The Odyssey of Dan & Harriet Delius 7/15/95-7/28/95.

NOTE: I purchased a handheld GPS (Global Positioning

System) unit to give me a lot of navigation data for our

trip. So you will seethe 'fixes' sprinkled within the

report. We had been trying to negotiate a joint vacation

for months but all plans fell through. Then we were told by

the Barefoot Windjammers Cruises that we had qualified for

their "Seadog" award. For sailing 5 weeks with them, they

gave us 2 beautiful embroidered jackets which we further had

embroidered with our names. Our first love is true sailing

"under sails", but when we got a Seadog newsletter with an

announced special 2 for 1 on the Amazing Grace, it caught

our eyes. We had celebrated our 30th Anniversary on her

in1989 and knew that another sail on her would be fun. She

is the supply ship for the Windjammer Tall ships and only

carries 93 passengers. It would not be a cruise on a

floating city. Arranging our air fare was the next trick but

either thorough a computer glitch or good AAA negotiations,

we got air fares at much less than published rates. At

first we were going to drive to Miami and board our plane

there but then we saw the Air South ads for $20 each way to

Miami from Tampa. Weighing all costs,this would be the most

cost effective way of travel.Anticipation grew as the day

approaching with packing,cleaning house,cat sitting etc

occupying our time.

Sat. Jul 15, 1995 Tampa-Miami-Freeport boarded the

Amazing Grace at 1800. Sailed at 2230.

Sat, Jul 15 arrived and we drove to St. Petersburg/

Clearwater airport for our departure. We had a nice flight

On an Air South's 737to Miami. The next leg was not as

Pleasant. After being bussed to a satellite terminal for

American Eagle, we found the standard announcement was

that the flight was delayed and there would be a decision

time' (here they usually gave at time 1 to 2 hours after

scheduled departure time). During our 3 hour wait between

planes, there was not one American Eagle flight that left on

time. While waiting we searched the crowd for potential

shipmates. We finally spotted a set of blue WJ tag on

Frank and Mary Perry's baggage. We talked for almost 2

hours while waiting for our flight. Did not see any more

tags but did see some very suspicious looking pirates.

Our plane was a Short 330 which is a flying cargo

container. Very square and noisy. But it would and did

get us (and our baggage) to Freeport. We were joined in

our taxi by other WJ'ers who were on the same flight in

disguise. Arriving on the dock about 6PM we were met by

Fran our purser. We got cabin #1 and the Perry's #9. The

Capt(Mike Andersen) told us that we were waiting for just

one passenger before we could leave. If he did not show

after the last plane at 11PM we would sail without him.

Well it turns out that 'he' was already on board but had

been missed. He was listed as a passenger rather than new

crew. So we sailed at 10:30 PM Sat night

Sun, Jul 16 At sea noon fix north west of Elutheria

N 25 Deg 44.083' W 76 Deg 56.096' (1200 R)

I awoke and braced myself for a traditional 'tepid' WJ

shower. Ouch, there was NO COLD WATER!! That is a novel

way to keep you from keeping the water running while you

shower. Talked to Charlie (the plumber) and he tinkered

with the mixer valve and we did lower the temperature a few

degrees.

We sailed SE and turned the northern point of Eluthria

just after noon. Most of the day we watched it off the

Starboard. Started to get to meet other passengers. The

average age was probably the 50's. The youngest was Mindy

who was on vacation from college and the oldest were late

80's. All seem to get along and it was usually a different

mix of dinner partners each night which made it very

enjoyable. There were 83 on this voyage. There were also

a few from the Miami office who joined us from time to

time. Dale was a food preparation specialist who was on a

'fact finding trip to try to find ways to improve the food

presentation and dinning spaces. For you who know the old

layout of the Amazing Grace, they are removing the 'hot

tub' on the Admiralty Deck and moving the bar up in to that

space. The bar will then be under a bimini. They will then

add a new table for more seating in the salon which will

allow the new chef,"Robbie", to only have to serve one

seating and also will give more space when the meal is

served as a buffet.

Tue, Jul 18 Grand Turk, Cockburn Town

N 21 Deg 26.082' W 71 Deg 09.142'

The natives were getting restless so Capt. Mike felt a

little solid land might prepare us for the long trip across

the Puerto Rico Trench. Dropping anchor, we had a dry

landing at the dock with the Amazing Grace sailing at

1300. We were running a little behind and had to catch the

second launch. By then all the taxis had left the dock so

we forced to walk into town. "Only 3 miles." Deborah the

"Activities Mate" said who took some of the passengers on a

walk into town to substitute for her usual 9'ish Aerobics

classes. We picked up Diane who also had missed the taxis

Her husband, Curtis, had caught the first launch and

therefore got a taxi. About 2 miles into the 'forced

march' a friendly native, who was headed toward the docks,

turned around and picked us up and took us to the center of

town. We stopped at the Grand Turk Museum dedicated to

the discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus and a

had display on the oldest caravel type ship to be

discovered in the Bahamas. It was first thought that it

was the wreck of one of Columbus' ship, but was not. They

waited to the end of the tour to tell you why. Checking

our watches we thought we'd better head back and tried to

find a taxi. We found that there was some type of

symposium going on and taxis were scarce. We met up with

Mindy and her mother, who were in the same predicament

looking for a taxi. Looking at our watches again, we

decided that we had better start walking back swiftly or

they would sail without us. By then it was really hot and

thank goodness Harriet took a bottle of water with her. We

had gotten back to where the friendly native had picked us

up when Mind flagged down a pick-up truck and we rode

back to the dock in the back. We had a 20 minute wait for

the next to last launch. Noticed a nice 50'+ sloop tied up

at the dock. Looked in better that average condition except

for a damage davit on the stern where the hardware was

all bent up. Found that she had been found abandoned

about two weeks ago and they had not yet found any trace of

the owner. True to the Captain's word they sailed at 1330

and we were on board. They take no head count to see if

all go got back. That night we had bingo to pass the time.

Didn't win but it was fun

Wed, Jul 19 At sea in the Puerto Rico Trench

depth 18,000 feet

N 20 Deg 00.799" W 67 Deg 54.389'

Well to pass our time away on the 'day at sea',

Deborah announced at Story Time that there would be a

Treasure Hunt. Harriet and another new found friend,

Shirley Ware (a long time Seadog), teamed up for the search.

There were such goodies needed as 6 pieces of currency all

from a different country, a working lighthouse and a boat

that would float. This kept us occupied till Swizzle time.

Then the voting was held before and "impartial

panel of our peers". WE WERE ROBBED? Instead of just the

1, 2 and 3 points for each item, Some one came up with 4

when they thought it was more original than the others. If

all the 4's had been the 3's as they should have been,

we would have won. Tonight it was video tapes in the TV

room to catch up on that picture you missed at the theater.

Hats off to the purchasing department of WJ. Noticed

that all of the toilet seats were of the long oval type.

The only problem is that all the toilets were the round type

(except for Burke's Birth).

Thur, Jul 20 Tortola, B.V.I

N 18 Deg 24.774' W 64 Deg 36.287'

We sailed into Road Harbor near 10AM as predicted, and the

first line went over at 10:09 by the Captains watch. Mine

said 10:10(satellite time) but made no difference since I

had 11 minutes after the hour in the ship's lottery. Tours

were to start at 1330 so we had our lunch and went to the

gang plank to get our tour tickets. Our guide took us to

the Botanical Garden, up to Windy Hill (near Sage Mt.), and

down to a Rum Factory where we sampled their product.

Personally, being an old mountain boy from Tennessee, I

thought it tasted like flavored "White lightning." We

finished up at Cane Garden Bay for a sip and a dip. Back

over the hill, our guide dropped us off near Pussers where

we jumped in for a couple of Pain Killers #2. Back to the

ship for Swizzles and finding out what others had done.

The evening was the P,P,P & P night. One original passenger

came as a painter.That was unusual.

Fri, Jul 21 Salt Island B.V.I.

N 18 Deg 22.540 W 64 Deg 31.900'

A short sail across the Sir Francis Drake channel to

re-supply the Flying Cloud. We toured her and then went

ashore to do some beach combing. The things to find there

were weather worn pieces of colored glass. There was

also snorkeling for those that wanted it. Full day trips

to Virgin Gorda and the Baths. A SCUBA dive on the Rhone

was also available.

Sat, Jul 22 Philipsburg, St. Maartin

N 18 Deg 01.370' W 63 Deg 02.765'

Dawn found us sailing into the "Groot Baal" (harbor)

in St. Maarten on the Dutch side. Several tours were

arranged and we opted for the island tour. Getting in our

van we went over the mountain to the French St. Martin. We

visited the market place in Marigot, which was in full

swing .We bought t-shirts and jewelry at very reasonable

prices. TIP!! on our whole trip, this was the only place

we saw 3 X $10 tees. They were first quality 100% cotton.

We have washed them a couple of time since we got

back and they still look new.

Sun, Jul 23 St. Johns, Antigua

N 17 Deg 05.835' W 60 Deg 54.417'

Sunday found us on Antigua to re-supply the Fantome.

Being Sunday all stores were closed so we just walked the

town and visited the Anglican Cathedral Church of St. John,

the Divine. The church dates back to 1681. The afternoon

was taken up with a tour of the island to include Nelson's

dock yard and finished up with the lively Sunday bar-b-que

at Shirley Heights. The evening was capped with a party

aboard the Fantome. They tell us we had a great time.

Mon, Jul 24 Roseau, Dominica

N 15 Deg 18.791' W 61 Deg 23.372'

During story time, Capt Mike told us we were going to

tie up at the new docking facility in Dominica but alas we

found ourselves at the old docking about 1.5 miles from

down town. We hoofed it and saw many interesting sight such

as net fishermen bringing in a load of fish to the shore.

Once down town we walked down to the new docks which are

very nice and convenient to downtown. The vendors said the

docks had been open for a while and that a Carnival ship

would be docking tomorrow. We met up with Shirley

and toured some of the shops and picked up things like pins

for our TillyHats. Heading back to the ship Harriet picked

up a couple of Mangos. She remembered how good

the ones were that we got during our last visit in '89.

These were not as good as the ones we got then but were

still better than the ones we get in Florida. This evening

we had special entertainment. A dance troupe came

aboard and presented an hour or so of native dances. Very

very good...

Tue, Jul 25 Port Elizabeth, Bequia

N 13 Deg 00.645' W 61 Deg 14.226'

Pictures of Gardner McKay and his TV series

"Adventures in Paradise" came to mind as we sailed into

Admiralty Bay, Bequia. There we met and toured the Yankee

Clipper. Also renewed our friendship with Capt Guyan.

When we had last seen him, he was the 1st Mate on the

Amazing Grace. His hair is shorter now and when we got

back we found some old pictures of him during his 'curly

hair' days. We decided that our next WJ would be on

the Yankee Clipper, a real racing ship. A YC passenger said

that they had a slightly rough passage up from Grenada.

But that sounded like fun to us. We then took a tour of

the island which included the last legal whaling

station in the Caribbean.

Wed. Jul 26 Palm Island

N 12 Deg 37.178' W 61 24.740'

A new island for us. We were there to supply the

Mandalay. Went ashore and did some snorkeling. Did not

take the walking tour of the island but it was very clean

and John and Mary Caldwell's paradise really was that.

About 1700 we were attacked by the Yankee Clipper and

Mandalay in a mock sea battle. Capt Mike got off the first

volleys and claimed victory.

Thur. Jul 27 St. George's Bay, Grenada

N 12 Deg 04.070' W 61 Deg 48.019'

The spicy smell of the island was detected long before

we got ashore. This time our guide was Philip who both

knew and loved his island. We found him very knowledgeable

and personable. We visited a botanical garden with plants

that we never knew existed. It was hot and humid as you

would expect a rainforest to be. Even a heavy shower did

no cool off things. We then visited 'a spice farm'. The

owner was not there but Philip jumped right in and gave us

his own version of the tour including climbing a tree

to get us some fresh nutmeg fruit. He explained how the

fruit was almost 100 percent used in the processing of

nutmeg and mace. We got another lesson in economy, when we

visited the Clarks Court rum distillery. Maybe not as spicy

and span as our modern ones, but the quality and taste of

their products was great. They just put bottles of the

various types of rum on the counter and you could pour what

ever and how much you wanted. Found that the water from

the extraction of molasses was reused for the boiler and

the pressed cane was dried and used as fuel to fire the

boilers to run the distillery. The ash was returned to the

field to fertilize the next cane crop. Our next part of

the tour was of Westerhall Point.the 'high rent' district

where therich built their houses with views that you would

kill for. The houses cost in the millions and were very

impressive. The building time, we were told, was 1 or 2

years.

Alas it was the Captains Dinner time. We all donned

our clean tee shirts and were treated to champagne. A

show was presented by "Robbie" creating the Caesars Salad.

Toasts were made by the Captain thanking us for making him

feel like he was part of our family. The dining was topped

off with"Robbie" again entertaining us with the creation of

his Banana Flambe`. We stayed in the Salon longer that

usual. Moving from table to table giving our good-byes and

promising to write and send pictures. Deborah had Xeroxed

each of us a list of the addresses of fellow passengers to

help us keep those promises.

Fri. Jul 28 Port of Spain, Trinidad-Miami-Tampa

N 10 Deg 39.051' W 61 DEG 30.999'

Arrived at 4AM and had our cabin wake up call at 5AM.

Went aloft and looked around. We could see the Rogue, the

sister ship of the Amazing Grace. Looking at her we could

now imagine how the Amazing Grace looked when she

first arrived in to the Windjammer Fleet. It was just

after dawn when we left but the size of the new 'France II'

was impressive. We can only imagine how she will look with

her 4 masts stepped. A mad dash to the airport along

the first 4 lane highway we had seen in 2 weeks. Caught

the AA 8:20 flight back to Miami. After a 3 hour layover,

we boarded AirSouth back to Tampa. The trip was almost

marred when we arrived back to find our car was blocked

in a rain soaked field and the only way out was through a

ditch muddy from the heavy rains Florida had experienced

while we were gone. But Harriet's faithful Toyota churned

through the mud and I did not get stuck. Arriving home we

were told by our cat that she did not appreciate being left

at home with a house/cat sitter.

We have gotten 19 of our 22 rolls back and are

reliving the trip already. We lucked out when Kash n'Karry

(a local supermarket chain)had a special of any size roll

of film $2.99. Three rolls were done with the Seattle Film

Works film and will be sent to me on a disk so I can

electronically share them with some of our electronic

friends.

We wish to thank Windjammer for another wonderful trip

and wish Activities Mate Deborah fair seas in her new

assignment in the Windjammer Fleet. Watch out for those

step though doors...