Living Large in Luperon

It was a very difficult decision but today we decided to stay in Luperon for hurricane season. We both are eager to see more of the Caribbean islands now that we are this far. But we would have to hi-tail it all the way down to Trinidad to feel safe during the season. We would zip through the islands so fast (baring any breakdowns!) there wouldn’t be time to enjoy them. So staying in the safest hurricane hole in the world is where we’ll be. Having made the decision opens up many possibilities: renting a car and touring the island, taking local busses to nearby towns, Scott working on his ‘dog and pony show’ for his book, Sue redoing the teak which is screaming for attention, having visitors (like my sister Andrea) since it will be easier to schedule a flight to a place that we know we will be at...... and so on.

Cost of living here is very reasonable(~32 pesos to the dollar and a 22 oz EL Presidente is about 80 pesos) and we will actually save money. Maybe those solar panels are in our nearer future now. Learning spanish is high on the list and already we have negotiated successfully with local merchants. Of course this dialogue was half in spanish and half in english. We find that people are VERY anxious to help you with their language if you try and speaking english VERY LOUD does not count as trying! My most useful phrase is 'Como se dice. . .' ('How do you say' - and then I point or wave my arms about wildly) What was the big purchase? A drum!

Scott joined some other cruisers last night at the Puerto Blanco Marina for a 'jam session'. What types of songs do 50 and 60 year old cruising guitar and flute players play? A little Kumbya and Margaritaville all mixed into one and played at about 1/10 proper tempo. Quite an experience. Hopefully we’ll find some local musicians and be able to really jam, if we’re not too white.













We’re heading back to the boat after having lunch at Capt. Steve’s Place run by an American Ex. Pat. - a wonderful cheeseburger in paradise -plus a couple of El Presidente’s. Life is good - good and short. But we have much to learn about this country and all the others yet to explore. High on our list is to find a baseball game (and maybe some fresh infielders for the Cubs). Somebody’s got to do it.