Clean Gear

Guests always look at me when I hand them a mask and snorkel.  They usually don't say anything, but I can see the look in their eyes, which betrays the question that I know they are afraid to ask: "How many people have sucked on this before me?"  

Well folks, rest assured, we replace the gear regularly.  Furthermer, I personally soak the masks and snorkels in a solution of degreaser and bleach after every charter, and then rinse them off well and let them dry in the sun.

So snorkel on, and don't forget to use defog on the inside of your mask!

Sunset St John

Soterion at anchor in Waterlemon Bay, St John,
with the lights of St Thomas in the background.

My Winnings from Good Moon Farms

Please excuse the hot pink shirt and the sheen of sweat across my brow...  we were on a 24 hour turn from Christmas to New Years charters.  A prize from winning the appetizer division in the culinary competition at the BVI Charter Yacht Show was a gift certificate from Good Moon Farms here on Tortola.  I used the gift certificate to help put a dent in my provisioning bill for the NYE charter who were instant that they wanted a large green salad for every lunch and dinner all week.  My fridge was packed with the freshest produce I could get me hands on-- thank you Aragron and the crew a Good Moon Farms!

 

Stow Away!

This little guy was not at all happy about being escorted off Soterion.


We found him on New Years Day-- he snuck on while we spent the nigh on the dock at Scrub Island.  

Soterion on Soggy Dollar Webcam

Another beautiful day in paradise!!

Back on Charter!

Soterion's 2012-2013 season is off to a great start!  We had four couples from RI on board for a quick 5 day get away that inclued one entire day at the spa on Scrub Island.  

The diet was Vegan so Tara spent most of her time in the galley this week.  This was one breakfast - Cinnamon Tahini & Apple Bread Braide served with Cool Blueberry Soup.

The final evening was spent waterskiing with this as our back drop.  

Not too shabby at all. 

Culinary Competition

Another way to be involved during the Boat Show is to compete in the culinary competition.  This year this year there were three categories - Starter, Entree, Dessert - and about twenty chefs from boats ranging from 112ft. motor yachts & 76 ft sailing yachts with dedicated chefs to 45ft charter boats with chefs like myself who play hostess, chef, deck, mate, etc.  The fun of the competition is to have the top restaurant chefs in the area tasting and grading your work against their own very high standards.

The last few minutes of prep.  You can't tell in the picture how badly my hands are shaking. 

Mini Hibiscus Mofongo & Saltfish Croquette
(First Place)

Braised Oxtail + Wahoo Parcel w. Local Spinach & Harvest Risotto Cake
(Second Place)

Banana Colada Ebelskivers w. Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream
(Second Place)

The judges & professional photographers.

CYS Boat Show 2012

Yes we did!
 This was the 31st annual CYS boat show and after 30 years of hosting the event at Village Cay Marina we made a move to Nanny Cay Marina and the show was a raging success!  Sasha climbed a hill during the show to snap a few pictures of all the boats in the marina.  Do you see Soterion??


Recognise this motley crew?  One of the nights of the show boats host a "Broker Hop" where they have snacks and drinks on board.  We decided to take the party to the docks this year because we were picking up charter the next day.  The idea was very well received-- along with our shots of home infused rum :)

Down the hatch without a scratch!  Mango Rum & Banana Spice Rum.

Upgrades & Improvements

Just when you thought it couldn't get any better...

We hired E&S to sand down and refinish the shelf at the front of the salon.  Through years of sun and saltwater spray the varnish had begun to discolor so a light sanding and new coat of varnish has her shiny and new again.  

The AirCon unit in the salon has been trying to die for about a year.  The heat of last June and July was too much and the compressor finaly bit the dust.  We had Marine Maintinance instal a a slightly bigger/ stronger unit and they even diverted a bit of the cool air down to the galley!  Chef is happy!

Upon inspecting the old windlass there were significant cracks in the main drive shaft, so we installed a new windlass.  Again, this one is larger and we are sure it will do a better job of pulling up our anchor.

Last but certainly not least, we added extra sound proofing around the front of the generator.  Sasha is on a mission to make the bow area a relaxing, quiet, after dinner conversational spot.  Last summer we had a seperator installed on the generator exhaust to bring down the noise at the water level, now we are working at the deck level.

Honeymoon Part 2

Well, the first part of the honeymoon went just as most married couples would expect.  We rented a car and drove from one B&B to anothe as we explored the Carolinas.  Too bad that was just a pit stop on the way back to de islands, mon!

We already have a full season booked and there were a few spare projects we've been meaning to get around to, so we hit Tortola a little early this year.  First up was organizing the Soterion storage unit.  

Most charter boats own more stuff than they can carry on board.  We have, for example all our holiday decor, bits and pieces we've taken out of the crew cabin to make it feel larger, all 27 jerry jugs used to carry fuel when the boat was delivered from France, tupperware full of Soterion swag, etc. 

I'm tired of looking at a heap of stuff in our storage unit... so it's time to install shelves and see what we can do to bring a little organization to this place.  Here you see Sasha squatting on a layer of cinder blocks -- what's with those blocks you might ask?  Flood protection!  We are on the ground level and in the summer this area is known for flooding.  

We bought some heavy duty brackets and installed three large shelves.  

Top shelf is for all the jerry jugs, they will come in handy for the next big adventure!
Second shelf is for extra "tools".  Captains and chefs rarely throw things out because none of these things are actually their personal property, and you never know what the next crew on a yacht will find useful.
Third shelf is for decor and other stuff that is not taking up perminent residence.
Ground level is for tuppers full of Soterion swag.  

Sorting what little swag we had leftover from last year.