Curacao | Été Infini

In the beginning, there was….nothing. Then came the boat in September and the crew in November. We arrived in Curacao Nov 19 to take possession of Ete Infini and get her ready to go. We spent the better part of two weeks (and many many dollars) to lay in some equipment, supplies, and other necessary items. We sanded and repainted the hull, all the while joking that every lady deserves a new little black dress before heading out on a big date. 🙂

We were on the hard the whole time which meant lugging everything up and down about 12 feet of shaky ladder. We now have legs like tree trunks. But being off the ground like that meant better breeze and even wifi to the cockpit. The problem was that we found mosquitoes can still find us way up there. Between them, sand fleas, black flies and no-see-ums, life was not as comfortable as could be expected. You could hear them slurping from afar and we ended up looking like pincushions. It also made sleeping difficult – too hot for a sheet but that was the only way to keep from being eaten alive. We sprayed everything, and ourselves, with citronella and burned coils constantly which helped some.

We were at Royal Marine Services which is more of a maintenance stop than a live-aboard place but we were comfortable enough. There were toilets and showers, power and water and even a little beer garden – what more could anyone ask for? There was a tour/adventure boat based there and they ran the little bar as well. Super people, especially Simberly and Sam, who we had the honour to be able to speak with every day. There were a few other sailors there and one couple, Christian and Sylvie, who made our stay very pleasant.

Once the dinghy motor was fixed we were able to motor around to Pirate Bay in late afternoon for a dip and a drink, a perfect ending to a hot, sticky work day. They have a nice little restaurant there too with very good food. Also, up behind the marina a couple hundred yards is a small cafe type with THE best swordfish and plantain.

We found that Curacao is not a bad place to visit but we were quite taken aback by the coldness of most of the people we met. We understand the history of the place but were taken at face value by the colour of our skin instead of being welcomed as visitors/guests. It was hit and miss, depending on where we were. But just to walk down the street and smile at passersby usually got us a stony face in return. We were just not used to that kind of behaviour and found it confusing and somewhat hurtful.

All in all, we were just as glad to leave. Which will be told in the next story installment.