We woke up Saturday morning to lots of wind as expected. It was a little rolly on the ball but wasn’t too bad considering how strong the wind was. We mostly stayed on the boat that day as rowing against that much wind is never fun. It was a little frustrating because there were so many places we wanted to check out. In the afternoon the sun came out and we decided to at least check out the beach right at our anchorage. We for a nice walk and hiked over to the ocean side which was wild because of the strong winds.
In the evening the wind picked up more but even so Aria was invited to go watch the second Lord of the Rings movie. One of our buddy boats kindly offered to act as a water taxi for all the kids which was nice since there is no way we would have been able to row her over in all that wind. He arrived to pick her up right on time and as she got into the dingy disaster struck. Her phone (that she got for Christmas) fell out of her pocket and into 16 feet of dark, choppy water. She was understandably devastated but handled it really well and still went to the movie.
Sundy the wind was even stronger and being stuck on the boat was getting old. Aria got picked up to go play with some other girls her age so she had a good day.
Monday the wind was finally calmer. We really needed to get some provisions and after much debating Jesse decided to row the 1.8 Nautical Miles across the bay to George Town. Before he left he dropped Aria and I off at the Chat and Chill. It's a beachside bar and grill that is the center to cruiser social life in the area. There are volley ball courts, sting rays to pet, and a playground in the trees. There is a daily 2pm volley ball game and it's quite the social even. It was still early when Aria and I got there so we got some lunch and walked around a bit but before long lots of other people started to arrive. After two days of high winds it seemed everyone in the anchorage was ready to be out enjoying the sun and the beach.
Tuesday and Wednesday we stayed on the mooring ball. We did school / work in the morning and then in the afternoons Jesse did some dingy sailing while Aria and I mingled at the Chat and Chill.
On Wednesday evening we were invited to another boat dinner. This one was in celebration of Chinese New Year. Once again we had delicious food (dumplings, noodles and rice) and great company. The evening was a little bitter sweet though as the group of boats we had been traveling with off and on since Christmas were disbanding. Some of us were heading back north while others were heading further south into the Caribbean. One of the mom’s organized an art project and we all put our boat names on driftwood and strung them together to hang on the Art Trail.
Thursday morning we left the ball early and moved to the big boat to the anchorage near George Town. This was the first time Aria and I had been to town and it was a really neat experience. The town is very cruiser friendly with a really nice dingy dock and free water at the dock.
Our first order of business was tracking down the doughnut shop. People had been raving about it on the morning cruisers net and we were eager to give it a try. It was a little tricky to find as it was on the second story of a building and didn't have really clear signage but, when we finally located it we found it to be a super cute little shop with a nice selection of delicious, fresh doughnuts.
After our sugary breakfast, we got all provisioned up and filled up our water jugs. It was pretty wavy and the dingy was very loaded down with groceries, water and people so it was seeming like it was going to be a slow wet ride back to the boat. We didn't get far however, before we got offered a tow by a guy in a little fishing boat. We happily accepted and hopped into his boat for a much faster and drier trip back to Lei Line. The guy who gave us the tow was really interesting. He was an Aussie who had sailed a 24’ boat from Australia to Europe back in his younger days. I would have loved to hear more of his story but all too soon we were back at our boat.
After stowing everything we headed back over to Stocking Island, this time anchoring right in front of the Sand Dollar Beach beside one of our friends. Since we hadn't seen it yet we decided to go check out the Art Trail. It was a hiking trail from one side of the island to the other that was decorated the whole way along with art made by various boat crews. Some of the art work was really elaborate and impressive. It made for a really entertaining hike.
Friday was our last day in George Town which meant that Aria had to say goodbye to her friend Edith. We had been telling the girls since Spanish Well that this might be the last time they get to see each other but this time it was actually true since we were heading North back up to Eleuthera and Edith's family was heading South before crossing the Atlantic back to Denmark. The girls spent the morning on the beach decorating rocks for the Art Trail and the afternoon at the Chat and Chill. One of the best things about this lifestyle is all the amazing people you meet from all over the world but one of the hardest things (especially for kids) is having to say goodbye so often.
