Trinidad W.I.

Trinidad  W.I. 

also known as TT … Trinidad and Tobago

Early morning off Trinidad 

June 27 - July 15

We departed Grenada on the evening of June 26 traveling with 2 other boats of which we were acquainted (Star Gazer and Sans Cle’)  and 2 additional boats from the anchorage.

Many boats traveling to and from Trinidad are now ‘buddy boating’… In December of 2015 there were two pirate attacks off the coast of Trinidad.  The perpetrators were from the impoverished country of Venezuela.  Food and supplies were stolen from the vessels. No one was injured.  The crews of the ransacked boats were quite frightened.  As the cruising community became aware of the incident, procedures were put in place to aide those cruising these waters.  The Trinidad Coast Guard along with the North Coast Radio are both agencies that monitor the waters in and around Trinidad.  A float plan is filed with them so they know who is traveling and the eta of the vessels.  We were hailed by both agencies as just off the northern coast of Trinidad just after the first morning light inquiring as to our status.  Nice to know someone was looking out for us! 

Venezuela, South America 

The overnight passage was uneventful and pleasant sailing.  We passed one of Trinidad’s HUGE off shore oil rigs to port in the middle of the night, light up like a small city, which it is. 

Trinidad is located east of Venezuela, South America.  It is roughly 30 miles wide by 40 miles long… the largest island in the Caribbean we have visited so far.  Population 1.4 million.  The traffic is horrendous, traffic jams daily, around the capital city of Port of Spain.  Trinidad is home to the most numerous and diverse plant and animal species of the entire Caribbean island chain due to it’s proximity to South America.  

Inishnee is currently on the hard (on land supported with jack stands) in Chagauramas, Trinidad in the Power Boats boat yard.  How we ended up there goes back many, many islands…. As we cruised southward in the islands toward Grenada we met many cruisers who encouraged us to consider Trinidad: it is out of the hurricane belt, any and all types of boat related repairs can we completed by competent, skilled laborers and the costs are easier on the cruising kitty than in developed countries.  … after a few inquiries we decided to continue south to Trinidad.  

Sue 

Power Boats is the largest of the many boat yards in Chagauramas.  We met with the yard manager Brent shortly after our arrival. He arranged for contractors who provided quotes of work from our dream list.   The contractors send photos of work in progress and statements of explanation periodically… The boat yard guarantees all work completed to satisfaction…  

Bill, Kathy, Jim, Sandy, Sharron, Mike and David

Our Grenada boat buddies had to fly stateside shortly after our arrival but we were able to find time for a get-together to commemorate friendships.  Star Gazer’s crew Sandy and Mike, Sans Cle’s crew with Sue and David, and the crew of Casa Blanca… We all squeezed into Inishnee’s cockpit, it being the only one still afloat.  Rum was poured, stories unfolded and the evening stretched into night.  

David, Mark, Willie, Rico,Jesse, Kathy and Jim

We had a few days prior to departing from Trini to be tourists… Jessie James is the liaison for cruisers, scheduling tours and excursions, shopping and island related events.  Jesse arranged for a maxi taxi (island bus / taxi) to take us to a Cricket match… Trinidad vs Jamaica.  Jesse informed us that West Indies cricket differs from european cricket… “it will be a blast”… and it was.  

The stadium was slightly smaller than Wriggly Field, the stands a sea of red: the home team colors red and black with white… Team paraphernalia was given to attendees: flags, cups, we’re #1 foam hands… all sporting the home team logo… 

Attendees are allowed to bring in their own food and beverages provided there are no glass containers.…  Jesse provided food for our group of 8: Kentucky Fried Chicken, chow (Jesse’s home made spicy marinated fruit) and bags of ice for mixing our own drinks…

Jesse far left with his horn

food and drinks are served on site if desired including 5ths of rum which are transfer from the glass to plastic water bottles at the bar.  Trinidad sells /consumes more KFC than any other country in the world’ Trini style with pe-pah aka.. spicy;  mostly during Carnival. 

Half time show

Jesse was our one man band repeatedly hooting a solitary note on his plastic horn (when he wasn't cheering) it’s volume decreasing along with his voice over the course of the game.  Jesse schooled us in the basic rules of the game and scoring … Trinidad plays the popular vision of cricket called  20 / 20 … A series of 120 pitches per team / inning divided in 6 segments called Overs.  The games usually last 3 hours instead of multiple days… 

Cricket Pan Band

Jim, Kathy and Jackson
Davis and Willie in the background

Kathy, Willie and Kari-Anne

I spent a fantastic day exploring the city with 3 other cruisers, Jackson on m/y Shadowfax, Willie on s/v Liahona, and Kari-Anne on s/v Blue… Great fun!  They knew all the fun and interesting places for ‘girls’ to ferret.  We made the obligatory stop for souvenirs then on to the infamous fabric stores!  Trinidad has a stretch of shops nestled together along a couple of blocks that specialize in fabric.  Floor to ceiling.  2 floors.  All crammed with bolts and reams of every kind of fabric for any purpose you might think up.  Nearly the entire nation participates in carnival which means lots and LOTS of costumes need to be made; Trini’s carnival rivals Rio’s…

Swimsuits can be made by any number of seamstresses, bring in the suit you want to ‘copy’ along with the fabric and within a week you have a new version of your old favorite…   The food courts offer a array of foods: Indian or Creole, Chinese or American to name a few.  Great value for your TT’s or U.S. dollars… The local currency is the TT which is currently at a 6 TTs to a U.S. dollar… 

Thank you Jackson and Willie for sharing your GREAT group photos from the cricket match and shopping!!!

Yes, they need a sign for that

Routine set in for us all to soon.  Set the AC on high.  Doubles for breakfast, 2 barres (fried flat bread) topped with a chickpea curry.  Get the boat chores done by 10am or get a mop to sop up the sweat. Head to the internet shack to check messages and send mail.  A light lunch, then grab a book and chill.  Wednesday night head to Bake and Shark; a Trini food specialty, deep fried shark pieces enveloped in a fried (not actually baked) pita type bread.  Listen to the parrots squawking as they return to there roosts. Cool off and freshen up with showers.  Watch the night Skimmers glide across the creek behind the boat.  Dominos on Sunday afternoon… Jim was the grand prize winner with the most points! *the goal being to have the least amount of points…

Doubles !

As our departure date closed in on us we finalized the summer work projects with the contractors.  Inishnee was put on the hard,  We moved some things into to a storage shed and  removed canvas and sails and stowed them in the aft cabin.  We packed our luggage for 2 1/2 months of traveling and living out of suitcases… 

MaxiTaxi to the airport, 1hour 45 minutes to go 15 miles… Direct flight to Miami 

High and low winners
Peter and Jim

Time constrains forced us to miss out on the many, many excursions Trinidad has to offer but we’ll be back in late September to continue the journey.  Taste of Trini #1 on my list!

One of the many ships that come to port daily