Annapolis

Settling In
1/10/08

After a year of travel, it’s nice to finally stop.

A five-day cross-country drive (from Phoenix to San Antonio driving one car and from there to Maryland in two), brought us to our current home of Annapolis on the 5th of January. Bill and Genevieve were there to greet us and make us feel welcome with flowers, wine and the essentials for preparing our first meal. We unpacked our bags, leaving the unloading of car trunks for later, showered and changed, and headed out to a nearby Italian restaurant for our first dinner in our new neighborhood. The first couple of days, were also welcomed by unseasonably warm weather (as high as 70°) which made it comfortable to explore our new community by foot. The above photos are of our new neighborhood (how nice of them to keep the Christmas decorations up for us).

I hadn’t realized how tiring our drive had been until I awoke the next day at 10 AM and realized I had slept eleven hours straight. Perhaps it was a combination of being travel weary and the relief of finally being in our own place after so long.

Downtown historic Annapolis is one of the most charming towns I know and we feel fortunate to have found a place here. Being boaters and loving the water, we feel so at home. Also the close proximity to D.C. is wonderful since I spent thirty years living and working in the Northern Virginia/D.C. area and that also feels like home. In fact, our very first week here, using the excuse of dropping off our printer for repair, we found ourselves headed for an exhibit at the Corcoran Art Gallery. After spending a few hours enjoying two extraordinary photographic exhibits - Annie Leibovitz and Ansel Adams - we completed the perfect day by having a late lunch at one of our favorite haunts, - The Old Ebbitt Grille. The following Wednesday found me, accompanied by Genevieve, again in the city attending a Harman Center for the Arts brown-bag lunchtime performance of the Tehreema Mitha Dance Company. Tehreema Mitha started, in 1993, the only dance company that has existed in Pakistan, but later came to the U.S. seeking more choreographic freedom. Her work, in the world of Asian Dance, defuses the line between what was considered classical and what would be considered contemporary. We thoroughly enjoyed it.

The winter weather was soon upon us and we were thankful we had spent time our first week buying some warm clothing and boots. Our second week here, I walked out of the grocery story and was greeted by a beautiful winter wonderland with big fat wet snowflakes coming down, blanketing the parking lot and already making my car a big white blob. With no snow scraper (I put that on the list) I laughed as I scraped the snow from the windows with the first thing if saw - a map of San Diego. Bet it was never used for that purpose before.

Reflections on Cargo Ship Travel

Reflections on cargo ship travel
Trip ended in Houston 12/24/07

Our only prior experience of this type was an 18-day cruise aboard a container ship from Auckland, New Zealand to Seattle, Washington in 1996, which we thoroughly enjoyed. This time, for a four-month around-the-world cruise, we purposely chose a break–bulk cargo ship because, as the name implies, the cargo is bulk pieces as opposed to containers. The off-loading and on-loading of containers is much faster, which results in shorter times in port. While this is great for the shipping company, it doesn’t give the passengers much time in port. We were told, for this trip, we would have at least 15 stops with from one to three days at each stop.

We were happy with the decision we made and were in each port from one to five days. Actually, a “day” was sometimes only six or eight hours, (our biggest disappointment being our short stay in Genoa, Italy) with very little advance warning, but overall it all worked out o.k.

Our accommodations were quite spacious and very comfortable, plus there were other public areas where we could relax and play games, exercise, paint, swim, and sit on deck chairs to enjoy the sun and sea.

The meals were very good, with lots of variety of menus and plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. Since we changed crew two thirds of the way through, we experienced two chefs and two different stewards, as well as officers and other crew.

There were parties held periodically, with meats on the grill (and several times a roast pig on a spit) and lots of music and dancing. We were told by our crew that all Filipinos sing and dance (and I would add they are all warm, friendly and fun-loving).

We had three different captains - one from Houston to Hamburg, another from Hamburg to Shanghai, and the third from Shanghai back to Houston. The first two were Polish and the last Hungarian.

Weather-wise, we had a complete mixture and were glad we’d brought clothes for all seasons. It was warm when we left Houston in August and continued through our Atlantic crossing. Hamburg and Antwerp were very cold and we had rain for our short stop in Genoa. It became warm again for our trip through the Suez Canal and Red Sea and stayed warm from Singapore through Malaysia. Our next cold weather started with our first stop in China and we didn’t get warm again until we crossed the Pacific and arrived in San Diego. The remainder of the trip south to the Panama Canal, Costa Rica and Gulf of Mexico to Houston was beautiful, warm and sunny, with calm seas.

When we boarded in Houston, there was one other passenger aboard (Jack from Canada) and with the two of us, plus our sister-in-law Martha, that made four. Unfortunately, Jack took ill and had to be taken off the ship in Camden, New Jersey. In Hamburg we took on two more passengers (a Swedish couple, Sunhilde and Helge) and the Captain’s wife, Barbara. When we changed crew in Shanghai, Barbara left and we were six from then until Martha left the ship in Costa Rica and Doug and I finished the trip in Houston. The Swedes continued on to Hamburg to complete their around-the-world trip. It was good to have others to talk with at meals and exchange books and videos, and we sometimes toured together in the various ports.

Setting up a blog, prior to the trip, made it easy for family and friends to follow our travels and eliminated the need for us to individually keep in touch with everyone. So, I hope you’ve enjoyed traveling with us, not only on our freighter trip but for the past year, and will continue to check our blog from time to time to see what we’re up to next.

Happy sailing and may all your landfalls be intentional.
Rebecca and Doug

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica
12/20/07

After slowly moving through the Panama Canal, we accelerated to our normal cruising speed of 18 knots and headed north up the Caribbean coast to Puerto Limon, Costa Rica. Around 1 AM we dropped anchor until morning when the pilot boarded and we finally began our entrance about 9 AM. It was a beautiful, sunny day and we were welcomed by the sight of sand, surf and palm trees.

I was surprised to see two cruise ships at the dock since we typically arrive at commercial ports, far from the cruise ship terminals. This was a good thing because that meant there would be good public transportation for Martha. She had booked a flight from San Jose, Costa Rica on the following day to ensure that she could get to New York in time to fly to India on the 25th. So, last night was our last dinner together and this morning she said a tearful goodbye to everyone. She will especially be missed by all the crew who we all have had such a good time with. We didn’t get to know them as well as the former crew but they were all great fun. In a few days we will also be saying goodbye, when we reach our final destination of Houston.

A short taxi ride took us to the bus terminal where Martha was able to get a 2 ½ hour express bus to San Jose where she’ll stay until her early morning flight on the 21st. Doug and I continued on with the taxi to a surf-side restaurant where we dined on broiled lobster, beans & rice and fried plantain - a real treat. Our driver stayed with us and took us to do some shopping, for specific items, before returning us to the dock. I stayed ashore to stroll the shops for local treasures and a few postcards and also treated myself to a pedicure (two treats in one day). At one shop, I met a little boy (helping in his father’s business) selling cans of macadamia nuts and post cards. After buying some of each I then asked if he had stamps. First he said yes but when he went to get them, told me he was very sorry but the people from the cruise ships bought all the stamps. Just then, his father appeared and said if I wanted to give him my post card, he would have more stamps the next day and would mail my card. I said “Well, I haven’t written it yet.” and the little boy said “Come around the counter and sit down and you can write it now.” He was so cute. So, I addressed the card to our two young grandsons, Zach (6) and Taylor (9), and suddenly had a thought. I said, “Can you write English? Would you write the message on the card?” He shyly said “I guess so. What should I write?” I said “Write whatever you like”. So he wrote: My name is Alex. I am 8 years old. I live in Puerto Limon, Costa Rica. And he wrote his phone number. I thanked him but explained that they might not call him, but if he would give me his address they might write a letter. He said: “Or maybe a postcard!” What a cutie he was. (See photo below of Alex writing the post card)

Nothing was being loaded on the ship here, we were simply off loading lots of new refrigerator containers, which we were told will be used to ship Costa Rican cantaloupe to the U.S., so we departed that night. It was great to be back in the tropics.

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

Photos from Panama Canal

Panama Canal

Panama Canal


We arrived in Panama the evening of 18 December and anchored off Isla Flamenco to await the arrival of our pilots, scheduled for 0300. By 0400, we were underway and entering the Panama Canal, surely one of the great engineering wonders of the world. As early as 1534, King Charles V of Spain had ordered a topographic survey of the Isthmus of Panama for a proposed canal. The looting of gold and other treasures from the New World was complicated by the fact that these goods had to be landed in Panama from their South American ports and land transported across the Isthmus to ships waiting on the Caribbean side for further transport to Spain. However, the concept was far beyond the construction capabilities of the day.

The French, under the command of Count Ferdinand de Lesseps who had created the Suez Canal, began a sea level canal in 1880. However, climatic and disease challenges brought this to a halt and, after a second French attempt in 1894, the project was taken over by the United States in 1904. It was determined that a lock-type canal would be required and it was completed in 1914 at a cost of some $400 million. The water to operate the canal is provided by the Chargres River, in the middle of the Isthmus, which is dammed to create Lake Gatun and then operate the locks down to the Pacific side and to the Caribbean Sea. The locking up to Lake Gatun through the two flight Miraflores Locks and the Pedro Miguel Lock is about 26 meters and consequently the locking down through the three flight Gatun Locks is the same. The total fifty mile transit requires about nine hours.

On December 31, 1999, the Canal was turned over to the Republic of Panama as provided for in the Torrijos-Carter Treaty of 1977. When we transited the Canal aboard S/V Boutonierre in April 1995 there was a lot of bad feeling amongst the Americans about the "Jimmy Carter give-away". However, the Canal continues to operate with great efficiency and has contributed over $2.5 billion to the Republic of Panama since that time.

Before daybreak, we had passed under the Bridge of the Americas, which carried the Pan-American Highway, presumably from Alaska to the tip of Chile, and entered the first flight of the Miraflores Locks. In 2003, a modern impressive suspension bridge was completed over the canal north of Pedro Miguel and the highway has been rerouted over it. It was a bit sad to see the Pedro Miguel Boatyard where we had spent some 10-14 days in 1995 preparing for our sail across the Pacific aboard the 55' Tayana, Boutonierre, with our friend John Button. At that time, it was a thriving yard full of boats making the transit in both directions. We had marveled at the four man crew of an eastern bound vessel, whose average age was 68. John was then 64 and I was 61 and we thought they were a bit advanced in age for such an undertaking. Now, of course, that seems young by comparison. We completed the typical repairs necessitated by our passage from Cartagena, Columbia, had our sails mended once again, provisioned for about six months of cruising and prepared meals for freezing in the huge industrial type galley in the clubhouse. The yard is now going out of business and once gone, no other yard can open there. It's too close to the lock and, of course, the heavy commercial traffic takes precedence over pleasure vessels.

When we transited the Miraflores Locks in 1999, it was in a torrential downpour with the two of us line handlers on the bow being totally soaked through our clothes. Our passage in Rickmers-Jakarta was in a perfect day of sunshine and moderated temperatures. We completed the transit about 1515 at Colon, discharged the pilots and set a course for Puerto Limon, Costa Rica.

San Diego to Panama

San Diego to Panama

Harry Bridges may no longer be alive but his influence definitely is. We were scheduled to be in San Diego for one day and stayed three. As mentioned before, our schedule in port is strictly in the hands of the cargo loaders, the Super Cargo and the stevedores. There have long been two major stevedore unions in the US, the east coast was controlled by the mob and the west coast and Hawaii by Harry Bridges and the communists. Loading and unloading was slow on Sunday and on Monday, the stevedores quit at the end of the day to attend a union meeting. The Super Cargo, with the help of Beck's beer from the ship's slop chest, was able to convince them to return early Tuesday morning so we could complete by the end of the day. We were then able to depart on our modified schedule which called for tugs along side at 0600 Wednesday.

We discharged the pilot, cleared the sea buoy by 0700 and set a course for Cabo San Lucas at the southern tip of Baja California, Mexico. From that waypoint, we shaped our course toward the mainland of Mexico and have continued to follow a course roughly parallel to the coasts of Mexico, Guatamala, El Salvador, Nicauragua and Costa Rica on our way to the Balboa, Panama pilot station, maintaining a distance off the coast of 30 - 40 miles. We have now (on this trip) gone through 25 time zones, having made sufficient easting to put us back in the eastern time zone of North America but will revert to the central time zone we started in; after transiting the Panama Canal and returning to Houston, with one stop in Costa Rica.

The second day out, we cleared Cabo San Lucas and entered tropical waters, below the Tropic of Cancer. It is always comfortable for us to return to tropical waters where so much of our time at sea has been spent. Actually, being south of 30 degrees latitude makes us more comfortable but the balmy breezes associated with the tropics are something special. With a following wind cancelling the wind created by the ship's speed through the water, we enjoyed an idyllic three days on the pilot deck, reading and sunning in our lounge chairs. By the fifth day, we had entered the area of the northeast trades and now have easterly winds added to the ship's speed creating more than thirty knots over the deck but the temperatures, sea and air, are in the high 20's C (low 80's F) and the pool has been filled again for afternoon recreation.