Jamaica, Port Antonio

About 24 hours after leaving Cuba we arrived on Jamaica. On the passage we had seen a whale, but did not get close enough to be able to take some detailed fotos. Moreover Rainer had a hard time under the passage as he had to struggle with a severe diarrhea. Poor him couldn´t eat anything yet.




























A nice refreshing chill in the evening of our first sticky day in Port Antonio, Jamaica.

Departure from the black city, Santiago de Cuba

The pier in Santiago Marina is certainly not in the best shape,but for that pupose we always carry a fenderboard.







Worse is the heavy contamination which is ejected by a kind og a powerplant or refinery on the windward side of the marina, just behind a tiny hill.
Prins Henriks cabin and deck is no longer white, but stained in brown tittles.



















It took us more than an hour to come free of the black clammy trail of smoke, which could we smelled even 10 miles out on the open sea.

Havanna

We took to Havanna by bus because we did not want to take the boat so far to leeward as to the capital in the west of the island. It was a good decision: The bus ride of only 12 hours was a relatively comfortable and gave a wonderful impression of the beautiful landscape and life in the countryside of this vast island.














The poverty of the people everywhere is burdesome and can only partially be balanced by the same peoples vitality. In this context many revolutionary slogans appear ironic.
Anyhow, we found people openminded and sociable.

Shark: An old foto from Rum Cay on the Bahamas

A little shark watching under the Prince.

Some old pictures from Great Inagua on the Bahamas

Finally we had found a place where we could find wireless access.
















A colony of Flamingos on Great Inagua.

And here our anchorage.

Santiago de Cuba

It took us about 2 weeks to work us down the Bahamas towards windward and sail the final leg of about 180 miles around the south-eastern tip of the island to Santiago de Cuba. The US Coastguard checked our boat several times from the air and the sea before we were dismissed to the communists.

We had to struggle a bit with calm winds before our outboarder brought us safely into the bay of Santiago de Cuba. Clearing in was far less bureaucratic and cumbersome than expected. Everyone was friendly and we believe it helped that we are a small boat and that we speak Spanish.

A word from a guest on board:
I have been part of the Prins Henrik crew for almost three weeks, from Nassau to Santiago de Cuba. It was a great experience. The turquoise, shallow water and small islands of the Bahamas, the dolphins (see picture) and the buzzing towns of Cuba.

A special experience was the visits to the small societies at remote Bahamian islands. That was a quiet life. People were mostly just sitting and watching or moved around in slow-motion. In the case of Matthew Town, Great Inagua, we saw the impact of the hurricane Ike that hit the place last September. All houses were damaged with broken roofs or plates covering the windows. Tiles and construction debris were everywhere on the ground, and besides of the new communication antenna the old one was still standing, but totally crumpled up.

Cuba was very different with lots of people and activity everywhere. The houses were incredibly worn out, illustrating what many years without maintenance can do to a formerly beautiful town. The streets were still picturesque though, but with a depressing feeling of hopelessness.

During my whole stay, the most pleasing experience was the warm hospitality of Rainer and Jochen. Lacking sailing skills I was no help at all during the long days and nights on the tiny ship, but I still felt most welcome and well treated. I can highly recommend a visit!

Thank you very much, Rainer and Jochen.
Anders

Thunderball Cave Stanley

Now we have made it all the way down to Great Inagua at the southern end of the Bahamas. Tomorrow we will leave for Santiago de Cuba.


Fantastic sailing, good seamanship and a nice crew.
Our mobile phones do not work, so if you want to contact us please send us an email.



The picture shows the world famous cave from the James Bond movie Thunderball.