Wrapping things up

Not sure I like this business of writing the blogs in the morning as I almost invariably have to begin each blog with “Yesterday ….” Well – can’t change that today. So…..

Yesterday, we split duties. Helen, as she usually (and brilliantly) does, took ownership of packing for our trip to NJ. I, on the other hand, made the trip into St Georges to look for a mobile phone and some last minutes pressies.

Soon after leaving the marina four cruisers (I think) in a pickup offered to take me to the end of the road if I was willing to sit in the back. That I was, so I was taken a mile or so to where things got busier. Rather than wait for a bus I decided to walk a distance so I could see things closer and, perhaps, deal with my objectives without going all the way into town. I was able to learn a little more about the local shops but didn’t find what I was looking for. I continued walking to a nearby mall to have a look around there. Thinking I was near another mall I walked/ran some distance further before deciding I didn’t have the map quite clear in my head and caught a bus into St Georges.

My first stop in the Digicel store was somewhat hopeful as they had a GMS/quad band phone with a free prepaid plan that brought the price close to what I could get something similar in the US. I was prepared to pay a little more in order to be able to be sure of communications when travelling. Always very important if the unexpected occurs.

Before committing to the phone I went to one of the local ‘phone techs’ to see if the model could be unlocked and used in other countries. The guy I spoke to said it was easy to do and gave me a price which, while being a bit more than I thought appropriate, still allowed me to realize the deal was ok.

I went back to the Digicel store and went through the process of registering the phone and paying. Double checking at the last minute I discovered I was not going to get the prepaid minutes offered as the deal had expired last Friday without them taking down the signs in the store nor telling the customer service rep who sold me the phone on that basis. Now the deal was too rich so I backed out without paying.

Finding their competitors store, LIME, down the road I discovered they sold the exact same phone cheaper than the Digicel phone including the discount from the defunct offer. So I bought that phone without any hassle. Now we are able to communicate with locals here conveniently and have an extra line of communication in an emergency.

I was then able to secure all but one of the pressies I wanted to get and caught the bus back to the marina. Remembering our last experience with busses I checked with the ‘conductor’ to make sure the bus did indeed go to the marina. He said yes but it turned out it didn’t. They wanted to charge me an extra 10EC to complete the final distance but I decided to walk instead.

We didn’t do a great deal in the afternoon. In the evening Jim and Anne came over to help us eat some of our leftovers. I was also able to give Jim some final instructions on how to get the boat running in the extreme off chance Dignity needs to be moved while we are away. To protect her we will be closing all the through hull valves so it is important Jim knows which ones relate to the generator cooling system.

Today it is final packing and boat prep. We had hoped to top off the water tanks but the water maker has gone kaput again. Hopefully the spare part is waiting for us in NJ along with all the other goodies we have ordered. We’ve decided to leave the boat here in Prickly Bay. We’re also going to book a berth in the marina for when we return as the boat tech from CatCo has book flights to arrive the day we return to perform the next upgrade. The marina manager said he’ll also keep an eye on Dignity while we’re away which adds some additional comfort.

It feels strange heading back to NJ for a week. It really doesn’t feel like going home – more like a vacation / trip to see family and friends. Hopefully it will be a little cooler than here but not by too much.