It doesn’t always work as you wish it was.
And these past two month have been a perfect example of it.
I arrived in the states in Miami on January 24th with the Fucked up project of buying a sailboat and going cruising to Cuba, the Caribbeans, Venezuela?
I left the states on march 24th happy to leave, the boat is with a sailboat broker and I never went past Key West.
I look back into it now and I realize my mistake.
First it’s not for everyone to live on a boat, a 31ft sail boat is a tiny place to live, small kitchen, small bathroom. Not much room on the bed either. It’s hard to get a good sleep there always some noise, something rocking a strange way, you feel like you should get up and check that everything is still ok.
It’s ok for a week maybe two but then you feel restless.
When you leave you should have crew.
Stephanie is a nice girl but she had no sailing experience and she’s one of the least crafty people I’ve ever met.
After two weeks of cleaning the boat and getting everything ready I ended up having to deal with all the sailing and maintenance on my own and felt like I needed a vacation after two weeks of sailing.
Finally, when you leave, you should take your time, make sure you’re confident with the boat, the engine, know how the boat handle in bad weather and get familiar with the area.
We left in bad weather, with the weather conditions getting worse and worse, Florida is really shallow, navigation is not easy, even with our 4ft draft I got grounded twice, we were caught in a thunderstorm, I had to go under the boat to free the propeller from an entangled rope while the boat was under way in 5 ft of water.
In the end my nerves were messed up, I was ready to go back to Miami, get rid of the boat. No more anchor dragging at night, no more storm coming up while I’m in 5 ft of water and no shelters.
So that’s what we did, I left Stephanie in Key west and came back in three days to Kay Biscayne Marina.
There I got to enjoy the boat more, going out during the day but knowing that the boat would be safe at night, not having to get up to make sure the wind didn’t turn, the anchor wasn’t dragging and so on.
I’ve got some nice sail in 10 knt wind and some better ones in 35 knt and 9 ft swells.
The boat sailed great, I could handle it easily on my own even in bad weather.
She was a great boat but probably at the wrong time, the wrong place and not enough crew.
Sometime you have to surrender before you win.
I’ve spent march in Miami trying to sell my boat, making good friends, getting my diving certification.
I’ve rented a pick up truck for the first time. Ten years leaving in the states and I had never driven one!
I had a blast!
If you’re bored and you have 0 to spend on gas, go rent a Toyota Tundra, the one with a big V8, push it to 90 mph on a 5 lane highway, honk your horn, drink some beer, convince some hot chicks to have a wet tee-shirt contest in the back of the truck.
Live the life!
Anyway this was fun, but too much trouble, I didn’t enjoy coming back to the states during my ‘vacations’ it’s not a place for vacation. Things are too organized, people are too busy leaving their life, they don’t have time for you, they don’t even have time for themselves.
A plane ride and here I’m in Margarita Venezuela.
The president is all messed up here too, just doing a little less damage.
There are pick up trucks from the 90’s my TV doesn’t work, the toilet works sometime and I don’t have hot shower everyday but it’s more like what I wanted for my time off.
Venezuelan are friendly, very welcoming even in the touristy place of El Yaque.
I like their laid back attitude. For some reason I didn’t feel in the right spot in Kay Biscayne with my flip-flop and Surf shorts. Here I feel at home.
Three days of windsurfing in 25-30 knts wind, I have a big bruise on my back, a wound on each hands and feet that I have to cover with duct tape to keep it from water and sand while I’m sailing.
At night I’m so sore I feel like a 80 years old when I have to climb up the stair to my room.
I haven’t been that happy in two months…
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Photos Vénézuela
Carnets de voyage Vénézuela
Vidéos Vénézuela
Carte Vénézuela
Guide de voyage Vénézuela
Santé Vénézuela
Billets d'avion Vénézuela
