Peter Island to Road Town

We get up early (well we both wake early, but Mike actually does the early getting up to make the tea) then head for Road Town.  There is lots of work to be done on the boat before Thursday when friends arrive.

Mike and Dougie take down the forestay in order to replace the genoa halyard. swivel (you know, that plastic and ball bearing thing that cost nearly $1000!).  It takes nearly five hours to do this and take it apart.  Dougie thinks that while we have it down, we should have a new forestay made for the round the world trip as this one is seven years old which means it is due sometime now.  So off they go to Richardson’s Rigging to find out how much a new one will be.  It is of course, far more than expected - $660.  In the event, it needs a different part added to it which of course makes it even more expensive.  The final bill is over $800, although it is made very quickly.  Within an hour and a half it is finished – very unusual for the BVIs.

While all this spending is going on, I go to the Immigration department in an attempt to reverse the financial situation.  I hand over the letter outlining our plans for departure from the BVIs, basically asking for our immigration bond to be returned – all $3400 of it.  We had to hand over this bond in January so that if there was ever any reason to deport us, the money was there to pay for our tickets.  I have never spent $1700 on a single fare air ticket to any part of the Caribbean, but heyho!  The paperwork is examined and we are told that we can have our money in two weeks’ time.  Of course, the fact that we handed over cash, does not mean that they will hand it back in cash.  Apparently we will get a cheque.  Hopefully a bank will cash it.

After that, it’s time for the laundry.  Today is so hot.  The thought of laundry fills me with dread, but Mike and Dougie are faring much worse in the heat, so I plod on.

In the evening we are treated to a wonderful meal at Spaghetti Junction by Doug and Melissa who are having a new boat delivered in the BVIs.  They have been reading my blog (now I know who the avid reader in Little Rock, Arkansas is) and are interested in our experiences.  We have a lovely evening although I don’t know how helpful we end up being.  Afterwards they come back to Jeannius for a look around. Tomorrow I will probably have a look around the boat they are chartering, an older version of the boat they are having delivered.