When booking my roundtrip Delta ticket, I had routed myself through Antigua on the return to stopover on the way home and check out work and boat storage potentials there as well. I had never been to Antigua before so I was looking forward to exploring somewhere new.
I arrived a few days before the annual Classic Yacht Regatta which takes place this year on April 17-22, followed by Sailing Week after that. The island is pretty quiet now since the Caribbean starts to slow down in April, when the weather heats up here and spring arrives in US, UK and Europe – the source for most visitors to the islands. But the arrival of these sailing competitions brings crowds and partiers from all over. And while I’d love to see some of the races and the boats, I’m not a crowd lover and typically prefer the smaller crowds and peace and quiet of the shoulder seasons in spring and fall, without the energy sapping and whole-body-sweat-producing heat that comes in August and September, along with increased hurricane risk.
Just now I’m sitting in a bar and restaurant called the Mad Mongoose just down the road from my hotel at the Antigua Yacht Club Marina Resort, where I requested and received a discount for my 3-night-stay which fell in a lull period between spring break and the regattas. I’m at the cafe to use their free Internet service – which many cafes and bars offer now to attract people like Tim and I who travel with laptops and use them to stay in touch with their “mainland life” while being on island to work.
So here I sit at an old wooden table and chair in a corner of the small low-key restaurant – a concrete building with bright yellow and blue walls inside, blue metal roof ceiling, 70’s and 80’s rock music playing (okay, blaring) from speakers hidden somewhere in the walls, under inexpensive metal multi-colored ceiling fans. It's between lunch and dinner hours so the only people here are Internet users like me, and while several of us are inside at empty tables, several other laptop users are outside at the picnic tables.
My other “office” location is the SeaBreeze Café just across the street from my hotel, which sits at water’s edge at the dinghy dock for the marina and harbor. The access there requires a code which wait staff will give you once you buy something (even a soda or coffee), but here the access is free whether you buy something or not.
I understand that Antigua has 365 beaches – one for every day of the year – but I haven’t visited a single one this trip and don't expect to since this is not a vacation trip. I’m here to visit marinas, yacht service companies, chandleries and service yards to find out about rates for anchoring/docking here and possible opportunities to work. That includes of course paying close attention to whatever “holes” might exist in each market for a particular type of service or skill that perhaps Tim and/or I have and could find a niche for ourselves.
The expats I've met living in the Caribbean and elsewhere in the world tend to be very resourceful people who often have more than one “job” in order to get by and be able to stay here. This kind of life is probably not well suited for those who require job security, high (or even medium) wages, and anything like a life that resembles the one “stateside.” I think many people misguidedly believe that living and working in the Caribbean is somehow "easier" or more carefree than other places -- like some type of perpetual vacation. But perhaps they have that mistaken impression because they've never actually done it and don't know anyone who does. From what I've learned from the many questions I've asked people who actually live aboard in the Caribbean or elsewhere -- they live pretty much like people everywhere -- except perhaps more basic and with much fewer conveniences and possessions. It's not a life appropriate for everyone, and while Tim and I aren’t sure if w
e have what it takes to make this kind of life work, or even if we'll like it in the longrun -- we think we might like to give it a try and see how it works out.And we do have some perhaps lesser known skills that we’ve acquired over the years in one way or another through volunteer work, part-time jobs or other "life experiences".
In addition to Tim’s experience in sales/marketing, including 2 years as a boat broker, he also took some bartending training, because of course that’s always a need in most resort areas. As for me, I have dabbled in journalism by writing articles for lnewspapers and magazines in various states where we've lived, and I’ve created and edited manuals, brochures and other documents for business and non-profits as a consultant and volunteer. Working at a ski resort for two complete winters and my seasonal time at LL Bean in the warehouse reminded me of what it's like to be an hourly worker in a service-oriented and more "hands on" environment, so that adds another facet to my resume. Hopefully that proof of flexibility and adaptability will help for whatever we do next.
Of course we both have some basic experience with boat operation and delivery, including multi-day passages, so that’s another potential avenue to perhaps explore. I’ve already noted some “crew wanted” postings at local marinas for deliveries from Panama to Australia and across the Atlantic – all leaving in late April and May.
I read just the other day that Panama has greatly reduced the number of yachts they allow to make the transit each day, creating a huge backlog of boats sitting in marinas and anchorages on either side waiting for their turn to cross. I remember that the hostess of the Bequia's Friendship Rose was about to leave in April as crew for a family she met in Bequia who were leaving Bequia soon for the Canal. I wonder if they are one of the boats sitting there waiting now?
Her experience seems pretty typical of ones I see down here – people show up in a port and just ask around for someone looking for crew going in the same direction they want to go – and typically there are both looking – boat owners or skippers looking for crew, and crew looking for boats. Most crewing jobs are unpaid unless you are the skipper, and if you’re lucky they cover flights and other expenses (although some only cover meal share). So obviously you don’t do this for profit, just as a way to get where you’re going or perhaps for experience or seatime toward a skipper's license. The experience is what I’d be looking for if I go that route at some point.
Actually, if we’re resourceful, there are probably a lot of things we could do in order to eek out a living like many other “regular people” we know down here do (you know, the ones that don’t
live off trust funds or early retirement income). It’s amazing what we can make work when we are motivated enough and willing to “just deal” with whatever downside comes with a chosen lifestyle, especially if we're also willing to make whatever sacrifices that also comes with that lifestyle. Everything in life is about the choices we make eh? 
This was all I had time to write while in Antigua, but as noted in a previous entry there are more photos from this second working trip to Bequia and Antigua in April, so to view those please visit the photo blog at:
http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/ctssyount/1/tpod.html.
Cheers, cy
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