Let the games begin

We knew that when we arrived at Artemo we wouldn't find everything we asked for done perfectly but we hoped that things would be good enough. What we found was pretty much just that. The work that we had done that is structural work looks pretty good and the work we were having done that was "nice to have" isn't.

The hull deck joint (important part) is all new, looks great and Artemo is fully painted and beautiful. We really wanted the entire cockpit fiberglassed but for some reason they only did the seats and not the side walls which was the main reason we were having the cockpit done, since the side wall had a bit of rot and a hole in it. When we arrived the fellow through a game of charades basically communicated that we should really get the walls done to! LOL. We point to the fairly large hole and try to communicate that this is what we wanted fixed and that it was included in the quote!

Unfortunately the fellow who spoke english at the yard no longer works there. We are now writing out our thoughts in English and running them through the google translator. Today is a holiday here so tomorrow let the games begin.

My vote is just to epoxy the hole in the cockpit and call her done for now. Graham is going to see if there is a more permanent solution they could do in our timelines. We are targeting to leave Cartagena at the beginning of February. We are hoping to have Martha, Kayvon and Tara join us in the San Blas islands which is just an overnite sail from Cartagena.

We are settling into our new home. I have been scrubbing at all the filth and finding more as I clean. We have found our way around the neighborhood and we nowhere all the important places are, such as the ice cream shop and the liquor store :-). I set up the kids homeschool schedule and we are full on back into it. Amelia's lesson today was all about Prince Henry the Navigator and Christopher Colombus! To funny.

Our Swiss roommates are quite nice and over the top adventurers. They have a landcruiser parked in the driveway and have been driving/exploring South America for the past 4 years (camping) and before that Africia. You can imagine the stories! They both have to be in their 60s. To cool.

Hard to believe that just last week we were skiing....so strange....

Discussion

After 2 days of travel we finally arrived back in Hot, Hot, Hot Cartagena! It seems to be just as we left it. We arrived with 8 huge duffle bags filled with boat parts and Amelia's clothes.

We found 2 taxis, to take us and our belongings to our rented room. I had to laugh as I watched all of the people trying for a few of our peso's hoist rapidly the duffle bags into each car. Graham's carefully packaged radar (in its own custom bag sewn by his mom) was going to be left in the open trunk with a bungee cord attaching it to the car. Graham quickly veto'd that plan.

I showed the drivers the address I had written out and I then I remembered the language barrier! We received the thumbs up from both drivers but I didn't feel very reassured that they knew where they were going. The kids and I jumped in one car and Graham (and the radar :-)) jumped in another.

HOLY HANNAH. Our fella rips out of the airport like he is fleeing a fire. Horns, traffic, near misses, sharp corners, fast stops, yelling out the window at other drivers. Total chaos but strangely warm and comforting to us. In amongst this craziness I watch an ant (in the HOT taxi)traverse the ceiling of the car, back and forth. The ant seems to be moving as fast as the taxi? The kids and I don't speak for the first half of the ride. We are all just stunned a bit and beginning our Cartagena sweat.

We get to our area of town but the taxi drivers have no idea where it is. They keep driving up to one another and yelling through their windows and I keep trying to show the driver the piece of paper with the numbers on it. He couldn't speak 1 word of english and I couldn't speak any spanish. Finally he stops the car and Graham and the other driver come to our car to talk. I ask them to call the fellow renting us the room and voila all is solved.

So I need to give you a bit of background on this next part. Graham and I realized that we would need to stay in a place for the first week or two while we got Artemo ready for launch. We both began researching apartments, rooms and hotels. Our criteria seemed to differ a bit, so it was a point of contention between the two of us. I managed to find a nice new apartment fully air conditioned and with a pool for $100 a night. Graham managed to find a couple of rooms in a shared house (the rooms themself were air conditioned) for $30 a night. He wasn't able to get any pictures but after a brief discussion (I mean fight) we agreed to rent the rooms.

When we arrived our landlord Manfred met us. He looked a bit surprised to see four of us? I am positive though that Graham mentioned this in the email. He said that unfortunately he only had one of the rooms available at this time. The Swiss couple in the other room was going to need their room for another week. He took us through 2locked gates to get to the house and then we walked through the kitchen and the HOT living room and then up the flight of stairs to our new home......

Ok, ok, it isn't that bad and we are now settled into this room but after 2 days of travel to arrive at this room with 1 bed and looks a bit like an unfinished basement....We were a bit let down. The good news is that Manfred turned on the wall a/c in the room and it began to blast out cold air. SALVATION!!! Halleluiah.

Manfred let us know that the kids could sleep on the couch in the livingroom (I whispered to Graham...."This will be your bed"). After Manfred left Graham and I carried the couch and 8 duffle bags up the flight of stairs in the extreme heat to our room.

We all crashed pretty hard and slept for the day. We went out to our favorite restaurant in the old walled city for dinner "El Bistro". We ate like kings (steak and grilled fish) and loved the fact that the meal came only to $25 including drinks.

The city looked amazing at night. They still have many of the lights from Christmas up. Everything looks more beautiful than I remember and everyone seems to be smiling and saying to "hola" to us.

There is a really nice breeze here now and it makes the heat bearable. It was the perfect night temperature. Amelia was so happy to be able to switch to her summer wardrobe. She put on this beautiful dress none of us had seen before. It was really light and it seemed to dance on its own in the Cartagena breeze.

It is early morning here now and once the kids wake up we are going to see "Artemo". We are pretty excited about this.....I will keep you posted.

Sailing - By: Alex Perry

The sails are set
The ocean laid before us
The waves move in a beat an endless beat
The mountains behind us are growing hazy
We are ready to go

Now we are alone
Nowhere to run
Nowhere to hide
We have to keep going

The feeling of seeing land
Indescribable
We did it
I did it

The Pacific crossing

Casting Off

You have heard me say it before but I am going to say it again, "I am grateful". These past 7 months in Toronto have been better than we imagined, while we were daydreaming out at sea. Dreaming of coming home and seeing our friends and family, parties, catching up, laughing, eating, shopping, showering, hot water, fresh berries, familiar foods, clean clothes, hair cuts and the list goes on. WE GOT IT ALL AND SO MUCH MORE!! Our motto these last few months has been to never say no to an invitation. We spent so much time over the past 4 years planning for our trip that we maybe didn't go out or have people over as much as we would of liked. We made up for this 10 fold while we have been home. We need to head back to the boat to relax :-)! One of the biggest realizations we have had this past year is that life is all about the people in it. I am grateful to have such an awesome circle of people around us.

Now given the amazing time we had in Toronto, about 2 months into it we decided that we didn't want to continue on with our journey in January. We decided that we would wait until November 2010 to head off. We all settled in with this in mind. I signed up with the PTA, Amelia and I took sewing classes, Graham and Alex began looking into high schools, and we started thinking about work for the new year. Then around the end of November we started to think...."what are we waiting for?". We should coin a new phrase for when we shift gears and head off in a new direction....maybe we pulled a Perry.....or something. So we called a family meeting and over the course of a weekend we decided that as fun as Toronto was, it was time to Castoff again.

We have been fully submersed in packing, getting home school supplies, buying boat parts, getting rid of furniture, getting ready for Christmas and the lists go on and on. Some of you may be wondering what each of the Perry four are feeling with the new turn of events...so here you go.

• Graham is in full out planning and prep mode. He has been researching non-stop all of the best safety equipment we need to cross the south pacific. He has been organizing having boat bits shipped to various family members over the holidays. In his spare time he is setting everything up and making sure it works right. He has bought the Panama guide book and needless to say....he is VERY excited.
• Amelia is also excited to return to Artemo. When we first discussed the new plan she was happy....it didn't occur to her until a few days later that going meant LEAVING. It was quite sad when it hit her. She is an adventurer at heart though and this morning I heard her belting out, "There ain't no mountain I can't climb...." in the shower!
• Alex remembers the hell we went through in Grenada, waiting for the boat to be fixed. He remembers the heat, he remembers the disappointment, the anxiety, the stress and he remembers his sea sickness. I think girls are born with the ability to forget easily, maybe due to childbirth? Regardless, Alex is also an adventurer and it didn't take him long to weigh the pros and cons and be really excited. In the next few days I am going to post a poem he wrote at school that says it best.
• As for me, I am finally gearing up for the South Pacific crossing. For so long we would say it but I wouldn't really believe it. I can see it now. I am visualizing the moment we lift anchor. I am thinking about our days at sea. I am imagining us living it, not enduring it. A new friend of mine sent me the link of a 16 yr old girl who is currently sailing, non stop, solo around the world. She is inspiring. Check it out! http://www.youngestround.blogspot.com/

On Tuesday we head out West for Christmas. We all can't wait to see everyone we miss so much. We fly back to the boat on January 6th. Oh and GUESS what? We finally have a sign for Artemo and boat cards. Sign A Rama did an amazing job and their enthusiasm regarding our trip was really great. Check them out: http://www.signarama-toronto.ca/

Presentation

We did our first presentation last night on our trip to the Humber Sailing Club. We all had a lot of fun. Before we went I had to twist the kids arms to speak to a few things like provisioning and homeschooling but on the way home last night they were wanting to do another presentation with more speaking parts!!!

They really enjoyed themselves and so did Graham and I. I did the thing I always seem to do in front of a room full of people (those of you who work with me can confirm), I had that mini anxiety attack at the beginning but I let the room know that I was nervous and then it vanished. Thank god it always seems to go away once I have said it!

It was fun for us to reflect on the trip from start to finish. It seem to actually get us more excited for our next leg and everyone in the room looked like they enjoyed themselves to.

So cool to have the opportunity to inspire other people! We are hooked.