62. The Life of P

In Italy lots of people asked me about life on board, especially what I eat. Today was a typical day anchored at Bucuti: I woke up at 7am, had a coffee and went for a swim (I just dive off the boat) as usual. For breakfast I had fruit salad – banana, pineapple and apple. For lunch I had a cheese omelet with salad, and for diner I made a coconut curry with rice. I still read A Girl Called Jack’s blog sometimes for recipe ideas.

ArubaVille http://arubaville.aw

After breakfast I motored over to Veradero marina, filled up with water and washed my decks down, which were still covered in salt after the passage from Curacao. After lunch I had another swim and went grocery shopping. When I provision I go to local markets whenever possible. In Willemstad there was the floating market in Punda – fruit and veg from Venezuela. There was a similar one in Bonaire – Venezuelans who have sailed over to sell their farm produce. I get whatever is cheap and fresh. I try not chase after things I miss (usually expensive), and go local instead.

My new outboard (the grey one)

In the afternoon, I took my outboard (turns out it’s a 2002 model) to the mechanic, and put on the new propeller. It’s made a big difference – much faster; a bit more like a $500 engine. It’s leaking water – probably a corroded gasket or seal, but it’s not urgent, and very difficult to get the parts on Aruba, so I’ll leave it until I get to Jamaica. After a shower at Bucuti Yacht Club, I went for a ride around the bay and managed to plane for a while. A swim before dinner, then I watched The Life of Pi (the strong wind means I have lots of electricity), and went to bed around 11pm.

Sun setting behind Renaissance Island