Regatta

We are back in George Town, this time it was unavoidable, we had to get our visa extension.  I’m not sure why we stress so much about it, it’s an easy process.  You go down to the immigration office a few days before it runs out, smile, hand your passports to the man with the gun, say please, and sit down and wait while he disappears into the back with your stuff.  A while later he comes back, smiles (maybe), hands you your passports, and off you go. No money even exchanges hands!  Of course last time we were told we were granted 90 days but while we were walking back to the boat Keith said he didn’t think something was right.  We stopped and pulled out our passports on the side of the road and sure enough, we were told 90 days but had only been stamped for 60.  Thank goodness he looked or we would have been showing up 30 days illegal this go around! That probably wouldn’t have gone as smoothly.

Our re-visit to George Town also coincided with the beginning of the Family Island Regatta.  While we had run from the Cruisers Regatta, we thought the local one might be fun to experience.  This weekend was the juniors race days.  Those little kids had some skills.  It wasn’t a keep you at the edge of your seats kind of event and watching the spectators was just as much fun as watching the boats, but it was an easy way to spend the day.  We shared it with Jessie and Stacey on Smitty.  We met them a few weeks ago. They recognized us while we were at the laundromat and it turned out our boats were anchored next to each other. They were actually our very, very first blog followers (and I probably one of their earlier followers).  Over the past three years as we’ve traveled the same journey of prepping a boat, selling the house, quiting the jobs (at least for a while), and going cruising we had emailed/commented back and forth frequently ending with something along the lines of “maybe we will meet each other in some beautiful island anchorage”.  Whatdayaknow…..that’s exactly what happened!  We’ve been loosely sailing with them and completely enjoying it.  They invited us over to their boat for Easter breakfast, a decadent event with eggs, sausage, croissants, Brie, and fruit.  Oh-Yum. It’s cool when something you’ve thrown out to the universe materializes.

Our original plan was to get our visas, reprovision, and head for the Raggeds. The weather just isn’t cooperating, nothing scary just not blowing from the right direction.  But it IS blowing from the right direction if you wanted to go to Cat Island. 

Hey, let’s go to Cat!

^^Just watching the kids race.

^^photo edited in Brushstrokes app

^^Yeah, I’d like to stay here for another 90 days please.  Thank You.

^^whatdayaknow….sharing a view of our pretty island anchorage together at sundown.