It’s been four times already. Four halloweens that we celebrated since we started cruising full time aboard Pesto. And all have been different, some more awesome than others. This year’s was the best !
There are times when stars collide, things get gradually in place – some by design, others not. I could almost say by “coincidence”, if only I believed it exists.
Anyway, to halloween.
Having lived in Mexico and then the US during most of their rememberable time, Paulo and Raquel acquired a taste for it. Same did we (Halloween isn’t celebrated everywhere in the world, at least not where we originated from). But living in constant motion makes it a bit challenging to get it right all the time. Once, we timed a trip to Miami so that we could be there during halloween – and had a great time trick-or-treating with friends of good old times. But last year, for instance, we were in French Polynesia, not exactly the world’s capital of halloween. We were in company of sv Sangvind and tried to come up with some sort of celebration in between ourselves. But spring was blooming explosively there and then, and it was SO HOT that evening that our attempts were soon nixed.
For this year, we knew that we would spend halloween in Fiji. Of the places we’ve seen, we knew Musket Cove would be a good base for it. We also knew there was the potential for kid-boats to be there as well. The prospects were looking good.
The days preceding the night of halloween were interesting: first a mild infection of my middle ear, followed by the discovery that a bird had made a nest inside our boom – which required hours of work to remove, ending up with a messy deck and a clogged vacuum cleaner. If the Tricks came early, all that was left for halloween were the Treats.
And Treats there were.
Converging to Musket Cove were a number of kid boats beyond what we could have expected or wished for. Friends who have been a frequent part of our journey, friends of old – whom we had last seen in Mexico over a year and 15,000 miles ago, friends of new – whom we just met at the party, and even friends whom we have known only from their cruising blogs – back from the times we were still armchair sailors.
More interestingly is that the mob of kids that resulted from this rendezvous was quite special – blending in perfectly despite the rather disperse ages, stories and origins.
Everybody dressed up for the event, and the morning and afternoon of halloween each family spent quietly back in their boats, crafting the costumes for the night. When the sun set there were Mommies, Zombies, Katrinas, Frida Kahlos, Harley Quinns, Star Wars and Big-Band-Theory characters, and many other interesting impersonations walking along the dock.
Trick-or-treating per-se there wasn’t. It wasn’t even necessary. The kids were happy with spending their time together, enjoying each others’ company and chatter. Of course, after the bags of candy were produced, opened and consumed, the extra boost from sugar motivated them to seek a more dynamic activity and a long session of Catch was organized until it was late for bed.
Seeing Paulo and Raquel playing with friends of old, friends of new, and even with people I thought we would only and forever know from their blogs alone, boy that was quite the Treat. A Treat to know we can provide meaningful “traditional” experiences to the kids even living in constant movement as we do. A Treat to have built friendships that span through distance and time. A Treat to see them playing with people who used to be characters of a dream not too long ago – a most concrete reminder that we are living it as well, facing unafraid the plans that we’ve made.
Oooops, but that’s another type of celebration already ! And before we even dream of walking on a winter wonderland this season, we’ve got A LOT to put under our keels and behind our stern. In fact, as wonderful as we expect it to be, there won’t even be any winter whatsoever for Christmas this year.
But again, as it is often said, this all belong in a different story. More than one, in fact.
Stay Tuned.
Miss those times together with all the kid boats! Hugs
Would have been AWESOME to have you here, Debra and Phil. But then, there’s next year. And the South Pacific isn’t all that large. Just sayin’
Enjoyed reading, we too in Perth Austtalia had halloween… seems it is now a western world event and fun!
The real treat was seeing SV Pesto again! We’ve had so much reconnecting.
I didn’t realize you were the artist behind Paulo’s shirt, loved it. I’m happy we got to meet and know you guys, fair winds in case we don’t see you before you get a window.
The feeling is mutual. I think it was one of those things … we happened to all gather up at a Good Time for us all. Pure enjoyment, and the kids having a bal. Really, these times here now are being the absolute highlight of this cruising season for us. Thank You for being part of this story !
Hi Michael – thank you. I was surprised with Adriana’s painting skills as well :-). And, likewise, it has been great, and an honor really, to finally have gotten to meet the Del Vientos. It feels like closing a loop that was left open when we saw you guys leaving Baja California just as we were approaching Cabo San Lucas almost 3 years ago ! Back to the present, it doesn’t seem like we will depart much soon. Current weather window was not compelling enough to get us moving. Besides, if you guys are still here, we will let you know in advance of our departure. Cheers !