David's Diary: Sunday, August 11, 2002

A Mapleleaf Breakfast

We came to Marina Agana at the invitation of Bill and Jean Cote. They are fellow members of our yacht club who we have met by email and by VHF radio, but not in person. Bill has invited several yachts to a special breakfast in Marina Agana, complete with Canadian maple syrup.

Bill Cote

The fortified tower, built in the 16th century to provide protection from the Turks, is the most visible landmark in Marina Agana. The tower now houses a restaurant and hotel. While the pictures here show a sunny day, we started the morning with a rain shower that I thought you only saw in Vancouver. I was out early to shop for groceries for our contribution to the breakfast and I was completely soaked by the time I got back to the boat.

We all ran through the rain with our breakfast contribution to get to the clubhouse where everyone was gathered for brunch. We spent time getting to know some of the other people there while Kevin and Allen ate French toast with a thick covering of maple syrup provided by fellow Canadian Brian Moorhouse.

Jean Cote

Bill has lived outside of Canada for the last decade and he and Jean retired to their boat. They have been enjoying the Mediterranean and as part of the Mediterranean cruising net they organized a gathering of cruising boats to celebrate the Canadian and American July holidays. We have been emailing Bill and Jean for months and it was great to finally meet them in person.

Brian Moorhouse with David, Jocelyn, and Karalee

Before we left Vancouver last year, we met with Brian Moorhouse. Brian is from Vancouver, but for the last twenty-five years he has kept a sailboat in the Mediterranean. Brian gave us a lot of advice for our Mediterranean adventure and he was back in Croatia this summer. He joined us for breakfast this morning and after the rain, wind, and clouds cleared in the late afternoon we were able to visit with him and see his boat for the first time.