The Showers!

I commented a couple of days ago that we are staying at River Dunes Marina, because of the reputation among boaters that they have great showers. I thought I better describe to those who are interested. They are wonderful- large, dressing area with large adjacent shower, modern tile, but the shower jets are the best- the overhead shower falls like gentle rain, and on the side of the stall are four more jets that you can turn on or off, like a massage. There is also a steam bath option! You can dial up the temperature to the degrees that you choose. A far cry from a boat shower, which in our case is a hand-held sink faucet that you lift up to give you a shower. Of course on the boat at this time of the year, it is barely 60 degrees inside.

We did take the loaner car into Oriental today, shopped at a verrrry small farmer's market, bought fish from a local fish market that is a shanty, open 2 days a week, and found a local selling fresh shrimp for $6 per pound. Knowing that Oriental is noted as the sailing center of NC, we were surprised at how small, quaint, and non-descript the town is. The local resident, selling shrimp, was a character- had to be close to 80 y.o., selling from his backyard, told me just how to prepare it. When I described it to Josh, he said it sounded like Forrest Gump, which he did, but much older. We are definitely in the South, with lots of "Yes, Ma ams", and conservative ideas. It is fascinating to me to see how people are impacted so much by the local environment. We are so much a product of our surroundings and experiences.

This evening, the marina offered a family style meal for $10 for cruisers. We met another interesting couple from Long Beach, CA who have been on their boat for 5 years. Seven of us shared drinks around a warm fireplace and then salad and chicken and dumplings in the dining room.

I like anchoring out and Joe likes marinas and we talked today that a combination works well, as we have met more people when in a marina, but anchorages are easier on the pocketbook. We need both experiences.

Joy