Brazil-April '06
March 27, 2006
After months of planning and anticipation, I am finally in Brazil. I am currently flying from Sao Paulo to Aracaju, where I will see the boat for the first time tomorrow.
Getting to this point has been nothing short of exhausting. Putting together all the gear, worrying about what to take or not take, and just how I was going to get all this stuff to Brazil just seemed overwhelming. I must be crazy entered my mind a few dozen times.
At any rate, arrival into Sao Paulo with 4 over sized, overweight bags, plus 2 carry on bags, was a huge worry for nothing, thank goodness. I was asked if I had anything to declare? No. OK pass on through. Was it really that easy? Yes. I can’t believe it either! I thought for sure I was screwed bringing all this stuff through customs.
The next day, Lance arrived from LA bringing in the over sized and overweight bag which I had packed a few days prior while visiting Calif. Anything to declare? No. OK pass on through. No problem. I still can’t believe it, after all the hours of worrying about getting this stuff to Brazil.
Sao Paulo was an interesting place to visit. Being the 2nd largest city in the world, you really see the extremes. The sheer size of the place is really unbelievable, the skyline is enormous. Everywhere it seemed as though the people were friendly and very helpful. I expected more of a language barrier, however I was pleasantly surprised at how many of the people knew at least some English and how willing they were to use it. They even appreciated my little bit of Spanish tossed in.
On Saturday night, Jr.(Dolphin Catamarans) and his wife took us out to dinner at Fogo de Chao which was as fine a dinner as I have had anywhere in the world. Of course, the company was fantastic also. We ate, drank and talked for 2 or 3 hours and it was great. From there, they took us to an exclusive disco at the top of one of the high rises of Sao Paulo for a couple of more hours of good entertainment. This disco differed from the ones in the US, in that, the girls outnumbered the guys by about 4 or 5 to 1, which is unheard of in the US on a Sat. night. Jr.’s wife explained that there is a huge shortage of men in Brazil. After a little thought, I decided maybe there really isn't so much of a shortage of men, but rather a shortage of guys that could afford the extremely high price placed on them to get in. Of course, the girls don’t pay much, making it easier for them. The women were absolutely beautiful at this place. At any rate, I was only watching the local crowd and enjoying good company, as I am totally in love with Kya.
PS: Love ya Kya and wish you were here.
BRAZIL – APRIL ‘06
3-30-06
The boat is absolutely beautiful and finally sailing.
We spent the last 2 days installing all the new gear, as well as, testing and learning all the systems on board. In addition, we have been dealing with the Brazilian Navy commander who does the final inspection of the boat for clearance to sail in the Brazilian waters and beyond. It seems as though, on prior launches this was no problem, however, there is a new commander in Aracaju who is extremely difficult to deal with, and this is who we are stuck with. He has been to the boat two times spending hours there and is insisting that we have a single sideband radio and a life raft before we can leave. The last boat to launch had similar problems with this guy. At any rate, tomorrow he is suppose to inspect the boat a final time and will only clear us for coastal cruising within 20 miles of the coast in Brazil. He says that we are not leaving Brazil without doing what he wants us to do, and that he will keep track of where we are sailing. We are going to leave and take our chances with the port captain in Forteleza.
About the sailing, we went out today for the first time and the boat performed beautifully. After getting past the shallow bahia area, we put up the sails and were immediately sailing upwind at 7-8 knots with only 12-13 knots of breeze. The ride was so smooth I could put my drink on the table without it spilling. It’s really nice to be sailing fast AND flat at the same time. I can’t say enough good things about the performance of the boat, it was just great.
Lance now has his patch on and is ready. Rick Jeffs, an experienced sailor from California and Babalu, our Brazilian boat captain, are all ready and excited about getting underway. We leave tomorrow with a good weather forecast.