Location: Sandy Point, St. Kitts
After an early start to the day with my sunrise-shift anchor watch, I woke the crew up with some tunes, took a dip in the ocean, brewed myself and some of the other girls a pot of tea, and just chilled out waiting for everyone to get up and start our morning duties. We had eggs and sandwiches for breakfast. After briefing the crew with the day’s plans, everyone got to work finishing up our BA (Boat Appreciation) that we complete each time we arrive in a new country: scrubbing the decks, coiling lines, and just straightening the ship up. Everyone helps each other out, and we all work together to solve and fix problems as they arise. We make the work fun, blasting tunes and joking around while we labor. After all the boat chores were finished, we all cozied up down below deck in the saloon for our oceanography class, learning about the geology of the earth and ocean. Next, we geared up for an incredible hike on the island of St. Kitts, climbing to the top of Brimstone hill. Taking turns, Tor and Nick chauffeured us over to the island on the dinghies; Irv and Exy. It was a hot and sweaty 40-minute hike under the Caribbean sun. If you forget to put a nice layer of sunscreen on, you will fry, no matter how tan you are. We are constantly giving each other reminders about sunscreen and remembering hats. After taking advantage of the air-conditioned gift shop on the top of the hill and having a little packed lunch, we continued to explore Fort Brimstone, the large fort at the top of the hill that was built by the British in the 1700s. The view was breathtaking from the top of the island, and everyone got some sweet shots. The crew relaxed and tossed a football around for a bit before we headed back down the hill at the end of the day.
After finally making it back home, we all showered together, as we do every day, routinely. This is usually my favorite part of the day. Everyone unwinds from the day, jumping off the side of the ship and practicing flips and tricks. I still can’t flip without back flopping… it’s getting there. Then we set up for dinner; we had chicken cordon bleu. Food has been delicious since day 1, minus the curry, but that’s okay 😉 We did the squeeze… everyone sits around the dinner table holding hands. We went around sharing our favorite parts of the day and then our worst fears, which varied from a deathly fear of ketchup to a fear of people in cow costumes. It’s been almost two weeks aboard Ocean Star. It’s different, but in the best way possible. Not gonna lie. It definitely took some time to adjust and find all the simple pleasures in boat life. Life feels pure, natural, and real. The days seem to fade together, and time slips by as quickly as sand slipping through your fingers. You have to be completely in the moment and soak every little detail up because even though it’s still just the start of this adventure, I know it’s going to fly by and will be over before I know it 🙁 … The end. 🙂