Left Ponce on Friday and spent the first night at anchorage in Salinas. It was sure nice to be cruising again!! We loved Ponce and the Ponce Fish and Yachting Club marina, but it seemed like we have spent the last month shopping!!!! Dan, the kids and I were ready to get back out cruising.

Leaving Salinas, Saturday morning, we were headed to Palmas del Mar to spend the night. Luckily we had an early start because when we got there, a new marina has taken over all the anchorages. On to Plan B, which was Green Beach Vieques, the Spanish Virgin Islands. I can’t say that I was disappointed as I was so looking forward to the Virgin Islands, even if we are only as far as the Spanish Virgin Islands!! Vieques, as you may remember, is where the United States used to hold bombing practice. That is over now, and what is left is a beautiful island, and major party place for Puerto Ricans.
The party was in full swing when we got there, late that afternoon. Dan and I were enjoying a beautiful sunset, when a dinghy, overloaded with 6 middle aged guys, circled our boat. These guys were well into Happy Hour and the mast on our boat was a great conversation piece.
“Look,” the dinghy driver said. “Their mast is bent!”

Our mast in not bent. Where other boats have a straight up and down mast, ours is raked back to give more power.

“No,” the very sunburned shirtless one in front replied. “It’s like that man.”
“No!”
“Ya!”
They were so funny. Their accent was somewhere between Cheech and Chong and a Minnesota accent!

“No!”
“Ya! I seen it before, man.”
“Ya?”
“Ya!”

They circled us again.

“Why’s it bent?”
“It’s not bent, man! It gives them more power. I’ve seen it before.”
“Ya? Where you seen it before?
“On a sailboat man”
“Ya,” the other one finally agrees. “I’ve seen them on a sailboat. Why’s that one bent?”
“It’s not bent, man! It’s a sailboat!”

Dan and I couldn’t stop laughing. I had to resist the urge to tell them it wasn’t bent. Later that night, we got to hear them all doing karaoke to “Hotel California” until late in the evening. I don’t know of any other boat that brings their own karoake machine to an island, but as I said, these guys know how to party!!! We love Puerto Ricans!!!!!

Tonight we are enjoying a beautiful mangrove anchorage in Ensenada Honda. Just us and the dolphins, (and really big jellyfish!). It is suggested to navigate Vieques in a clockwise direction, but we are headed counterclockwise. So far it has been fine. Tomorrow, we leave Vieques and head to Culebra and a harbor with the same name, Ensenada Honda. I am sending this update through the satellite phone. Hopefully tomorrow we will have internet service and I can update with pictures.