Preparations

Welcome to our blog spot Ahoy Casa Mare'!

Fred is the Captain and I (Patti) am the Admiral, at least that's the title Fred gave me when he invited me to join him on this amazing cruise.

Sometimes I think it would be nice to be able to just throw off the dock lines and set sail but when you own a home on land...it's not that easy!  I have discovered a whole new dimension to the meaning of "cruising".  I am a beginner for one thing...no doubt about it but in time I hope to be dethroned from that title to perhaps a novice or higher???

I have learned there are two top priorities to address before anything else is done because problems may arise.  Get your Passport ASAP and send for the documentation papers for your pet if they are joining you abroad.

Passports require a birth certificate and mine was falling apart and they would not accept it.  Happens with age I hear.  When applying for another I discovered that since I was born in El Morrow castle in San Juan, Puerto Rico, (yes, my father was in the Navy stationed there) anyone who applies for a passport who was born in Puerto Rico must apply for a new birth certificate first because, to make a long story short, their records were broken into and to be safe, I had to prove who I was...not an easy feat I discovered.  It was worth hiring a company to do that for me because there is great research involved but I am finally a legal citizen of the US with a valid birth certificate.  That called for a celebration!  For a time there I thought I may qualify for legal aid by means of food stamps and free medical, etc., if you know what I mean which may not have been too bad but...with that, I had to stay on land and not cruise.  I now own a passport!  Whoo Hoo!

Pets:  My cat Stasia is a typical "Southern Yard Cat"  She sleeps under the trees and guards her yard of strangers.  Most of her exercise consists of coming in to eat and going back out to resume her duties.  If you think things in the South are S-L-O-W try Nassau.  They are on their own island time all together.  With the advice of our friend Sami, Fred finally made a call to Nassau trying to track down the paperwork for her import documentation.  They found it, buried somewhere between last years and today's requests and faxed it stateside.  Mind you, this is less than a month away from departure.  She still needs the shots and Vet's signature.  Hope she is as good a boat guard as she is a yard guard.  Stay tuned!

Meds...if you are aging, like me, you have earned the award for keeping yourself alive with everything you need in a bottle (pill bottle that is).  That's a lot of pills to stow away while at sea and they may not believe ya so start early convincing them you are really blessed to go on such an excursion.  Eventually they will believe you.

So far, things are looking up and I am about to start packing, after I finish this 4 page list of things to do before we leave.  I am now working on page 3!
Glad you are with us...this may be a good way to keep up with our trip and see pictures.  If you are on Skype, let us know through email.