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We had a lovely sail home from Longboat Key. We cleaned up the boat so it is spotless and ready for our next trip. As we walked away, we both had tears in our eyes that our wonderful adventure was over, and that we would have to face "reality" the following day.

I didn't sleep well Sunday night, as I was apprehensive about what would be waiting for me in my office. I arrived there early, and got back into the saddle quickly. It felt good to be back.

Today is Tuesday, and I am thinking back on what we were doing a week ago on Free Spirit. I already can't wait until we untie the lines, once again, for our next adventure.

venice

Every place we visit I say "this is my favorite spot." Venice is a beautiful area. From our boat we look out on an inlet often filled with dolphins. There are beautiful homes surrounding the inlet and there is a park across from us where people fish and picnic.

We walked to the Venice pier yesterday. It is a 5k there and back and a beautiful walk on the beach. So we did a bit over 6 miles, had lunch on the boat and then rode our bikes into town. Many cute shops and we enjoyed exploring. Enjoyed happy hour on the jetty and watched yet another incredible sunset. Both my sons called to wish me Shabbat Shalom.

Ate dinner at the tavern in Crows Nest. There seems to be a common theme among the people we talk to. Everyone wants to play more and work less.

The Christmas boat parade - a big event in Venice - is tonight. There are already many chairs set up along the jetty. The boaters around us are busy decorating their boats, and they can't understand that we are not staying for this important event!

Just saw a dolphin so that means it should be a good day. We are leaving to head home. Off to Longboat Key.

off to venice

Took off this morning for Venice. Great sailing weather. A bit cool but sunny. Arrived at the Crow's Nest dock late afternoon (first time this trip that we are paying instead of anchoring out) We got on the free bikes that are available to cruisers and rode into town to buy some wine at our favorite wine shop, and got back in time to walk out onto the jetty to watch the sun set. Had a great dinner on board of lamb chops, corn on the cob and salad. This little marina is quite empty. Maybe a sign of the times. Tomorrow laundry, Publix and exploring the cute town of Venice.

Longboat Key

Arrived in Longboat Key (Moore's Stone Crab anchorage)yesterday, took the dingy to shore and walked across the Longboat Pass Bridge to check out trolley service. Really beautiful walking over the bridge, and a totally different perspective than being on Free Spirit and going under it! On the way back we saw a school of dolphins swimming near the bridge. Saw Tosca at Mar Vista (she is the hostess), and what was really funny about that is that when we were walking in the DeSoto Point Park a couple of days ago, we ran into her walking her dog. When Mom, Deb and I were last at Mar Vista, she said she would like to have a sister so I said I would adopt her and I left her a note on the reception stand with my email.
BBQ'd a delicious steak and had a nice evening on board. This morning, we took off with backpacks for the day; we walked across the bridge again and got on the free trolley and rode it to my favorite breakfast spot for triple berry pancakes (Gulf Drive Cafe). We got on the trolley and rode it all the way to the Ana Maria pier and checked out all of the cute little shops. Caught the trolley back to the bridge, and while walking over the bridge say a dolphin breach out of the water. Beautiful!
Tonight we are eating soup and pasta on board, and heading out to Venice tomorrow.

Calm after storm

We hunkered down yesterday while it rained pretty much all day. The boat was dry, warm and cozy. We read and rested and Eric routinely checked and made adjustments to the anchor. Since the weather was not conducive to grilling we made delicious spaghetti and salad. Shortly after sunset the storm disappeared and it was a lovely evening. We were able to watch our favorite program (Boardwalk Empire) on hbotogo. Technology is amazing...but it is even better to take advantage of it on a sailboat.
I woke up in time for the sunrise, took pictures and made coffee. It is interesting how time doesn't matter out here. Waking up real early is a pleasure here. I am looking out on the water, listening to birds and feeling the breeze. I don't have to rush off to a meeting or shove breakfast down my throat. And I don't really care that I was up at the crack of dawn because I will nap later.

sailing nov. 2011

Headed out to the manatee river to meet the benstocks on their new sababa after a delicious thanksgiving with the family.
Arrived to enjoy margot's new mango rum drink and happy hour on their new beautiful boat. We had a yummy shabbos dinner of bbq steaks and homemade challah.
On Eric's bday we all went for a wonderful sail (even played scrabble which eric beat mike by one point. mike said he let eric win for his bday) We made dinner on free spirit (grouper) and managed to watch the gator/fsu game on the computer.
The next day we had breakfast on sababa and bid the benstocks goodbye. We dingied to shore and walked 2.5 miles to and from grocery/liquor store to pick up some mango rum, martini glasses and some veggies.
This morning was a great Monday morning. Woke to watch and photograph the sunrise, went for a 5k walk around the park and surrounding neighborhood and got back to boat just in time as now it is pouring.
It takes me a couple of days to adjust to the cruising life. I woke up thinking what am I going to do all day at anchor? No stores close by, no Publix a block away, etc. But now I realize that I may not have enough time at all to all I want to do today on this very rainy day. After this blog post I will make lunch. Then I will read. I would like to do some needlepoint. Of course I must take nap. Then it will be time for happy hour, followed by dinner, washing the dishes, reading some more and maybe a game of scrabble. I think I could adjust to this with no problem.

Last full day in Costa Rica

We woke up to quite a different day then yesterday; it was bright and sunny, and so Eric and I took at walk to watch the sun come up. After another famous breakfast cooked by Ana (of course, with rice and beans, and this time with an omelette, too), we went into Orisi to find the famous Pancho to take us on his horses. We found him next to the Orisi Lodge, and since he only had two horses, Debbie and I went with Pancho for a ride around Orisi. It was beautiful riding around Orisi, and under the suspension bridge we walked on the first day, and through town. So interesting to see how people live, mostly in tiny shacks with tin roofs. What was especially interesting about the ride was the fact that Pancho doesn't speak a word of English. Basically all we said to eachother was "muy bueno." We took off for Tipanti Park, where we went to a place where we fished for our own trout and took it up to a restaurant where they cooked it for us. Deliciouso.

We worked off our big lunch with a major hike in the forest, which took us two hours. It was a very challenging hike, up a very steep mountain on very wet, slippery steps, and then down again. The four of us did great. We were sweating and exhausted and came back for a delicious dinner of chicken, beans, rice, pasta and salad cooked by Ana. A delicious end to a wonderful day.

Pura Vida!

Woke up to a very rainy, grey day. We were a bit dismayed as our plan today was to go to see the Irazu volcanu and go ziplining. After a yoga session led by Debbie, Ana brought us yet another delicious breakfast. Even though it was pouring we decided to go up to Irazu. It was a beautiful ride, and the weather cleared up along the way. When we got to the entrance gate, the guard warned us that we probably wouldn't be able to see anything. We decided to pay and go through anyway. Eric ran up ahead (it was very cold and windy), and when he got to the overlook and he motioned to us to come quickly. The reason he was so insistent that we come as fast as possible was because at the moment there was a completely clear view of the volcano. I got some great photos, and just moments later the clouds moved in and our view was gone. Sergio said that he once took a group 3 days in a row, and they saw nothing. This served to be our lucky omen for the day. The weather cleared and it was a magnificent day. We walked around the outdoor fruit market. We have never seen such a variety of fruits and vegetables. And the sizes! We bought carrots and a beet bigger than we've ever seen. And so delicious. From there we went ziplining(Aventuras la Carpintera; http://www.aventuraslacarpintera.com/ )which included a delicious lunch first. We had two wonderful guides who took us on our adventure. We had to hike up 623 steps to the first platform. Debbie was terrified, but after the first platform, she was hooked. We went on 14 ziplines, and the view was unreal. We were way up on the trees in the forest. Thrilling. The biggest surprise was the "rappelling." It was supposed to be rappelling, but it turned out to be a 50 ft. freefall. I don't know if there was something lost in translation, but it was not what we expected. What a scare it was to be hanging on a rope 50 feet up, and then freefalling down. There was another one at the end, that wasn't as far a drop, but still a little scary

We had Ana make us dinner tonight (meatballs, veggies, rice, potatoes), and it was just what the Doctor ordered after such an active day. Keep posted!

Our first full day in Costa Rica

Eric and I woke up at 5:30, and went for a walk around "our" property. It was a beautiful sight to walk out the door and see the mountains. The clouds were hanging low over them, but as the morning wore on, they cleared and we had a nice view.

Ana brought breakfast over; it consisted of beans and rice, plaintains, delicious crusty bread and sour cream. We ate every crumb, and then set out on a hike around the area. The beauty of the mountains and the valley below is breathtaking. Sergio picked us up and we set out for the day. On the way down the road, Eric spotted a shack where two brothers (following in their father's footsteps) do woodcarvings. Eric recognized it as it was featured in the St. Pete Times. As he is carrying around the article, we also found a fruit stand that was featured and the owner was thrilled to see his place was in the paper. We walked over the valley on a suspension bridge, saw a damn, ate lunch at a small restaurant in town (again, delicious beans and rice, fish, chicken, pineapple and other fruit drinks, and a tortilla grilled with cheese on top). We checked out the Orisi Inn, another place highlighted in the newspaper article. The German owner made a reservation for us to go to an organic coffee plantation for a tour. The tour, though lengthy, was very interesting. I never realized how complex it was to grow and roast coffee beans; I will surely appreciate my daily Joe much more. We bought some to bring home.

One thing I forgot yesterday to mention is that that are cows roaming around here freely. In fact, Sergio had to stop his van yesterday because there was a cow in the road. Also there are dogs everywhere.

I think we've gone to heaven

Sitting here at our home in the Orosi Valley, I think that this must be heaven. We have done our fair share of traveling, and I have to say this is one of the most, if not the most beautiful spots on this earth.

Now that I have your curiosity peaked, I will tell you about the beginning of the day first! We drove to Orlando early this morning, boarded the flight and landed in San Jose a few hours later after a great flight.

Sergio, our driver picked us up. It was interesting walking outside the airport and seeing all of the drivers lined up with signs in their hands waiting for their guests. We went to lunch, and then visited the Office Gurus office. We drove through the security gate, and went into the office park, where foreign companies open offices and don't have to pay taxes, as long as they employ local people. We were treated like celebrities, given a tour and made to feel special because we were "Josh's" parents.

We then made our way to the Orosi Valley, which was an adventure. It took us an hour and a half, through Cartago and Paraiso, and then up the mountain. We picked up a young woman who makes limoncelli here, who tried to help us find Santa Lucia Coffee plantation. We had to drive down a very rough dirt road, and even had to stop and move many branches that were blocking the road to get to our dream house. The view from here is of mountains and the valley. There is nobody else around for miles (except in a little house next door there is Ana and Jose Gamboa, who do not speak English, but will be doing some cooking for us). There is a wrap around porch and our own private little pool. There is a little walkway that leads to a wood deck overlooking the valley.

Now we are having happy hour on the porch enjoying drinks and Mark's delicious guamamole. There are many interesting sounds - birds, bugs, etc.

I am certain not many people get to experience something like this in our lifetime. Thanks to Mike for finding this heavenly house on the internet.

Leaving on a jet plane

Tomorrow morning we leave for costa rica . my first time. going to the orosi valley due to a st. pete times photo essay done by lara cerri. it is a non touristy area that looks charming. we have since spoken to her to get suggestions and also to tell her that we are going to try to find the lady at the fruit stand she photographed and show she was in the newspaper. i am looking forward to this trip as i have heard glowing reports about this country.

Debbie and Mark are joining us and we are looking forward to sharing this adventure with them.