Bequia

Friday 13 January – Monday 30 January

We are anchored on the north side of Admiralty Bay almost in the exact same location as we were back in July when we were heading south. It is SOOOO nice to be in a calm anchorage. NO rolling back & forth, just a little when the ferry goes by. Christmas winds are still with us so plenty of breeze to keep us & the boat cool. All the restaurants are open and the streets are full of fruit & veggie vendors, and what a marvelous selection they have. It feels like a different island “in season” then it did in the summer “off season”. It is fun to get off the boat and just walk around “town” picking up the veggies we will need for that nights dinner or checking on the specials of the different restaurants to see if anything appeals. Living on a boat we just go to town to walk :). Several boats we knew from Grenada are already here and we get together with them again. Later the following week we see Sunbourne ,whom we had met down in Trinidad, come into the anchorage. The next day we go by and say HI and visit. Steve & I wanted to take an Island tour, and even though Shariffa & Horst have been to Bequia several times and done an Island tour they are up to going on another with us. Linda & John from Cool Cat had done one and recommended a taxi driver so we found him and booked an outing for Friday morning. Bequia is a beautiful island and it is always fun seeing the different areas away from where we anchor. The highlight of the tour is the Old Hegg Turtle Sanctuary, where Mr King takes care of Hawksbill turtles. He dedicates his time taking care of baby and young turtles until they can fend for themselves out in open waters. A few injured ones that can not fend for themselves he keeps there. It is a really wonderful set up to help increase the turtle population. Back to town for a late lunch enjoying the view of our boats out in the anchorage. Nothing had broken or had to be fixed in a while so we knew it was just a matter of time. On Thursday our dinghy motor started acting up !! Steve tried to fix with no luck. Friday we got a ride in with Sunbourne for the island tour, then that afternoon Steve cleaned the carburetor AGAIN but it still kept stalling out. We found the # for the local outboard motor specialist Kerry and called him, he says he can make it out in an hour. He had been working on another boat, when he finished that guy dropped him off at our boat. We all asked how he was going to get back to shore and he just patted our dinghy and smiled – confidant that he could fix it – and he did. Steve learned a new thing to check if the outboard acts up, seems the float valve was letting too much fuel in and flooding it so just a tiny adjustment and shes working fine again. On Sunday Steve's computer was locked up and he was trying to do everything he could to get it started to no avail. He gets on the VHF radio to call around to see if there is a place that works on computers on Bequia thinking he would need to bring it in to get fixed on Monday. After many attempts he was finally able to restore to the last back up the week before so just missed a little of info that he was able to go back in and recreate. Then the generator water pump belt broke, which would not be such a big deal as we have plenty of spare belts. But the problem was caused by the generators alternator bearings being shot and seizing up the alternator so it would not turn the belt. So now a little problem is a big problem. Run into town for a late lunch stopping by Sunbourne on the way back to tell them of our new problem. They point out a boat behind them and say to go talk to him as he has a shop and is known as Mr Fix It. We stop by and Steve explains our problem thinking it can not be rebuilt but he says he can fix it and tells Steve where his shop is and to bring it by in the morning. So by Monday morning 2 of the 3 problems have been resolved and we are hoping the 3^rd one gets fixed as fast. Mr Fix It orders some bearings from St. Vincent and they arrive on the Tuesday morning ferry as we are boarding for a day trip over to St. Vincent, Mr Fix It is there getting his package with our bearings to re build the alternator. So Steve & I head out on the hour ferry ride over to the main island of the Grenadines St. Vincent. As soon as you walk off , no actually one taxi driver was walking on to the ferry asking if you needed a ride. We must have said no 50 times in the first 30 minutes we were there. We just wanted to walk around the town of Kingstown and see what the “big” city was like compared to the little towns on the smaller islands. Turns out to be just a lot more of the same, fruit & veggie stands & markets every where. We later asked who eats all this stuff, looked like way too much for that size town. We were told that when the locals get off work they go by all the different stands and pick up what they need, we still think a lot must go bad before it can be bought. We did find Steve a new cup, he has a favorite that had broken and rather then use a different one he just kept gluing that one back together. Now I got to throw it away :). After walking around town and having lunch we did find a taxi driver who took us up to the fort which gives the most stunning view of Kingstown and the harbour. Part of the OLD fort is still used as a woman’s prison, the guide did say their part has been updated compared to the old section we saw. Then we went to the Botanical Gardens and walked around the beautiful grounds, then up to Belmont Lookout overlooking the Mesopotamia Valley, known for its fertile soil where many of the wonderful crops grown on St. Vincent come from, another stunning view. Back in the taxi and back to the ferry dock to catch the 4 pm ride back to Bequia. A couple of days later walking down main street we run into Jan & Larry from Sea Bear whom we had met in Grenada. They are also here for the music festival and meet up later for pizza at Mac's. Thursday and Friday afternoon the boats keep pouring into the harbour, luckily it has plenty of room and the north side where we are is not as crowded. Friday night we made arrangements to meet Jan & Larry at 8 pm to take a taxi down to De Reef on lower bay where the festival is being held. Bands started around 9, first 2 were not very good BUT the following acts were great and we had a good time dancing and listening to music until 2 am. Saturday they had 2 events, the afternoon show over in Friendship Bay (east side) at the beautiful Bequia Beach Hotel, and another evening event at De Reef. We had Terrance our helpful taxi guy drop us off about 1 at the Bequia Beach Hotel and the music was already playing. We found a spot on the grass in the shade and spread out our towels and enjoyed a beautiful afternoon listening to music. We wore bathing suits as the event was right on the beach but it was pretty rough, the waves crashing on shore – not too many people went swimming. Jan & I did manage a little dip in the hotel pool. In addition to selling alcohol drinks, the Mount Gay Rum ladies were there roaming the crowd pouring shots – as many as you wanted. They also had a table set up in case you wanted a little ice or juice to go with your rum. Had to pace ourselves as we still had the concert to go to later in the evening. Back to the boats around 4:30 and told Terrance to pick us up at 8:30 giving us a little time to clean up and get ready for the night. We knew Saturday night was the bigger event but were very surprised when we had to be dropped off down the street as it was already getting crowded and the music was playing. The main room was already almost wall to wall people. Where the night before they had tables & chairs set along the outskirts tonight all tables & chairs were removed and put on the beach. Both nights they also had a huge screen outside visible to a large area for people to see. Steve & I were lucky and grabbed 2 chairs outside in the 3^rd row, later moved up to the front row right in front of the screen & behind the stage. So we were able to watch the bands on stage and also the backstage area where the musicians came off stage and watch all the people coming in, many decked out all dressed up. Later heard 600 people were there, It was another fun night. We left a little earlier and were back to the boat by 1:15. Sunday we were to be picked up at noon, in the dinghy on the way in Steve remembers we need to check out ! As we plan to leave Monday morning. We did not think that customs would be open but as we walk by they are, so Steve goes back to the boat to get our papers and I go meet Jan & Larry to take the taxi back to De Reef for the final days concert. We joined another couple who had already gotten a good table (tables & chairs back inside) and enjoyed another fun afternoon listening to music. Steve & I left early around 4 since we had to go back and get the boat ready to leave early the next morning. Bequia is a great little island, plenty of good restaurants to choose from, great fruits & veggies available, decent shopping (provisioning) , good anchorage, and friendly people, we are glad we got to spend more time here getting to know the island a little better. Next Stop St. Lucia

link to pictures; https://picasaweb.google.com/103931849054358791487/Bequia?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCPmiua_UouHm3wE&feat=directlink