Rainy season in the tropics has its pros & cons. We had a clean boat in September that is now slowly turning green. Michele had to break down and use one of those rainy days for a good boat scrubbing. On the upside, in addition to picturesque sunrises/sunsets, the weather is starting to cool down, especially at night. Our grand plan for a haulout is to time it with the arrival of these cooler temps after the rain goes away.
In the meantime, we keep ourselves entertained with a few diversions. These usually involve eating, drinking and socializing and there is no shortage of opportunity for this on the Rio.
Our favorite activity is Sunday football at hotel Catamaran with two games playing on huge screens, snacks all day and a rum shot at halftime. We also joined in a few trivia nights over dinner where the winner has to run the quiz the following week. It was all fine and good until we won and then came up with our questions... let's just say we won't be going back anytime soon.
Cruiser swap meets are always a big hit and are especially popular now with lots of snow birds returning to their boats for the winter.
There are dozens of marinas big and small on the Rio and one sunny day we too followed the fleet around on the Poker Run (they had run out of cards, there were so many participants) to visit and check out some of the other marina facilities. They are safe and friendly and come in all different styles to fit any cruisers' preferences.
We not only get to meet friends when out & about, we also get a dog fix. Albert & Bear have a tough life and love those days when short ribs are the lunch special, since they get the bones. They greet you at the dock when you come & go. Mark fell for an adorable lab puppy named Tito who he almost smuggled back to Reach.
And for the musically inclined (or wannabe), there is always a jam session planned most weeks. There are some professional players in the mix and the entertainment is excellent, ranging from a cappella to fully plugged.
They even tolerate us amateurs and it's quite fun to practice with them and pretend like you're in the band (John taught me that trick).
Did I mention the new uke!?!