival in Bequia on a very small plane.

My flight from the UK is now leaving 2 1/2 hours later than originally scheduled. This means a close call to catch the connecting flight if there are any further delays as it is due to leave 45 minutes after the Virgin flight arrives. SVG Air assure me that I will make it onto the plane but have advised packing essentials into my hand luggage as it's pretty certain that my suitcase won't make it and will have to follow on the following day's flight.

The next update will probably be after I arrive, WiFi allowing (and to say it's been variable on Zahara would be an understatement!).

Zahara, in Bequia... 25th February 2011 (pay day, yippee!)

OK, got there in the end and I managed not to throw all my things out of my cot. Trouble is, if you do on a boat, it's hard to get them back again!

I thought it was about time I made an entry. I've got rather lazy since Dee took over the blog (or did I delegate the job... hmmm?). I realised that I'm actually quite good at delegation. We now have a system of working together on board which was developed when Dee was here for her 6 week trip recently. We had a lot to learn; Dee, a lot about the boat and what living on board is like (especially with me!) and how to keep cool at 4 in the morning on New Year's Day when you find that you are no longer attached to the seabed! I had to learn what it's like to have someone else taking part in the running of the boat and, of course, the sailing and socialising as well. It all went amazingly well and I quickly realised that there was a very easy way of consolidating our new found teamwork and turning it into a recipe for future tranquility...... It may have been born out of the laid back Caribbean way of life or, perhaps it was just my laziness or, maybe even the realisation that Dee is actually better at most things than I am! Whatever the reason, it was simply a case of teaching Dee how to do it, letting her get rapidly better at it, then delegating the task...... By the end of the trip I had a navigator, purser, bosun and a very good mate! My role had reduced largely to the odd bout of looking knowingly at the sea and sky and pretending to understand what a Frigate bird in flight at dusk has to tell us about the weather tomorrow. Oh, yes, and of course the obligatory shouting at French charter catamarans! There was one area where, perhaps I was slightly more 'on the ball' and that was keeping the fridge stocked with beer. She has promised me she will try harder next time!

Anyway, folks as I sit here at anchor in this delightful part of the world, I can't help thinking that life is pretty bloody good. I just can't wait for Dee to reappear than we can move onto the next chapter in our adventure.......

We apologise for the...

....lack of posts recently.

Ron is doing battle with his laptop in an effort to email me some photos so I can provide an update. Those who know Ron well will know that he doesn't suffer technology gladly, especially when it won't co-operate. He is determined to finish the job even if it does result in him occasionally turning the air blue and having to resist the temptation to donate said laptop to the turtles living in Admiralty Bay...

Watch this space, folks!