Deckhand/Food Critic!

So, I have decided to review and rate all the places I stop to dine throughout my travels in Australia...

Tonight Mick, Selena and I ate at a place called the Atomic Bar and let me just take a moment to tell you, It was amazing. A perfect 10 on the Jolea Scale. Atmosphere is casual outside with tables on the sidewalk and a few umbrellas, inside seemed a little more upscale, with soft lighting and chic music. We ordered our food, I ordered the garlic pizza with chicken and Mick and Selena both ordered the fillet. Mick ordered his medium rare and Selena ordered hers well done, the waitress then explained that they cook their own at the table to which Mick replied, "can't you just cook it?" the waitress offered words of encouragement, "you'll never look back". So we waited. A few minutes later the waitress arrived with 2 large plates, atop a large stone sat a completely RAW fillet, surrounded with salad and new potatoes to the side. The stone was searing hot and the steak actually cooked in front of you! Basically you could cut the steak up and make it cook fast and well or you could sear the sides and have a rare steak! The steak was like butter. You could actually cut it with a fork. I did. I had to help Selena eat hers, now I know better than to order pizza at the Atomic Bar. Mick was so impressed he called Arthur to tell him about it and said he will have this meal every time he comes to Williamstown and nothing else!

Atomic Bar - 10

Krikey! I am tired...

Well, it only took me 32 hours to get here to Australia, and in the first 24 hours I was here I...

Met my boss Mick, his girlfriend Selena, and thier friends Herman and Arthur.
Dropped my gear off at the boat.
Went to sleep from 7pm till Midnight.
Woke up to eggs and bacon being cooked by Selena.
Headed to the little boat Gramac IV at 1am.
Met up with Arthur and Herman at the boat.
Learned how to bait hooks on a trawler.
Touched dead squid parts.
Baited hooks.
Learned how to set trawling lines.
Pulled up trawling lines.
Caught a stingray.
Touched a shark.
Ate flathead and red snapper for lunch at noon when we got home from fishing.
Drove on the left side of the road from the right side of the car.
Came to the Gramac V.
Went over to visit the Tall Ship Enterprise on the next pier where I was invited alont on the 4pm sail.
Went to the grocery store.
Signed up for a membership at a gym called "Peyote Body and Spirit" and classes, Fitball, Boxercise, and Pilates.
Studied my Gramac V operations manual. (Not a word Meg!)
Washed some clothes on baord.
Locked myself out of the boat.
Missed the Enterprise sail.
Fought with the emergency hatch for an hour before prying it open by hand.
Made a mental note to never step outside this fancy boat without my keys.
Had me a vegemite sandwich.
(I come from the land down under!)

I feel like a zombie, but I need to stay awake for a few more hours to get my clock on the same hour as the rest of the country.
Tomorrow I have to buy some shoes... all I have are flip flops, and it's chilly here!

I have to say, everyone I have met so far has been amazing! Thanks to Mick and the rest of my new Aussie friends for making me feel so welcome. Time to secure the boat and get my cabin made up, time for a well deserved sleep.

The last days of disco...

Well, we survived our last charter with only a few more injuries than the last. It's time to move on. Meg and I have been making the rounds here in Tortola saying goodbyes and such, and we were just talking about how much we miss our charter guests already! They were the best group of people I have ever spent a week stuck on a boat with! If you are reading this, Hello Bill, Lynne, Jim, Julie, Angie, Dick, Jeff, Marcia, Sheldon and Leslie! We miss you guys! Oh and we can't forget to say hello to Scooter, our official mascot. :) Today has consisted of waking up, Meg telling Dick she is leaving, doing tons of paperwork, catching up on emails, and cleaning up the crew quarters. We have tons of laundry to do this evening, and we have to pack our things. Tomorrow we will head over to St Thomas and get Meg settled in while I basically spend some time at the post office, mailing postcards and Christmas presents. Hopefully those of you I had time to buy for will like whats coming your way. Speaking of presents! Meg's birthday was last thursday while we were on charter, and our AWESOME guests called her up into the salon at dinner and sang happy birthday and then gave her a card and presents! It was so sweet! Meg really needed that happy moment, because she had the worst birthday ever! She got called a liar first thing in the morning, then fell in the water with her clothes on, then got her hand smashed in a hatch, which was then blamed on her... WTF???? So, needless to say, she needed a pick me up. A little later the guests called me into the salon, and totally surprised me when they started singing happy birthday to me and gave me a card and a beautiful sarong for my birthday which is on the 20th! I was so moved, I really had to hold back tears because these people really treated us like family and we have been missing home lately. It was nice to have them around, I wish they could have stayed longer! Jim and Julie did try to adopt us, so I am pretty sure the next time I am in Kalamazoo, I have a place to stay.

To the Lynne's 50th Birthday charter guests, thanks for teaching us about dog hair, puppy tape, hatch sitting, DSB (Jeff), Groundhogs, Administrative Law, bears and bicycles. We miss you and will never forget you. Till we meet again, Happy Trails.

"I wanna go home to the armadillos"

Second charter, TEXAS CHARTER!

Today is the first day of our second charter on Wanderlust, and everyone is from Texas except 2 guests who are from Kalamazoo! It's already shaping up to be a fun time. One of the guys on board, Jeff, has a website about Scooter the World Traveling Groundhog! Check it in about a week or so for a picture of Me and Meg... Everyone is so nice, and it is really fun to have people around who are familiar with my home. We set sail about noon and did a spinnaker run over to Norman Island, had some dinner and now everyone is throughly saturated with rum punch and wine and are off to bed. Meg and I will clean up and do the same. Just thought I would drop a line!

P.S. Only 12 days till I move to Australia!

Time to make this last charter count!!!

Our lovely vacation in St Thomas!

Ahhh... What a great week off. The girls and I really needed a break from work and all that implies. It has been so nice visiting all our old friends as well as making a few new ones. Today we will catch the last ferry out of town at 4pm and head back to the sleepy island of Tortola. The girls have their work visa papers in hand, and will be approved for a year long work visa and I will simply get another 2 week tourist visa. I am sad to leave the islands but I know in my heart I will come back one day. As for now, I am on the cusp of a new adventure, a new country, and a new job. I have a really good feeling about this one.

Oh! The girls and I had an amazing weekend! We joined a group of friends and went to Jost Van Dyke and the Full Moon Party at Bomba´s shack in Tortola on Saturday. Sunday we spent the day on St John which was beautiful. Check out the pics on the picture blog.

I am a little tired from our vacation here in STT, but its a good tired. Tired from fun times, tired from laughing, tired from walking all over the island, tired from taking in the views.

So goodbye to all our St Thomas friends, old and new, thanks for the memories, see you soon.

YO HO YO HO

Well, the girls and I fled the island of Tortola and made a mad dash back to our favorite island, St. Thomas. We were welcomed back to the Villa Olga with open arms by Jill and Doug, the managers there. It is so nice to come back to a place where people are excited to see you and actually care about you. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner last night with Jill, Doug and all their friends who live on island. Of course there were a few transients like us, but mostly locals. We stuffed ourselves, then while things wound down, I waited on a phone call from my new boss in Australia. It was so nice to talk to him, and we decided that I should fly down as soon as possible...

Wait, what? You don´t know about my new job??? Ha ha ha, how could I forget to tell you about this? Well, I will be moving yet again to a far away place I have never been, to work for someone I have never met, in a country I have never been to, and I couldn't´t be more excited about it!!! I will be leaving here on December 13th to fly to Melbourne,Victoria, Australia. I am the new stewardess slash deckhand aboard the Gramac V, a 76 ft sport fishing yacht. I can´t wait to get on board and learn everything I can about the boat and definitely the fishing!

Anyway, more about that later, now I just have to focus on the rest of my vacation here in STT and finishing up one more charter on Wanderlust then I am off on the longest plane trip I have ever been on. I wonder what movie we will be watching...

Inventory, Paycheck, Bilge back-up, Lunch, Gelato, Put Diesel in a GAS tank, tell Captain, have a cocktail, dye hair, have a cocktail.

This is pretty much how my day went. With the first charter under our belts we started onthe after charter duties like, cleaning cabins (Rebecka) and doing inventory (me) and meg poked and prodded at a bilge that just wouldn't drain no matter how many times she gagged over the smell. Then we got our paychecks and decided at 2:30 it was time for lunch and we took the Wanderwagon into Road Town. We ate lunch at a nice place downtown after realizing that the bank closed at 3pm. Stopped by the post office to check on my contacts, which I was really hoping would be in today, and have recently been informed that the record for mail from the us is 14 months.... as in, someone sends a package and 14 months later the person in Tortola receives it. I am going to have to see an Optometrist here. The crew and I were planning on heading to St Thomas tomorrow morning but we have to deal with the siphoning of fuel and clearing a fuel system before we can go. Its a great learning experience I think. So, thanks to Libby who picked Meg and I up off the side of the road and drove us home this evening, thanks to Pete, BJ and Derek for supporting us when we told them about the gas incident, and thanks to Meg for being my partner in crime today.
Tomorrow we will be back in the USVI and hopefully I will speak to some of you on the phone! Love you and miss you all!
'

Back from Charter!

Well, we survived our first charter! The guests were amazing, we couldn't have asked for a better group of people! They were laid back, funny, and best of all, they loved to drink painkillers. They were all from Des Moines, Iowa, and we miss them already! We took them to Virgin Gorda to The Baths, over to the wreck of the RMS Rhone where they learned to SCUBA dive, and over to the other side of Salt Island to do another dive the next day. Everyone had a blast and the crew worked very hard to make sure of that. We came together as a team and really had a great charter. Other than losing a contact, getting a chunk of glass stuck in my foot for 3 days, smashing my middle fingernail off in a ladder, and getting rope burn on my forehead, I'd say things went well. The rest of the crew had their share of bumps and bruises as well. Meg has a few good bruises that we originally thought were dirt, when they didn't wash off in the shower we realized we both had more bruises than we thought possible. She also has an imprint of a dock cleat from Salt Island on her foot where she caught it while picking up guests from the shop on shore. Pete lost his dive knife and broke his toe, and Rebecka escaped mostly unharmed.

On a better note, I learned to drive the tender and and docked it perfectly at the marina and surprised everyone when I docked it along side Wanderlust as she was under power like I had done it a thousand times before. I was so proud of myself! But we were so busy we didn't have a chance to take any pictures.

We all had high points and low points but at the end of all this, we did a great job and everyone on board had a good time.

Wednesday the girls and I will catch the first ferry to St Thomas, and wash away the past month of stress. We are staying over at Villa Olga again and will spend Thanksgiving with our good friends Doug and Jill. We can't wait to see our buddies again and show Rebecka a proper American Thanksgiving! Cheers!

I feel a change in the wind says I !

Keep a weather eye on the the horizon....mate.

Shooting stars and swimming pools.

Tonight was a well deserved evening of relaxation. Meg met a group of people the other night at the marina restaurant who were in from St Thomas and tonight they invited us over for Jambalaya and swimming at their resort. We had a great time. We swam and listened to music and chatted about 80's rock, and the people we were with were amazed at my classic rock knowledge. What can I say, I'm a music connesueir.(Yeah that is spelled wrong but dammit my spell check only speaks one language! You know what I mean!) So I hi-jack the music program on the computer at the pool bar and start pumping great tunes out and as the night comes to a close I am staring up at the sky, at this one really sparkling star, I mean this think looked like a strobe light, I watched forever to make sure it wasn't a satellite or a plane, and "See you on the other side" by Ozzy Osborne came on. I have thought alot about Brianna since I have been down here. I guess I just wish she could be here. Then I think about it and I just know she is. Tonight I felt like she was that sparkling star. The brightest star in the sky, right there, the first thing I saw when I looked up. We ate our Cajun cuisine and had a few drinks then came home. Meg got stung by her first fire ant and I left a Benydryl on her pillow... :) As I walked up toward the marina office/shore head to brush my teeth I heard a long time favorite song, one that reminded me of mimosas and days off in Key West. It struck me so odd that I actually walked up the stairs to the dockmaster's apartment as if I was going to ask them why they were listening to the Cowboy Junkie's "The water is wide". Luckily I went back down the stairs before I made a fool of myself. I just really found that odd, that I was thinking so much about the past tonight and that song filled the night sky as I walked down the dock. Speaking of the night sky, I saw a shooting star as I said goodnight to Meg and Danny tonight, I didn't make a wish. I figure someone else needs it more than I do. I don't have it so bad.

A rainy afternoon at work!

The past few days have been really busy! We are getting the boat ship shape for our first charter, which starts Wednesday. This means we have been cleaning, hauling tools off the boat, putting sails on the boat, de-greasing, polishing, ospho-ing, and anything else the Captain tells us to do. On top of all that, today I went to the office to do inventory where I was swooped and buzzed by island bees all day. Good thing I had a Slim Jim to swat them away with while I counted... Meanwhile back at the boat, Meg mad her own entomological discovery. You can find the picture of her new friend at the top of this blog. She comes to me with her find and the only thing I can think to say is, "If you get stung all you have to do is take some Benedryl and put some meat tenderizer paste on the sting. You will be fine." But thats just what you do with Texas scorpions, these are Island scorpions, I may be wrong. Good news is, it was dead when she found it. I thought scorpions were a desert creature, I guess I DON'T know it all. :) Now it's time to put in a little over time and finish my charter guest profiles, and watch Capt. Ron, one of my favorite movies! Oh wait a sec! I forgot to tell yall about our trip to the Willy T!

We started out at the marina where we picked up a few friends, then headed over to a rock formation called "The Indians", a popular snorkeling and diving spot. The water was great but my mask leaked like a sieve so I only stayed in for about 15 minutes. Jaque Cousteau on the other hand, Meg, stayed in for about an hour while we all waited on the boat for her to surface. (Ha ha I love you Meg!) After she swam back to the boat it was just a quick boat ride over to the William Thornton floating bar and restaurant. We tied up to three other boats that were tied along side the Willy T, which is an old steel hull schooner they converted to a fantastic place to duck out of the sun and have a cocktail. Then we walked from boat to boat and hauled ourselves over the rail and onto the Willy T. As the day rolled on we each took our turn jumping off the side of the Willy T, fully clothed mind you, and then settled in at the bar. The girls and I danced with everyone from boat captains, to local police officers, to firemen from California. We had the best time, I am sure it wont be our last visit to Mr. Thornton's place. Now we have to focus on getting this boat ready for charter, so we can then focus on some serious surfing. Catch yall later!

Pictures click here!

Washing day

Today has been a relaxing day. Rebecka and I washed clothes all day at the laundry mat just up the hill from our boat. I am about to turn the left over taco stuff into enchiladas for me and the girls! Yum! I think we are gonna spend a quiet night on the boat to prepare for tomorrow's adventure! Vern is taking us to the Willy T floating bar! I have wanted to go to this place forever! So look for pictures coming soon! And remember to check the picture blog because I put new pics up all the time. Later!

A Great Day off at Josiah's Bay

Today was so amazing. I feel so cleansed, inside and out! It is about nine thirty here and I am about to pass out I am so tired and happy. The girls and I spent the day at Josiah's bay, after last night's mexican fiesta that was a total hit, we needed a breather. We started the day in town and caught a cab over to the bay, then we sat under a thatched umbrella and drank a frozen libation. Soon after, Meg and I did our best Baywatch impression and ran like maniacs into the surf. We had no boards but that's no problem for us. We played in the waves for a little while, then Rebecka joined us and we walked the length of the bay and back, watched a local long boarder catch some really nice waves, which you can see pics of on my picture blog, then we took a break. As Meg napped, Rebecka and I went over to the beach hut and she ate lunch and we drank a couple of Pain Killers then it was back to the sea for all of us! The tide was on the rise and in turn the waves grew, we had so much fun getting ourselves perfectly positioned in the break so we could ride the rise and not get pummeled when the wave broke. Its a really shallow and sandy break so we didnt have much trouble with undertow or not being able to touch bottom, but let me tell you, we got beat down by a few waves. I feel great. You know that procedure that really Yoga-ie people do where they pour salt water up their noses and out their mouths with a little pitcher? Well I didnt need a pitcher today. The first time water shot straight up my nose, into my sinuses and out my mouth I thought, "woah, that feels strange... wait, ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuch that hurts like hell!!!" then after the fifth wave pummeled me I realized what a healthy experience it was. Mind you we were out there for hours, so 5 sea water nasal cleansing sessions is not so uncommon, especially when you attack waves like we do. I cant express how much fun I had or how healed I feel, inside and out. We needed a little back to nature time to remind us just how amazing it is that we live and work in such an amazing and beautiful place. Welcome to paradise.

Happy Halloween!!!

As the witching hour approaches on this Halloween Eve, I find myself not in a very "Halloweenie" mood. Which is very strange, seeing as how I am usually the one dragging my friends halfway across the state of Texas to a Halloween party where we end up sleeping on the floor for 2 hours and driving back the next day in time for work. In other words, I love Halloween. I love Halloween parties, costumes, decorations, candy, and did I mention parties? This year is so different. I think it's just stress. So many new things going on, job, living situation, co-workers, island, the list goes on. I feel like I am letting myself down this year, but most of all I feel like I am letting my crew down. I want to show Rebecka a good old fashioned American Halloween (despite the fact that we are in the British Virgin Islands) and I want Meg to have a great Halloween because it seems like she loves it just as much as I do, except for the fact that she is really excited about it and I feel like such a dud. I AM NOT A DUD. But I feel like one. This island is not real big on Halloween. We have yet to hear of any blowout costume parties or bars throwing a big bash in the BVI, but all day long I hear commercials on the radio for St Croix and how the whole island is preparing for tomorrow's festivities to continue throughout the weekend! Just when I started to feel really down on myself about not wanting to go out tomorrow, Meg makes a fantastic suggestion, "Why don't we just throw our own Halloween party on the boat? Just for us. Let's make cocktails and eat popcorn and watch scary movies all night." Its probably the best idea I have heard since we have been on island. I am so relieved and happy about this plan. We are going to have a blast! Girl's night in! I have decided to make the girls my famous Mexican food feast for dinner then its on to cocktails and movies until we all pass out! I like this idea so much better than going into town because Meg and I have plans to surf Josiah's bay at some point this week and it looks like the best day we have left is Thursday. This will be my first attempt at surfing so wish me luck! Hopefully the combination of booze and Mexican food seeping from our pores will deter any hungry sharks and we come back in one piece! I hope everyone has a great Halloween back home or wherever you are!

Tropical Storm Noel moves on...

So, lately we have been complaining about the wind and the rain and how we just want to go to the beach and get some sun. Last night the girls and I decided to check the surf report for Josiah's Bay here on the island, thats when we realize we are basically on the back end of a tropical storm! Whodathunkit? But today the skies cleared a bit and we had a partly sunny day full of hard work. We are learning our way around the island a little bit, and last night our friend Vehn took the girls and I to The Loose Mongoose, a local beach bar, to watch the Red Sox win the WORLD SERIES!!! I cant tell you how strange it was to sit at a bar with only 6 people and 2 cats and watch them win. It was so mellow. I was the only one screaming and jumping up and down while the dinghy's bobbed on their painters in the calm clear bay. Then all was quiet again, and the cats went back to sleep, the bartender turned off the television, and we went home to our boat. We are truly on Island Time.

I am working on a blog just for my pictures so here it is!!!

Jolea's Pictures

Check it out! The ones at the bottom of the page are the oldest and they are from the Bahamas, on through Savannah and a couple from last week. My camera took a hard fall in Savannah and I have to really rig it up in order for it to work but I am trying my best! Enjoy!

A Great Video!

This is Tall Ship Video everyone should see, just another schoonie day on the big blue sea!

Last day in St Thomas

Well, I finally have a second to myself after spending a little over 2 weeks here in St Thomas. It has been a blast! It reminds me a lot of Key West, but the water is so much better and the island itself is beautiful and mountainous! Just to update everyone, I am now working on the charter boat Wanderlust. We are based in the British Virgin Islands and do week long charters. When I arrived in St Thomas I met Meg, one of the other crew members and we totally hit it off, we are both Sagittarius so serious fun ensued. We took our STCW class together and had more fun than I think you are supposed to have while learning how to save lives. We are now CPR certified and know how to use fire extinguishers and we also learned, there is no way I can get my ass in a life raft if I have my life vest ON. Ha ha ha. Rebecka, who you may remember worked with me for a while on a different boat and we had a lot of fun in Savannah, accepted the other stewardess position on Wanderlust and she arrived here the day before we finished class! Great fun! The people of French Town, which is where we have been living this whole time, call us Charlie´s Angels. We have had a great time here and are looking forward to the fun times to come in Tortola. 

We did get to meet our Captain and the dive instructor here last week. We had the boat in the haul out do do some work on the bottom and repair a few minor things, so we got really dirty and really sweaty for 5 days then they took the boat back to Tortola. Before leaving, our Captain informed us that I would be the Office Manager and Chief Stewardess, wow! Lots of responsibilities! He also explained to us that he likes to keep our charters at least a week apart so we don´t go crazy. In this off time, we have the option of working on the boat like maintenance work for an hourly wage or just running off and doing whatever we want to do. This way we have the choice of making money or going surfing if the surf is up at Apple Bay. Nice huh?

I am really looking forward to getting to Tortola! Judy spent some time here last year and sent me a whole list of people I have to meet and I cant wait to get started! But first, I have to pack my bags...

Charlotte amalie from above!

We spent the day at magens bay!