The first week in the water is a mix of work and trying to enjoy, of heat and sweat but also incredible downpours and overcast skies, of enjoying our boat with all its new gear but also trying to get all systems to work. In no time almost a week flies by. 

As the week wears on we keep shifting items on our todo list forward. We extend the Airbnb, the rental car and it is Fri when we finally move onboard. By now the two foresails are rigged up and we tested more systems and did a couple of tentative shopping runs. Tentative because the fridge is still down and only by Fri evening does the island’s HVAC expert Tevin show up. 

He and his helper are very cool guys and when they finish (fridge running!) there is a massive downpour and no way I can ferry them back ashore. So I break out the rum and we talk about their jobs and how they became trained and also their hobby of making Reggae music. An hour later the rain stops and – slightly buzzed – I bring them back to their car. 

The weekend is spent checking off more items from our kanban board. But we also try to chill and enjoy with some breath work and acupuncture sessions, a couple of snorkeling excursions, cooking some very good food aboard, and taking a nightly swim in amazing (and impossible to film) bioluminescence. 

Our plans keep evolving and changing and it now looks as if JACE will be here a few more days before finally heading north on a first careful outing into the Grenadines. More on that and the evolving plans shortly.