Saint Martin
I woke up in the middle of the night because water was dripping on my face. Did I forget to close the overhead porthole before the rain started? No, it was closed tightly. I felt around the porthole. The rain water seeped in from under the rubber seal strip that was supposed to be waterproof. I moved my pillow farther away from the leak, thankfully the queen size bed allowed that. The water began dripping on the mattress next to me. There was nothing to do about it, only to wait for the rain to stop. The morning sun dried the pillow that I brought up in the cockpit. The mattress remained a little damp as it rained from time to time and water continued to get inside through the porthole.
The first thing on our to-do list was checking in. Skipper Konstantin and I went in the dinghy to the same corner store as the day before. Registration was self-service on their computer. I filled out a form with the catamaran and crew details, Konstantin and I showed our passports and photos of the passports of the other 2 teammates on our phones to a store assistant, and that was it! No PCR test results, no quarantine, no visas for Russians, no questions about our next destination, or where we came from, or how long would be staying. Nothing!
Saint Martin was officially closed for tourism in April. At the same time, boats could freely visit it if they came through the backdoor. Later, Konstantin went to the main marina to check their registration procedure out of curiosity. They told him to show COVID test results. Konstantin quickly left the office to avoid further questioning. Funny how the official check-in only worked at the main marina and it was not implemented at others.
Another thing scheduled for that day was a pickup at the airport of one more crew member who was arriving in the afternoon. Vladimir was flying from Moscow to join the crew of the monohull. He was supposed to come earlier via Poland but the Polish airline denied him boarding. Vladimir had a Russian passport with a Schengen visa. He showed the yacht crew list with his name on it and said the magic word ‘transit‘ that helped others in such situations. The Poles were smarter than that. They wanted to see his sailor’s passport which Vladimir of course did not have not being a professional seaman. Vladimir bought a new ticket via Paris where nobody asked silly questions about sailor’s passports and texted from from Charles de Gaulle Airport that he was all right.
It turned out that Vladimir was not coming alone. Traveling with him was another Dmitry, so we were going to have 2 new teammates instead of one. Everyone from our catamaran except me went ashore to buy groceries, to wander around and bring the new people. I was left alone for the entire afternoon.
Before the crew left, I told them that I made the decision not to continue to Europe on the catamaran. Their reaction was mixed. Konstantin mumbled some like ‘are you sure’. Dmitry threw me a disgruntled look and said nothing. Anna stood perplexed and thoughtful.
‘Yes, I am sure’, I said.
When they were gone, I took a good shower. Frequent swims in the sea served as a substitute so far. After swimming, everyone quickly rinsed themselves with fresh water. Washing hair in salty sea water was out of question. Last time Anna and I washed our hair was a week ago when we were in the hotel in Dominica. We understood that fresh water was limited on board and should be used sparingly. On the other hand, we could not go unwashed for long. Both men on the catamaran had little hair on their heads; they did not have this problem. Anna washed her long curly hair in the morning. Now, it was my turn.
Konstantin was first to return. I asked him to take me to the city. I found there a café with WiFi, had lunch and bought a direct ticket to Paris to fly in one day.
In the evening, we got together on the catamaran for dinner. The two newcomers brought French delicacies, drinks and a casserole of tasty sesame chicken cooked by Alyona. She herself did not show up and was the only person missing at the table.
The new guys were likeable; they talked a lot, especially Dmitry who visited Florida recently. He entertained us with stories about life in America, then asked me why I was so quiet. I explained that it was fascinating to learn about American way of living and added that I lived permanently in Colorado. Dmitry laughed, he had a good sense of humor.
It was a beautiful night with a pink full moon. The new guys were jet-lagged and went to their boat to sleep off.
