To our Blog Readers
In general we have no idea who reads our blog, nor why, but just occasionally we have contact from the other side of the fence and a reader gets in touch. This is very much appreciated and it’s great to hear that we are giving some readers a bit of information (apologies if at any time it’s misinformation), some thoughts on planning, maybe a bit of light entertainment.
There was a time when we had one reader; that was me! Then a few more joined up to the point we did a post on Derrible Bay and that for some reason changed the stats and is still a heavily searched page today, as is Getting Zinced.
A couple of stats on the blog. We have about 10,000 computers that have logged into our site. That’s not bad because it’s only about a bit of sailing after all and that’s a niche sport with very low spectator volumes.
At the moment we have just over 140,000 page hits to date with the ARC preparations being the top destination. We wish future ARC voyagers all the best.
So if you thought you were the only one still hanging in there reading about our steadily deteriorating state of mind, ship, diet and exercise you are probably not alone. We would of course love to hear from you.
Hi all
We first started following your blog when you were on the ARC – we were deciding whether it was for us and whether to register for next year. We know Yacht Sephina and Yacht Kika so we're following them as well. We are trying to learn 'what it's like' to be a liveaboard and find your blog really useful and interesting so thanks for that! Wishing you all fair winds and flat seas, Ian and Jackie, Yacht Rivalady
Hello Jackie and the Rivalady crew! Good to hear from you. I hope our meanderings across the ocean have helped encourage you to set sail. When you do be sure to give us your web address so we can likewise follow your travels. If you are on the UK southcoast and you see us around this summer do say Hi. Best wishes.
Aditi crew..
Hi all on Aditi
We were just wondering – knowing what you know now, would you do it all again? What would you do differently? Did you feel 'safe' in St Lucia?
Thanks for any info,
Have a great day!
Ian and Jackie, Rivalady
Would we do it all again? Yes, we wouldn't have missed the ARC experience for anything. When we cross the Atlantic again in a few years we will probably do it independently and will wait in Cape Verde for a weather window while discovering the Cape Verdes. Our 4 days there in December were spent trying to get our part fixed so we could catch up with the fleet. We'd like to see the islands.
There will be changes to our boat which we will cover in a post once we have time to think it through. This is based on our experiences crossing the Atlantic and living in the tropics on our boat.
Did we feel safe in St Lucia? Firstly the Caribbean is not safe in the way that we know safe in the UK. You have to lock up everything all the time. There are areas to be avoided and there are places that you vacate as darkness falls. This can apply to local citizens as well. In between these dark places there are some great islands or towns where you can relax. In St Lucia we would say we felt an 'underlying edginess' that we were acutely aware of. There are lots of robberies and quite a bit of intimidation; you only have to google the subject. Two days before we left in January the English sailor died in Vieux Fort (known to be a place to avoid) in the next bay to us after being boarded. This didn't help our feelings and we were hassled a lot in Souffriere the day before we left for money, which we may have normally been able to shake off and ignore. You can also invite trouble ny getting mixed up in local business affairs.
Of course we have a 16 year old daughter who gains a lot of unwanted attention with us being told many, many times when we are out and about 'you have a beautiful daughter so LOOK AFTER HER'. I put the capitals because this was specific to St Lucia, other islands never added that part. After a while you begin to wonder why they feel the need to say this constantly and it wears you down. After a recent conversation with Chef Dutch (a local from St Maarten) who has a pale skinned 15 year old daughter and experiences similar problems we were right to be concerned and protective (not just in St Lucia I should add). Claire also experienced some unwanted attention in St Lucia, which included both physical and verbal. Unwanted attention also happened elsewhere on our travels but in St Lucia it was compounded by our 2 bad experiences which happened in daylight (scammed and boarded by teens looking for easy pickings). We knew of people who had very bad experiences (beaten up and thrown in the water) but these happened at night after using a dubious taxi who tried to charge 4x the amount. Google Beyzano's blog 'crime in the Caribbean' and you will see the nature of yacht thefts that take place.
Ultimately we were more cautious and careful in St Lucia than other islands. This was due to our own experiences, others say they didn't feel or experience what we did. As an aside in Bequia Claire, and David from Calypso saw an argument between locals where one threatened the other with a machette. The 3 others in our party walking with us didn't see this….it is all about perception due to what you have witnessed. Not that we felt unsafe in Bequia after this but the point is things happen whether or not you see it.
Travelling anywhere throws these issues up. We speak with other travellers, read info on the web and think safety always. Buy lots of padlocks!