February 2017 | MONTH IN REVIEW

Here's a quick summary of what we were up to this month.

• We installed new batteries; one in the battery compartment on the rack we modified last month, and the other in the anchor locker for the windlass.

• We replaced the corroded wiring in the battery compartment.   

• We replaced the switch for the anchor windlass, cleaned and serviced the windlass motor, repaired and re-painted the windlass cover. 

• We repaired and re-painted the rubbing board on the port side.

• We replaced all the clam shells on the underside of the boat.

• We limed and wined at the Carnival in Port of Spain. A wonderful day with our friends Daniela and Rolf as we walked alongside the masqueraders in fancy glittery and feathery costumes singing and dancing to the tunes of "We jammin' still".

• Counting down the days to our next visa expiry on 19th March, will we make it?

Check out our posts this month:

We're on Google Maps!

How To Get Rid of Unwanted Guests (Ants & Cockroaches)

Recipe | Bite Sized Chocolate Fridge Cake

Liming & Wining at the Carnival in Trinidad

January 2017 | MONTH IN REVIEW >>

March 2017 | MONTH IN REVIEW <<

 

Replacing clam shells under the boat

Replacing corroded wiring

Our new battery in place

 

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Liming & Wining at the Carnival in Trinidad

2 years ago, we made it to the Carnival in Tobago. This year, we made it to the one in Trinidad! 

Glad that we had our friends Daniela and Rolf with us this time around. We caught the local maxi taxi (6 TTD/person) in the early morning of Tuesday, 28th February 2017 (and by early we mean 9am) from Chaguaramas (opposite Power Boats) and arrived at the maxi taxi terminal in Port of Spain, in just half an hour! (Fantastic! We had smooth traffic!)

We walked along with the masqueraders who were dressed in glittery, feathery, colorful skimpy costumes followed closely by their Carnival band of deafening music trucks, drinks trucks and wee wee trucks. It's a HUGE street party! I didn't realise how loud the music was until we walked away from the crowd and I couldn't hear a thing! 

The rain came down on us in the afternoon, but the masqueraders marched on. No rain can dampened their high spirits! Dancing and singing to the tunes of the hit song "Full Extreme" by MX Prime and Ultimate Rejects which was played over and over.  

𝄞𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅘𝅥𝅮{ “Recession, doh bother we/promote ah fete/an you go see/we go party/to the full extreme/an light it up with gasolene/oh lord, the city could bun down/we jammin still/the building could fall down/we jammin still/just hold them and wuk dem/no, we doh business/oye, no we doh business...”.}𝄞𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅘𝅥𝅮

Funny thing, when I first heard the song, I thought the lyrics were "we jumpin' still" or "we jam and steal" or maybe "steel" (for steelbands, which are popular here). Anyway.. 😄, I was kinda close though, thanks to google, the official lyrics are "we jammin still".

At times like this, I'm really grateful for the internet because I remember the days when I'd sing along to popular hit songs for years only to discover that the lyrics were completely different to what I had thought.
 

At Queen Savannah Park

𝄞𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅘𝅥𝅮{ We jammin still }𝄞𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅘𝅥𝅮 It was an awesome day! A nice break from all the boat stuff and so happy we got to spend a lovely day with our dear friends from S/Y Yelo.

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Recipe | Bite Sized Chocolate Fridge Cake

This is a no bake chocolate cake recipe inspired from Jamie Oliver's Chocolate Fridge Cake recipe. The first time I tried making this was in Singapore, suggested by a dear friend. Since then I've modified the recipe based on the ingredients we had on board and it works just as well.

Makes: around 36 pieces

Ingredients:

• 200 g dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
• 150 g unsalted butter
• 1-2 tablespoons of honey
• A pinch of salt
• 150 g digestive biscuits, broken into small/fine pieces
• 150 g mixed nuts, roughly chopped (i.e. cashew, almond, walnuts)
• 2 tablespoons of dried cranberries
• 2 tablespoons of pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds (optional)
• 2 tablespoons of granola with dried fruits (optional)

Method:

1. In a large bowl, mix the digestive biscuits, nuts, seeds, cranberries and granola.
2. In a heatproof bowl, melt the chocolate, butter, honey and a pinch of salt either over a pot of simmering water, or in a microwave. Stir occasionally until smooth.
3. Mix both the contents together.
4. Spoon the mixed contents into a mould. I used plastic egg cartons.
5. Close the cover and put into fridge to firm up.
6. Once it's firm, you can turn over the mould and pop the pieces out.
7. Store in fridge in an airtight container. The flavour improves after a few days.

Note: If you prefer it as a whole cake, instead of bite sized pieces. Use a 8x4 bread/loaf pan. Line the pan with clingfilm to help you turn it over once it's firm. Leave extra film at the edges so you can fold over the top. Follow steps 4 through 7. If you're allergic to nuts then simply leave them out of the recipe.

200g of Dark Chocolate 
This is not the best dark chocolate but we make do with what we have and it turned out well

Melt Butter and Chocolate, Add Honey & a pinch of Salt

Digestive biscuits, Mixed nuts, Cranberries, Granola

Melted chocolate with butter, honey and pinch of salt

Mix contents together

Like so..

Spoon the mixture into the mould, close the lid and put in fridge to firm

That's it!

Really like this recipe because it doesn't require any baking! Hope you'll like it too.

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How To Get Rid of Unwanted Guests (Ants & Cockroaches)

Several years ago and somewhere in the Indian Ocean, we discovered we had an ant and cockroach infestation. They probably snuck on board via our groceries. Unfortunately once they're on board, it's not easy to get rid of them. All the expensive store bought ant/cockroach sprays and baits did not work for us.

By the time we got to South Africa, the infestation was out of control. I believe there were maybe a gazillion (hah, okay not quite a gazillion but definitely hundreds) of tiny baby roaches running around having a ball under the floorboards in the galley and we had no idea how to get rid of them. Whenever we saw one, we'd squash them, spray them, but they breed so much faster than we could kill them.

I remember one night (about 3 years ago) in South Africa on S/Y Yelo, I was sharing with Daniela about our unwanted guests. She told me, her trick was to have a photo of cockroaches in the galley, which I thought was funny, but hey, she has it and it works!

So there I was thinking of ways to get myself a photo of cockroaches when Doris, another Swiss cruiser, a friend of Daniela's who was listening to our conversation and said "Ah.. la cucaracha!".

She then advised me on how to get rid of them. She said "Buy some borax powder, mix with it sugar and water until it becomes a paste in a shallow tray. A thin layer will do and put it where the la cucaracha's are. Borax powder for la cucaracha's and Boric Acid powder for ants".

So the next time I went to the Pharmacy, I bought a box of Borax and Boric a.k.a Boracic Acid powder just as advised. It costs a fraction of what we'd pay for the commercialized ant/cockroach sprays and baits. 

You only need a small quantity each time so it lasts a long time, it's light, it doesn't expire, it's not in some spray can that will eventually rust, basically it's great for boats (and houses too!).

Homemade stuff is always the best. I followed her instructions, but added both the powders into one tray because we had both infestations (an attempt to kill two birds with one stone; or in this case 2 pests with one bait).

Within days there were less and less ants and one day, it all disappeared. As for the roaches, it took a little longer (several weeks) but unlike the ants that magically disappeared, I had to clear the dead roaches regularly till all were gone but it works!

Recently we had another bout of ants here in Trinidad. Fortunately, we got rid of them in 2 days! So grateful for the advice. See formula below.

 
Ingredients (approx.)

½ teaspoon of Borax powder and/or
½ teaspoon of Boric/Boracic Acid powder
1½ tablespoons of sugar
5-10 drops of room temperature water    

Method

Mix the ingredients in a shallow tray until the consistency is like a paste.
Add drops of water as required.
Leave the tray where the ants/cockroaches roam.

Note: Be sure not to put too much of the powder, because you don't want to kill them instantly. The aim is to get the ants to take the bait back to the colony to share thus killing the other ants & its queen. The same applies to the roaches (except of course.. there's no queen roach).

If this fails, get a photo of cockroaches and pin it up! ;)

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We're on Google Maps!

We know we've been here too long when we're on Google Maps! Raptor has been here since 2nd March 2015. Her longest stay on the hard to date. 

The last time we hauled out was 5 years ago in Phuket, Thailand at Coconut Boatyard for merely 2 months.

Raptor on Google Maps

Boat projects, boat projects, when will you end? We can't wait to be back in the ocean again.

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My Sister's Hidden Talent

Okay, so this post is unrelated to sailing or travelling. It's a personal post for my dear sister to capture our memorable conversation over Whatsapp on the 5th day of Chinese New Year this year.
 
Feeling a little homesick, I sent her a photo of what I had made for lunch on the second day of Chinese New Year... "Nothing fancy, just plain noodles and stir fry veggies", I told her. 
 

"Ah.. Royal mix noodle with superior veggie and golden egg!", she replied. 😄

I immediately sent her a couple more photos of what I had made for dinner a few nights ago, and this is what she said..

"Double prosperity rooster with superior sauce and emerald greens!" she continued. 

"and this.. Empress ribs on 8 treasures!".

Isn't she the best? I swear this is her hidden talent - cheering me up and coming up with creative names for dishes! 😊 My feeling of self pity for missing out on all the good food back home somewhat dissipated after our conversation. She made me see that I had some pretty fancy dishes on board too! {haha}

Thank you my dear sister and Happy Chinese New Year to all! 😘💓

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January 2017 | MONTH IN REVIEW

 

Here's a quick summary of what we were up to this month.

• First off, here's wishing everyone good health, wealth and happiness in 2017!

• We attended a pot-luck New Year's party for all cruisers that were here in Trinidad. It was organised by the Seven Seas Cruising Association (SSCA) and Ocean Cruising Club (OCC) at the Trinidad and Tobago Sailing Association (TTSA). Alex and I aren't the most sociable people, we mainly keep to ourselves (I blame it on.. too much boat work!), but we appreciated the invitation and had a good time.

• Our boat projects and repairs continue. The list is never-ending. A boat is like a can of worms. You try to fix one thing and then you find out you need to fix a million other things in order to fix that one thing!

• We sanded and re-painted the freezer door, re-sealed the drainage in the cockpit, modified the battery rack to accommodate the new batteries and added straps to secure them.

• I missed celebrating Chinese New Year with my family. It's definitely hard being away from family and friends during the festive holidays. Even though it's almost always hectic and chaotic, even a little stressful at times, but at the end of the day, when I'm back on the boat (watching the sunset/working on the boat), it's the good times that I recall and can't wait to go home and do it all over again.

• Lastly, so so happy we met our dearest friends Daniela & Rolf on S/Y Yelo whom we first met in South Africa, then in French Guyana and now here in Trinidad! :)

Check out our posts this month:

Dealing with Vesco Plastic Sales

Festivities in Trinidad

 

December 2016 | MONTH IN REVIEW >>

February 2017 | MONTH IN REVIEW <<

 

Sanded and re-painted the freezer door

Till next month! ;)

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Festivities in Trinidad

4 months in and we're still working hard on Raptor. The list is never ending (but we're still hopeful). We celebrated Christmas, New Year and Chinese New Year's here. Just thought we'd share some photos of the festivities.

A new friend in this holiday season at West Mall

On Christmas Eve, we met a local Trinidadian from a mutual friend in Singapore via Facebook. Thanks Kwanieze for meeting up with us. It's always nice to meet a local wherever we are and always happy to make new friends.

Alex beaming from ear to ear with his Christmas gifts

Christmas Day - You must be a true sailor to smile so brightly when you get a leveler, a knife sharpener and a set of drill bits as presents. (p/s: these were gifts to himself). Unfortunately the leveler did not work as expected so we had to return it.

New Year's Day Celebration for Yachties

A pot-luck style New Year's Day event for cruisers from around the world organised by the SSCA, OCC at TTSA (I hope I got it right). For the uninitiated, the SSCA (Seven Seas Cruising Association), OCC (Ocean Cruising Club), TTSA (Trinidad and Tobago Sailing Association). A little ashamed, I had to google these acronyms too.

We almost won a prize during the lucky draw but we lost it because we did not know that the national bird of Trinidad and Tobago was the Scarlet Ibis! That'll teach us to learn more interesting facts about the country we're in.

Welcome 2017!

I just realised Alex was wearing the same T-shirt and shorts combo on Christmas Eve and New Years day! Such is a sailors life and his wardrobe. 

28th January 2017 - It's Chinese New Year! Even though there are lots of Chinese (shop owners) in Port of Spain, we didn't see any celebrations. It was business as usual. I guess the Chinese here are business first, celebrations later?

Alex & I wearing red to usher in some good luck for the New Year!

Here's wishing everyone good health, good luck, happiness, prosperity and abundance in the Rooster year!

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Dealing with Vesco Plastic Sales

Just wanted to share our experience of dealing with Vesco Plastic Sales in South Africa.

We ordered some Vesconite for our gearbox in August 2014 sent to Brazil, then 4 Vesconite bushings for our rudders in March 2015 to Trinidad. This time around, we ordered a customised bushing in Vesconite Hilube for our gearbox.

On 20th December 2016, we sent them our design requirements in a pdf format (see below). After a couple of calls and re-quotes later, we confirmed our order on 3rd January and made payment via PayPal the next day. They confirmed receipt of our payment on 5th January and the package was sent via UPS from South Africa on 12th January. Within 2 weeks of payment, we received our customised bushing at the Power Boats office on 17th January.

All in all, we've had good experiences dealing with them and they've been consistent in their service.

Custom Design Requirements

Shipment Tracker

Order Received

What's Vesconite?

Vesconite and Vesconite Hilube are low friction materials for long life bearings, designed to operate with little or no greasing. Up to 10 times the life of bronze bushes. No swell. Use where nylon unsuitable. Low wear. Outlasts acetal bearings. Under water bushes. Thrives with water as lubricant. Best material for dirty and poorly lubricated conditions. 

VESCONITE has high dimensional stability and does not swell in water, in contrast to most synthetic materials which swell in water. For example nylon absorbs up to 9% water by weight with consequent swell and softening.  

VESCONITE combines a load carrying capacity greater than white metal with self lubricating properties better than nylon. 

*copied from www.vesconite.com

It's good stuff if you ask us!

In case you're wondering where we installed it? See photo's below:

Upper Gearbox

Front

Back

Our custom made Vesconite bushing now sits between the engine and the flange of the upper gearbox - hopefully there'll be no more vibration & abrasion & constant destruction of our damper plate.

Have you used Vesconite? We'd love to hear your thoughts.

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