Exotic Flowers and Not So Elegant Mussels

Finally, the wind has abated. For thirty-six hours it howled in the rigging and the dock lines creaked and the boat rocked in the slip. By afternoon, the gray skies of morning and occasional drizzles gave way to bright sunshine and warmer temps. We took in the famous Ft Pierce farmers’ market. We really don’t need any provisions but it is fun to see what other things are being sold—crafts and the like. The market seems to have greatly expanded since last December when we were here. We took a fancy to a wind chime on board one of the boats in the marina. The skipper told us he got it at the farmers’ market. So, we looked up the vendor, a really nice guy named Jeff. His wind chimes are made of bits of stained glass, shells and glass beads. Hanging from Now or Never’s bimini frame is a tinkling wind chime of cobalt blue glass.
A bit further on, we came across a vendor who specializes in bromeliads and exotic flowers. We saw an air plant that we just had to have. A ball of greenery with a few patches of red beginning to show. We hung it from the dodger frame.
When we were here last March, we had a delightful meal at Yellowtail Grill—Thai Ginger Mussels, an interesting variation on the classic Moules Marinières and Ahi tuna with a wasabi cream sauce. We have been looking forward to a repeat performance. Unfortunately it was not to be. The mussels were not up to the standard that we expected and the tuna, while good, was not what it should have been. The bottle of Australian Pinot Grigio, however, was very good and we still had a pleasant evening out.

We’ve decided to repair the mast step here in Ft Pierce rather than risk the 17 or 18 hour trip down the coast with the problem. We expect to hear from the boatyard on Monday or Tuesday to schedule a haulout or a slip where we will await the haulout. It looks like we will spend Thanksgiving in Ft Pierce. Actually, the weather does not look good for sailing down the coast anyway, so maybe things will work out well.