Back from our cruise

We got back on Monday from our cruise to Key West & Cozumel.  We left from Tampa where we had met our friends Harold and Gladys who live part-time in St. Petersburg.  We weren't sure exactly what to expect with the cruise since neither of us had been on one before, but Harold and Gladys had and that was good enough for us.  We of course like sailing and being around the water, so it really wasn't a big risk.  It turned out to be very relaxing and a great getaway from the cold of Callao, although that is back and with a vengeance.  Lows the next two nights are suppose to be in the 10-15 degree range.  As far as the ports-of-call, we didn't go ashore at Key West since we had been there before and had no real urge to go back for just a few hours.  Most people did of course, which left the ship to us.  That was nice since it can be a bit crowded at times.  At Cozumel we did go ashore for a short walk just so we could say we had been there but it was just the usual tourist shops, at least what we were able to see.  I'm sure there is more of the real Cozumel out there, but we didn't have the time to explore.  All-in-all, I would recommend a cruise if you just want to relax and have plenty of good (not great) food available 24/7.  Oh, and if you can do it with friends or family it would be even better.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Since it's a New Year I thought I had better post something.  Here is a picture of our house in Thailand under construction.  This was a couple months ago and I'm told now that it is about complete, just the finish work inside left and some of that won't be done until we get there.  It's one floor with a great room, kitchen, master bedroom, spare bedroom/study, two bathrooms and a utility area for the washer/dryer and storage.  It's about 1,200 - 1,500 spare feet we think.  The open area on the left in the photo is the carport, then comes the kitchen in the center and the great room to the right.  Right now we are guessing that it will be early summer before we get there.  There is tax season coming up and once Spring gets here we need to finish some stuff on the Blue Pearl before we would put her on the hard for a while.  Also, we hope to get some sailing in before leaving.  The current plan is to spend six months on the boat and six months in Thailand.  Just which six months they will be is still up in the air.  We'd like to always be here for the Christmas holidays and it makes little sense to spend the winter months on the boat when you can't sail, so it may be something like January to June in Thailand and July to December on the boat.  But this year who knows since we won't get to Thailand before mid summer.

Tomorrow we leave for Tampa/St. Pete to spend a couple days with our friends Harold and Gladys, and take a five day cruise to Key West and Cozumel.  The weather here has turned cold again so it a good time to take a trip.