Our December page stopped on December 20, so we have to back up a bit.

December 21 -- Upon arrival in Barra de Navidad, we dinghied into town to get laundry done, shop for provisions, and check in with the Port Captqin. That evening we enjoyed Happy Hour aboard Secret O'Life, with Terry and Tammy.

December 22 -- Lots to do today: internet cafe, arrange for turkey at our Christmas potluck with Maria at her tienda (local small grocery that caters to cruisers special needs), get water from the local Pemex station. Happy Hour on Jellybean with Terry and Tammy, and Barb and Gary from Hurrah! We even served blue cheese with lavash crackers -- not bad for rural Mexico!

December 23 -- More of the same; swimming at the hotel's pool, dinghying around, visiting, etc. We purchased a fabulous Mahi Mahi filet from the local fish market and had a wonderful BBQ fish supper aboard Jellybean.

December 24 -- I, Marlene, ran the local cruisers' net on the VHF radio for the first time today. Luckily, years of public speaking plus not being afraid of microphones resulted in a successful first attempt. After the net, we had a special treat -- Wow -- Terry (Secret O'Life) had arranged for cruisers to have breakfast at the Golf Club associated with the 5-star hotel where the expensive Marina is. About 40 or so people participated. The food was outstanding, the facility is gorgeous. Afterwards, several of us climbed a tower to look out over the course. A few of our cruiser friends appear in the photos below:

Christmas Day -- Friends Tammy and Terry from Secret O'Life and John and Linda from Nakia came over to Jellybean for Kringle -- a great success. Tammy brought over her espresso pot and made mochas for several of us. Later that day, all the cruisers in Barra de Navidad participated in a wonderful potluck at a hotel in Barra (not the 5-star) which is very friendly to cruisers -- only condition being that we purchase all beverages from the hotel. We had arranged for two turkeys to be prepared, Mexican style (stuffed with vegetables and sausage -- scrumptious), and a great time was had be all.

December 26 -- We took two trips to town, then spent the evening with Kathy and Kevin from Tao Min and John and Linda from Nakia, first having Pozole at a local restaurant (actually the living room of a home with kids watching TV behind us) and then onto the Sunset eatery for dessert and live music.

December 27 -- we "cruised" back to Tenacatita. Enroute we encountered a pod of whales, dozens of spouts and tails entertained us for about 20 minutes.

December 28 -- After taking a long walk along the beach some cruisers gathered to play bocce ball while others retreated to the palapa to play "Mexican Train," a fun dominos game, and still others just sat and talked while sipping cool drinks. Roy swam to shore; Marlene hitched a ride with our "neighbor."

December 29 -- I ran the cruisers' net again; it's actually quite a lot of fun to say "good morning" to 40 or so boats. Another day at the beach with a long walk, Mexican Train, talking, etc. While on the long walk, someone noticed a big lump ahead of us, near the rocks at the base of a cliff. We discovered it was a baby octopus which had lost its way and was heading toward the beach instead of the water or rocks. Alison picked it up by two tentacles and placed it on the rocks where it seemed to know where it was -- a happy ending. By now, Roy and I are into our "Scrabble Tournament" phase. He royally beat me tonight.

December 30 -- Several new boats have arrived just in time for the New Year. Tonight, the "mayor" (cruiser with longest tenure at Tenacatita Bay) has arranged for a dinghy raft-up where everyone brings food to share, boat cards, books and other media to swap. About 20 boats participated -- a lot of fun.

New Year's Eve -- After preparing a bean salad for tonight's raft-up (again!) we went visiting -- climbing aboard friends' boats, sharing stories about our travels, boat problems and solutions, and of course, our families. This photo is of Jerry of Po Oina Roa preparing quesadillas for the raft-up. Several of our cruiser friends are from the Northtwest, including Canada. Roy tried his luck at fishing in the afternoon, but no luck. The evening raft up was followed by a small gathering on Secret O'Life. Folks from Tao Min, Que Bella and we had a Tequila Tasting. I had no idea how many different varieties there were. Since I don't do too well with hard liquor I literally tasted a drop at the end of my tongue -- then Roy sipped the little bit that remained for each one. During the evening hours we saw a few fireworks from around the Bay. However we couldn't keep our eyes open past 11 p.m. -- and while we were sleeping soundly, a huge fireworks display was held, with rockets, etc. Nothing like having your boat gently rocking you to sleep!

New Year's Day -- With phone calls to make and shopping to replenish our stores, we "moved" back to the Barra de Navidad lagoon. Again, we encountered the pod of whales as we exited Tenacatita Bay. That was the big excitement. We also motored to replenish the batteries and made water. We had no wind, even though we did unfurl the Genoa to see if the wind could "slow" us down. When we turned off the motor, we were just sitting still in the water. After arriving I defrosted the refrigerator in anticipation of the big shopping day tomorrow.

January 2 -- Early a.m. we went over to Maria's Tienda to stock up, but alas it was closed, so instead Roy fetched water for our rear tank while I waited for Maria. After fetching water, Roy came back and still no Maria so we left, back to the boat for lunch, then back to Maria's to finally purchase her high quality produce, cheeses, cereal and even plastic wrap and aluminum foil! We also left our propane tank to be refilled and will pick it up tomorrow morning.

The evening started with a sunset Happy Hour at a lovely bar on the top floor of a 6-story hotel in town. Gathered were folks from Secret O'Life, Que Bella (Alison is returning to Stanford tomorrow -- we really enjoyed getting to know her!), Endeavor and White Swan. After a few rounds we migrated over to Ramon's for dinner. The dinghy ride back to Jellybean on glassy water with a sliver of a moon was almost magical, if only we didn't need to use the noisy motor.... Another memorable soiree in paradise. Pictured below is Alison, plus another shot of me with Tammy.

January 3 -- This a.m. we purchased croissants from the French Baker, took them over to Secret O'Life where Tammy provided coffee, mocha and plain. As I write this, Terry is helping Roy get a stuck screw off our broken traveler. Afterwards we'll head over to Maria's to pick up our propane tank, go to town to pick up a few more groceries and then send this off to our website. This photo of White Swan was taken around 7:15 this morning.
January 4 -- Another gorgeous sunrise this morning -- last entry before heading south with no internet access until we ge t to Zihuatanejo.

Next update scheduled for sometime in February when we have access to wifi to upload more stories and photos. We'll include info on the stops between Barra and Zihuatanejo plus the 5-day Sail Fest celebration in early February.