Antigua Send-Off Party

So… after 30 years of dreaming it’s the night before the start of a 15 month journey around the World and back to Antigua. My plan is to sail the Pacific and see if I want to continue or ship her back ,we’ll see.Here are the 25 Oysters going around the world tomorrow. We heard tonight that a voyage is a trip where you return to where you started vs. a passage which is a leg of a voyage. We’re excited about where we’re going but melancholy about who we will be missing. The people we’ve met from 9 different countries are absolutely wonderful. While we have different cultures, we have the same dreams. Leaving tomorrow for Bonaire at 1pm. I’ll send an update when we get to Bonaire.

The one thing you learn in a survival course is you never want to step down into a life raft. As long as your ship is floating, stay on it. If you notice the writing on the life raft, it’s an 8 person raft and it’s barely big enough for Cullen and myself. Happy we went through the course. I hate to do it in the middle of the ocean for my first time.

How much wine do you need for 30 days? This is half.

We passed our sea mercy course. John, Cullen, and Mikey were taught how to hold eye clinic’s on remote islands. We have 150 pair of reader and adjustable eye glasses. We were told the story of a women who carried a bible for 20 years and yet was never able to read it. She broke down in tears when she was finally able to read it. We thought it would be a great way to give back, especially because we are so blessed to be able to make this voyage.

Here are the 5 permanent crew as we venture. The crew is John, Mike, and Cullen with Harry and Issy in charge (Harry was on the last world rally). Vanessa and Cecelia will be flying in to visit along the way. The organizer of the rally had Harry sign a document saying that he was responsible for the boat and all its members, he then asked if he could sign off for my behavior on shore and they said absolutely.

We leave tomorrow and will arrive in Bonaire 3 days later on Wednesday for a week of scuba diving. If you are being emailed this its because you asked me to keep in touch. If you are not interested, title it as junk or if you think someone else might be interested forward it on and they can be added on to the list. Special thanks to Mike’s daughter Camille who made this happen, who made this all possible and my son Cullen who is typing and figuring out how to add photos.

You and this trip are truly an Irish Blessing.

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