Last Post from Neverland? Probably...

We left the Bahamas about a week ago, traveling from Great Sale to Cape Canaveral in about 26 hours. It was a pretty easy crossing of the Gulf Stream, with wind directly behind us the whole way. Before leaving the Bahamas we were in Man O'War Cay for a day waiting for calm enough weather to get around a sticky place called "The Whale" which can be nasty in high wind. I was sitting outside a store waiting for Jim and a cute little cat walked right up, jumped in my lap and settled down for a quick nap.  Dogs usually like me, cats usually not so much, but this one was clearly an exception...





















Once in Florida, we spent a couple of days in Cape Canaveral getting groceries, doing laundry, catching up on sleep, etc. One morning the boat started to shake and then there was a tremendous explosion. We heard no emergency vehicles, but thought something horrific had happened nearby. Then realized - we're in CAPE CANAVERAL. Yup - a launch and sonic boom. Duh. No attack yet by a foreign power pissed off with us :-)


We spent another couple of days further north in New Smyrna Beach over the Cinco de Mayo and Kentucky Derby weekend and had a super fun time. Below are some photos from NSB. First, Jim outside a crazy store where one of the items was a little ancient model VW bus with a top that opened into a cooler.

The boat below was at the City Marina where we stayed. I took the photo because the little sailing dinghy on the bow was so beautiful in the sunshine.

We spent some time in the museum in New Smyrna Beach, a place originally settled by Greek immigrants. Lots of interesting history. I took this photo to send to my son Jake - the Ladies Bicycling Club, circa 1890. Imagine biking in Florida heat in long cotton skirts, petticoats, high necked blouses and leather boots. Ugh.

Unfortunately I only have one photo from Cinco de Mayo, which was a big deal in NSM. The entire main drag became a venue for tequila and taco tasting competitions with music everywhere and lots of people taking the whole thing very seriously! This guy was about 5'1" but his hat and fake mustache made up for his height.

The next day was the Kentucky Derby. Before the actual race, which was shown on a large screen TV, there were hat decorating contests and a race on Canal Street between the riders of two wooden horses on casters. This little girl and her dad were among the first competitors.The competition was fierce and the casters sometimes spun unexpectedly, flinging the horses and riders around. More than one rider finished a race being dragged backwards, and a couple of times, riders were dismounted by a falling horse. Fortunately, no one was hurt and no parked cars or spectators were hit! Look at the expression of the rider below - she's terrified...

The little girl was pretty worried about the competing team from a local pizza place - Panheads (absolutely EXCELLENT pizza if you're ever in town).

Panheads staff -- rider chilling, "pushers" grimacing, before a start....

And of course Panheads won the final match, much to the vocal dismay of the little blond rider on the sidelines. It is to be noted also that Panheads owner's kids were also armed with water balloons and Super Soakers with which they blasted the competing teams. 

Hmmmm - a random sunset. Who can resist posting a sunset??

A pretty garden on the main street in New Smyrna Beach.

One evening we had drinks and appetizers at a great little restaurant called Riverside Terrace. It used to be the private home of a local potter. It's still owned by her and her studio is next door, across the garden. We had a long chat with her about sailing, traveling and how her life has evolved in recent years now that the house is leased out as a wonderful restaurant.

We tried the fish tacos appetizer - yummy.

And another excellent one was bruschetta with goat cheese, strawberries, balsamic vinegar and basil. 

This last photo was taken at "Pancakes in the Park", an event that took place the same morning as the outdoor market in the park. This machine rotated slowly while one guy poured batter and another couple of guys flipped pancakes. They sold about 1,800 pancakes that day to raise money for the museum.  

And that's it for New Smyrna Beach, a great little seaside town. Lots of art galleries, fun events, good food, an excellent marina and very, very friendly people.

We're now in St Augustine and should reach Neverland's final destination  this year - Brunswick Georgia - within a week. I doubt there will be any more posts for this trip. Many thanks for following along! I've really enjoyed the comments I've gotten back.  I think the next blog will be about tent camping in the Maritime Provinces in Canada this summer.