2018 Life Logs, Day 74—Gilligan’s Island
Date: Thursday, March 15, 2018
Weather: Most Sunny; High 90, Low 70 degrees F
Location: At Home with Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco in Rincon, PR
Today we traveled for about two hours to meet up with Sam and Dawn on Windbird anchored between the town of Guanica and Gilligan’s Island on the south coast. On the way there, we drove through the city of Mayaguez and a few smaller towns. Then, suddenly, we were out in the countryside with mountains in view. It was green and beautiful and Ziggy said it reminded him of West Virginia. I had to agree and I was so happy that he has had the opportunity to experience the hill country of West Virginia and made that comparison. I’ll get back to our fun time on Gilligan’s Island, but first I’ll go through the morning activities leading up to that.
Jo left early to drive to Aguada to get routine mammogram results that she was going to deliver to her doctor in Mayaguez. They don’t send results to your doctor here. They make you pick up the results and pay for another appointment with the doctor to hand them to him. While she was gone, Justin continued working on the pool. Because there has been no running water and the pool level is down, he hasn’t been able to run the pump and lots of algae has grown. But this morning both electricity and water were on, so he filled the pool, cleaned out the leaves, and got things ready to run the pool pump all day while we were going to be gone. This is an above ground pool that someone gave them that now serves multiple purposes around here. It came to the property just a short time before Hurricane Maria and had proven to be a key to happy survival. After the storm when there was no running water, the pool water reserve was used to flush toilets and wash dishes. And it is still used for that as the water comes and goes constantly. It also serves as a way to cool off when there is no electricity for fans and no water for taking showers. And the fact that it didn’t blow away during the hurricane makes it a survivor, so keeping it clean is important to everyone here. Once Jo returned, we headed to Mayaguez to deliver her mammogram results. She was supposed to stay for an appointment, but since the results were normal, she decided to just leave the results. While she went to the doctor’s office, Justin, Coco, Ziggy, and I walked to a coffee shop to get drinks for everyone. When we met back up with Jo we learned that the receptionist would not take the results, so Jo is going to have to make another appointment. We made another stop to look for office furniture for Justin’s new office, and then we were off to Gilligan’s Island for the rest of the afternoon.
We arrived at the Copamarina Hotel at 2 pm. This is where Sam had arranged to pick us up. He was there and after a short Coco meltdown about getting in the dinghy, we were off. It was actually very funny. She first refused to walk down the dock to the dinghy, but finally she arrived at the dinghy announcing that she and Jo were going to walk around to a waterfront restaurant where there is a ferry you can take out to the island. And at the same time that she was saying this, she was hopping into the dinghy. It is all about being five. There is absolutely no logic, but things work out. We waved at Dawn on Windbird as we went passed and told her Sam would be back for her. He delivered us to the dock at Gilligan’s Island and then went back for Dawn and Piper. We snorkeled in the mangroves along the shore where there was not much to see. But just being in the water was fantastic. When we had exhausted snorkeling possibilities in that location, we walked across the tiny island to the ‘river’ that runs between Gilligan’s and the next little island. The wind was blowing and the water felt cold to Jo, so she stayed behind while the rest of us fought the strong current to snorkel the length of the ‘river’ to the ocean on the other end. Dawn did this while helping Piper Dog along and for the hardest bits, Justin did it with Ziggy and Coco on his back. There were a couple of times when I didn’t think I would make it, but I persisted. At least there were mangrove roots to hold on to in order to get a rest from the fighting the current. The fast ride back with the swiftly moving current was the reward. It was so much fun that when we got back, Justin asked me to hang out with Ziggy and Coco while he went to convince Jo to walk to the ocean side of the island and then float back with him in the current. Eventually we all reunited, took time to climb trees and jump into the water, and then we were back to the dock. The kids wanted to visit Windbird one last time, so we made a quick stop. We convinced Sam and Dawn to go to shore to have dinner with us, so we then headed for the little outdoor restaurant that the Gilligan’s Island ferry calls home. It was a simple dinner costing $5 each, but that was the perfect topping to a beautiful afternoon on the water. On the dinghy ride back to the fancy hotel, Sam let Ziggy drive the dinghy. We did a few exciting circles while Ziggy figured out how to drive a dinghy and finally reached the dock at the hotel with Sam giving Ziggy a little help. I think Ziggy really enjoyed that adventure.
We made a couple of stops on the way home. We went to Toys‘r Us with the goal of getting Ziggy a soccer ball, but we ended up getting that for Ziggy and a new stuffed bunny with floppy ears for Coco which she immediately named Fifi. Next, we stopped at Office Depot to check out more office furniture for Justin’s new office. After looking at what is available, he’ll make his decision and the go back to get the things he wants.
It was a glorious day. Thank you again, Dawn and Sam. It is so magical to still be able to sail on Windbird and bring the family along for day adventures. It was late when we got home, but the kids still had story time. One of my favorite things here is going to sleep with the gentle sound of the coqui, the tiny frog endemic to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. They are named for the sound they make (co-key) with the emphasis on the ‘key’. It is so pleasant. What is not so pleasant is the very early morning call of the rooster, like 5 am. I wake to the sound of the rooster, much, much too early, but I just put a pillow over my head and try to sleep on. So goes life on the farm.
