The Sailor of Sailors Dreams of Remote Horizons. (Centkiewicz)

My yacht log - 02.10 - 02.18, 2007

"In the beginning they could not understand my insistence on getting away from the compass, that god of the West. But in exchange, they began to hear the why and sea talking with the boat. And when blue-tinted land appeared on the horizon, looking as it did to the mariners of old, all nimbed with mystery, a few of them felt that our rigorous techniques should leave a door open to those gods which the modern world tries so hard to exclude." -Bernard Moitessier, 'The Long Way'

--------------------------------------------------------------

02.10, 2007 (Day 140)
Géza Kerti was helping me a lot yesterday. He showed me the whole city, now I could navigate the city much better.

The daily tasks:

· fixed the outside emergency light suspension;

· untangled the fishing rope and the damyl line (after 3 weeks);

· put things in order;

· checked the storage areas: there was no water in the front – I have a good watertight seal now!

· jumped in the water and inspected the bottom of the ship, the propeller, the steering, removed the algae and the accumulated plant matter.

I went to the city in the afternoon to get on the internet – unfortunately it was quite expensive! – but I had to do it. Because my photo camera quit, I am going to buy a simple, cheap one Monday. I got an interesting link on the 'wiw': http://aaaa-aaaaroundtheworld.blogspot.com/ - it is the around-the-world log of my old buddies. Péter Csaba & Co. internet site: www.kiteline.hu. - the one I spent a lot of time with on Barbados, where I drank quite a lot of beer and rum-cocktails. I thank him and his kind troop! In the evening I went over to the apartment where the Hungarians lived, taking the #11 bus (1-1/2 Barbados dollars) – the commuting is not too easy here. The new group came, many-many new people – the people changed, but not the questions. It did not bother me, because I was happy that I could speak a little Hungarian! We had some cocktails together in the evening. A nice Hungarian couple gave me a bottle of Tokaj Muscatel wine. It was very welcome, I did not drink fine Hungarian wine for months. Later we went to the city to kick up our heels (dancing, drinking :-) till down.

02.11, 2007. (Day 141)

I am very happy, that more-and-more people follow my voyage. This way they may better understand the beauty (and the difficulties) of sailing in the ocean. I woke up next day with a mild hangover, but I started on the internet anyway early on the WLAN in the apartment of the Hungarians. My thanks for this! We took a round trip in the afternoon with 3 cars in Barbados. Bogi commandeered our car, Dani & Co. sat in the back anxiously J. The coconut is very delicious here. Usually the not completely ripe nuts are sold on the streets which are opened by a skilful black person (he is cutting it with a big knife), and the coco milk can be drunk with the help of a straw. Then he cuts up the nut in two halves and the meat can be scraped out with a spoon. It has a gelatin-like consistency and it tastes sweet. This develops into the coco after ripening :) We went bathing in the afternoon at the North – Middle part of a sandy beach, you could swim here with huge turtles. The secret for this is, that a bunch of divers were feeding them J The locals on the beach offered rum, I drank with them, but they water it down …. I don't understand, this is unconscionable! J We were criss-crossing the isle and completely covered it! There are a lot of coconut and banana trees here, not to talk about the sugar cane! I went from Itch Marlow to Bridgetown with the #11 bus in the evening. The bus stop is situated next to Buffy's shop, near a church. I went in and found a lot of singing, the service is a long song. (I did not sing!). The fishermen’s wharf is 20 minutes walking from Bridgetown. The same evening I washed and packed (i.e. the arranging of the ropes is a never-ending chore!).The package which contained my small package got lost somewhere and did not arrive on Friday, maybe it went to Toronto. Hopefully I will get it tomorrow.

02.12, 2007 (Day 142)

I got up early morning because I hoped that by 9 o'clock Derick, the workshop boss will arrive and both of us can repair the boom. Of course, he arrived after 11, and wanted to do the job at noon. This means that the boat will be ready tomorrow, without my help….
The work for today:

· Clothes washing;

· Dish washing;

· Motor: ignition plug replacement (due to the sea water, one got messed up), the bowden cable got rusty – so I had to lubricate it;

· The installation of the motor fan (Dad sent it with Péter Csaba)

· Rope work (1-2) with electrical tape and silicon rubber – I have to buy more rubber insulators!

In order to be able to get on the internet, I went to the Hungarian-apartment with bus… I was laughing at Tibi's letter for 10 minutes – thank you J I promise to you that if I am going to write a book, you will be in it completely! Thereafter I recounted my exploits in the Club Radio (Backwind stuff) via telephone (and expressed that I miss Bogi the most, the one I love). Unfortunately the net is very unreliable here and frequently crashes…. Because of this, I missed my MSN rendezvous with Bogi, my girlfriend. Géza and Enikõ are leaving home today, I sent a package with them also. In the evening I had a dinner with beer in the apartment with Péter, Krisztián, and Feri. Krisztián cooks very wellJ - I slept there.

02.13, 2007. (Day 143)
I did some interneting before noon – I should send many-many letters. Times like this allow me to talk to my family and friends - and mostly with my girlfriend. I had the opportunity to follow the traveling of other Hungarian boatmen around the area through their web sites: Géza Szabó, sail ship: www.rotorman.hu; Gábor Rakonczai and Andrea Pálos, rowers: www.atlantix.eu; The rower's competition site: www.oceanrowing.com .

My old workmates sent me the following song:

Rod Stewart - I'm Sailing

I am sailing, I am sailing,
Home again cross the sea.
I am sailing, stormy waters,
To be near you, to be free.

I am flying, I am flying,
Like a bird cross the sky.
I am flying, passing high clouds,
To be with you, to be free.

Can you hear me, can you hear me
Thro the dark night, far away,
I am dying, forever trying,
To be with you, who can say.

Can you hear me, can you hear me,
Thro the dark night far away.
I am dying, forever trying,
To be with you, who can say.

We are sailing, we are sailing,
Home again cross the sea.
We are sailing stormy waters,
To be near you, to be free.

Oh lord, to be near you, to be free.
Oh lord, to be near you, to be free,
Oh lord.

THANK YOU!

The manager of the apartment house was a very nice man: he washed my clothes free – true, there were not many! The place is called Ocean Spray. I can recommend it to everybody (not to talk about the rum-punch parties!) J

Around evening I went back to the fishermen’s wharf. In occasions like this, I always have a talk with the fishermen. It is interesting, that an 'uneducated' fisherman knows where Hungary is. How come?? Because of one man, by the name of Ferenc Puskás. Because of him, they know where Hungary is! He played soccer in the 50's and 60's. During 40 years, he did the things, from which they always know where Hungary is…The local food staple consists mainly of bananas L I ate guava cheese (cheese with sugar) in the evening, it was very tasty.

02.14, 2007. (Day 144)

Breakfast: bread with cheese. In the morning I went to the shop, the repair cost me 20 American dollars. Instead of two, he put in 6 rivets in the metal piece, but he installed it backward on the boom. Now the low point of the main sail can only be tied down by circumventing the boom. Not a big problem. I did not know what the English word was for 'caliper' – I did not find it in the dictionary. Of course, the dictionary omitted the word for 'acid-resistant' as well. A new acid-resistant pin has to be made for the propeller. I have only one more – I had to change one in São Vicente and I had to get the pin dimensions. Derick had an accurate caliper, mine shows only millimeters, the tenths can only be estimated. Later I talked with Szabolcs Varró at Radio Petõfi, they called me on the service number. Derick let me talk on his phone. After this I checked the steering mechanism under the water. I was not in the mood to go into the water here in the wharf, but I had no other alternative. And after the plunge, going in the fishermen's shower, although I have seen a lot of things in the past five months. J
Tasks:

· Keep continuously washing;

· Charging the backup battery from the solar cells, it is interesting, the battery was a 12.65 volt unit, and I charged it about 1-1/2 months before .. but I have to form it still;

· Cleaning (a never-ending chore, I always find spilled rice on my bed);

· Motor repair, checking – I already changed the bad ignition plug, but I could not take out the other one, it got completely rusted.

In the afternoon in Cape Sheperd, I bought a photo camera (Nikon, 6 MB, capable of sound video!), also a 512 MB SD card (one of them fell apart). This is the local shopping center. These two were approximately 250 American dollars. Good news: there will again be pictures J - and thanks to the acquaintances, and the unknown ones too for the help. Lunch: 8 Barbados dollars (4 USA dollars) is the cheapest food. A normal meal: fish, chicken, or pork, with rice, sweet potatoes, breadfruit and salad, (which contains even bananas). After lunch, I took a walk in the city. Here everybody smokes 'Charlie' – marihuana. The taxi chauffeurs wanted to sell me the stuff for 2-1/2 US dollars, but here practically everybody sells it. A carnival is a thousand times more fun! Of course, I sampled the Carib Lager for its taste J - the local beer tastes good! I met Péter, Feri, and Krisztina at the wharf. We started drinking beer in the ship, then walked to the apartment – Ocean Spray (telephone: 264-428-5426), I can recommend it to everybody, because the owner is a very good head! I wanted to say good-bye to the kites, for this reason I slept there outside. Tamás' lose cocktails (cola with rum) turned me upside-down and put me to sleep. For a few times I listened to Puffi's points, then I went to sleep. I thank to the 'kiters' that they accepted me. It felt very good to talk a little Hungarian…

02.15, 2007. (Day 145)
Péter and Feri took me to the city in the morning. This way I did not have to take bus #11, although it is very entertaining: really loud music, red artificial lather seats, and the passengers are mostly blacks. With my beard, the only white person, I really stick out of the crowd J. The #11 bus goes between Bridgetown and Silver Sands, in the neighborhood of Ocean Spray. The autopilot arrived, so I can resume the journey today. I said good-bye to the fishermen, I gave them small gifts – the ones you can drink J. The president of the wharf gave me his contact information. I don’t meet very often with such a man! These fishermen are good heads, true, they are almost constantly drunk J and so, it is sometimes difficult to communicate with them J. I slept with them free for 6 nights, the first night I was with the Wills tied to the service, also free. Then it took 1-2 hours at the duty office. They are not in the hurry here. I met an older Belgian and a Dutch couple who arrived today in a small boat. It is bigger than mine, but it has the shape of a bottle and is written on it: 'Message in the Bottle'. I could talk with them only for a short time, the captain was very tired. They traveled for 35 days from the Cape Verde islands. I made a few pictures of the ship. At 13:00 hours I finally got under way with a pleasant Bf. 4-5 Northeast wind. Not much later after leaving, I saw a nice big turtle, but I did not harmed it – I like turtles, and of course the turtle soup is good too J. Martinique, Le Marin: distance: 109 nautical miles, ~207 km; direction: 317° I put up all the sails and determined that my boom reinforcer is broken. I have to replace it – the wooden ones break real easy. Leaving the North side of Barbados, I met with dolphins, I sailed with them for several hours. There were many of them, and they are bigger, than the European ones. Dinner: cheese-bread with pâté. Evening at 23:00 UTC – 24:00 UTS is my time for the radio. I talked with Laci, AA7UY, in Nevada. I put away the Barbados map: Barbados, 2485BA (printed in 1987, last edition: in 2001); Bridgetown, 502 (printed in1963, last edition: in 1981). On board: fuel: 36 liters, water: 150 liters. Weather: barometer: 1012 mb, temperature: 32° C, (89.6° F) at 14:00 hours Barbados time. Sea condition: 3, wind: Northeast, Bf. 4-5. The Canary current at this moment: 0.6 knots. I put the new autopilot to use tonight, met two ships, both of them gave me the right of way.

02.16, 2007 (Day 146)
This morning I found a flying fish on the deck. I missed already the sailing with the Carina. After morning a small fishing boat passed me. At 9 o'clock Martinique came into sight – only 28 nautical miles (~51.8 km) more. Breakfast: hot dogs, cheese and bread. Here the ocean lives – flying fish fly, and a few birds can be seen on the horizon. Unfortunately I have not seen any dorados. Barometer: 1018, temperature: 32° C, (89.6° F), wind: Northeast, Bf. 4-5. Traveling with full sails toward Le Marin, my goal is to arrive there before dark. I got new books, so I could now read again: Kurt Vonnegut (I always liked him): 'God Bless You, Mr. Kevorkian!', Péter Müller: 'Love Book' – I have read his spiritual books in the High School). In the vicinity of Martinique a small boat (about 8m, ~26 feet) caught up with me and came a bit too close – but we could talk a little J I tied up around 6 pm (location 406), a Hungarian group helped me in finding a mooring place. It was interesting that when I was navigating between the buoys, a catamaran came up behind me and took over with a big hullabaloo – yes, they were Hungarians J. We came a bit too close to each other, both of us used the autopilot. We moored close to each other, and right away I got a nice cold beer! It felt very good!!! Then came the drinks with rum with coke JJ During their voyage, they caught a barracuda, we fried it as a good-bye dinner. They were very congenial, the invited me too. At late nigh I made friendship with the local youth and went up the mountain. I found it interesting that everybody smokes marijuana here (Charlie). About the island – the Le Marin harbor was recommended by Csaba. The locations of the harbor buoys: Pos. 14-26.69 N, 060-54.06 W. The ship factory near by: http://careantilles.com /, Fort-de-France is not just an average harbor, due to the depth problems, one has to follow the buoy line when arriving. WP1: 14-35 N, 061-03.7 W, this the first buoy of the line. From here between the red and green buoys one has to proceed, later with motor in an approximate Northerly direction. From here I will see the harbor. Another harbor: Marina du Bakoua Anse Mitan, marina Yacht Harbour: port.marin@wanadoo.fr. Martinique is 1106 square kilometers (427 square miles). Capital, harbor: Fort-de-France located on the Western side of the isle, sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean, in a deep harbor. Opposite to the harbor is the statue of Belain D'Estubaco knight, he got the island back to France. A little history: Earlier the arawalis Indian tribe lived there, they were massacred and extinguished by the Caribs, and those by the white men… Columbus discovered the island in 1493, but only during his fourth voyage in 1502 did he step ashore. The situation today: It is one of the Republic of France's Overseas Department, the wealth is greater than the surrounding isles. The local industry: processing, machine works, and of course coconut growing. They press oil from the nuts. There is a great abundance of banana and sugar cane, from which sugar and white rum is produced (very tasty!!!) J It is, naturally, a significant tourist center.

02.17, 2007. (Day 147)

I went to town after 7 in the morning to arrange the entry papers, had to fill out only one duty paper – the whole process took but 5 minutes. Then consulted the head office – where can I relocate, because yesterday I used a Charter Company's private harbor. Did not give me too much problem because of this, I was very popular by now with my boatJ. After this I went to the harbor machine shop where I found out that the crane will cease operating for a week, waiting for a new motor! But then it is carnival time and nobody is workingJJ. (I will go over to Rodney Bay Marina in St. Lucia, I will fix my steering there.) The group of György Déri very kindly gave me their food and drink supplies – so I became the owner of a lot of rum bottles, one of which is 85% alcohol (170 proof) JJJJ. Seeing this, 2 Polish troops gave me their 'leftovers', as well, Rafat Kaleta: www.sailmore.pl . When I occupied my new place (101), I could hear Hungarian screaming and greetings. There stood two Catamarans full with Hungarians – the 'Orgy' and the 'Delirium'. We had a very nice conversation, but this was their last day too, they left in the afternoon. Obviously, they gave their 'leftovers' to me too (about 15 liters of French bottled wineJ - I will pay with theseJJJ. On top of this, I got Hungarian newspapers, even a book written by Albert Wass! Thank you!! In the afternoon I got acquainted with George, who has a 44-foot (~13.5 meters) boat and he knows the area well. Usually he rents the boat to tourists, he lives here on Martinique. He too recommended the Rodney Bay Marina for repairs. There was a small carnival in the evening, a few blacks dressed as women, they made the mood with musical instruments and torches. The small group consisted of approximately 80 people, I joined them… they make very good music and their sense of rhythm is good, it was a nice shindig. Through the streets, up the mountain, where the rum came out of hidingJJ.

02.18, 2007. (Day 148)

Shakespeare: Tempest

Now my charms are all

O’erthrown,

And what strength I have’s

Mine own…..

- - - - - - -

As you from crimes would

Pardon’d be,

Let your indulgence

Set me free.

The rain started in the morning. Before noon I was occupied with the packaging of the food and drinks, so much stuff is impossible to store in the boat…. Csaba Novák and group are coming today, besides, it would be nice to go to Port-de-France… but we have no bus…Before noon I scanned the ‘index.hu’ and ‘sailing.hu’ site Forums and have written also. I seldom write. Later visited the ‘wiw.hu’ site – some times they record meJ. I have so much cheese on the boat, that I continuously drink and eat cheese with it… this is what I like about FranceJ. I think a lot of travelers know: ‘http://couchsurfing.com.’ I registered there before, and I did it againJ. In the afternoon I went (with auto stop) to Fort-de-France. There is no bus in the weekendsJ. But it was a Carnival, an incredibly big shindig! Everybody dancedJ - several thousand people. The big crowd bothered me a little… did not stay long. On the way back – also with auto stop – but I had to use two. The auto stop is easy here, I can recommend itJ. I met Csaba Novák in the evening, we were drinking together and recanting stories to each other.

Translated by Pali, N6DMV/HA5CCV.