Tragedy on the River

We had a tragedy on the river last night.  A boat was boarded, the people were robbed and the husband was killed and the wife seriously injured.  We know the people on the boat.  As a matter of fact, they were in my spanish class and I had had lunch with them on Thursday.

They were excited about the purchase of their boat and  had just completed fixing it and getting it ready to cruise.  This had been a dream for theirs for almost 20 years.  They told me on Thursday that they were going to start taking the boat out and anchoring out so that they could familiarize themselves with the systems and get use to the boat.

Sadly, their dream ended in tragedy.  There is much talk on the river this morning about what should we do about this incident.  How dangerous is the river, should you have weapons on board, and what if anything will happen between the Guatemalan Government and the US Embassy.  Based on past history not much.

I am sure that some boaters will now think that the river is too dangerous a place to be and there will be an exodus from the river.  The Rio Dulce is a dangerous place.  So are most major cities in any country and I know of a number of boats that were robbed and people killed anchored in Florida.

We aren't over reacting.  We are trying to do our best to be vigilent and not spread rumors.  I am sure that the Rio Dulce Chisme  will have the full story as soon as Roy can get more details.

Bad things happen to good people.  We mustn't rush to judgement on Guatemala as a whole.  Please keep the wife and the family in your thoughts and prayers.

IS The Love Boat is Calling?

Jumping to conclusions is something that most of us have been guilty of at least once in our lives.

I am not sure if when you read my blog you read the comments posted. It seems that some concerned friends read my blog about a trip to Guatemala City to shop for the tienda at the marina started speculation that I am going to be the Activity Director. I then wrote the Exclusive tongue in cheek response.

Now I am wondering if it is I that have jumped to conclusions…were they pulling my leg and did I fall hook, line, and sinker for their tongue in cheek comments.

Sources close to me have stated that I have been falling into old habits lately and am only steps away from jumping back into my old ways and previous job.

So… after ordering the above book and getting certified as a Professional Activity Director you make up your mind.

EXCLUSIVE

Rumors are flying at Mario's Marina and in the United States that Cindy off the S/V Dragonheart has agreed to be the Activities Director once again at the marina for an undisclosed amount of cash.

Our reporters were not able to catch up to Ms. Miller, however, our sources in the know state, "We have heard rumors that she will be returning in her capacity as Activity Director. We can neither confirm nor deny any such claims."

Our efforts to talk to Jim Ellis owner of Mario's Marina have been unsuccessful. Marco Linares, dockmaster at Mario's will only offer a "No Comment".

Speculation began that Ms. Miller would once again be the Activities Director after a non scheduled trip with marina staff to, "do some shopping for the tienda." Anyone familiar with the politics of the marina are well aware that one seemingly innocent trip can be and often is a cover for much more sinister activity.

We will continue to cover this breaking news event as further details become known.

I had a good day

Yesterday, Marco the Dockmaster, and I went to Guatemala City to do the tienda shopping. We started out at 0400 because on a good day it is a 5 hour drive one way. We had a fairly good trip considering the mudslides, traffic and rain. Coming back was a little more difficult, but more on that later.

Riding along with us were 2 virgin cruisers to Guatemala. After being here off and on for four years I have learned a little about the country, the people and the politics. So I got to show off yesterday and be the tour guide. It had been awhile since I had driven to the City. Lots of changes and progress, that double edged sword is visible everywhere. The new four lane highway through the mountains (in partnership with Taiwan China) that crowds out small tipico homes. The new lean-tos that dot the side of the road selling illegal diesel, fruit, drinks, and other commodities. The tree branches placed like flares to let you know that there has been an accident. The painted rocks that are fading…they carry the political parties endorsements of the last presidential campaign in Guatemala.

Arriving in the City you are accosted with fumes from the trucks and buses, the cacophony of noise, goats being herded and the occasional clown driving to gig. Then you arrive in Zone 10 the Zone of Life and the shopping, fine dining, and hotels. You realize that you are away from the river.

For me the best part of the trip was being with Marco. He is a warm friendly guy that I consider a good friend. He lets me practice my Spanish and doesn’t laugh too much when I say something wrong. He talks to me about his country and how young it is in a democratic sense. He talks to me about how horrible it was as a school boy to be stopped by the soldiers and even though he was in a school uniform he had to be able to show his school ID or face arrest or possible worse. (It reminds me how lucky I am that I was born in the United States.) We share our lives with each other. Marco and his family are part of the reason that we love Guatemala.

So we drove back home to the river after a good shopping trip. It rained. It rained hard and there were waterfalls and mudslides that weren’t there on the way up. There were 6 accidents all involving 18 wheelers. We made it home after dark, but the pontoon boat was waiting to take us to the marina with our stuff.

It was a good day…I spent it with my friend, Marco.

WE HAVE POWER !

We have power to the docks again! Yes, the river finally went down enough to turn the power back on to the docks. So yesterday afternoon was most quiet outside. The sound you did not hear was generators running to top off batteries. What you did hear was the sweet sound of water pushed through cooling water pumps to run air conditioners.

It was quite festive at the Pot Luck last night. People even showed up late to Happy Hour. Just couldn't tear ourselves away from that lovely Magic Box that makes our boats cool and dry. So toast all around to the power and to Marco who put up with our bitching and complaining.

We had started a pool on when the power would be turned back on. Seems no-one thought that it would happen as soon as it did. So no-one won the pool. A vote was taken and we decided to put the money aside for the Christmas fund here at the marina. So for the first time in four seasons we have a head start on raising money for our annual charities here on the Rio Dulce.

It's Raining, It's Pouring

Rain, Rain, Go away! Well it is looking like Deja vue all over again. The river finally hit the magic mark two nights ago. They had to turn the power off to the docks, so we are without power. Yes, it is still raining.
O.K. we live on sailboats. We have generators, our own water supply and heck we live on the hook without being plugged in. I know we are in a marina because we want power and air conditioning and internet. We are trying to keep a positive attitude about the whole thing. Yesterday was boat moving day as some boats were in danger of being put on the dock if a wave of any size came our way.
It looks like boat spaghetti around us. We are tied off on both sides to keep us off of the dock and our fenders aren’t doing much. So now we are wondering when will it go over the docks?
Stay tuned!

We have a Teenager on Board

Many of you know that we adopted our Grand-daughter, Cynthia. She has been on the boat with us from day one on this cruising journey. When she was little in size and age we didn't think far enough into the future when purchasing our boat.

In the beginning she fit quite well in the quarter berth by the stairs. Now she is 13 and a little bigger physcially than when we started. Perhaps we shouldn't feed her so much.

Overall, Cynthia has always been a great "boat kid". She loves the water, swims and snorkles well, she has a sense of adventure, and she doesn't have alot of fear. Her main qualification is that she is willing to put up with Michael and I. Not always an easy task.

The last couple of years have been hard on her. Not many kids around here and she was bored and grumpy and really not much fun to be around. So imagine our horror to realize that on June 15th she would be an official teenager.

Some amazing things happened over this last cruising season. She started to smile. She started to join in activities again. And when we returned to the marina for hurricane season the positive changes were even more bountiful. She is walking every morning before 7am. She is participating in water aerobics every afternoon. She applied herself to her studies with a new enthusiasm. She is singing karaoke and really seems to be having fun again.

We couldn't be happier. She keeps us young and in touch. She reminds us when we are asses and she makes us laugh. It is not all us though. There is an entire group of cruisers that have helped raise her and make what she is today.

Thanks for putting up with us and sharing the adventure.