Thursday, October 30, 2014

“C” is for CURACAO

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Dutch buildings are a bouquet of COLOR, especially here in Willemstad, the capital.
For a change of pace and scenery this year, we set sail for the island of Curacao to wait out the 2014 Hurricane Season.  Prior to putting it on our float plan, we had the impression that Curacao was a summer haven for a younger set of cruisers.  We were pleasantly surprised to learn that there were plenty of “old salts” in the main crowded anchorage of Spanish Waters, and it seemed that many of them came and never left.  It is a busy anchorage with dinghies, fishing boats, and day trip boats whizzing by. Although the water was clear, the bottom is dark and grassy and uninviting for swimming.

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Our view at anchor in Spanish Waters

Curacao is part of the Netherland Antilles and is the “C” of the ABC islands that are located just north of Venezuela.  It is now independent from Holland, but still very DUTCH, and perhaps that is why there is an overwhelming number of friendly Dutch cruisers here. There is also a growing population of Venezuelans who contribute to the economy by owning businesses, providing services, or shipping scads of fresh produce. Thankfully, almost everyone speaks English and the ATMs disperse Dutch guilders, as well as US dollars.
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This swing bridge opens when vessels enter Willemstad's Harbor.

 





Immigration for vessels was recently improved by allowing 120 days for visitors.  But clearance procedures, i.e. completing paperwork at both Customs and Immigration, is quite a hassle. Spanish Waters is about an hour bus ride away from the port of Willemstad where the offices are located. The offices are about a twenty minute walk apart and you must time your trip right to avoid their closed doors during their midday meal. Another downside to being in Curacao is that the authorities make it complicated for boats to move about to other anchorages. Each time you want to move, the Captain is required to secure an anchoring permit for the new location which may not be granted if too many other vessels have permits to go there. So Exit Strategy stayed put anchored in Spanish Waters. 


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Our engine was hauled out for routine maintenance.


While in Spanish Waters we elected to have a locally recommended mechanic work on a short maintenance list for our Volvo engine.  What we expected to take a few days, was finished bit by bit over ten weeks.  When we finally left the anchorage we motored to Willemstad to be pulled out so we could put on a few more coats of anti-fouling, replace the damper plate, and replace the oil seals on the sail drive. The mechanics there were able to get the job done easily after pulling our engine so they could access the damper plate.  We had a good experience at Curacao Marine.

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Burgers for 4th of July with Tony & Jane of sv Capisce.








Grocery shopping is a challenging endeavor here if there is no picture or English on the packaging to identify if the item is what you need to buy.  One can guess correctly at some cuts of meat, but unless you can read Dutch it is impossible to identify others.  Cheese- CHEESE! It seems that they mainly have gouda- no cheddar, and it is gouda light, gouda dark, gouda with wasabi, or with dill or maybe cumin, or with something red… Deli counters with freshly sliced meats are rare and most stores only package enough lunch meat for one sandwich! 

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Long-maned horsehead formation in the caves
Our frustrations with Curacao were luckily balanced by our upbeat experiences with cruiser friends we met there. We enjoyed many an afternoon playing (but never winning) Mexican Train Dominoes on one boat or another. We joined others for hikes to a couple of different beaches where we snorkeled and lounged. We wandered the quiet roads near Spanish Waters to explore the ruins of a fort and some salt ponds with friends who were in to geocaching.  Occasionally, we ventured into Willemstad by local bus to shop, have dinner, and attend an English mass. We also rented a car a few times to tour around the island during which we visited some caves and I ate stewed iguana for lunch. (It was at a restaurant and quite flavorful in a red gravy with the taste and texture being a cross between chicken and pork,only with a lot more bones.)

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My iguana lunch platter
I didn’t intend for this entry about Curacao to come off like a rant because our experience there DID have some redeeming qualities.  However, what it boils down to is that we enjoyed Curacao so much that we are planning an extended stay in BONAIRE for the Hurricane Season of 2015!

PS:  We took ARUBA, the “A”, off of our float plan because we had vacationed there by plane years ago and heard that now it is even more built up with no real appealing anchorages.

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"SEX Stones" as our friend Barb dubbed them...F---ing rocks.
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Dan, me, Barb, & Jimmy in Aruba around 1987