To:
Charles Ramcharan
Greetings All,
I talked with Rosi and Jim yesterday evening and got some more info to
keep you riding along on the "virtual crossing". Sorry that the
following report is so "Rosi-centric", but I have a natural bias :-).
Both Rosi and Jim have been finding the Azores quite lovely. Rosi said
that all the islands are different some are geared toward agriculture,
some toward dairy, and some to sightseeing. Being (most recently) from
Wisconsin they *especially* appreciated the dairy part of the equation.
They have been gorging themselves on lovely bread, wine and cheese!
(She said the cheese is better than in Wisconsin - can you believe
it?!!?!!)
I found out more about the successes and failures with provisioning. I
was most interested in this part because when I visited them at Folly
Beach, Rosi and I made a $600 trip to Sam's for food. Rosi said that
the yoghurt and sour cream held up very well. As long as the containers
stayed closed and clean, they did not spoil. As a matter of fact, they
were opening a new container of sour cream as they were pulling into
Horta. We bought a big lump of smoked gouda, and I think she said they
had finished that just before they arrived. The gouda did not develop
any mold on it at all. So just remember that a smoky gouda gathers no
mold. :-)
Bread was a big issue. They really missed having some around after the
initial load ran out or spoiled. Next time Rosi said she will try to
make bannock - weather permitting, of course. (Bannock is a canoe
tripper thing that I keep pushing on her. You mix whatever kind of
flour you like with some baking powder and shortening. Mix it up so its
a nice stiff dough and then fry it over low heat in a pan with a cover.
After it browns on the bottom, you flip it and cook it til its brown on
the top. It puffs up a bit and it's *great*.)
We got some pepperoni slices because we couldn't find a stick and those
molded, but the big "log o' beef" did very well. They found that they
used a lot of powdered mashed potatoes - for thickening as well as for a
side dish. They also made a lot of pancakes using the "just add water"
mix. Dinty Moore beef stew was a big help, especially during the stormy
days. During that kind of weather there wasn't a whole lot that you
could cook. Even if you could stand at the stove (which must have been
a challenge), you were afraid of having the propane on when everything
was being tossed around.
Rosi found that she had to learn to walk very carefully during the
storm. Every step had to be very well thought out because you could get
thrown over when the next wave hits. Rosi has a bad back and I was
naturally concerned about how her back was doing through the storms.
She said that her back was doing just fine. When she got off the boat
she was actually able to walk further and do more things than when she
got on. Her neck, however, really suffered during the storms. Whenever
you are thrown around a bit, the muscles supporting your head get really
tight. It's like tightening up the halyards and stays or tightening guy
wires too much - puts strain on the mast or other support structure.
(Sorry, I'm also a massage therapist, and I see this all the time). The
situation got better once the storms subsided.
The VAT situation seems to be only part legend. Upon entering France,
they will get a sticker from the "friendly" customs or immigration
officials. This sticker means that you have six months to visit
tax-free in the EU. After this time, you may be subject to a 15-25% tax
on the value of your boat. There is, however, a lot of leeway written
into the regulations and it is up to local officials to define how
stringent to be on enforcement. Spain and Greece, for example, live for
the cruising tourist and are very reluctant to force anyone to pay the
tax. France, on the other hand, is particularly strict with
enforcement. Since they plan to finish up in their European adventure
in the Canary Islands (Spain), they should have not VAT headaches.
> Special thanks go to Hannes' for background research on this subject!
Well, that's about all the info I got this time. Even as I wrote this I
thought of some more questions! I'll get to those when I talk with them
on Monday evening. They are writing out some cards to send from the
Azores, so you might get something in the mail from them soon. Best
wishes to all who are riding along on the virtual cruise!!
Alles Gouda,
Yvonne.
