This morning we departed Black Pointe, Guana Cay after 10 days. Soon after arriving, we found out about the upcoming 3rd Annual Seven Seas Cruising Association (SSCA) gathering, open to all boaters, and immediately got involved.
The Gathering includes a many events and even many pre-party events. Each morning at 8:15 there was a radio "cruiser's net moderated by Joanie on SV ??. Every day, evening and night was filled with activities, many of which included music, dancing, food and drinks, drinks drinks. Allen discovered "Sky Juice", a uniquely Bahamian concoction of Gin, Coconut Milk, Evaporated Milk and sugar. He can't wait to mix some up for our jam session when we return to Seattle!
 Allen line dances and even cats appreciate Allen’s playing. Allen has been doing a lot of harmonica teaching and playing.
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One morning on the Net, Allen asked to see if anyone was interested in having a jam session. Several people said yes! and SV Reverie, a 45 foot catamaran volunteered to host. One of the folks who had seen Allen Play asked if he could give a Harmonica tutorial in the morning before the jam and Allen said yes. Then two more people asked to join that so Allen held a learning session in our cockpit.
The Jam was great, with 3 guitars, a Ukulele, Bongos, Brazilian Tambourines, and Allen on Harmonica. They played a mix of cover tunes and one of the attendees was quite a good songwriter so we jammed a few of his original songs. He had a great saying: "You can't go wrong with three chords and the Truth!" He even had a song about cleaning up the house before his wife returns from a trip - and it worked!
 Did we mention Dancing? Wednesday, before the festivities, was a DJ's last gig of the season at the Black Point Yacht Club and the place was hoppin'. Many of the folks we had met during our weeks in the Bahamas were there, and Norma moved too fast to get a good picture. Allen did some fancy step work for line dancing at Thursday night’s opening festivities and dinner. Yes, we are having fun! Weather here has been blissfully warm and cool and hot and cool at night.
Oh, yes, Lorraine’s! Everything is organized by a fantastic Black Pointe lady named Lorraine who owns the restaurant (since 1989) and organizes these events for cruisers. She and her daughter
Laurie and "Killer", the best bar tender we have ever seen working at warp speed to service over 120 boats with over a hundred people all at the same time, provide much of the fun and festive atmosphere here. These are the drinks that he makes.
An example of their humor is a sign over the toilet in the ladies room (one in the men's room also).
We gotta talk about "Long Beach" where we had games and a DJ on Friday and Saturday. Friday, the local kids were given a holiday and they joined the cruisers for fun on the beach. This gathering began as a way for cruisers to "give back" to the people of Black Pointe, a very cruiser-friendly settlement with an absolutely huge anchorage of gorgeous sand. The cruisers make donations to the schools, the clinic, and the kids at the beach. The kids really enjoyed playing with the paddle boards, kayaks and beach toys and many of the cruisers, including us, left some of those toys behind for the kids to enjoy when we departed.
One impressive event was a competition of some of the local weavers to see which could weave the longest 5-strand in 20 minutes. There was a display of some of the beautiful baskets, hats and hand-bags that they produce right here at Black Point. These women were impressive at how fast they could weave! Look at how much they did in just 15 minutes!
The beach is on the shore of a huge sand bar. This week, the tide was high in the mid afternoon when the beach activities began, but by 7 pm, and yes, the party was still going on, but the tide was out about a quarter mile!
Just before sunset, SSCA held a raffle, the proceeds to help defray the cost of the event, and there were some darn good prizes. A band played as the sun set and then we had a show from a Fire Dancer!
There were so many events, we can't recount them all, but what impressed us was how this gathering brough both cruisers and the local community together. It was clear that this event does benefit the community and the people here were so friendly and welcoming. Cruising really is the lifeblood of these islands, but it is clear that these people appreciate us as more than simply a source of their income and how we cruisers appreciate them for the services they provide as well as their welcoming attitude. To date, Black Pointe has become our favorite of the Bahama's destinations that we have seen so far.