Do you own the Del Max?

In an attempt to wave off the writers block I've been facing, I have decided to skip a few pending posts and go for a short updated one. 

Here goes:

When we met Rafiki for Te first time, back in Grenada, Robin told me about paradise island and the Atlantis resort and the crazy water park they host. 

Park enterance fees are high, and could come up to $500 for a family of five. BUT, he said, there's a way around it. If you stay at the crazy fancy Atlantis Marina, you get free access to the park and the amazing aquarium. Well worth it, he said. 

When we first met Rafiki, back in august 2013, we thought our trip was close to its end, ad we had no plans to get to the Bahamas or even go north. 

Or so we thought....

Almost a year later we found ourselves approaching Nassau, Bahamas. 

Never say never :)

Right before we got into the channel (and  et! 

When we checked in they gave us room keys that allowed access to the hotel, the park and the aquarium, and can be used for charges. gloriously  printed on the card we found 

M/V Del Max 

Oh my! 

The park was amazing, crazy water slides, including one that goes through a shark tank (!)

Amazing grounds and pools and lagoons filled with rays, sharks of all kinds, turtles, giagantic groupers, eals and tons of other fish. All displayed in the most amazing way we've ever seen in any aquarium we visited.

Mika braved every slide, and the boys enjoyed tubing and sliding on the smaller slides. 

Now you need to understand, the Atlantis Marine is home for some on the fanciest and craziest mega yachts we've seen. 

This is a typical view of the marina. 

When I went to pay for dinner the first night I gave my card to the cashier. It was a budget dinner, but as part of the complex I could charge it. 

Then to my surprise came what is probably the funniest conversation ever. 

Guy looking at the card: Are you guys staying on the Del Max?

(THE Del Max, i like the sound of it!)

Me: yes we are

Guy: do you OWN the Del Max?

Me(smiling) : yes we do. 

(Now all he sees out of the window all day are these crazy yachts, and here we are... Dressed like, well cruisers...I think I know what he's thinking)

Guy (daring to go ahead and ask everything he was ever curious about): may I ask what you do for a living? 

Me (smiling shily): well, at the moment, we're sailing The Del Max (told you I like the sound of it)

Guy (looking impressed and puzzled): may I ask, how much does the fuel cost for such a boat? 

Me: well, sir, The Del Max is a sail boat. And the wind... It is free. 

Guy (Full of hope for the future): I hope you have a wonderful stay here on paradise island. 

Oh yes we did ! 

The following day was renamed Mother's Day. Since we missed the original Mother's Day a couple of weeks ago, we (or Oren) have decided to designate the fun filled day as mine. Fun!!

I got cards from the kids and an early cocktail, a fun packed day and a fancy dinner (with leftovers to feed us a couple of days more)

An awesome day spent with my loved ones, who made me a mother. Bliss!

Happy Mother's Day to all you mamas out there. 

From the bridge of The Del Max,

This is first mate Darya signing off

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It's all about the people

Robin, from Rafiki, told me once that when they left for the trip, they thought it would be all about the amazing places they were going to see and the beautiful beaches they were going to visit, but to his surprise, the most memorable experiences he'd had were with fellow cruisers.

I couldn't agree more.

Don't get me wrong, We have seen some amazing places, and some great beaches, no doubt about that. But the friendships we found, and the brotherhood (not to mention the sisterhood :) was unlike anything else.

A few weeks ago, I celebrated my birthday, again... the first second birthday on the trip ( feel free to re-read this line)

First we went to the post office to pick up some mail. My friend Haim from back home has sent and then resent a package of books for us and it arrived right on my birthday! Haim and Gili, you're the best!

We never know what our birthdays are going to be like and can only hope to be able to celebrate them among friends. This year I feel extra lucky. We have managed to set up a rendezvous with 3 boats who've been with us since Grenada: Rafiki, With Ingrid and Robin, and Kathrine and Alex, 4 coconuts with Toutou and Dave, Maia and Tyler, and the amazing Endless Pleasure with Tim and Stephany, once our next door neighbors up in the Rhode Island marina and now running one of the greatest charter boats in the BVI.

Tim and Steph were kind enough to host the birthday bash (thank guys! and happy birthday Steph! Wish we were there) Ingrid made a domino shaped cake, a tribute to long nights of Rum and Dominos played together, and the kids had a blast playing together in and out of the water.

The official birthday party was also an un-official farewell party for us, as we were getting ready to start our way west towards Puerto Rico and then up to the Bahamas.

In the months we've spent together, sailing along side, on and off, we have become one big happy family. 

Saying goodbye was not easy. We miss you guys!

When we got back to Puerto Rico we had a great reunion with Ciro, Laura and Catalina, and were lucky enough to celebrate with them on Catalina's birthday. Happy Birhday, dear!

The Malatrasis even came to see us further south, when we were Anchored in Ponce! It was so great! 

We also had a surprise reunion in San Juan with our Friends, the Rabinoviches from Boston who were on a cruise which happened to stop in San Juan just when we were there! a nice reminder to how cold it is back home and what a good thing we did to escape :)

In PR we also ran into Fata Morgana, whom we've met in Grenada. These guys have decided to go completely 'off the grid', sold their dinghy, and are now moving around in a kayak. They don't use their engines unless it's an emergency, and if the wind dies, Ivo takes out the kayak and tows the big boat. Talk about being self sufficient!

And so we have realized that from each of our new friends we have learned something.

We sometimes "Do a Kevin" and raise our Anchor by hand, As Kevin from Lucky 7 always did,

When I get on a bus, I now, like Molly always does, greet everyone 'good morning', or 'good afternoon'When we refrain from starting our engines we are "Ivo-ing" and when we are lucky enough to find the right produce, we make our selves a "Salad-de-Toutou"...These things, and others, and the kind spirit is with us, even after saying goodbye.

Winnie the Pooh (A.A Millen) said it right: 'How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.' 

Fair winds my friends!

May we meet again!

Next stop: Bahamas! stay tuned

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Our grandma's visit (by Mika)

2 weeks ago our grandma Noa came for a visit. Me, Gur and Arbel were so excited!
Dad went to get her from the airport while me, Mom, Gur and Arbel went to the place that fixes outboard engines, to the  marina office, and cleaned the boat.
When dad finally came back with grandma I was so happy she was here, I jumped onto the dock with no shoes on just to hug her, because I have not seen her in a year and a half already.
When grandma came on to the boat we did a mini passage to Water Island. In the passage the boys, me, and grandma took out of the suitcase everything she had brought with her for us
Finally, we got to Water Island. As we waited for a man named Marvin to pick us up, I was sitting in area where my grandma couldn't see me and then she said "where is Mika?" And then I said. "BOO!!!" When I jumped out...

When we got to the house we played double. Every morning we would come and do school and after that go do something fun. Every night one of us would go sleep with her.
At the end of the week, grandma came to sleep on the boat. I shared a room with her. The next day we left to Caneel bay in St. John. After we ate lunch we went to the beach. Me grandma and dad went  snorkling. After I was in the water for a bit I was cold so we got out.

The next day we went to the underwater trail in Trunk bay. Once again I was cold so we got out.
After that we went to the BVI but they sent us away. The BVI sent us away because grandma didn't have a visa. We went back to Caneel bay and did a hike to the post office. After that we went to the beach. At the beach we met other people with kids, and me, Arbel and the kids made a deep hole. It was very fun!
The next day we went to Xmas cove to go for pizza to a boat named Pizza Pie, which was sort of a pizza place on the water, but they were closed... So we made ourselves 'pizza pie not pizza pie' .
The next day was our last day with grandma. For dinner we went to a restaurant.
The next day I woke up at six o'clock. I quickly dressed up so I could come with dad to the airport.
We waited on the boat for the plane to leave. As we saw it leaving we waved at it  and shouted "Bye Bye Grandma!"

I hope grandma would come again!

Mika

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We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

(Yes I know, It's almost easter... Or Tou Beshvat... I'm behind...)

In the five years we lived in the states we never joined a Christmas celebration. I guess the fact that we lived in Newton, surrounded by many other Jewish families had a lot to do with that. So, we drove around and enjoyed all the Christmas lights, but the closest we got to experience the holiday was when Mika's good friend, Anna, invited her to help decorate their family tree in the last 2 years before we left. That was fun!

This year we have been hearing about Christmas since July... All of our cruiser friends celebrate Christmas, All were about to be away from their families for the holiday and all were making plans (yes as early as July) as for where they will be for Christmas,  how will they celebrate and who they will celebrate it with. We were naturally counted in with our buddy boats. They got to light Hanukkah candles on our boat, so why won't we celebrate Jesus's birthday?
Our buddy boats were Rafiki and Four Coconuts who have been sailing with us since Bequia, La Jeanoise and Picaro who joined further north, and 2 other boats, Reve d'ocean and Oseo also joined the party. We arrived in Antigua a couple of days earlier and mat up in Jolly bay. Robin from Rafiki found a great empty lot right on the beach, and the plan was to meet for some fun ball games, enjoy the beach and then have a pot luck lunch.
13 kids and 14 adults got together for one of the best days we've had on this trip!

Dinghy line up on the beach

No, There was no 'wear red' memo, and yet...

The games were lots of fun, hard to believe this too, but we actually played football for the first time ever. Lots of first that day :)

Mika and I used Chaya's recipe and braided A LOT of Challa

After a great lunch we started the game of secret Santa, In this game each person brings a wrapped gift and adds it to a pile in the middle of the circle, each one draws a number from a hat and in the order drafted each person can either choose a gift from the pile (the gifts are wrapped, so he doesn't know what he's getting) or steal a previously opened gift from another player.If someone stole your gift you can again either take a new one from the pile or steal from someone else... when some of the gifts are 3 sets of gloves and others are digital cameras the game can get pretty funny :)

The day came to an end with our very first beach bonfire. Marshmallows and all! Sweet!

Now as I said, this was our first ever Christmas, and so for all we know this is the traditional way to celebrate the holiday. Merry Christmas!

We spent a few more days in Antigua, before moving to Barbuda for New Year's eve. Before we left, the girls got together to celebrate Carol's 50th birthday. we have decided to make her wish come true and all went Zip-lining together! Scary at first (for me!) but I finally go the hang of it and by the end of the 12 lines even I really enjoyed it.

Happy Birthday Carol!

December 29th was a strange day for me. Exactly one year earlier we had our accident and lost our boat. On the one hand it was one of the hardest days ever. But on the other, it shifted our story in a way that wouldn't have happened otherwise. We have met amazing people thanks to the incident who stayed our good friends till this day and hopefully for many years. Those people, Brooks, Bill, Andrea, Don and Dotty wanted nothing in return for their amazing help, but told us we should pay it forward. I think this is the strongest message I took from that day, and we have been trying to pay it forward ever since.

For New Years Eve we arrived in Barbuda. Everyone told us what beautiful beaches Barbuda has, and although we only had one day to spend there we have decided to make the D-tour and see what it was about. New years day also marks our personal anniversary. 12 years! Never thought we'd celebrate it in such an amazing place!

The day was fun, Happy hour included bubbly as expected, but as cruiser's midnight is at 9pm the new year came a little earlier then expected.

Happy New Year to all, I hope you live up to your resolutions, spend time with good friends and loved ones, and have a great new 2015!

Darya

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1 Year anniversary!

Yesterday, when I finally found a good wifi connection, I got a message from a friend back in Israel.

She wanted to catch up, and was wondering how was life in Boston...

So much has happened during this year, and yet my reply was: " We've left Boston a year ago yesterday, and have been sailing the Caribbean ever since, a bit of a bumpy start (hit a reef, lost our boat) but now everything is great"

That's it. our year in a nutshell.

it was exactly 3 days and one year ago when we said our last goodbyes to GilGil, and wearing Crocs and socks got into a taxi in 20 degrees F. ready to fly out to San Juan, board our boat and start the adventure of a life time. One year and 3 days later, the adventure is still here.

Kids at the Boston airport, December 2013

Same kids, one year later, December 2014

Mika lost 5 teeth and grew new ones, Gur learned to read and write in Hebrew and English, and Arbel started the trip with night diapers, which now looks like a light years away...

And they're all about four inch taller...

A short post it is, but deserved an entry of its own.

Happy 1st birthday Crazy Boat Trip!

Happy Hanukkah everyone!

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Made in Del-Max

Life on the boat brings out all the creativity we have. 

Some things are hard to find, others are out of our budget, and in some cases we run across local creations we just have to recreate. 

Here are some of the things we have proudly manufactured:

The Rain Catcher (RC-001)

Water is limited on the boat. We have 2 water tanks that can hold up to 100 gallons (about 400 litters). This water is used for drinking showering cooking an dish washing, and when they're gone we either have to find a marina with a fuel dock to tie up to, or do water runs with our jugs. Since we only have 16gallons of jugs this can meen many back breaking runs. Not fun. 

On the other hand, it does rain so often out here... Which is why we have decided we must have our own rain catcher. 

Oren came up with the design and we have dusted our brains to pull out all that high school trigonometry to optimize  the angles and size. Then it was down to me and Marina's old sewing machine... 

And it's working! We have been catching rain!

The Dodger

When sailing in strong winds and rainy days, especially when going up wind, sitting at the cockpit and specifically at the helm can be very uncomfortable. unless you have a dodger protecting you. Which we didn't. We got a very high quote from the canvas guy for manufacturing one for us which is when Oren came up with the brilliant idea of me making one...

With the help of Marina's sewing machine and the moral support of Carole from La Jeanoise (who basically told me it can be done) I have set up to create the dodgy dodger. But hey! It works!

Window covers

The boat originally had very dark window covers. Once again Oren had a vision... Replace the dark opaque covers with semi transperant ones, that would block the sun heat but let the light come in. 

Done!

Home made Sorbet de Coco

After tasting it in Guadaloup, Oren took upon himself the mission of Re-creating the flavor of the local speciality, Le Sorbet de Coco. 

Trial and error with the help of Mr. Google have helped him bring this creation to perfection. Served only on board Del-Max. 

The Chanukiya (menorah)

It is the Jewish month of Kislev and Jews all over the world are lighting their Menorahs. I tried to prepare (as Liron must remember) to all the holidays we were supposed to celebrate on board, but since we left right after Hanukkah last year, we weren't supposed to make it on board to celebrate another one. Yet here we are...

And so we have collected bottle caps, Gur painted a paint mixing stick and Oren was in charge of connecting them into our very own Menorah. Four candles are already behind us and four more to go. 

Happy Hanukkah! 

Homemade Yogurt

We like Yogurt. We eat it with Granola in the morning, and use it to thicken our smootheys. We like Yogurt. The problem is, that Unlike the French islands, where the dairy fridge is packed with a huge variety of yogurts, other islands don't stock them at all. 

Little did we know, if you have just a few spoons of good Yogurt, you can recreate it and make more and more and more. It's a miracle!

Our friend Ida from s/v Cheers came over for a Yogurt workshop and introduced us to the secret (yet oh so simple) world of yogurt making. 

We have been making it for a while now. 

Love it!

We are constantly learning more and more tricks, recipes and ideas for making our lives better and easier and implementing them one at a time. 

Wanna see for yourself? Come visit!

Stay creative!

The Del Maxians

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Thanksgiving

I am sitting in the quiet saloon of our boat, a stone-throw from the beautiful beach of the island of Bequia (pronounced back-way). Everyone already went to bed, and I should probably do the same, as tomorrow we plan to head out very early, towards the island of St. Lucia.
When we first got to Bequia, on the day of Oren's birthday, over four months ago, I had no idea we would ever be back here. And yet here we are again, this time heading north. Up island as Steph would say.
Weren't you supposed to be home by now?! is a very common questions these days...
Well, we were...
The original plan (well, perhaps I should say, the last plan) was to head south to Grenada, spend a month or so there, and then sell the boat and head back home. But as we finally got to Grenada, and spent more and more time with other cruisers and cruising families, we realized we still haven't had enough.
Going back home, or to reality, as some of our realistic friends call it, means going back to the endless rat-race. We realize it and we accept it. But we're just not ready yet...
And so instead of selling the boat and going back home, We have decided to extend our trip, turn around and head north, towards the Bahamas.
You see, so many cruisers we've mat told us the Bahamas were the most spectacular part of their trip, that we just have to see it with our own eyes... so we've waited for the Hurricane season to end, took the time to paint the bottom of the boat and do some other 'boat projects' and when the time was right, lifted our sails and headed back north.
I just realized that although we've figured out our new plan a few good weeks ago, I haven't had the chance to update you personally. sorry...

And so This year, as the holiday of thanksgiving is just about to start, I find it easy to be thankful:

Thankful for my amazing family. Spending such a long time together in such a small space takes some special people, tall or short. I am thankful for having such great companions for this trip!

Thankful for our family and friends, patiently waiting back home, sometimes baffled by our current way of life, but constantly supportive. We love you all!

Thankful for the amazing new friends we have made along the way, giving this experience another dimension, one of a strong, supporting community (more about the community in the next post)

And finally, thankful for you. if you're reading this you probably belong to one of the above :) and yet knowing you're reading our stories, makes us feel that in a way, you're taking this journey with us.

I want to take a minute and wish 4 happy birthday wishes: first to Oren's dad, Saba Ezra, who celebrated 70 today!

To my beloved brothers, Eyal and Erez who celebrate this week!

And finally to our friend Vicky who invited us to our first ever thanksgiving dinner, six long years ago.

Happy thanksgiving everyone!

Darya 

(you didn't really think I'll only post 1 picture did you?! here goes:)

Gur swimming to shore from the boat

My back yard yesterday

Mika at the turtle sanctuary

School time on Del-Max

Who said Lego are the only Legos?

(Thanks again for the extra pins, Molly)

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