January 4-16, 2003 -- Grump, Grump, Grump, Yay! On January 4, We found out from Luis that the yard will actually not be opening back up on Monday! It will only be partially open, and the people who are working on our boat will not return for another week! So, we spent a quiet two days grumbling because if we had known the yard would not open we would have stayed in Margarita for longer. On January 6, we caught up with Coos and Martha from Orca. They returned from the States on Jan 2. We chatted about their time in the States and their plans for touring South America. They are writing articles for the Tuscaloosa News. Check out their articles at www.tuscaloosanews.com That link will take you to a search page, Articles with the last name of Coussement is what you are looking for. After spending some pleasant time catching up with old friends, we spoke with Luis and Efreal about the work on the boat. After checking the bottom with Efreal's moisture meter, we found that the bottom should be able to go back on next week. After all that was done, we started working on our list of projects that needed to be completed before we went back in the water. The first project was to grease the props. That was accomplished surprisingly quickly. We turned on the local news and heard that the banking industry would be joining the strike, so we tried to get money in the evening. Unfortunately, today was a banking holiday and all of the ATMs had no money. On January 7, the net in Puerto La Cruz confirmed that the banks would be joining the strike on Wednesday. Public transportation would also be striking, though enterprising taxis would still be working. On January 8, we went to lunch with Coos and Martha. On January 9, it was back to work. We searched for the leak in our forward fresh water tank. As it turns out, the inspection hatch was leaking and would need to be resealed. We just need to use some water first. We also dropped off a miniature TV to Coos and Martha since they do not have one on board. On January 10, I (Bryan) woke up with a pain in my back, so we decided to take it easy for the day. I wound up taking it easy until January 14 when the pain was more than I could bear. So, at the recommendation of a friend, I went to the "Health Farm" or La Granga de la Salud. This is a combination health and beauty spa and orthopedic referral service. They specialize in homeopathic and herbal remedies. I had my first experience with acupuncture! The doctor requested that I return the next day for more work. It seems to be working though because the pain didn't really return until 4:00 pm or so. On January 16, we watched as the faring on the bottom of the boat continued. It is looking pretty good. Since things were going so well, and because I was feeling better, we decided to go to Margarita.