Show Menu

Sailboat Law: If you brought it, you will break it (Lessons Learned: Part Deux)

 The first week we were here, one of our Aussie friends at TTSA told us, “One of the primary skills necessary when sailing long distances on a sailboat is knowing how to fix your sunglasses in myriad and sundry ways.” I chuckled along and figured I knew what he meant. But after 3 weeks, I think I am beginning to gather the full picture that was lurking somewhere in the distance behind his offhand comment. So far, Jason, John and I have either lost or broken the following items: 1 pair of new Quicksilver flips flops (lost on a beach somewhere in Tobago) 1 pair of Cobian flip flops (blowout)…

Read more

Just Checking In…

 Hi guys! No, we’re not dead, we just spent the weekend at Tobago Race Week. Jason and I that is. John stayed behind and cracked the whip, and it seems Kijro is almost ready! We owe you all kinds of details on lots of events, so as a quick teaser, I’ll let you know what’s been up: J’Ouvert Carnival Tuesday Passage to Tobago (aka Lara Can’t Hang) Race Week Limin’ in Tobago Manta Ray Sighting! Sushi Breakfast (aka Jellyfish Sea or Jason’s Passage from Hell) I realize we owe some info on each of these, so in the next couple of days, as we scramble to put the finishing touches…

Read more

Tentative Schedule through Tahiti

 By John Ranahan, owner of Kijro Depart Trinidad:            Thursday, 25 February Arrive Curacao:              Monday, 1 March Leave Curacao:               Wednesday, 10 March Arrive Panama:               Thursday, 18 March Leave Panama:                Thursday, 25 March Arrive Galapagos:            Tuesday, 6 April Leave Galapagos:             Tuesday, 20 April Arrive Marquesas:            Friday, 21 May Leave Marquesas:            Tuesday, 1 June Arrive Tahiti:                     Tuesday, 15 June Leave Tahiti:                      Tuesday, 22 June

Read more

Public Services in the Third World

 All my life I’ve lived under the expectation that there are certain things people can expect as a basic of part of living in a fairly developed nation. These include indoor plumbing (though not necessarily hot water), sewage systems (as opposed to open drainage on streets), and basic civil services including police and fire department response teams. Yesterday I learned that not all developed, or mostly developed nations, are so lucky. We were sitting on the boat organizing some things yesterday afternoon when Jason looked up and noticed flames coming from the woods across the street. It was windy and they were spreading pretty quickly (it’s dry season here), so…

Read more

Carnival Event #2: National Steel Pan Finals – "Panorama"

 Last night we went to the National Steel Pan Finals at the Queens Park Savannah in Port of Spain. As usual it was late getting off..something about the islands…but that gave us time to wander through the vending stands outside the facilities and pick up some Trini staples like corn soup, macaroni pie, and shark and bake. We settled into the stands and stuffed ourselves just in time to catch the start of the show. Panorama is not your ordinary little steel band tournament. These bands consist of between 50 and 300 people, all playing in sync with one another, all with pans tuned to different keys. At times it…

Read more

Local lunch discovery, Asa Wright Nature Center and Caroni Swamp

 Ahhh, week 2. It has passed so fast, and we have posted so little. This week started with more slow workers, and it looks like it’ll end that way too, so in between, we’ve scattered some small adventures, discoveries and projects in order to pass the time. First discovery was the local Fisheries lunch. Last week on the morning cruisers net, held daily on VHF channel 68 at 8 a.m., we heard the local Fisheries Department offers a lunch. So on Monday we went to the local Fisheries Department canteen, chiefly used for fisheries workers on their lunch break, and the food was AMAZING. For $20 TT, which is $3.33…

Read more

Update on boat projects and week 2

 Just after noon on Wednesday. Jason and Lara are off a trip to the Asa Wright Nature Center, followed by a visit to the Caroni Swamp. I’m sure that they will post on the day when they return. Both places are wonderful spots here in Trinidad. We continue to make slow progress on getting Kijro ready. The electricians are aboard today, trying to fit the solar panels and the KISS wind generator. But, as usual here, bits and pieces are either missing or not working. This means another day on the dock tomorrow. We are getting extremely efficient at un-mooring, docking, and mooring! The sails have been really promised for…

Read more

Kings & Queens, Local Markets, New Photo Site, & J/24 Racing…

 So much to cover in this post. Thursday evening we attended our first Carnival event, the Kings and Queens preliminary mas competition. Many of the bands of Carnival have a king and queen that lead them through the streets during the two days of Carnival. There are three competitions to elect one king and one queen as the King and Queen of Carnival, a very prestigious honor. The preliminary competition is held in a huge arena area where each queen (ladies first) is introduced and dances across a stage in her costume in front of the audience and a group of judges. After all the queens are introduced, the kings…

Read more

Talkin' Trini

 I’am finin’ at I’m talkin’ a little wit a Trini accent dees deys. Whether of Indian, African or European background, Trini folks with a European background have a pretty tough accent to comprehend. I think it’s gonna take awhile before conversations with the locals cease to be peppered with “what?”s. As an addition to yesterday’s entry, here are a couple more lessons: Lesson #4 — J24 sailors are the same everywhere. Lesson #5 — People from Barbados are called Bajans. Oh, and John’s goat curry rocks. Earthier than chicken, but pretty islandy and yummy when you give it a chance.

Read more

Lessons #1

 1. There is no hot water at Trinidad & Tobago Sailing Association. Sounds awful, but it’s actually ok, because it’s pretty warm here anyway and a cool shower is very refreshing in the afternoon. Just don’t expect to have it if you come. 2. Caribbean J/24 sailors are pretty hard core. Many regattas are up to 90 miles or more away, and these are the islands, so competitors sail there. That’s ~16 hours to and from. Seas this time of year are generally 3+ meters to Grenada, and winds in the afternoon are anywhere from 20-35 kts. Boats are also generally wet sailed. We’ll get to experience the Trini Js firsthand…

Read more