Day 41: Will We EVER Get to Fajardo???

Culebra has population of about 2,000 people...or maybe 2,500, depending on the season and who you ask. The primary source of income on the island, naturally, is tourism. Obviously, hurricane season has hampered the industry for the past several weeks. However, the weather has been pretty nice the last several days, with very still waters and wonderful swimming/snorkeling conditions.


The problem? The ferry system. Today the big news is that there was an all-out protest over the lack of ferry boats. Obviously, not everyone can afford a $60 flight from the main island, but $2.25 for a ferry ride makes coming here (or going to the main island) very affordable. Unfortunately, due to poor planning, most of the boats are out of commission due to failed inspections. As a result, they are using the old ferry that takes about twice as long to make the trip and instead of going straight from Culebra to Fajardo, you have to travel to Vieques, another island south of us, first, which extends the length of the trip by hours. Hannah begged me today, "Mom, PLEASE tell me we don't have to go to Fajardo tomorrow!" Although I'd love to catch the 5:30 am ferry, I reluctantly agreed to stay put for another week.


Well, apparently the Culebrense are fed up with the lack of ferry service, so tonight there was an all-out protest at the ferry dock, in which people held up the departure, there were boats that got in the way so the ferry couldn't leave, the police were there, and all that! It was on the news from the main island and everything so it was really a big deal!


I have become friends with a family in which the husband/dad is going to be running for mayor in the next election, and currently he is a director of Vieques and Culebra development (or something like that...). He has all the inside scoop, and told me tonight that they've made arrangements with the Coast Guard to get the boats on a better inspection schedule so this won't happen again, and that they're hoping they might even be up and running tomorrow. Stay tuned!!


Hannah and I splurged today after school (our Friday school trip to the beach was today!) and went to a restaurant that Stan and I enjoyed when we came together: El Batey. They make wonderful burgers and fries that are SO completely bad for you, but they're SO good! Plus that, even with a Coronna, our meal (including tip) was still only eighteen bucks!


Later on we hung out with Miriam and Joslyn and their kids. One thing that kind of fun is often they forget and speak in Spanish, but I'm beginning to understand them! Hannah enjoys being with their kids, even though they are all quite a bit younger than she is. When their husbands got home, we chatted about the parasite problem(one of them is the doctor at the clinic) and the ferry troubles (the other husband is the one running for mayor) and all the sports teams from Michigan, of course! It was a nice way to end our school week.


Hannah was grouchy on the way home, so hopefully she's going to sleep well tonight! I've lit the mosquito coils and am ready to head for bed! 


Thank You, God, for keeping us safe for another week. Thank You for better weather and being able to spend time with new friends. Thank You, too, for a great cheap night out!!