January 19th 2011.…Ha Sea II begins voyage to St. Thomas USVI

We finally left Naples a day late after dealing with some electrical issues and fighting against thick fog (that’s right, Naples Fl…the newfound land of fog). It seems like life on a motor yacht can sometimes be referred to as hurry up and wait. Granted the crew doesn’t own the boat and extra precaution must be taken to ensue as safe of a delivery as possible. So I get the game…but it was good to get out of Naples. And I had only been there for 10 days. We still had to do some calibrating on the big girl as we just got a new satellite phone. So, Paul (our electronics man) came out with us to do some test circles and made sure everything was going to function as it should. He and I took the new tender out ahead of the young lady and he showed me some of the new additions he made. Pretty awesome. The tender is equipped with auto-pilot, a 72 mile range radar, and a vessel tracking system that runs via GPS and allows us to track it wherever it might be (in case it gets stolen or the tow line breaks on the way down…all hail the tow gods).

Once Ha-Sea made it through the pass I dropped Paul off and waited in the tender until he was done with his calibrating. We headed out late in the afternoon and watching the girl make some turns amidst the backdrop of a gulf coast sunset while sitting in our tender was quite the experience. Moments like these are why I enjoy this lifestyle. Constantly being in nature offers some great opportunities to learn, become inspired, grow, appreciate its power, and make some great memories. After Paul completed his task (all systems go…woohoo!) I picked him up, ran him back into Naples, and headed back out to the Gulf to meet my ride south. Running 40mph just offshore in the Gulf with a huge full moon and Ha-Sea in view a few miles away was pure exhilaration. I have been mainly operating sailing vessels for the past few years (which are awesome in there own right) so for now the purr and roar of 900 horses gliding across the top of the water is certainly addicting. Give me more, give me more. Shortly after getting back to the yacht we got the tender safely secured for towing and began our voyage.

Night number one consisted of tacos (prepared by our excellent Chef Dan), a huge full moon, and smooth seas. We all settled into our watches and life was good on our boat.

January 20th…Ha Sea II en route to St. Thomas (3 and a half days left)

Captain Kirk (not quite the same Kirk of the Starship Enterprise) and I have the 4am to 10am watch which brought us into Key West, FL. Key West is surrounded by shallow water, reefs, tons of fishing traps, and narrow channels. The Keys are great and I hope to spend more time there one day, but navigating through on someone else’s 10 million dollar yacht implies keeping a sharp eye out and preferably coming through during day light. Our tender is being towed via a 200 foot line which we shortened to 50 feet to lessen our concerns a bit and as the new day began to show herself we quickly noticed we were in the middle of thick, milky fog. Not exactly what I expected traveling through Key West and certainly not inductive to easy navigation. But with the help of our two state of the line radars, a big boomy horn, and sharp eyes we made it through without any problems. I am certainly learning more about safe sea keeping everyday I am aboard and this morning offered another valuable experience.

At one point our port generator went out and shut off most of the electric power running onboard…but that’s why we have a back up. And after a quick start we were back online. The marine industry really teaches you to stay cool and deal with what you are dealt. Shortly after exiting the main shipping channel off of Key West, the fog lifted (of course) and we were greeted by sunny skies, deep blue seas, and a warm breeze. Dan and Wren came up to take over watch, I made myself a sandwich, made my way to the fly bridge and enjoyed watching the cruise ships, massive cargo ships and of course, the sunshine. Today we will pass north of Cuba and into the Bahama Channel as we meander our way south. We are chilling back and certainly chilling, Jack.

P.S…..Just had a pod of 8 or 10 dolphins join us for several minutes on both sides of the boat (12:30pm) They seemed to enjoy our bow wake. They are such awesome creatures.

Jan. 21st…22 29.50N…77 49.25W…In Bahama Channel

We have had another good day. The seas have picked up a little (2-4ft 6 sec.) but they are coming in just aft of our bow and Ha Sea is riding them nicely. We have had the stabilizers off for most of the trip. I think the weight of the tender is acting like a sea anchor and smoothing out the ride a bit.

One interesting thing to report. Around day break while Kirk and I were on watch we noticed two vessels show up on the radar. Both 12 miles out and both headed our way but with their heading our closest point of approach would be 3 miles for one and 1.5 miles for the other. Really no concern, but as usual we set them as targets and keep an eye on them. When you set a vessel as a target the radar informs you of the vessels constant speed, heading, our closest point of approach, and the time to that closest point of approach. All great aids to safe navigation.

We could tell from the information that the radar was giving us that one of the vessels was moving at 17 knots and seemed to be a large cargo ship. The other was moving between 7 and 8 knots and was a much smaller vessel. As our approach range decreased we gained a visual on the vessels. The cargo ship was going to pass well away from us
but the smaller vessel was slowly altering course thus causing our closest point of approach to now be within a half of a mile. As we moved within a mile of the vessel we were still headed for a close pass and now the vessel was slowing down to 2 knots. Upon further visual examination we noticed that the vessel was what looked like an old rusty fishing boat, 50 ft. in length, and its decks were full of people. Remember, we are just off the coast of Cuba. So this was certainly not a sight-seeing boat. You never hear of any recent pirate attacks coming from Cuba, but you do hear of refugee escape boats headed to America and who knows what they have planned. So I went up on deck to keep a look out and as we passed they came around on our stern but fortunately picked up speed and continued on their way. I would say there were 40 to 50 people on deck and more in the boat itself. Who knows where they were headed or what they were doing but I hope they all stay safe and out of trouble. It was quite the site indeed and of course the theatre of my mind aided in this excitement. Fortunately there was no need for a flare gun….Sail on!!!

Jan. 22nd….20 56.99N…73 50.27W…(ETA 1/24/11 10:30am)

Its 8:15am and Capt. Kirk and I are on our usual 4am to 10am watch. We are coming up on Great Inagua Island (to out East) which is the southernmost island in the Bahamas chain. Through the eyes of our binoculars it seems be somewhat populated as there are several towers and buildings scattered across the island. There is a nice lighthouse on the west end and what looked like some great beaches We finally passed Cuba in the early morning hours. I did not realize how big of an island Cuba is. As the crow flies it’s a little over 600 miles long and it took us 2 and half days to get past (running 10 knots). The wind has died down to 10 knots or less and moved around to the Southwest which has helped to flatten out the seas even more. We have really been blessed by the sea gods so far and based on the forecast this should continue (knocking on wood).

We noticed our starboard running light was out yesterday around dusk and the solar sensor on our tender seems to have failed as its running lights did not come on either. We had the solar sensor installed as to save on battery drain but with only two nights of effective use we would have been better off just using the battery. Seemed like a good idea at the time.

Kirk and I changed the bulb in the starboard running light earlier this morning but with incredible luck, around 11:30 last night we got a call over the radio from a USCG Cutter that was out on patrol off of Cuba. We noticed them pass on our radar and could see their running lights but had no idea it was the Coast Guard. Just as they were off of our starboard stern they hailed us, turned around, and held off within a half of a mile throughout our chat. They were checking in concerning the running light being out but more so about the center console within 200ft of our stern with no lights on (our tender..Ha!) Kirk explained the situation and they proceeded to ask several questions to verify who we were, where we were headed, where we were coming from, and who was onboard. The seaman on the radio was pleasant and its nice to know they are out patrolling and keeping the waters safe. Cruising the Caribbean is certainly much safer than cruising around Libya, Somalia, Sri Lanka or other pirate infested waters. But with the evident unrest in Haiti and political turmoil in Venezuela I once again say its nice to know our ocean going military branches are out patrolling.

It looks like its going to be another great day. The Caribbean sun is out in full glory and after my watch I am going to head up to the bow and catch some rays. Today we will be passing the Turks and Caicos to our port (hoping to stop there on the way back) and will have Haiti and the Dominican Republic to our starboard by mid afternoon. This is living life to me.

January 23rd…..19 37.45 N…..069 28.05W (877nm down and 273nm to go)

It’s 8:30am and Capt. Kirk and I are almost done with our early morning watch. We had a really great sunrise this morning and enjoyed some nice views of the hills of the Dominican Republic. The winds are coming out of the SSE at 10 knots or less. The seas are 4 to 5 feet but its all swells and they are spaced 9 to 10 seconds apart. Ha Sea is riding them nicely and its fun to watch the bigger ones from far out as they approach the boat. We have 77 nautical miles to go until we get past the Dominican Republic and 142nm until we reach Puerto Rico. We are starting to hear more English on the VHF now and heard a long USCG transcription coming from San Juan earlier this morning. So, needless to say, we are approaching US waters. We are hoping pick up cell phone signal coming from Puerto Rico later today. In the midst of all the hurry to get out of Naples we forgot to register our Puerto Rico Direct TV dish (heaven forbid) so we lost satellite signal once we got past Cuba. No big deal, but today is Sunday and the Divisional Championship games for the NFL are scheduled to be played. Don’t get me wrong…the sun and fun is great. But seeing the games would be great too…Ha…Wren (our stewardess) mentioned that we would be passing Sumana Point today which is on the southern tip of the Dominican Republic. This is Humpback Whale season for these waters and according to Wren, Sumana Point is a favorite hang out…so maybe we can do a little whale watching instead.

12:15pm…Yesterday afternoon we were in some really calm seas so Kirk decided to slow the big girl down, pull in the tender and have me hop aboard to check things out. Mainly to see what was up with the running lights not coming on.

As I boarded the boat I noticed an alarm going off and figured it was a low voltage alarm for the house battery. I checked the gauges in the cabin and sure enough the battery was dead. Then things proceeded to get interesting.

The boat has 3 batteries dedicated to powering various things and to also be used as backups in situations like we were in. So I flipped the switches to the other two batteries and they were dead as well. That was weird; because I had turned them off just as I was getting off the boat to begin the trip down. Time for further inspection….

The batteries are located in the aft bilge locker so I opened it up to have a look. The batteries were there, but there was also about a foot and a half of water sloshing around as well. The water was high enough that it was splashing up over the tops of the batteries and covering the bottom quarter of the generator (which just so happens to include the
housing for the generator electronics)….bucket anyone??? All of the thru hulls were closed and this is a brand new Boston Whaler (trademarked as the “unsinkable legend”…remember the other vessel with that self proclaimed title??).

Well it wasn’t sinking, but it was sure full of water. After several minutes of pumping water, bailing, and a little cursing, all of the water was out. The batteries had died because this unknown leak was causing the bilges to run and they finally sucked out all the juice the batteries had to give.

The seas started to pick up a bit and with a dry bilge (at least for the moment) Kirk wanted to get me back on Ha-Sea for safety reasons and we would deal with the problem the next day.

Well today is the next day and we have been blessed by the sea gods again to have favorable seas for a boarding. We pulled the “leaking lady” in around 10:30am and I hopped aboard (this time armed with proper buckets and a better hand pump). Long story short there was twice as much water in the aft bilge today as there was yesterday. The
batteries were completely covered as was half of the generator (If anyone reading this blog works for Boston Whaler I mean no harm…but why is the battery box in the aft bilge to begin with; and not to mention the generator…The electronics housing that has now been thoroughly soaked with salt water is literally inches above the low level bilge
pump with a big sticker on it that reads “Caution: electronics; do not get wet!”…Really?? C’mon man…).

Hopefully we can get a charge on the batteries when we get to St. Thomas but I am afraid the generator is “no bueno” and we still can’t tell where the leak is coming from (we have a fairly good idea though).  Unless you are a fish, salt water has ill effect on most things it comes into contact with so, unfortunately, our new tender is going to need some serious attention. Such is all part of yachting I guess…glad I am not writing the checks.

4:45pm…Humpback Whale Sighting!!!…Well, Wren was right about Sumana Point being a favorite spot for Humpback Whales this time of the year. I never imagined we would actually see any but sure enough, around 2:30, Dan (our chef) spotted an area of white water 2 miles off the port-side of the bow that looked like a big fish had just
jumped. Capt. Kirk sidelines as an amateur photographer so he decided to change course and take a look. We were all up on deck with our eyes peeled and sure enough, about 5 minutes later a massive Humpback breached the water and landed with an earth shattering splash….”holy shit!” was all I could say and we all scattered for our cameras. We were
fortunate enough to follow this pod of 6 Humpbacks for the next 45 minutes.  They came as close as 100 feet from our bow and they were each 25 to 30 feet in length.  We could see them dive in the water and they gave us quite the show with multiple fin slaps, flukes, and 4 or 5 jumps clear out of the water. Their fin snap was like a loud snare
drum and the sounds of them clearing their blow holes was just awesome. This was quite the awe inspiring experience. I never thought I would have such an opportunity, especially in the beautiful blue Caribbean water….what a moment.

January 24th…Land Ho!…We Have Arrived…M/Y Ha-Sea II and the crew entered Red Hook Harbor at the East End of St. Thomas USVI at approximately 4:30 this afternoon. With our ‘leaking lady’ of a tender being non-operational we tied her up to our port hip and are all safely secured at American Yacht Harbor. We were certainly
blessed by the sea gods throughout our trip and the big boat performed admirably. Kirk is giving us the day off tomorrow and we plan on making the most of it by going over to St. John for some sun and fun. Its nice to be back on land for a bit and its good to be back in the Caribbean. This is the start of what should be a great adventure. If everything goes as planned, when its all said and done our round trip will be a little more than 5 months and 3,400 nautical miles. I am looking forward to it all and will enjoy sharing my experiences with the cyber world. Now, what do sailors do when they make landfall after a great passage? Drink rum of course and who am I to go against tradition…Cheers and thanks for reading…Mike

In the recent past working on a luxury yacht was considered more of a lifestyle than an actual job. It is tempting for many crew to forget that they don’t actually own the boat they work on and slip into the mindset of the money tree that does. Working on a luxury yacht brings with it an intimate relationship of the extreme high-end lifestyle lived by the guests and owners onboard. Owning a mega-yacht can cost you millions a year and chartering a mega-yacht for a week can cost upwards of $250,000 (much more if you want a really big one) and this only includes the crew and use of the facilities found onboard. If you actually want to move from the dock, eat, drink and be pampered then be prepared to break out your checkbook again.

With fewer regulations in place and little or no training required it was fairly easy for a good looking and fit person who may have never even stepped on a boat to show up on the dock, give a wink in the right direction and land themselves a good paying position, free rent and board, and the opportunity to travel around the world. In certain circumstances this is still possible but with yachting and chartering becoming such big business the MCA (Maritime Coast Guard Agency) and other organizations have stepped in and tightened up on the training required to work on a luxury yacht. Safekeeping of the vessel and accident prevention onboard should be the number one priority of the captain and crew. Running drills on a monthly basis and creating scenarios of incidences that are possible on a yacht are good ways to be prepared. But as I have learned through my training, it is surprising the number of vessels that lag behind in this area; though the efforts of the MCA and the SOLAS Convention (Safety Of Life At Sea; formed in direct correlation to the sinking of the Titanic) are really starting to take effect.

The STCW 95 Code (Standards of Training, Certification, and Watch keeping for Seafarers) mandates the minimum training all seafarers are now required to complete. This requirement was implemented in 1998 and contains four components (personal safety and social responsibilities, personal survival techniques, first aid, and basic fire prevention and fire fighting). I completed this course here in Antibes and must say that I truly enjoyed the course and learned much more than I thought I would. I completed my captains license training with the USCG in 2007 and though that was informative, the training offered through an STCW course will really prepare you for dealing with many of the practical aspects that come with working and living aboard a seafaring vessel.

I am glad I had the opportunity to complete my training in Antibes. We had three instructors for the course and they were all great in their own way. There were 11 of us in the class and I was the only American. The rest were some good people coming from the UK, Italy, New Zealand, and France. We all got along great, laughed a lot, learned from each other, enjoy our daily happy hour after class (did I mention yachties like going to bars?) and I learned some new slang words for Americans.

Each of our instructors were from the UK and all had extensive seafaring backgrounds. A fellow named John was with us for the first day and went over our personal and social responsibilities when working and living on a yacht. He started his career with the British Navy, eventually moved to the luxury yachting world and made his way up to captain of several different vessels. He is the founder of Bluewater Yachting and Training whom I took the course with. Jules was with us for the next three days and taught us about personal survival techniques, fire prevention, and basic fire fighting. I have to say that Jules was my favorite of the three instructors. His introduction to us as a class was…(in a thick Welsh accent) “Alright then, my name is Jules and I am the short, fat Welshman that John warned you about. I am going to crack on each of you for the next three days…but don’t worry…I expect you to crack back.” We had a blast with him and learned in many ways why fire is something that you absolutely do not want on a yacht. Part of our training was putting on a fireman’s uniform, donning a full mask and breathing apparatus, going into a pitch black two level container with a team of three, crawling through hatches and working around obstacles; then climbing a ladder into a container with a fairly large wood burning fire and putting it out…it was awesome and quite the rush. Performing in this scenario really helps you to understand why training and drilling are so important on a regular basis onboard a luxury yacht.

Rod was with us on our last day and taught us about basic first-aid and CPR. Rod was the most seaworthy and salty of the bunch. He was a retired Merchant Mariner and worked for most of his life as Chief Mate and Captain onboard chemical-carrying container ships (most of which he told us were highly explosive). He has been all over the world delivering these dangerous chemicals and has captained vessels as large as 250,000 tons…wowsas! My parents are big fans of the cruise industry and I have been fortunate enough to travel with them on some of the largest cruise ships in the world. Rod was captaining ships bigger than those and full of deadly and highly explosive chemicals….my hat is off to Rod and man did he share some great stories with us. Stuff goes on aboard those container ships that you wouldn’t even dream of…movie type action in real life. As Rod said…“When the shit hits the fan, the shit really hits the fan.”

I finished up my STCW training Friday a week ago and started looking for a job quickly thereafter. There are numerous crew agencies in town that I posted my resume with and have tried to conduct interviews with each of them. There are also many crew databases online and websites with job postings where I have also submitted my information. Then there is the task of ‘dockwalking’. Dockwalking can be considered dreadful or loads of fun, depending on how you look at it. You simply shorten your resume and contact info to one page then walk the docks where many of the mega-yachts are berthed and look for day-work which gives you experience, offers good networking and could land you a job. I didn’t have much luck with finding work like this and must admit that you sometimes feel like a bum bothering people for work. But it is a good experience and I know several people who have had great success with finding a permanent position by walking the docks. I did, however, get lucky with a crew agency.

A friend of mine, Marien, is a crew agent here in Antibes and this past Friday she submitted my resume for a deckhand position onboard M/Y Stampede. With my luck not running so hot walking the docks I had decided to check out of France in mid October and head to Ft. Lauderdale to hopefully catch a boat for the winter season in the Caribbean. I had just spoken to US Air an hour or so before when Marien informed me that I had an interview with the captain on Stampede…good stuff. So I phoned up the captain, had a good interview, the stars aligned in my favor, and I was offered a job as deckhand. I am leaving for Naples, Italy this Thursday (30th) and will start work Friday morning. Stampede was built by Delta yachts in Seattle and after going through a major refit in 2007 she is just at 120’. There are 5 other crew onboard and the captain really strives to integrate a team-like atmosphere. He is an instructor for MCA and RYA and says he likes to offer his crew the opportunity to learn and train-up to further their careers. The boat is private (no chartering) and the owners are from the US. Captain Laz says they are great people and really love their boat. We will be cruising the Western Mediterranean and Spain through late November-early December at which point we will cross the Atlantic over to Antigua and spend the winter in the Caribbean. He mentioned going to Cuba in my interview which would be an awesome experience I think. http://www.turnkeywords.com/uploads/file/78_stampede.pdf (the link is to an article concerning Stampede’s refit and has some good pictures of the vessel)

I am really looking forward to meeting the boat and the rest of the crew on Thursday and feel very fortunate to have been offered such an opportunity. Being a deckhand will be a lot of work but I feel I am capable and ready for the challenge ahead. Thanks for reading over my blog and for your interest in my travels and whereabouts. I look forward to sharing the new experiences to come. I have posted some pictures from some recent day trips I have taken. They are from Ville Franche, Beaulieu Sur Mer and Theoule Sur Mer. Three beautiful seaside towns along the Med in France. Enjoy and Peace to you all…Mike, “Yabo”

I have had several things that I have wanted to write about since my last entry…please forgive any bouncing around between topics as you read…I mentioned the temperature earlier in Celsius and when you are used to good ol’ English units, dealing with the metric system takes some getting used to (I guess I should have paid a little more attention during science class). I bought a box of rice the other day (the French version of Rice-a-Roni) and planned to prepare it with chicken that night. When I got home I marinated the chicken (as any good chef would do) opened a bottle of wine (as any good Frenchman would do) and chatted for a while with Marien about the day. After a few glasses of wine and a nice chat, I decided to start preparing the rice. Now, you have to understand that I prefer to buy rice in a box…this generally means that the rice has some type of added flavor and more importantly, preparation directions right on the box for those of us who may be more challenged than others in the kitchen. So I grabbed the box from the cupboard, opened it up, looked on the side and vua-la…directions in French (of course) and all of the measurements in metric units. I know, I know…how hard can it be to cook rice, right? But when you have grown accustomed to the luxury of reading and understanding things in your own language, and suddenly the directions for something as simple as preparing rice are in a foreign language, you tend to get a little confused…or atleast I did. Thanks God for the little pictures on the side of the rice box that show each step (ever noticed those?…they are great when you look at a phrase and all you can comprehend are the actual letters themselves), and thanks God for the internet and websites dedicated to conversion charts where you simply type in the number of metric units and at the click of a button you suddenly understand how much water is needed for successful rice preparation…Fortunately the rice turned out to be pretty good (thinking back, the wine certainly helped us think so) and slowly but surely you begin to adjust to everyday life in a foreign country.

Sometimes the most simple things can get frustrating if you allow them to. Like trying to order tap water at a café instead of bottled water. If you simply ask for water (in French–d’eau) they will bring you bottled water and charge you for it. So if you want tap water you have to specifically ask for it….my French accent must still be lacking because when I ask for it (in French–d’eau du robinet) I usually get a look of great confusion from the server. Then we will proceed with trying to understand what the other is saying until they get frustrated and get someone who speaks English (shocking how they always know you are an American..hah). But in the end, you usually get what you were asking for and you get better at ordering with a little effort.

I went for a great walk yesterday. Growing up and living in the States I would rarely even walk to the end of the block and back…now I find walking to be a great way to explore new areas. You can move about as slow or as fast as your legs will go, stopping wherever you might want for as long as you would like. Traveling along a beautiful road with wonderful views in a car or bus is great. But the first time I walked along a road such as this the experience was much different. I felt like I was much more a part of the whole panorama.

I started going on my walks when I was living in St. Thomas last fall. I never planned on walking as much as I actually did. I even had my car shipped down as I was leaving the States to use for transportation…what a bad idea that was. Ever brought a finicky Swedish built car to a small Caribbean island? Seemed like a good idea at the time but a week after it arrived it really started acting up….must have been the Sun, it does start getting stronger down in those little latitudes. Anyway, if you have never been, St. Thomas is relatively small but extremely hilly. Unless you are a competitor in the Tour De France, a bicycle would even be pointless. So with a well below par public transportation system and very expensive cabs…unless you want to swim around the island (seems like a good idea after a few rum drinks) you walk. I really grew to like it. When I wasn’t working on the boat, I would usually spend part of my day walking around, exploring the beaches, and marveling at the views.

Walking here is much different. I don’t feel like I have to watch my back as much as I did in St. Thomas (certain areas) and they actually have sidewalks here…nice ones too. Juan Les Pins is situated on a small peninsula (the French call it a Cap) and the Cap is known as Eden Roc. There is a road that runs along the Cap, crossing over a hill down to the other side and you end up in Antibes…the neighboring town. The name of it is Boulevard du Marechal Juin (I have attached a map to the gallery that outlines the road). The walk takes a couple of hours but it is absolutely worth every step. You are offered great views of the sea, there are several small beaches to explore, rocky shorelines to perch on and admire the magnificent yachts (it is sure fun to dream about owning one) and the flora along the way is outstanding (some of the best I have seen). I have attached some pictures from the walk and I hope that you enjoy them.

If you are sitting around with nothing to do one day, go out for a walk. Go explore the woods behind your house or drive to the center of town and stroll around. You don’t have to be looking for anything in particular…just walk to enjoy walking…to borrow from an old Zen adage; most of us will walk through a garden without stopping to smell a single flower…that’s a good one to think about and has certainly helped to make my walks more enjoyable…Thanks for taking the time to read and I feel fortunate to be able to share these events in my life with you…As the French say, Bonjournee…Have a great day.

Now that I have told the world (or whoever is reading this blog) how I got the nickname ‘Yabo’ I would like to continue on with Paris…It is raining here today. This is the first rain I have seen in Juan Les Pins and it looks as though it might come down all day. Seems like a good day to catch up on a blog…Marien and I arrived in Paris last Thursday evening around 10:30. Our bag arrived quickly and we were off to find the train station into the city (Orly airport is 35 minutes or so from the city center). After a long but successful talk with the information desk (I guess my French is still lacking..hah) we headed off to a bus stop that would take us to the train station and after one switch of trains we should arrive 3 blocks away from our accommodations….I bet you know where this is going….The bus arrived within minutes (step one–check) and after a 4 minute ride we were at the appropriate train station (step two–check). The attendant at the station gave us a map, sold us two tickets (6 euro–not bad I thought) and answered our questions in incredibly broken English (thank God for Marien’s knack with Latin based languages because I would have been there all night trying to figure the guy out). He told us there was a train at 11:30 that would say ROMI on the front and that would take us to our next stop.

It was 11:15 so we had some time to study the boards and further orientate ourselves with the metro system. At 11:23 a train that read EURI arrived (as was mentioned on the schedule) and stayed at the station for several minutes as though it was done for the evening. Our ROMI train was still on the board for 11:30 but it was 11:30 now and the EURI train was still in the station…now what…we had asked people that got off if this train would take us to the city and they said no (but they probably had no idea what we were saying…hah). A minute or so later the EURI train began to leave…I said to Marien…”I bet money that train says ROMI on it now”. “I hope not” she says…but sure enough as the end of the train went past, ROMI was scrolling across the top and the ROMI train went off the schedule board…which also happened to be the last train of the night from that station…Welcome to Paris, so close yet so far away…So back up to the ticket window we go, this time a little upset with the attendant. After explaining what had happened he said there was no way and seemed confused…whatever, how do we get to our hotel…he told us to take the bus back to the airport and from there we could catch a bus going to the city.

As the bus approached the train station we noticed it was the same driver who dropped us off the first time. As we got onboard he gave us a look like ’what the hell are you doing back’ and waved us on without taking a fee…pretty cool…At this time of the night we were the only ones on the bus and he asked where we were going (in French of course and thanks again for Mariens knack with languages). She explained what had happened the best she could and he told her he would take us straight to the bus stop as we were pushing the clock to make the last bus (really pushing the clock)…As we approached the terminal at the airport he pointed down to the bus stop below and we all watched as the last bus for the night headed off towards the city…At this point we just laughed and knew that our last resort was a taxi which we had been avoiding because of the high cost (about 70 US for two people late at night). The bus driver looked at us like ‘now what?’ and Marien told him to take us to the taxi stand. This was off of his route and it was incredibly nice of him to take us. On the way he asked us where we were going exactly and after we told him he offered to take us in his car as he was getting off work, lives in the city and was going that way. He offered to take us for 30 euro (almost half the cost of a taxi), and we both felt good energy coming from him so we decided to accept the offer. His name was Arnaud (like Arnold I guess) and we shared our stories (in incredibly broken English and French) as he kindly drove us to the doorstep of our hotel.

To me experiences like that make up the essence of travel. There is always a sense of unknown that keeps you on your toes. The energy that it brings can be exhilarating if you allow it to flow through you offering minimal resistance against it. When we missed the train I was frustrated…stuck in a foreign city late at night with what seemed like no place to go…but you take a deep breath, trust the journey, and doors of opportunity open in front of you.

My intuition told me to get on the train to begin with…but I didn’t…Marien told me, ‘if your intuition speaks to you again, let me know and we will follow it’…and we did and we had great experiences with the metro for the rest of the trip…Two lessons learned…Follow your intuition at the train station (and elsewhere of course) and if you are fortunate enough to travel with someone who has a knack with languages, then do it…Thanks Marien…I have attached some pictures from Paris…the link to the gallery should work…the rain has stopped here and the sun is out (guess it can’t rain all day on the Med) so I am going for a walk…thanks for reading and thanks for your comments…more on Paris soon.

from work and was at the airport upon my arrival. The final approach to the runway was truly stunning…the coastline along the Cote D’ Azur is more mountainous than you may anticipate allowing for breathtaking backdrops and vistas along the seafront. There are numerous towns that dot the area running from Cannes to Monaco and for a reasonable price you can hop on a train and stop at each city centre. I hope to begin taking advantage of this soon…from what I have read and heard each town has its own uniqueness and flavor. I have so far only traveled from Juan Les Pins to Antibes (the neighboring town and home to Marien’s office) but the differences certainly proved true. Juan Les Pins is the hip and happening glamour spot for all walks of life while Antibes offers old town charm and is home to all of the yachties for which this area is so well known…and I must say the yachts are here in droves. Seeing these “toys” of the mega-rich anchored along the coast certainly adds to the lure and beauty of this area. The French people who live here are, lets just say…French…with some, the typical stereotypes that have been labeled upon them prove true but there are certainly those that are friendly and helpful (most can be found in stores as you walk up to the register with money in hand…hah). I have found that simply saying bonjour and bonsoir goes a long way…we are in a resort town, it is very international so most people speak English to some extent. I must admit at first it was a little intimidating…but with all new things in life, you observe, learn, give a little effort, leave your ego at home, go out and enjoy being immersed in a wonderfully different culture. Tonight we are flying to Paris for the weekend and I am curious to see the differences, if any, between the Parisians and those living in the southern regions.

The wine so far has certainly been magnifique…the house wines in the cafes have been on par with a high dollar bottle found in the states…but don’t be fooled…unless enjoyed in moderation, a headache will await you in the morning. The whole idea of moderation seems so relative at the time…if one bottle was good, two must be better…ahhh France…the cafes are wonderfully addictive, the people watching is at its best and simply walking the day away along the streets and allies has proved to be good so far…for now, au revoir