West End, Grand Bahama

December 21, 2017- December  24, 2017

Getting the transmission cable shipped to Freeport turned out to be more difficult than expected.  Bob made numerous phone calls to FedEx, first to establish an account and then to create the shipping label necessary for Advantage Marine Supplies (AMS) to ship the part.  Then, of course, it took several phone calls to AMS to convey the correct procedure for the shipment and finally to get the tracking number.  We later discovered that Bob had racked up over $100 in phone calls.  The rest of that day was spent wishing and hoping that the part would make it to Freeport the next day.  

Here is a view of the marina restaurant
and shop where we 1st discovered we
needed a new sim card to activate our phone.

On the 22nd Bob received an email that the part was on the plane in Miami and would be in Freeport that afternoon.  Before lunch we took the resort shuttle to the BTC office to reactivate our phone only to discover that they were out of minutes and couldn’t help us.  After lunch we rented a car to drive to Freeport, hopefully, to pick up the cable.  Yes, we are optimists.  Bob was navigating while I was driving (on the left side).  We stopped at another BTC office and were able to activate our Bahamian phone (one important task checked off our list).  When we got to the FedEx office we were told that we needed a printed instead of a hand written receipt to be able to get the cable through customs.  This required another call to AMS and the promise of emailing the receipt to us and the FedEx office.  Just another thing to worry about.  We waited around Freeport for awhile just hoping to hear something positive about the part, but instead we found out the customs office was closing early on Friday (the 23rd) and would not be opening again until 12/27.  This meant that if the part did not clear customs before the office closed we would be stuck in West End until at least 12/28.  We got home safely even with the many crazy roundabouts that were so unnerving when driving on the left.  We both had a good stiff drink for happy hour.

All of our troubles did not reduce the beauty of the area.

After quick showers, we headed to Freeport in the morning with high hopes for successfully obtaining the part.  We arrived even before the FedEx office opened.  In the same shopping center was a cafe that served patties (pastry filled with meat and/or cheese and vegetables) and Starbucks coffee. The perfect place for breakfast while awaiting out our cable’s arrival.  Once the FedEx office opened we were informed that their agent was waiting for all the days deliveries to pass customs and would be back to the office around noon.  Two and a half hours of stress later we returned to the office and were told the agent wasn’t back yet….15 more minutes.  Back at the coffee shop we had another Starbucks and waited.  Waiting is not my forte so I browsed the shops nearby just trying to distract myself from the possibility that the part wouldn't arrive.  When we walked into the FedEx office for about the 5th time the agent left the counter and after a few minutes came back with the cable.  Bob and I both breathed an audible sigh of relief.  

We drove to Silver Beach and a tiki hut restaurant called Bernie’s (highly recommended in Trip Advisor) for a lunch of grilled lobster tail.  Bob had a rum and water but I stuck with plain water as I wanted to be totally alert for driving home on the left side.  The restaurant was constructed of what appeared to be salvaged wood and tree branches for the roof covered by a quickly disintegrating tarp.  It was quaint to say the least, but the food was excellent.  We found a local grocery store and purchased everything we needed for our Christmas dinner then headed back to the marina.  After such a stressful day we decided to wait until the next day to install the cable.

The cable installation went well, two and one half hours as compared to four hours the last time in Vero Beach.  We had lunch at Teasers Tiki Bar on the beach and then completed all of the chores necessary to be ready to leave in the morning.  At happy Hour we decided to go back to the tiki bar and try a Bushwhacker drink which many of the patrons had been drinking at lunch time.  It is a frozen drink consisting of ice, dark rum, kahlua, and Bailey’s.  It was served in a 12 ounce cup and looked like a milk shake…delicious. Almost too easy to drink.

On this sea wall is the customs office,
showers, marina office and the fuel dock which
we visited just before we left West End

On 12/24 we got up early filled our water tanks and headed to the fuel dock to fill up on diesel and settle our bill.  Our stay cost us almost $600.  That blew our mooring budget for the month so we will be anchoring out now, which I prefer anyway.  When we are in a marina we tend to eat out too much and get used to air conditioning and unlimited water.  

My next blog will cover our trip to Marsh Harbour and our stay there.

Thank you for reading my blog.