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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Camp Grenada

 Today is our last day on the island of Grenada.  They say time flies when you're having fun, but still it's hard to believe that it has been almost 3 months since we first got here.
Before we came our friends told us about 'Camp Grenada' with endless activities, a strong community and hurricane-safe anchorages, it sounded too good to be true, and the fact that we were robbed the very first night we got here made us very skeptic about just how real those promises were.
But guess what? it was all true.

Following Perry we set our base at the cruiser-friendly Prickly Bay. Ever since our boat was broken in to we have been sleeping with the hand held radio in our room, standing by on channel  68, and thus, every morning at 7:30 our day would start with the VHF announcing:"good morning Grenada, good morning cruisers, The Grenada cruisers net is starting in 2 minutes on channel 66" and so, every morning, kind of like in ground hog day, we would listen to Cruisers just like us, who volunteer to run the cruisers net, 6 days a week, and provide every possible piece of information you can possibly need, from local weather, to cruisers social activities, to help with parts and services you might need or want to sell or trade, and finally a slot for local businesses (ones with access to VHF radio) with a chance to blow their own horn.

Cruisers social activities anyone?
In Prickly bay alone you have to choose from the following activities, all provided by volunteer fellow cruisers, who want to make their stay here in Grenada a better one:
Mondays and Thursdays 8:30: Yoga with a smile provided by Pier-Ives from S/V umido at the very same time, Gabi from S/V cool change is teaching Yoga to kids 16 and younger.  seeing Gur and Arbel practicing Yoga poses and challenging each other to extreme combinations is simply priceless! ("while doing a tree pose, touch your toes and make a candle. Can you do this Gur?")
Tuesdays and fridays 8:30: Tai Chi, again by Umido
On Sundays and Wednesdays 2pm: Grenedian train Dominos winner gets the fame of being announced last week's champion on the morning net
Then there's chess twice a week at 3pm, volleyball you can play and shopping buses that will be happy to oblige you, and take you anywhere you want to go.
Every Saturday there's a HASH, a hike/run followed by beer consumption, a great experience where locals and guests explore different parts of the island.

Book Club
of course morning are dedicated to school work and then in the afternoon the kids want to get together at the pool or on the beach, either way they coordinate their rendezvous in the sweetest VHF calls you would ever hear...
On Friday morning the kids had a book club.where they would discuss books they have read,  read poems, play games and learn about different countries.
I was amazed to see how serious the kids take the activities at the book club. here are some shots:

One book club sessio was dedicated to geography and every kid presented a country

All pieces were then connected into two big global balls

Every family brought a tipical dish to share - what a feast!
I am so moving on board 4 coconuts as soon as I get a chance

Learning Kapuera from Regina and Helena

Tomorrow is a long day, as we plan to start our journey north. and so I think I will stop now.
I will post more Grenada stories later.
The last few days were filled with goodbyes and left me very sad and yet very happy and feeling really blessed. The friends we have made here, and the memories will stay with us long after we say goodbye.

Thank you Camp Grenada, and thank you to all our new friends who made this Hurricane season such a special one
fair winds, where ever you might head - we hope to see you soon
Darya and the Del-Max crew

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Happy Birthday Arbel!!!

October 13th was Arbel's birthday. My sweet baby boy just turned 4 and is definitely not a baby anymore!
His birthday was to be celebrated while our boat was 'on the hard', that means the boat is out of the water, in the boat yard while we lived for 2 weeks in an apartment we rented not far from the yard. Being away from the bay and the water for so long, made planning a birthday party somewhat of a complicated task, but yet again, the day was saved by fellow cruisers. It turned out that Helena from our Brazilian friend boat Matilda was celebrating her birthday 2 days before Arbel, and her mother, the much-more-organized Regina, already had almost everything arranged for a party on the 12th. As we shared the same guest list, Helena was kind enough to share the day with Arbel and thus we had a double birthday party.
The chosen venue was the lance aux Epine beach, where everyone can just land their dingy and join the party.
Friends from about 10 boats showed up for the party, and grown ups and adults alike had a blast!
I was so grateful to be able to celebrate yet another birthday so far away from home, and yet feel so surrounded by loving friends, that it made it feel just like home.

Happy birthday dear boy! you amaze me every single day!

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