After a week in port at Palmas del Mar Marina and Yacht Club (PDMYC)
waiting for generator parts and repairs, we are once again underway
east bound to the Virgin Islands. PDMYC is an absolutly first class
facility with friendly helpful staff, brand new rugged concrete docks,
reasonable rates, and a host of onsite ammenities like a ship's store,
pool, golf cart service, car rental and tiki bar/restaurant. So
what's not to like? Our only real quibble was something called
surge. The easterly trade winds blow relentlessly this time of year
and it is not uncommon to have 7 and 8 foot surf breaking just outside
the marina channel. This causes a constant low level motion inside
the breakwater which results in rolling and bouncing while you're tied
to the dock. None of this is life threatening although is does cause
a lot of wear and tear on your dock lines, and the motion itself gets
tiresome after a while. We took advantage of our unscheduled downtime
by renting a car and exploring some of the nearby areas like Fajardo
which is a major boating center on the eastern tip of PR.

To make a long story short the generator repairs seem to be totally
successful and we are once again at anchor in a nice location:
Esperanza Harbor on the island of Vieques. Vieques is one of the so
called Spanish Virgin Islands sandwiched in between Puerto Rico and St
Thomas. We'll spend a few more days here exploring the beaches,
coves and towns. Of course we'll also be shaking down the generator
repairs while we're still close enough to Puerto Rico to easily
return. Hopefully that will not be necessary.

After leaving here we will make the 30 mile jump over to St Thomas
which we have never visited on our own boat. From St Thomas it is
another short hop over to Tortola in the British Virgin Islands. It
has been awhile since we spent any time in Tortola so we may be there
for a few days or maybe even more.