Caribbean – Diary – Volume II – No. 32

09.04. – 13.04.2025

Visit to the Hemingway Marina…

On Wednesday, all signs point to a visitor – we've invited Dirk to dinner at the Hemingway Marina. After three days away, it's time to "clean up the boat." We'll check out what the kitchen and the boat have to offer and plan the menu.

Everything is ready by the time Dirk arrives by taxi at 17 p.m. He brings his favorite Cuban rum and cigars from his cigar workshop. Joline introduces herself, and then there's German food on Cuban canals.

A large sea turtle pays us a visit and poses for a photo. After a three-course meal and many anecdotes, we end the evening with Cuban rum and Cuban cigars. Time flies by, and then, unfortunately, it's time to say goodbye – Dirk's flight back to Germany leaves tomorrow – perhaps see you again somewhere in the world…

We plan to continue our journey down the north coast to the westernmost point of Cuba, about 165 nautical miles away. From there, we plan to sail on to the Islas de la Bahia—the Bay Islands—of Honduras.

But first, we have to wait for a weather window. A cold front from the US is moving over us. With wind speeds exceeding 20 knots, we can't even get out of the marina because we have to navigate a narrow reef at the exit...

According to the weather forecast, we can leave on Sunday – that gives us a few days to get some things done.

On Friday morning, a local man dressed in nautical attire appears in front of our boat. He identifies himself as an employee of the Hemingway Yacht Club. He wants to take a photo of us and the boat. As members of the TO Offshore Sailing Association, he invites us to meet the commodore of the local yacht club that afternoon for a group photo. We pose obediently on our boat and head to the clubhouse that afternoon, dressed up and carrying a TO flag.

The employee also welcomes us and shows us photos on the wall of Ernest Hemingway, Fidel Castro, and Che Guevara visiting the marina's Nautical Club. He tells us that there used to be over 100 nautical clubs in Cuba – now they're the only ones... His enthusiasm for our visit is undiminished, but the Commodore obviously doesn't share his interest; he's busy elsewhere. After waiting for half an hour, we say our goodbyes... "Come back tomorrow and meet the Commodore," the old man invites us... "No, gracias."

While we're on the move, we decide to stop by the restaurant area of ​​the marina by the water. We pass a boat flying the Polish flag. The crew couple tells us they're from Argentina, but they also have Italian passports, and they're on their way to the Bahamas, with Northern Europe as their final destination...

At the beach bar, we order two beers – on tap – and then we get a three-liter beer tower to pour ourselves. With so much beer, we also have something to eat – the beer is wonderfully cold and tastes excellent. Afterward, we're just as tired as we need to go to bed... We give the rest to the next table and head off to make ourselves comfortable on the boat. We end the day with an episode of "Let's Dance."

The weather forecast remains positive, so on Saturday we prepare to continue our journey. Bernd checks us out for the next day, and we're given a dispacio to Marina Los Morros – the westernmost point of Cuba – from where we can check out to Honduras. While we're anchoring, we're supposed to inform the Guarda Frontera via channel 16 – that sounds like a good idea. The dockmaster and the office worker recommend the incredibly beautiful Cuban south coast and assure us that sailors are warmly welcomed in Cuba.

We have to leave before 12 noon tomorrow – then we'll go back to the customs dock, and then nothing will stand in the way of our onward journey in Cuba...

← Previous entry | Overview | Next entry →