What is today bringing for us ????

What is today bringing for us ????









August 22, 2009.Saturday morning , 5:45am.
So many questions, so many expectations,
but no answers yet.........

It is more than a month now that we are hunting for jobs without any success. I had three interviews including one in Crown Bay Marine that I was so excited about, but no results. Everywhere you turn you need to speak Spanish. I tried very hard to explain to the agents that I can speak Croatian, German, Italian ...I can even understand "Spanglish" but no..!
The best answer I got is from the doctor at the Hospital in Charlotte Amalie:" You know , most of my patients are Native Islanders and they speak with a very strong accent that is hard to understand even for me who is born in St.Thomas; but you also have a very heavy Croatian accent too, so I guess you would understand each other very well!' I didn't get the job, must be that Croatian and Caribbean accents don't have anything in common after all. Ha,ha...
Bob, on the other hand tried all his methods and used all his natural charm to get a job but must be that there is much more you need in job hunting. We even created his resume. After thirty years of experience working as a plant manager, a life time of experience as a carpenter and a life time experience as a fisherman, who needs a RESUME ?!!!!

It was funny and sad at the same time to see Bob scratching his head saying :" Where do I start? It was a long time ago, I started my own business as a ten year old kid as a"shoeshine boy"with my tools in a little wooden box on the corner of South Boston streets. How do I put my whole life in a RESUME ???"

That was the point when it hit us: we are here to start our business, to start our new life, to create something new, something bigger!! There is so much energy and so much enthusiasm to get the chartering started and it's building this anxiety inside my chest that it feels like my heart will explode before the morning comes.
So, here we are; anxious to start the business but still hoping to find a job to get us through these hard times. In our effort to survive all of this we cut back basically on everything..
including rum!!! (that hurts the most!!- just kidding).

It is not easy but as my daughter said to me the other day:" Mom, you know already that great things you create in your life don't come easy; that's why they are GREAT"

Yeah, I'm here to create something great; me and my Captain Bob; two of us, a crazy couple who left the ordinary life to create something GREAT, to make the dream come true!

As the days are passing by we go through all these ups and downs. There is not one day that something isn't going wrong on the Mary E. We didn't move the boat since July 11th when we first docked the boat. That gave us a chance to clean up completely the engine on the starboard side.That's the side that gave us the most trouble on the ocean coming here. You can see the difference:



July 29,2009, Wednesday 8:30 am.

Starboard engine: Look at me; all the oil and dirt on me..Somebody help me, clean me, wash me !!!


Where are you Bilge Monkey Bob ????

No answer..did he quit ???


Here she comes. I just love her !!!

AAAAAAAHH.... it feels so goood,

she knows what I need !!!!

July 29,2009,Wednesday,6:00pm

( 9 hours later ..)

WOW ! LOOK AT ME NOW..!!!



I'm so happy, happy, happy !!!

Ooops... what happen now.? BM Bob come here, help !!!






Here comes BM Bob running, with his famous word : "Fungoo.. alternator is gone... I need to call Tom !"

And there he goes again, calling Tom Fantasia; his best friend and absolutely best technical support in the boating world full of unexpected surprises just like this one...

A week later we received in the mail a voltage regulator sent to us by Tom and BM Bob goes back to bilge to fix another problem.

Here I am again, in the bilge. It was so nice and just sooo... sweet to be out of here, but too short !!

Well, between all the troubles and surprises that Mary E. is creating for us every day, long hours on the job hunting we still find time to explore the Island. No car, no dinghy with outboard, no problem ! We still have our "one dollar taxi" and our own "transportation", our feet.
And there we go :
ONE DOLLAR TAXI

The most famous Islander's transportation.

Just remember " I always go to the LEFT to get to the Right".

Which means if you need to go East and get to a place 10 minutes away from where you are you need to hop on the Taxi and go West , make a circle around the Island ( 30 minutes) to get to your destination. But, you always have another option- use your feet! And, that's what we are doing all the time.


This is the road we take every day from our dock in Saga Haven Marine to American Yacht Harbor in Red Hook. Takes us 30 minutes each way. Not so bad.There is a very stiff up hill that takes all the energy from me and I like it..no need to go to gym anyway. In the sunny day and 98F degrees you burn calories easy.

This is the road Bob found very interesting and he discovered that he can actually still " run "when it's necessary..

Few days ago he left me in Red Hook (after a "little argument") and hit back home on the same road we always take.Walking by the blue house (as we call it) he was attacked by two big dogs ( pic's to follow in next blog). One of the dogs bit him on his ankle and had a taste of the famous "Capt Bob's Chicken legs." This sounds funny now but I'm quite sure it was not funny at all for Bob.

Bob learned two lessons that day : 1) don't argue with your woman , 2)walk on the other side of the road or run...

Next day we saw this interesting poster on the house right next to the "blue house" with two dogs. Hmmm.. something to think about!

I had to hold Bob back, not to go into the backyard and tear this poster apart... Well you know what he was thinking at this point and for Bob there was nothing more to think about...!

Since we are exploring the East part of the Island we found more interesting sites and events that are going on in Red Hook :

" HAPPY HOURS FOR IGUANAS ONLY "

at "MOLLY MALONE'S"
Irish pub and restaurant in Red Hook

IT'S PARTY TIME EVERYONE !!!!


EAT AS MUCH AS YOU CAN , DRINK EVEN MORE !!!

Just remember " it's Molly Malone's" Irish pub so wear green !!!


" Hey, why are you not wearing green ???

I'm watching you ! Don't drink any more, you had enough of Rum !!!!



Leave me alone ! I know what I'm doing; and it's free anyway !!!

YUCK ..... VEGGIES ???



HATE VEGGIES, I NEED TO RINSE THIS OUT WITH RUM RUNNER !!!!

WHAT THE HELL ,ONE MORE IT WON'T HURT!

IT'S SOOO HOT and I HAVE HORRIBLE HEADACHE !
t was great party anyway.Thank God my wife left earlier .

Ouch... my head...

I guess I did have too many rum runners; maybe a "pain killer "would help me now???

That's it , the party is over .

We are still on the East side of the Island.Today we took a walk to the National Parks of St.Thomas just to discover a beautiful, small beach called Vessup Beach right across the Red Hook channel.

American Yacht Harbor at Red Hook.

The National Park of St.Thomas and Vessup Beach is right across of the channel

On the road through National Park we came across of a few interesting cactus trees as well as a lot of "weird living creatures" such as: chickens, roosters, chicks, iguanas and all others creatures including huge hermit crabs.







On the way through the National Park, Bob wanted to find out how tall this cactus tree is.
He asked me to "climb up" on a tree and take the picture of him standing beneath the tree... (smart a...!)






















Two days later both of these cactus's were dead. Well, so much for National Park.




The highlight of the day : VESSUP BEACH,

just gorgeous !






The view from the Vessup Beach to St.John



speechless !











And , by the way what the hell is this dog doing on the beach ???

Sniffing on something?

Maybe he's looking for Capt'n Bob's "chicken legs ?


Oh yeah, that's it !





I had enough, enough and that's it.

I'm leaving!




Run Bob, run...!!!!!









Can't hide here.. the army truck on the Vessup beach.











can't hide here , the old fishing boat.

It's already taken .... by two gorillas .
















Hey, what's wrong with you ??

Too much to drink?

I told you to stay away from "Lat.18"

They're cheap in prices but
rich in RUM !!





STOP BOB, STOP !!!!!!!

Perfect hiding place "Latitude 18"

cheapest drinks ever ..only $3.00 -wow...
goooood rum runners, even pain killers if you need one
great people, great music and most of all :
" ALL DOGS MUST BE ON A
LEASH "

This is the end of our busy week exploring the East End of the Island. Bob had few Lat.18 rum runners and he forgot all about the dogs chasing him on the road to here. We left Vessup Beach and came back home by sunset. It was really nice to walk towards the sunset, looking at Mary E. from the top of the hill.










Top of the hill overviewing the Saga Haven Marine and our lovely Mary E. at the dock.
This is the point where we always stop for a minute to admire the breathtaking view of this land, the clear blue ocean and all the beauty of the Caribbean sunset.

One of those unforgetable Caribbean sunsets.



Answer : From the first glare of the sun in the morning to the last peach of it's magic,glorious light at the sunset there is a DAY., a chance to live, to explore, to learn, to love, to give,to cry, to laugh and to say Thank you God for another day.....!


And Yes , Bob did walk on the other side of the road on the way back....

job hunting by Capt'n Bob Bell

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Saturday, July 25th, 2009; 5:00am, cloudy sky, the sun is struggling to rise between two big clouds covering the hills of Saga Haven Marine.
It is so quiet. The water is still, just the noise of the fish jumping from the water once in a while.
This is what you call Paradise!
Oh no...here it comes.."One life, one love..." Bob Marley's sound blasting from some happy Caribbean driver's car coming back from the late (or early) happy hours or trying to start his day with this famous uplifting tune that will never let you feel down. Good way to start my day.
Captain Bob a.k.a. Bildge Monkey Bob is still sleeping. Tired after a long day of hunting for a job in Red Hook and Charlotte Amelie. How tired is he? I'll come to that later.
Anyway, it's funny how we take turns when we go to bed. I never know where Bob ends up sleeping or where my spot is or will be to take a good night sleep (or at least try to). Most of the time we start on the bridge stretching on the two seats up front; after that we loose track where the other is. I would wake up in the middle of the night (too many bugs or it's too hot) going down to the cabin to find Bob laying on the seat next to the table. An hour later he's on the bed in the front cabin, or snoring on the couch as all guys do (no, not us women"we never snore!). In the morning he's back on the bridge. Figure it out ?? At least I didn't find him sleeping on the deck in the dinghy yet. Gary G you do remember that? After all night adventures to find the right spot and get a good night sleep we meet in the morning for a good cup of coffee to discuss our "to do list" for the day. Oh yes, I did find my self getting a shower in the pouring rain sleeping on the bridge quite few times. What a great surprise in the middle of the night!
Well, it is two weeks in Paradise, exactly today. It is a dream come true for everybody who wants to experience the beauty of these islands, the beauty of the most glorious sunsets, the peaceful feeling of laying on the sandy beach after that long dip in the azure, clear water of the Virgin Islands. The peaceful sky at night covered by a million diamonds, the stars that shine so bright and they appear so close to you that you feel like touching them and holding them in your hands. I felt as I was hugged by this universe and it felt absolutely breathtaking. The power of the universe was so strong and so close to me it felt almost like I'm diving into this sky taken by some warm and kind hand. Experience of total freedom, moment of total freedom, no worries,no yesterday and no tomorrow.I don't know how to explain this feeling but I know after an experience like this you know you belong to this universe , you are so strong and you don't fear anything. It might be that I really touch the sky.
And than strikes me: Gina stop dreaming , you're not on vacation. Get your little Croatian



a.. up and look for a job!!! Blahh.. what a disappointment.
So, I did look for a job as any other hardworking, enthusiastic, motivated , promising,well educated-but-jobless citizen of this Country.There is nothing different here in Virgin Islands than in any other place in USA. Oh yes, it is: instead of taking the subway in New York or the T in Boston you have to take Safari taxi (or what they call it here"one dollar taxi ") that goes only in one direction around the Island. If you're going in a different direction you have to make the whole circle before you get to your destination. In other words you have to go left before you get to the right.
Traffic here is on the left side of the street. By the way Gary G did great job driving his little "eggbeater"on the left side of the road in Turks and Caicos .Just a reminder:" Gary, you are back in Boston , you don't need to drive in circles to your left any more!!" Friends in Marina Bay" stay off the road when you see Gary G driving( just in case..) We can't afford to buy a car yet so we walk or go around the Island in "the circle" by our friendly "one dollar taxi ". Not so bad, except you sweat so much. Well I'm from New York so after years of experience and sweating in the NY subway this is not bad at all.
So far I didn't get a job yet. I guess I had higher expectations of finding a job here than I would in some big American metropolis but it hasn't happened. Same sh .....different place.
Now back to Bob and his "job hunting".
As you all know we all have different techniques of doing things as well as hunting for jobs.
We need to be creative?!! (I guess I wasn't creative enough in last two weeks...I didn't get a job yet).
Bob on the other hand took all this differently. As creative as Bob can be- well you all know him better than I do- there are still some hidden talents of his character that we all don't know.
After Gary G left the boat ,Bilge Monkey Bob QUIT !!. I'm not going to the bilge anymore. Well, sh... happened and he had to go back to the bilge to fix the sh......
Then he QUIT again! As lucky as he is , not for long. The new charger he installed few weeks ago on the water coming to DR died, no power..."Fungoo!!! ( this is Bob's famous word for f...).
"I have to go in to the bilge again?" "Why did Gary G ever leave?!" Oh Gary G, this will tell you how much he looooves and misses you !! We took a ride "to the left" and got the 10amp charger from K-mart in Tutu Park Mall. Problem solved, Bob is out of the bilge again (for how long?)Since there was not ( and so far there wasn't one day on this boat that something didn't go wrong) some other problems came along, Bilge Monkey Bob can relax so far but Captain Bob is back in action. A cat-sailboat docked next to us few days ago so Ken the dock master plugged him into the power post that we used and switch us to different power post.
Woow!!, all the fuses blew out...freezer dead, stereo dead, refrigerator dead..what else?
"Fungoo ! again goes Captain Bob. So, there we go on the road again," to the left"searching for the fuses at Tutu Park Mall. Problem solved again.
Captain Bob is giving up his boating career and goes hunting for the "real job on the land".
Now this is the part that you all didn't know about our Captain Bob Bell. His creativity and talent at job hunting will just strike you. Here it is, by Bob Bell:
How to look for the job ( if you really,really want to get one )":
First step : I'm so talented I don't need to look for a job it will come to me, just wait and see..

I'm waiting and waiting , I'm here.......
...... still waiting ......






but, still no job....





Second step: Well, I know I'm talented but people don't know me here so let's go and socialize, what better place to socialize than at the bar with people that share the same problem( joblessness).


Again, how nobody is here?
I guess I'm the only one "jobless"?
who can afford the glass of wine.
Oh,no this is my bottle of red wine!!
Anyway, I met a great man that day, a great
gentlemen and a great boat mechanic in any way..

but still no job....



Third step:I met some very interesting people at the bar, why not invite the most impressive
person for dinner on the boat and discuss our next actions:

We had a great time. Tommy is an amazing, intelligent guy who left his home in
Illinois years ago with his bike and truck,
moved to Key West ,Fl lived there for 20 years,sold everything and moved to a VI few years ago. Great,meticulous engine specialist ,has his own business and works on some famous boats including "Red Hookers"that used to belong to a famous country singer Kenny ...

but, still no job.....


Fourth step:I don't think this is working out so well.Why not to take a ride "to the left" into
the Virgin Islands Metropolis, Charlotte Amalee's and see what's going on there....





I'm here for you.I have so much to offer ,you would not believe.....





P.S.: Gary S." Bob is not waiting for the bus....!!!



but, still no job....


I tried but what the hell nobody wants to pick me up ! I don't' know why?I can do it all, in the house,in the bathrooms,in the bedrooms,I can do the floors, the ceilings, in the garage,even in the back yard, I have so much experience... I'm a carpenter !!

Fifth step:They don't want me on the land; who cares,they don't know what they're missing. After all I'm a boater,I need to smell the salty water , I need to stay on the water.
"Fungoo, I'm not giving up...


Hi darling, I'm going to see what's going on in the marinas around here, I might get hired today..










Hi darling , look who I met, George from Dorchester.


George S. comes from Dorchester.What a small
world. He lives on his sailboat for twelve years now, works on his own in the marina and visits his family in Dorchester every year. Great personality, awesome guy.

But, still no job...





Where do we go from here Bob, no job yet????
Wait darling I have one more option...












to be continued.......

life after great adventure

This is it! We are here in our destination Port in St.Thomas.It really seems like a dream.Did we really go through all the horror or that was just Capt'n.Gary G's fiction writings.Yeah, it is true, at least based on the damage done on the boat inside and out ;we must of gone through rough times to get here but Gary G can put all of the experience in to the great writing not missing a single moment.
I'm trying to get my self together and make some decisions where to start from here ??

Capt'n Bob ;the Bilge monkey Bob is back into the bilge trying to fix the problem with the holding tank.
After he got splashed" unexpectedly" while fixing the problem with the holding tank Bob pronounced loud:"I'm not going back into the bilge for another month no matter what; and where the hell is Bilge Gorilla Gary when I need him ???
Well, Gary George; a.k.a Bilge Gorilla Gary. a.k.a Capt'n Gary, a.k.a Piggy #2 left us on Tuesday on his way back to Boston, back to his family and his friends at Marina Bay. After the experience on high seas on July 4th, that Tuesday July 14th was one of the worst day in our jurney .Gary George, member of our crew , amazing photographer, spectacular writer, excellent McGuiver,true friend who stood by Bob and me all through the end, sharing all the worst that the sea can give us and all the best that the glass of cold white wine can give us at the end of the day, said good bye to us and MaryE.



It took us all day Tuesday after Gary left to recover and to make a closure of this journey from Boston to St.Thomas.Scarry but great experience.I can only say this is the journey that only true friends can make it through together.I will never forget those times when at the highest seas Bob would crawl back from the bilge to the bridge, fighting to stay in balance and not to be washed away from the bridge by waves or the winds asking Gary" I think the waves calmed down or it's my imagination???"Gary would say: " It's your imagination Bob!"

This was only one of so many moments and expiriences through our jurney.The friendship that already exsisted from Marina Bay grew into larger than you can ever imagine.Bob and Gary became not only two greates friends but the respect that they share for each other is now build on and bond by the power of the ocean and the wild waves.They didn't need to say a word when
the problem on the boat accured, just looking at each other they knew what happened and what has to be done immediately to save the boat and our lives.I could never immagine that the 4th of July, the day we all celebrate as Independance Day gahtering togather with friends and families b-bq ing and watching the fireworks at nite will became a day that I will always remember as the day the crew of Mary E was fighting for their lives.
I took my place in my little corner on the bridge early that morning planing as usualy to go back to the cabin make some sandwichis for the guys, get some water etc..never knowing that I will not leave my seat until the end of the day.
The weather was lenient for the first couple of hours but as we were moving away from Turks and Caicos shore, we begun to encounter rough seas.Gradually,evidance of a coming storm were felt all over the vessel.The waves covered the bridge and Bob gave the wheel to Gary.Bob's eyeglasses were covered by the water all the time so he couldn't steer.Gary, as strong as he is was fighting the wind and the waves to keep the boat on course.Later on it was amazing to see all the blisters he developed on his hands by holding the steering wheel so tight .In the meantime Bob took the computer down into the cabin (thank God, it would have been destroyed or blown away into the water)This was our main navigating tool.I don't know how Bob managed to go up and down from the bridge with all the water, waves and the winds but he did it every 10 minutes to make sure that we are on the right course.Was he swimming, sliding,flying ?I don't know.
I tried to keep calm telling my self "it's only for a short time, it will go away; and by the way Bob and Gary are not saying anything ;so it must be all right."
Shortly after I heard Gary saying: "F....... this is getting serious..!!!!"
Bob, standing next to Gary said :"Gary,this dosn't look good at all, sh....."
Than it was a silence.!Nobody said anything, all wraped up in their own thoughts.The wind was howling so strong I couldn't even hear if they said anything.The waves were so high I couldn't believe it. At one second the tip of the wave was above the bridge and a second later the bow of the boat was deap in the hole created by the next wave and covered by the water..It was scarry.......The pitch from bow to stern grew more and more severe,roll from port to starboard increased by every wave.The sound of series of crunching bumps was horriefing.
As soon I had a chance I would turn my head back to check if Bob and Gary are still there,
afraid that something might happened to them.I was holding so tight to the railing on the sides,trying not to be washed away from the bridge by the waves and the wind.I couldn't keep my head straight becouse of the waves,my back hurt,I need to go to the bathroom, but hey I didn't care.The most important was, I thought I will never see my two girls again.I have to admit, I cryed so hard.But it didn't matter becouse the waves would wash away my tears.
I prayed and prayed.I started in Croatian, continue in English,German,Italian...all the languages I could think of.As the storm became worst Bob and Gary started using the verry famous sailors
language and at one point I started praying to God" Please God don't listen to them..listen to me!!
To me the storm and the horror on the sea lasted forever.It is amazing what goes through your mind at the moments like this.The whole life was rolling in front of my eyes like watching a movie.I remembered every single person I met in my life,I remembered all that I always wanted to do and I never had chance, I remember all the promises I made to God.In my prayers to save us I made more promises,This one I have to keep.
Now, we are here, I'm here save and sound in my destination Port in St.Thomas, my new home,
at the first step of my new life.Thank you God, thank you Bob and Gary.
It is Friday afternoon, July 17th 4pm.Bob was on the bridge checking the damage in the boxes
with glass and other stuff.No damage!!He also gave a nice haircut to our crew member Mr.Palm Tree, the Survivor. He tried to jump overboard few times but Gary made sure he stays tying it up by four lines.The palm tree is growing two new branches.Huray...!!

Bob and I are trying to clean the boat and make Mary E shine and beutifull as she deserve it.
If it wasn't for MaryE we would never made it to here.Thanks Mary E.


Comment:this blog is writen in "croenglish"and I appologize for any grammar and spelling errors

Here are some pic's we would like to share with all of you who supported us all the way.!Capt'n Gary ,I hope you will approve your "paparazzi"Capt'Ginas pic's as well as" Bildge Monkey Bob"Capt'n Bob's effort to keep everything in control on the famous Mary E adventure.We love you.: