First Two Days Update

DATE: March 20th, 2016, 0930 Local Time/ 1130 EST / 1230 BRZ / 1530 UTC

LOCATION: On the way back to La Cruz, MX (currently at 18:49N 106:02W, heading 005N)

CONDITIONS: Warm,slightly overcast. Winds are light, on the nose. Seas 1/2 mtr or Less

We departed around 11am on Friday, just before the tide got too low. After motoring for less than one hour, the wind started to blow, as expected, we unfurled the sails, and off we went. Our passage had started.
On the first day winds were mild, good for us to adapt, and we completed a 24-hr run of 130 miles. The second day came up windier than expected, and we were on our way to covering a good 180 miles over the next 24 hours, shortening the gap to the Trade Winds. It was sailing at its best. Another Puddle Jumper had left Manzanillo more or less at the same time and we were within VHF reach, and that was pretty cool.
Our daily routine was settling. Out of Adriana’s galley came healthy snacks to keep us fed and cater to our confused stomachs – mostly fruits and vegetables for the first days. Speaking of that, we were trying a new medicine to fight seasickness. It made me wonders, and for the first time I was able to fully enjoy a passage. It didn’t work as well with Adri, and she felt drowsy. And Raquel got seasick anyway. Paulo, on the other hand, was having a ball, spending half of the time in the cabin, and the other half chatting with us in the cockpit.
There was quite a bit of traffic to negotiate, for we were crossing the shipping lanes up and down the Coast. And every passing ship was an excuse for us to congregate in the cockpit again.
But the highlights of our days were the Messages. Both via Satelite and “in a bottle”, we were overwhelmed by the amount and depth of care and feelings shared by our family and friends.

Message in a Bottle: this was an initiative from Adriana who, nearly one month ago invited family and friends to write messages for us to open and read during the passage. Since then, she has diligently and secretly been printing each of these messages in special paper. She would even copy the sender’s picture (downloaded from Facebook I guess) to make it more personal. She then wrapped each message and laced it with a colorful ribbon. All messages were placed in a basket and the basket sat at a prominent place in the cabin. We agreed to open between one and two messages per day of the passage, the kids reading them out loud in the cockpit.

Message via Satellite: as I posted on the day of the passage, there is a way to send us messages to our satellite device (check it at www.familygonesailing.com/links), and friends took advantage of it to enlighten our days.

And, as promised, here are our replies:

Pryia: that was one beautiful letter. Paulo and Raquel read them twice in awe. You know, some 10 years ago I (Alex) met with an interesting guy in Kuala Lumpur on a business lunch. The business discussion was irrelevant, but I came back with a lesson for life – he taught me that us, as parents, need to be constantly aware of the insecurities that we inculcate in our children. According to him, and I agree, it’s inevitable. And what is left for us to do then is at least be aware of it and try to manage it the best way possible. This has been a parenting guiding principle to me since, and reading your letter the day before yesterday drove me back to that business lunch. Thank You!

Susana: well, guess what, I love the song Cruisin’, and particularly the version of the movie Duets. Gwynneth Patrow’s shy voice makes such a beautiful contrast with Huey Lewis’ powerful one. So, upon receiving your message, Adriana downloaded the song (she didn’t know I had it in the iPod) and we listened to it sitting in the cockpit, and singing along from your message. It elated me. Thank You !

Jessica: we are missing you already. Raquel sends big hugs. And, yes, we WILL see you there next year. Thank You for the beautiful card !

Trevor: it would be great if you guys were going as well, but the choices are many and we understand. Should you decide to head that way next year, we would love to meet with you guys again. Thank You for following our progress – it is a bit erratic right now (as per my other post) but we are firmly intent to get there this year!

Jon: I thought of you during the night watch. The passage was indeed getting fun and fast. We had to come back to keep it safe. And we plan on trying again. Oh, and I have been following your advice and trying to sleep whenever I can. Cheers!

Roberto: Test Received, Test Received :-). Be well, my friend!

Edison, Claudia: que bacana receber a mensagem de vocês. Os primeiros dois dias foram mesmo muito bons, e so deixaram agente com mais vontade ainda de consertar nosso problema e voltar pro mar! Um abração.

Pai, Mãe: SEMPRE junto, né? Está tudo bem a bordo, e só esperando a oportunidade de chegar em La Cruz amanha cedo pra começar a correr atraz da solução pro nosso problema viu. Estamos todos bem. Beijos.

Uuufh, that turned out to be a long post!
Pesto out.