Saint Vincent, Bequia: "Livin' the Dream"

Bequia (“Island of the Clouds”)

13°0′N 61°14′W

7 sq mi (18 km2) 

Pop 4300

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

January 1, 2018

Happy New Year!           

With his head of windblown hair and his beard of whitecaps and waves, we are greeted at the dock with his welcoming smile and his tee shirt that reads, “Livin’ the Dream.”

Here in Bequia locals “Live the Dream.” 

And since there is no convenient way to travel here except on a boat, Bequia is one of those places in the world known only to sailors.  Sailors and their crew and passengers also “Live the Dream.”

Saint Vincent: Passage to Bequia

 

December 30, 2017

Fill the fuel tanks, cast off the lines, and motor out of the harbor at Rodney Bay and into the Caribbean Sea.

Captain Bill and I are sailing south.   My first trip on a sailboat.

The prevailing northeast winds are behind us.  Main sail raised.  Head sail raised.  Destination plotted.  Auto pilot engaged.  Motor disengaged.  We “fly” south along the west coast of St. Lucia, past the mountains and the Pitons on the southern tip of the island.

The Pitons (Volcanic plugs), Saint Lucia

Rodney Bay

December 28, 2017

Hello,

My flight from Miami yesterday arrived safely and without incident.  (To be honest I was surprised, shocked is a better word, that on a four-hour international flight, American Airlines charges $25.00 for the first checked bag and charges for food!)

Captain Bill met me at the Hewanorra Airport at Vieux Fort and we drove for about two hours to Rodney Bay Marina where I boarded his boat, the SV Cajucito.   After Bill provided a brief orientation to the yacht accommodations, we enjoyed a delicious Italian dinner at Elena’s Café at the marina.

Today we took a long drive through the mountains and down to a major attraction on the island: The Pitons: Gros Piton and Petit Piton.  In French, “piton” is an alternate word for “peak.” 

Bris and Bar Mitzvah in Bangkok

Bangkok

Thailand

March 22, 2018

 

The Chasids know how to party!

This month I was invited to two celebrations.

Rabbi Moshe Hadad and his wife Elisheva invited me to the Bris of their son Yaakov Yehuda.

The ceremony took place in our* temporary shul.  A new one is under construction across the street.

The Bris itself was part solemn and part joyful.  But the luncheon served later was 100% joyful.

On Sunday March 18, I was invited to attend the Bar Mitzvah of Yaakov Hadad, the son of Rabbi David and Mrs. Nechama Hadad, the brother and sister-in-law of Rabbi Moshe.

The Bar Mitzvah meal was creative and delicious and bountiful.  But the dancing!  Oye, the dancing!  Joyful does not begin to describe this celebration.

Delightful Afternoon in "Pakistan"

Bangkok

Thailand

Sunday

July 15, 2018

 

Hello,

I had the most delightful afternoon at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center.  I attended the “Pakistan Single Country Exhibition.”

My goal was to obtain tourist information.  I had heard excellent stories from a group of German motorcyclists who I met last year in Tashkurgan, Xinjiang Province, China near the Pakistan border.  I had traveled from Kashgar through some spectacular mountain scenery.   Apparently, to the west, the Karakorum Highway in Pakistan is even more spectacular.

At the exhibit today, I did find a few brochures about the mountain and lake regions of Pakistan.  But the convention center had exhibitors from a variety of other businesses: Rock Salt Products, Marble and Onyx, Wooden Furniture, Rugs, Gems and Jewelry, Garments and Textiles, Agro Foods, Brass Artifacts, Cutlery, Surgical Instruments, Sports Goods, Leather, Fishery, Pipe and Steel, Handicrafts, and of course, a Food Court.

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