Ponce

The next day, we headed off to Ponce (pronounced PON-say), named for the Spanish explorer and conquistador Ponce de Leon. There are a lot of lions in Ponce…statues, banners, decorative details. The ponceños are inordinately proud of their city, which they call La Perla del Sur (the pearl of the south).

Our passage there was uneventful. WW and I stood on deck and watched the sea. Flying fish are always good for a laugh. I can’t help chuckling whenever I seem them panic through the air. Outside Ponce, at one of the cans marking the shipping channel, a group of large porpoises came to check us out. We weren’t big enough, I think; they wanted real ships.

We made our way into the Ponce Yacht and Fishing Club basin where we fuelled up, bought ice, and WW went to sign us in. Our reservation was for the next day, but the space was available. We were delighted to see Unchained, Gabridash, and Marie-Galante 2 had all arrived safely and were docked here too.

We had arrived at a place where water was free…a pleasant change from $0.50 or more per gallon. I scrubbed the deck and did some laundry. Richard dropped by and invited us to Marie-Galante for drinks that evening. I said I’d bring the fixings for RP. We snoozed and pottered until then.

On Marie-Galante, we learned it was Lucie’s birthday. We toasted her with RPs that were very well received. Then Richard pulled out the Bacardi 151 he’d picked up on their visit to the factory. Yep, that’s 151 proof. It requires water. It requires lying down and avoiding. We were pretty chipper by the time we left them to their fondue birthday dinner.

We made an early night of it, which was just as well, since we awoke to discover that, while we were sleeping, Django was breaking. The fridge had expired. I threw away lots of food while WW pondered. Then he dove headfirst into the Disaster Hole…that’s the doorless locker to starboard just inside the hatchway to the salon. Here we throw flares, bosun’s chair, rum, shoes, life jackets, come-along, binoculars…the bric-a-brac of boating life. Behind its back panel lay access to…the fridge.

WW got things loosened up and wires figured out. I supported the fridge while he used his little multimeter to test things. It took a while, so I balanced a book on top of the fridge and read while he metered and muttered. When so instructed, I helped him reinsert the fridge. Eureka! A miracle cure…and one for which WW had spent almost no time head down!

Once WW fixes something, he’s on a roll. He goes on to deal with other minor annoyances. He made the solar fan in our berth work properly…by opening it. He also found the manual for the fans and learned the batteries can be replaced. So industrious.