8/9 July - In picturesque Willemstad

The trouble with doing nothing is that you never know when you’re finished.

Peaceful at first, earlier

Not that there’s actually ever any time to do nothing on a typical day in port. Breakfast seems to get a bit later each day, making that early morning cuppa ever more essential. Then, by the time ablutions, etc are over, and after clearing up a few bits left over from last night, it’s already morning coffee time, taken preferably at a nearby people-watching station. Sometimes there’s so much to take in that it’s quite a rush to get back to the boat in time for a sandwich lunch, hopefully taken in the fresh air of the cockpit.  It is a well known fact that lunch in the fresh air can be very soporific, and extremely snooze-inducing. Suddenly, it’s 4 pm, and email checking time, which all too soon is interrupted by the need for pre-dinner cocktails. Dinner, whether in or out, can take quite a time, leaving very little left in the day for a chat or a round of cards before bed….

...and absolutely stuffed, later

Willemstad lives up very well to its reputation as a good place to visit. Several locals along the way had recommended it, telling us to try to get a place on the town quay, which, they said would be very difficult in the busy season. However, we gently motored  in directly,  Gill used her persuasive skills with the harbourmaster, and there we were, nestled under the windmill. After some heavy rain in the night, the morning was bright with some clouds, and with still a whiff of impending rain in the offing. Luckily, there was enough sunshine to dry off some chairs and cushions which we had forgotten about before bedtime.

An early morning (?) photo shoot

Friday in Willemstad was idyllic. A couple of really heavy showers totally failed to dampen the day, and bright hot sunshine very soon dried everything off. It was to be a good day for catching up on a few jobs—like renewing the waterproofing on two of the saloon window frames which had shown signs of leakage—in the pelmet light fittings, of all places. We also got into conversation with the newly-wed Wim, first when we accidentally touched his boat whilst letting our neighbour out, and afterwards, when he had calmed down.  He was very helpful in discussing the various options of getting to Amsterdam, and a new plan began to form.

Predictably, the harbour became very busy as the weekend began, and soon incoming yachts were turning away towards the much less picturesque outer marina. We were very interested to see the windmill in operation, with the sails being adjusted by the (private) owner. Talking of private, while strolling nearby, we came across a back garden, which as well as being kept typically immaculate, contained a variety of wildlife, including 2 deer.

A little Belgian cruise ship

Saturday was rainy in the morning, and just the right kind of weather for the major adventure of the laundry. Tokens to sort out, instructions to decipher, length of queue to estimate, and wondering if lunch could be fitted into the washing or drying times. While all this was going on, we fell into conversation, amongst a few others, with Jenny & Roger, of “Avocet”, a Merry Fisher 925 from Felixstowe. Jenny invited us round for drinks, and we had a very pleasant ant informative chat  before heading off to a very pleasnt dinner at “De Rosmolen” restaurant, which is situated a short walk from the quay.

Other notables of the day included the arrival in port of a monster cruise ship, and an incredible number of yachts and motorboats who had all seemed to enter the “How many boats can we get in the harbour” competition.

The marina fees worked out at only £12 per day, incl—very reasonable, and harbour staff were v.helpful.

And that was Willemstad