We aren't known to let a little rain stop us doing anything, so we didnt.
We picked up our rental car and had lunch in Metaire/Lakewood at The Pearl, Lakewood, a Japanese restaurant where we had a lovely Bento each. We made the decision then that we would return before taking the car back on monday.
We then made a trip into town (sort of) to Home Depot for cans of High Zinc paint for the engine beds. We were on Veterans Blvd at this stage. This was an area we had previously not visited.
After that we went in search of a Target where I bought some food and cheap, soft hand towels to clean/wipe the Eisenglas on the flydeck..everything else scratches.
While we were on the way home we found a large Walmart. Just to be nosy, we entered and WOW!!! A fantastic supermarket with everything and more. We found a few items to add to our collection in the pantry and came home.
We had to buy some food items for me to make a Fish Pie for our Friday night get-together that had been planned by Ed, who occupies the houseboat by the main office....
He and his wife Claire were going to bring the hotdogs! and build a fire pit at some stage. The arrangements were all a bit loose...but that's guys organizing things:)
We got home at 3.30pm, and it took me the rest of the day to make this blessed Red Fish pie. The Refish had come from next door...CT and Tim had given it to us after CT cooked another piece the night before...I think I told you about that. I had bar-b-q'd it and put in the fridge for another night...and it was perfect for a potato topped pie!
This is the behemoth that lives next door to us that took CT 6 yrs to build. It is called the Big Fish..after the TV program they make (on 130 channels across the USA).
This is the back deck we all ended up on Friday night...bar-b-q'ing et al. This is what we see from our port side (left side of the boat).
Ed and Claire joined us with a bunch of other folks, some from the Marina and others from the RV park next door. Those from next door are RV owners who are going to be boat owners. One of them, Roger, is having a 102ft houseboat built for him. He came down to NOLA just after Hurricane Katrina, to help with the cleanup, and stayed. He has a company that grinds waste concrete into powder! He lives on his 5th wheeler in the RV park with his wife.
Another man, Lee, came down from Connecticut to help after Katrina and stayed also. Lee and his lady friend Lesley live in their 38 ft RV, next door. His parents are presently living and sailing on their yacht in Turkey!
Nobody had eaten Fish Pie a la Mon, before...well, of course they hadn't! silly me:), but it all went down a treat and we also ate hotdogs with Claire's chilli and onions/cheese et al.
The company then decamped from Big Fish down the dock some way to the Fire Pit that Ed had started. We stood around with drinks/tea and chatted for a couple of hours before heading off to bed.
Nice to meet new folks and exchange information, always.
Remember I had told you about the lovely Yachtfisher, Solitaire?? Well, I finally took a photo of her...not a good one, because it is hard to do so when she is hemmed in by other yachts.
I think she is about 62ft.
This is the Dry Stack next door to us. We look out the back of our boat to the side of this huge building. It is supposed to be Hurricane Proof...hmmm...not sure I would like to test that!
...and this is the forklift that picks the boats up from the drystack and puts them in the water...and back again when they are finished.
There are 200 spaces in the drystack shed, and they keep her 90% full, always, with spaces for emergencies. three full time staff operate the drystack, alongside the Fuel dock and pump-out station (sanitary pump).
The staff have to be given one hour advance notice to retrieve a boat for a client. This is so that there is no rush to get the boat out, minimizing damage to boat and stress on personnel.
It is a very efficient system!
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