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‘Land of Trees’, Boat Projects Accomplished in Rio Dulce, Guatemala

I have read that ‘Guatemala’ means ‘Land of Trees’ in the indigenous language. The country is still very green with lots of forests but most people use wood for cooking meals. Based on the daily wage, there are not enough jobs for the people here, and to compound the problem, families have lots of children leading to even more widespread poverty and overpopulation. Even though I prefer to eat meals cooked in either a wood burning oven or over and open fire, I am glad to see some are replaced with gas ovens or electric ovens as that means the deforestation might have a chance of being stopped.

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Quiet and Family Style, Calypso Marina, Rio Dulce, Guatemala

Calypso Marina in Rio Dulce, if one loves tranquility, it is the marina to stay. (http://www.calypsomarina.com/)

There are many marinas in Rio Dulce River. Selecting a marina is matter of a personal choice. Marina cost in Rio Dulce is about the same, US$250/month including the water but electricity is an additional charge. Among all the marinas here in Rio Dulce, John decided to stay in the Calypso Marina because it is quietly located in an area with no boat wakes, offers easy walk access to the town, and is cat friendly (We have two cats). The marina manager speaks multiple languages (English,

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Guatemala – Claro SIM Card

*** My Experiences with Claro SIM Card in Guatemala (February to April 2016) ***

In Guatemala, I bought a Claro SIM card because a Claro store is conveniently located by the Municipal Pier in Livingstone. I paid about 15 Quetzals (US$2) for a SIM card. It came with 150 MB data. The store representative inserted the SIM card into my Android Smartphone (Unlocked Sony Xperia) and activated it with only one problem; she had to change the setup in Spanish to understand the configuration. My Sony Xperia Phone has built-in WiFi hotspot and native USB tethering feature.

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The Rio Dulce, a River in the Jungle

Sailing to Rio Dulce was an impromptu decision for us. This is the place where the original Jonny Weissmuller Tarzan movies were filmed. While we were passing through the Rio Dulce river gorge, John was more impressed by it than I was. He never stopped saying that “Wow, it’s awesome!” As the river is over 15 miles long to the main town, it took about four hours from Livingston (the Caribbean Sea) to Fronteras (a village along the river). On the way, we anchored our boat in front of the Hot Springs and jumped into the thermal water, took a cave tour,

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Livingston Town, Entrance of Rio Dulce, Guatemala

It is known there is a shallow spot at the Rio Dulce entrance between the river and the sea. The shallow spot is about 5.5 feet (1.68 meters) at low tide. Most of the sailors wait for high tide to enter this spot so as not to get stuck on the muddy bottom. Our boat needs 6.5 feet depth (2 meter) to float. To make our boat light, we emptied two water tanks and one fuel tank by consuming them prior. This made ‘Bad Bunny’ float with 6.4 feet depth (1.95 meters) instead of 6.5 feet. We did wait for a night outside of the river and planned to cross this spot during high tide (1.5 feet =0.48 meters higher) around 8am next day.

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Dry Canal, Anchored near Port Barrios in Guatemala

Growing up as a kid, I liked geography and I dreamed of visiting many countries. I believe the journey of my sailing life, in a sense, is not a coincidence but is related to my childhood dream; ‘Traveling’ is in my blood. Why do I dream about it? Truly, I would have a hard time answering, but if I have had to answer; I would say “It’s just me”. There are so many countries in the world that I cannot keep up with all the names. Even though I stop counting the number of countries that I have visited, I won’t stop traveling because it’s just me.

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Sailing from Providencia Island in Colombia to Rio Dulce in Guatemala

This sailing trip taught us lots of lessons. We had all kinds of weather during a total length of 600 nautical miles from February 15 to February 20, 2016. It took 113 hours averaging 5.3 miles/hour. It taught me again that sailing is “The sport of fluid dynamics and geometry. Also the sport of weather.” There are many variables that affect sailing: wind, waves, currents, sail location, wind angle, sail sheet (line) tension, and many other factors. Like any other sport, to be the best like an Olympian, one needs to spend countless time practicing.

Leaving Providencia, we were flying and falling into the rhythm of sailing thinking this is what sailing is about.

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What to Do in Providencia Island in Colombia

An untouched paradise, ‘donde la magia envulve el alma y el Corazon’ (in English: where magic surrounds the heart and soul!)

We have been in the Providencia anchorage almost three weeks. People here are very outgoing, and most speak English to boot, so that I didn’t feel any distance from the locals at all. Safety is another thing I like in this island, no threats at all. It is also a very clean island. Garbage trucks pick up garbage frequently. There are only about 5,500 residents here so everyone seems to know everyone. Both John and I think people who live on this island are very lucky.

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Adios Mosquitoes and Sandflies: Mosquito Net

Zika Virus, Chikungunya, Dengue Fever, Yellow Fever, Malaria… AHHHH, Life in the tropics. When it comes to bug bites, prevention is the best policy for me. Otherwise, once I get a bug bite, I end up scratching my skin leaving ugly scars. Based on my experiences, a mosquito bite makes me itch for about two days and a no-see-ums (Sandflies) about five days. Sometimes, when I spend time in the sea water, I get bites from ‘Sea Lice’ and also ‘Jelly Fish’. These bites make me itch for a while also.

After decades of trying different products, I now use ‘Avon Skin-So-Soft Bug Guard and SPF 30 Sunscreen’ for outdoor activities: hiking,

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Colombia, Providencia Island – Movistar SIM Card

*** My Experiences with Movistar SIM Card (January to February 2016) ***

There are two stores selling SIM Cards in Providencia. Both recommended that I get the ‘Movistar SIM Card’. It cost 10,000 Colombian Pesos (COP) for a SIM card. The setup is simple. A couple of setup problems might be because (1) it is in Spanish and (2) there is no printed list of special code. Regardless, the sales people in the stores are happy to assist the setup.

I use my Sony Xperia smartphone for internet use as a tether hot spot for my laptop.

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