New Friends!

We've had a great time here the past couple of days at South Side Marina. Aside from the joy of seeing old friends, we've made some new ones as well, so we are enjoying ourselves immensely! Bob has a long-time friend from Canada visiting, Cam, who has joined us all at the cruisers' evening sundowner sessions under the marina cabana. His jokes and unparalleled acting ability have sent us all into gales of laughter, and it's been such fun! We met a trio of friends, Andy, Skip and Eric, off Ark Angel out of Key West, who regaled us with stories and great humor while they were in port with us for a day or so, and we've had a wonderful time getting to know Brittany and Scott off Rasmus. Ron and Cam have been in charge of blowing the conch shells at sunset, and everyone has been pitching in, bringing various and sundry appetizers to complement the libations.

We went out to dinner Saturday night, taking Skip, Eric, Brittany and Scott to Da Conch Shack. If you ever visit Providenciales, eating at Da Conch Shack is a definite must! The atmosphere is fun, the scenery breathtaking, and the food is just so good! Not to mention Atoll's fabulous rum punch! After sharing a pitcher or two of punch, and feasting our hearts out on the various conch dishes there, we make a short hop over to Turtle Cove, and stopped in at the Shark Bite to see Simone and the folks there. And who should we see as we walked in? Another friend from on-island, Roots! So fun, the serendipity of life! 

Conch and more conch!

Sunday was a low-key, hang-on-the-boat type of day and we each accomplished various odd jobs. Ron helped Scott and went in search of some material with which to fix a broken part on Rasmus' dinghy engine, (Somewhat successful, their biking adventure also included a flat tire for Ron, after he ran over a screw and it punctured the tire in numerous places. A rescue mission ensued to get him and the bike back to the marina.) Ron also completed a run to the IGA for veggies and other provisions while I handled my usual tasks, among them, cleaning out the flybridge refrigerator, doing laundry, and baking bread. While nothing new, revisiting the familiar is just as enjoyable, and it felt great to get a lot done!! 

The weather has changed from being mild-mannered and calm to being windy and capricious. The winds have picked up as the fronts moved in, and more boats have pulled in to the marina to escape the choppy seas of the bank. Andy and Sharon off Finally Fun and Kelly and George off Earthling have joined our group as a result, so we have quite a fun crowd here at South Side! As I've said before, it's the people you meet while cruising that make this life so very special; we are so fortunate!