We found Doug and Barb! Sept 12-13, 2012

September 12-13-1826

We landed in Naples (Napoli) in the middle of a strong downpour at 0930. Naples certainly was not our favorite city when we were here 4 years ago on a Norwegian Cruise ship.  It is an industrial port.  It is impressive as we enter the port, but still not elegant.

We waited aboard until it rained itself out. Renne' had found a customer service rep who spoke English and gotten directions to the nearby bus stop. We bought tickets for 1.2€ each for the bus then had to figure out which bus we needed. We were told three different busses (#1, Yellow and then Red and Grey), but the last was the correct one when we were assisted by someone actually getting on the bus.

Italian is a challenge, any way you look at it.  Nothing sounds much like English! Occasionally you will read words that can be interpolated, but listening to Italians speak at the speed of lightening is a different breed.  So trying to ask the driver to tell us when we got to Bacoli and then how to get a bus to Porto was a challenge. We discovered if you didn't pronounce the name of the city correctly, no-one understood what you were asking about.  We were dropped off a block from a cafe named Cafe' Centrale. 

It turns out, cafes are not quite what we have in the US.  They are usually bars that serve pasteries - NOT what Renne' and I needed!  Did you look at the pictures of me in the previous post????  We had to leave.  The proprietor was kind enough to point out and stop the bus we needed to get to Capo Mesino - no one knew what Porto Mesino was - it isn't a port (like Naples), it is a harbor with marinas.  Oh!  Hmmm.  Lesson learned

We finally arrived in Mesino about 1430 (2:30 pm). We had to get something to eat for Renne' before she chewed on me, so there at the bus stop we found a little cafe'. Although they offered sandwiches (Paninni's), they were made and delivered from a restaurant down the street. We still hadn't found Doug and Barb.  

We haven't had Internet since we left Rota, so we hadn't been able to get Barb's latest directions.  We heard there was a marina 100 meters up a road. We were both pretty exhausted, so we decided even if we found them, we were staying in a hotel one last night. I booked us into the hotel, and while Renne' rested, I walked out to the marina. I asked about a Barca del Vela (unfortunately, that was Spanish for sailboat - in Italian, it is Barca Vella), Plankton, and they couldn't comprehend that we were waiting for a boat to arrive so we could board it.  Anyway, they hadn't seen them.

I returned to the hotel, picked up Renne', and we were seated aboard a bus to run back down to the other marina when Renne' saw Doug and Barb walking down the street from the marina I had just left!  

We had drinks and dinner with them and by 2230 (10:30pm) we were ready for bed.

We slept until 1015 this morning (Sep 13), checked out of the hotel by 1100, and headed for the marina. We dropped off our luggage, and took the dinghy to the other side of Mesino. 

 Renne' and I decided the reason they have such small cars in Europe is because the roads are so narrow.  Large cars couldn't fit here if they were available!!

 Barb decided she needed her hair cut -

 And of course, Renne' couldn't resist sitting there watching!  LOL!

 This is the view of Mount Vesuvius from Capo Mesino harbor, on the other side of Naples, which was responsible for the destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79AD.  About.com says this about Vesuvius and Capo Mesino:  "This volcanic eruption is the first to be described in detail.  The letter-writing Pliny the Younger was stationed about 18 miles away in Misenum from which vantage point he could see the eruption and feel the preceding earthquakes."

This point above the marina we are staying in is the highest point of Capo Mesino, so would probably be where he observed the eruption from.

We jumped a bus back to Pozzouli (between Bacoli and Napoli).  Pozzouli is a famous little community.  It is the hometown of Sophia Loren. It also is the home of the volcano, Solfatara. 

 This volcano is the MOST active volcano in the Phleagrean Fields.

 These are the fumeroles venting steam (laden with sulpherous gas-you can notice the sulfer [yellow rock] accumulating on the edge of the vents) from the volcano below. 

 We realized if this were the States, there would be safety fences all around, but we were able to walk right up to the fumaroles (vents from which steam was escaping). 

The ground was warm, but the fumaroles were 350 deg F. Fascinating. Solfatura is Italian for sulfur. You could smell it a mile away.

Barb and I (her a geologist and  I, a geology minor) spent extra time inspecting the stoves used years ago for packaging volcanic mud used as souvenirs and health and beauty aids. . .

and the seismic monitoring station with UV cameras, motion sensors, sniffers, and radio transmitters to notify volcanologists nearby of the craters activity.

Take a second to read this next sign if you can.  There are benefits to sulfer it turns out!  Perhaps we need to spread some of this around.

While on the bus from Mesino, we noticed a large Roman Amphitheater just below the volcano and we walked down from Solfatara to look at it. Tickets were 4€ apiece. The guide spoke passable English, however, she wasn't much of a guide. If we hadn't been asking questions, we wouldn't have learned much. You know us, we asked a storm of questions. 

This amphitheater was built in the first century AD. Unlike Rome, the Gladiators here were local celebrities. There were no up or down thumbs as was done in the Roman Colliseum. It was more like a bull fight.  The Gladiators always won. Exhibitions between Gladiators were not carried out to the death.  This was theater, not actual combat.  

Trap doors in the floor allowed surprise entrances of both animals and Gladiators.

They imported lions, tigers and bears.  If you remember Russel Crowe's, Gladiator, the entire floor of the amphitheater was covered with sand. This allowed blood, sweat, and debris to be absorbed. Around the entire flooring were trees and bushes to ensure realism for the audience. The amphitheater seated 30,000 people.

We returned to Plankton hungry. We had been invited by the brother of the owner of our hotel to eat dinner at his restaurant, "da Guana" for seafood. So we headed up the road for 150 meters, and sat down to an okay dinner. I had mentioned to him to be careful of our wallet, and 125€ later for the four of us we walked out and headed for bed. We decided not to accept too many more invitations to dinner!

So come out for the music at the docks tomorrow for Sundowners! We will be glad to find a berth aboard!

Jon and Renne'

Arrival in Scicily, September 11, 2012

September 13 - 0745 (1:45am EST)

Renne' and I are aboard the ferry right now enroute from Catania, Scicily to Naples, Italy. We boarded the ferry last night at 2030 (8:30pm) and departed about 2130.  Our understanding was we would be in Naples by 0700 this morning.mas of right now, the port is still not in sight. This is NOT a small ferry!

Let me digress a bit though. We left the boat tied up at St. Simons Island, Ga last Saturday morning, September 8th, headed for Norfolk, Va. 

As we got close to Charleston, we got suckered into the idea of leaving for Rota and picking up a flight from there. We were able to get a Space Available flight leaving for Rota, Spain, however, just prior to departure we learned we would land in Dover, Deleware, for a bit of maintenance on the fuel system. We arrived into Dover aboard a C-5A aircraft 

at 2130 (9:30pm for folks in Rio Linda) and discovered we would not be leaving Dover until late Sunday night.  When flying military aircraft, we always need to be prepared for flying with minimal heat, so here I am ready for some coolness (sometimes, it is downright frigid)  in the cabin.  This is NOT like flying on American or Delta!  One takes what one can get!
One advantage of being a retired Navy Captain (O-6) is access to the Distinguished Visitor (DV) Lounges at the air terminal. That meant some comfortable couches and chairs, access to a computer and TV where you can choose the channels we want to watch. So we settled in for 20 hours of wait time.  We walked to the nearest restaurant for breakfast (1.2 miles each way), ate, and walked back. 

We repeated the trip again at lunch, and again at dinner. When we returned, we learned that check in was at 0025 And departure would be at 0430. Yawn! 

That meant another night on couches and chairs. 

There was a man in the lounge with his two young daughters (5 and 7) who had been waiting for three days for a flight, and when we left, he had NOT made the priority list for the flight he was looking at, so he was going to head for Philadelphia to catch a flight to Madrid.

We left as scheduled finally and I dropped off to sleep as the wheels came off the deck. I woke up as we landed in Bangor,  Maine (WTF??) at 0730. I guess they decided to refuel. That took 2 hours.  By 0930 Monday morning, we actually were headed toward Rota, Spain. The flight was 7 hours, and when you add the 6 hour advance in time, it was 2130 Monday night when we arrived.  So Renne and I checked in to the DV Lounge there, again, ordered a pizza for dinner, and crashed with her on a short couch and me on the floor.  Tuesday morning found me up most of the night and Renne' stiff.  Breakfast was easier, it was in the next building. Here in Rota, the arrangements are a bit different.  The base is actually owned by the Spanish Government, and they frown on visitors staying on base.  So we were actually asked to leave the terminal.  The flight from Norfolk wouldn't arrive until Wednesday morning, so we went to town, found a hotel, got our passports stamped, and went to the beach for 5 or so beers.

This is the lobby, looking up the stairway to the rooms, of the La Parrita Hotel, about six blocks off base.  A very nice place for about $85 a night.

This is Renne' lounging on an outdoor sofa at our bar on the beach.  She added much to the scenery.

The beach is not cleaned every day when tourista season is over. Last year, the beach was virtually covered with bodies and umbrellas when we were here in Jully, 2011.
So Thursday morning, 5 days after leaving Georgia, we left Rota enroute to Sigonella, Scicily. 

We we're lucky enough to run into David Lawton, a young Navy Petty Officer who was gracious enough to give us a lift into Catania with his buddy Jason. 

We bought them dinner, got to see Elephant Square and a sub-terrainian Roman Amphitheater (pretty cool archeological dig in the middle of town) before we boarded the ferry. Pretty cool guys, thanks so much!

We are still not in to Porto Napoli at this point. 

As I said earlier, this was not a small ferry! Close to 300' or more long.

These were our accommodations aboard.  Another night of sleeping on chairs.  Atleast these reclined a bit.  Renne' took the row behind and stretched out for the night.

But we will pick up a bus when we get there and head for Porto Mesino in Bacoli, Italy. We are finally getting close to Barb and Doug. They should be in this evening by 5pm. We will be glad to see them.

So meet us at the docks tonite for sundowners, Italian style. Barb and Doug like theirs cold!

JonNe' (arriving Porto Napoli 0830)


Sent from my iPad

Sitting' At The Dock Of The Bay

This has been a week of work and enjoyment.

We bought an IPAD II before leaving Key West for the Bahamas.  I enjoy it, but it IS NOT a computer!  There are a lot of advantages to the IPad however. We subscribe to a website called www.ActiveCaptain.com. Our primary use of this site is for information regarding marinas and facilities around the world that other cruisers have visited and commented on. This is one of the largest cruiser based sites on the Internet-built and managed by cruisers for cruisers.

ActiveCaptain sends out update emails on a regular basis, and several were sent regarding IPad based navigation software apps. After comparing all they offered, we downloaded the INAVX Navigation app and bought the charts for the US and the Bahamas from Navionics as that is what our Raymarine E-80 uses. VERY NICE backup to our normal navigation software! The standard in charts for the Bahamas are the three Explorer chartbooks, and comments I have seen stated is that the Bahamas charts are not very accurate in Navionics. so using Explorer chart Waypoints and routes plugged into INAVX and the E-80, we experienced FLAWLESS navigation around all points in the Bahamas. Way cool!

What we found was I could plan the routes on the IPAD in the comfort of the cabin at night before leaving, and transfer everything to the E-80 the next morning manually. Now Raymarine has taken the new E-80 chartplotter to the next level and it comunicates with the IPAD INAVX via Bluetooth. Doggone the luck of the Irish!

I have spent two of the last three days in the bilge troubleshooting and then replacing the bilge pump switch.  The air conditioner removes moisture from the air while cooling the boat. That water drains to the bilge. As the bilge is the lowest open area in the boat, all water seeks that area. On a boat, ya gotta get rid of "the bilge water" fortunately we are not plagued with "bilge water rats"!  So in the bilge is a pump and a float switch. As the water rises, so does the float (like a toilet tank). When the float reaches a certain height, the pump comes on, drains the bilge, the float switch drops and the pump shuts off. This past week, the last step DIDN'T happen! 

To get to the bilge pump and switch, I had to remove the engine exhaust hose and move the muffler out of the way. That still gave me only about a square foot of space to work in and the prop shaft ran right through my work space. Using a manual hand pump, I emptied the bilge of 13 gallons of slimy, oily water. Then proceeded to unbolt and pull the pump, then unscrew and pull switch out. I would say this was a corrossion issue probably. As we use a special switch (not a run-of-the-mill float switch for this boat) and a cycle counter/alarm, I had to prove the switch was bad. Now I am not the proficient electrician my dad was. It took a while! I finally ended up getting it replaced through the one year warranty. And Friday morning got the entire thing put back together! It worked and so did the engine!

We are in St. Cloud again this weekend to see Renne's Dad and Step-mom for Labor Day. We should be back in town on Monday.  We have friends from Glassy Mountain, SC coming in on Tuesday.  On Friday, we will leave for Norfolk, and expect to pick up a Space-Available flight to Europe for a few weeks to spend with our friends, Barb and Doug Schindler (saw them last year in Spain, this year in Italy).  We will have lots to talk about from there.

Thanks for showing up.  Come down to the docks tomorrow evening and share some Sundowners with us.  We will be glad to see ya.

JonNe'

St. Simons Island, Ga

Good Morning St. Simons Island!!

It has been more than a month since my last input to the blog!  This won't be long, but I am committed to putting more on paper, and I really want to finish the Bahamas adventure.  But today, I just want to keep you up to date with what we are doing.

We are sitting right between Brunswick and St. Simons Island, Ga.  We have been here about two weeks.  We arrived here in Ga on July 3rd, and went straight to Brunswick Landing Marina on the west side of Brunswick.  Nice place, walking distance to town, but we found it a bit buggy and NO pool! 

So after the first month, we ventured over here to the east side of Brunswick, and are in Morningstar Marinas at Golden Isles.  We are just off the ICW.  Airy most days.  We have had thunderstorms most of the afternoons we have been here except yesterday which was beautiful!  There is a Kingfish Tournement going on right now, and 30 plus boats are here to participate.  Probably 70 boats overall in the tourney.

 The boat behind us on the pier last night offered us a 3 foot cobia they didn't want.



Now that is not me, I ripped the pic off the internet to show you what they look like.  Actually that is about the size we were given.  Now a Cobia doesn't have scales.  It is much like a catfish.  I had never seen a fish like this, so we had to ask around about the quality of the meat.  Everyone to a person said it was excellent.  So I laid it out on the deck, got my filet knife and a pair of pliers to pull the skin off with, and went at fileting the fish.  Talk about HUGE chunks of white meat coming off this guy!!  I figured we sloppily were able to pull off 5 pounds of meat from it.  Renne' baked a third of it last night for dinner with a little olive oil and slivered almonds.  That with broccoli and sweet potatoes made a feast for us!!  More of it this evening!  I will do that again!

I am waiting for Renne' to wake up this morning.  The sun is shining and clouds are pretty distant.  I fixed oatmeal from Winn-Dixie (Old Fashioned Rolled Oats).  Those are the best I have ever eaten!  I add molasses and chopped dates or raisens and I'm well satisfied for the morning.

 I was up early today - 3:15am - and yesterday (4:40am) thinking about our court case coming up next week.  I have sued Marathon Boat Yard in Small Claims Court, and our first appearance is scheduled for the 29th (next Wednesday).  We were contacted by their attorney 10 days ago for possible settlement out of court.  Now the bill for the repairs to the improperly installed engine, to bring it up to snuff 8 months after installation was about $15,000.  That was in addition to the $24,000 we spent last May to have the thing installed.  Well, there are three areas of contention:

IMPROPER INSTALLATION OF THE MOTOR MOUNTS
IMPROPER SIZED MUFFLER
IMPROPERLY INSTALLED EXHAUST RISER (actually lack thereof)

Now the attorney stated he was authorized to make the settlement, and you do the math - 1/15th of the cost.  I explained he didn't have a leg to stand on.  Thursday, he returned the call, and offered a smidgen more.  Yesterday, he called a third time with a hair over the last!  I said we would see them in court unless they offered us what we were asking!  I am so-o-o-o looking forward to this battle.  I have the documentation, and they haven't a LEG to stand on, and they know it!  He thinks he has some experts to counter our arguements.  We have pics, paperwork, and ABYC (American Boat and Yacht Council) Standards behind our arguements!  They are headed off in a direction, it appears, that will be interesting and away from the actual issue.  Wish us luck! 

So we leave tomorrow, by car, to Key West.  This should be interesting as TS Isaac is about to pass over Marathon on Monday!  So we will see what happens!  I have to call the emergency number today for the courthouse to find out if the offices will be closed next week.  KW is resilient.  We would like to get this going!

So Renne' and I are in good spirits!  We had the dinghy repaired from a leak developed while we were in the Bahamas.  I have replaced the anchor that was stolen at West End in the Abocos.  I have replaced the antenna that got torn up when we first arrived.  We had the front panels on the dodger (windscreen) replaced with new Eisenglass as well as the overhead panel in the bimini (cockpit canvas roof).  I also have replaced the worn out ventilation blower for the generator and put in a new blower for the engine room.  Hopefully, they will keep the accumulated heat down while we are out crusing.  Today, I get to pull the exhaust hose off the engine, again, to get into the bilge to repair the bilge pump switch.  Damn tight place!  I guarantee!

The water is sooooo bad and muddy here, we have had to replace the 5 and 20 micron water feed filters for the watermaker each 8 hours of operation.   we have gone back to one tank of RO water and one tank of dock water.

All for now.  Come down tonite for sundowners and more Cobia on the docks!!  CYA there!

JonNe'

Little Harbor to Spanish Wells

May 26-30, 2012

When we left Little Harbor, Abacos, Art and Brenda were listening to the local net on the VHF, based out of Marsh Harbor.  They first give the weather locally and then take observations from around the Abacos for boats and businesses to get an idea of what each community is seeing outside their windows as far as winds, surf, and rain is concerned.  As Pete's Pub responded, Art heard Pete state he had seen two sailboats depart the anchorage and head out into the Northwest Providence Channel, and they were doing fine.  He was referring to the condition of the swells that might impede progress (they can be pretty brutal under certain circumstances).  That was us!

The above picture is the last of the coast of the Abacos as we departed the inlet to Little Harbor. 

Winds were 20kts from the South, so once again, we were headed directly into the wind for 50nm!!  ARGGH!  What was interesting to me was the depth.  We traveled over areas that were 15,000 feet deep.  When we arrived at Spanish Wells Harbor, we still had 6,000 feet below us a mile off shore.

When we arrived at Royal Island Harbor, we had read it had been the site of a $120 Million project by Roger Staubach and Emmett Smith (Former Dallas Cowboys) as Venture Capitalists to build a 5-Star resort and Golf Course-that was 10 years ago.  It failed miserably!  The still, however, have a guard that monitors the property. 

We were there one night.  Art and Brenda decided not to stay there and moved across the bay to Jacks Bluff Settlement.  We joined them on the 27th.

We were 2.2nm from Spanish Wells and the four of us decided to take the dinghy trip over to see the town.  We decided right there we would do what ever we could to avoid a 2.2nm trip in the dinghy again!  It sure seems to be a VERY LONG WAY!

Spanish Wells is very definately a fishing village.  It is often the first stop south from the Abacos and the last stop north for boaters heading for the Abacos and on to return to the US at the end of the season.

We spent lunch talking with some younger local residents.  These fishing boats go out for six weeks at a time diving for "crawfish" - actually spiny lobsters.  The divers descend to 100 feet free diving in all weather.  Not something I could do!!

We spent the next day at Jack's Bluff.  The settlement has been in existance for 100 years, however, it was the base for the laborers who worked on the resort and golf course across the harbor.

From Bluff Settlement, we motored back around the harbor to Current Cut.  This is one of three inlets for transiting from the Northwest Providence Channel to Eleuthra Sound.  At maximum, the current flows at about 5kts.  We anchored off the shoreline about 1/2nm from the mouth of the inlet and a hundred yards off the shore.

We asked a local lady for directions to a store.  It turned out to be a new friend, Tonja Hammond, from Waco, Texas.  Her husband is a local physician in Texas, and she was finishing her vacation. 

 She was gracious enough to take the four of us to Elvina's to listen to local muscians, however, it was not to be.  So we went on to Hatchett Bay for dinner.  Shoot, it was a 60 minute car ride from the boat that night.  We had a ball.  Sundowners were great though!

The next morning, we departed just prior to slack tide to get through Current Cut with the current just slightly against us.  That was good, as it provided resistance and improved our steering ability.  I would NOT have wanted to do that with a stronger opposing current.

So on to Hatchett Bay, and from there Rock Sound Harbor.  Cya when we get there!

JonNe'