FIDDLER'S GREEN

There is a place where sailors go if they don't go to heaven, because being a good sailor is not the same as being a good christian. It's called Fiddler's Green and it is somewhere in the neighborhood of Big Rock Candy Mountain, which most people have heard of.

The legend is that is a place where the weather is always clear, the winds are always gentle and blowing the way you want to go, the palms sway in the breeze, the rum bottle never runs dry, the women run naked on the beach and there is always steak for dinner and ice cream for desert.

This may not be Fiddler's Green, but it's as close as I am likely to find this side of Davy Jones' locker.

There are thunderstorms most afternoons but they don't last too long, all food and drink are inclusive and you sometimes have to stop the bartender from filling your glass too often. There might not be steak for dinner every night but many nights and there is always ice cream with every meal but breakfast. The food is varied but there is always fresh seafood; fish, shrimp, lobster and the ubiquitous conch. There is usually a joint being carved and a buffet with rice, potatoes, veggies and salad, bread, pasta and desert tables. I even tried the curried goat yesterday. It tastes very good but it is made like oxtail stew with the bone and gristle still in so it takes some effort to eat.

The scale in the gym weighs in kilos, so that is encouraging to someone used to weighing in pounds. Unfortunately, there is about 2 plus kilos more of my than when I arrived.

I think I will probably fly home from Ft. Lauderdale about the 24th to rest, make and mend and plan the rest of the trip. I will leave here on the 20th for Ft. Lauderdale.

Internet access here is slow and expensive but I bought a whole day. If it storms this afternoon I will write another letter and try to send some pictures if I can figure out the software.