Boot Key Harbor City Marina and Malaysia and New Zealand

I have to show you more pictures from our trip -- I don't believe I've put on the blog yet. 
This is the Buddhist temple lit up only during the Chinese New Year in Penang, Malaysia.  We visited this our last night and the last night it would be lit.  It's  hard for you to see how enormous this is, and it shows only one small part.

 a Thai temple:

 Amazing food.  This is soup in a pasta topped bowl we drank with a straw.  The green drink was delicious too.  All new vegetables and fruits we'd never tried.

In New Zealand, a Weihiki Island festival we attended with races on the beach.   Other races were wheelbarrow, children running races, ponies, tractors and Sealegs,  a special land and sea boat. 

Can't believe we've been in Boot Key Marina for 6 days.  When you arrive here you shut the door on time.  Everything is on your own time, in your own way.  I've slid into another world with no news or care about what's going on.  It's a disconnect from reality in a lot of ways.  We've gone swimming at the beach, swum off the boat, attended happy hours at Lazy Days, Sparkey's, and Sunrise Harbor, and music right here at the tiki hut on Saturday night.

Changing the oil and racor filter

Mazu after a romp at the beach had such a great time.

 selfie at Sombrero Beach

 Each light represents a boat with people staying aboard for the night.  Usually a harbor, like Marblehead with 1,000 boats may have one or two lights because few people stay on their boats overnight.  Here there are a ton of lights because everyone is living on their boats at the moorings in the harbor.

This morning 5 strangers got together and shared good reads.  Women who enjoy reading and talking about books got together at the marina library.  I put out a time and place on the cruisers radio net, and the 5 of us showed up.  All of us walked away with a list of books.  Really nice group, and we'll meet again in 2 weeks. 
  Had lunch with Sheri Fulton and Dan from Portsmouth, NH who are staying in Key West for a week.  They drove down and we ate at Sunset Grill, a restaurant where you can eat, drink, dinghy to, lie on the sand, and swim in a pool.  It was a nice place right at the end of 7 mile bridge.  Great to see Sheri and Dan.  We're going to take the $1.50 bus ride to Key West (an hour away) to visit them as well this week -- Drew's never been to Key West.

at Marathon on Boot Key mangroves everywhere

We sailed in last night after 3 perfect sailing days.  One from Dinner Key to No Name Harbor on Key Biscayne, then south west on Hawkes Channel anchoring off Rodriguez Key off Key Largo then another 7 hour sail into Boot Key Harbor City Marina.  since Mazu doesn't go on the boat our adventure are around finding a dinghy place -- I jump off as does Mazu to find the grass (doggy bag ever ready.)
  People stay here for months because the place is huge 226 moorings for boats up to 45' with many convemiemces.  And another 60 moorings for 60' boats.  There are also a bunch of marina slips all around the harbor.  we saw several people we've met along the way, crew on Alobar and Rhythm.
We plan to be here for a month.  Haven't decided where to keep the boat for the summer.

  The three adventure anchorages:
1. No Name Harbor :  This is a perfect anchor spot though you have to pay $20 (honor system). we lowered the dinghy and motored across to a tall wall that had periodic ladders.  the harbor holds only about 11 boats.
We all three walked across to Key Biscayne beach with lighthouse.  Beautiful white sand and gentle surf.  Mazu was not allowed.  I didnt have a bathing suit on nevertheless the long walk did us all good.
2. The next morning we left at 8 and sailed the whole way to Rodriguez Key anchoring at 3:30  This key is all mangroves - no land.  Many of the little keys are mangrove only.  Everyone  now knows (after Katrina) not to get rid of mangroves because they serve the purpose of blocking big wave surges, providing habitat to birds and fish breeding grounds, and sometimes plain scenic.  We put the dinghy down and .8 miles later we were walking the dinghy in knee high water toward what looked like sand beach...but alas it was just low tide showing the wet, reedy, mucky bottom.  We climbed back into the dinghy and  motored another mile to the mainland where several dinghys tied up next to a bar of sorts.  Drew stayed with the boat and I ran Mazu to a weedy place.  We returned to Shawnee for a nice dinner.
3.  Thursday We pulled up anchor at 8:15 to sail to our final destination Boot Key at the town of Marathon.  We did not walk Mazu that morning.  Another all day sail at 7.1 k.  We arrived about 4:15.  Steve Lalond who had spent 3 years comvincing us to come down immediately came over to welcome us from his dinghy and showed us the way in.   I quickly lowered the dinghy to get Mazu to land.  Boot Key Harbor City Marina has the best facilities:  a TV area, a library exchange area, Free Internet area at tables for no charge, clean bathroom showers, a double garage area where  boaters can come in and do projects, a thatched roof  tiki bar.  It looks like it was an old airplane hanger with lots of space, a laundry that's $3 a load, an automatic weekly pump out that's included in the mooring fee ($300/ month).  we walked down Route 1 and I am now always on the lookout for Cafe Cubano.  We bought a few provisions at Publix - a 20 minute walk Mazu included.  We went to Steve's boat for drinks and appetizers.  Bed early.
5. Friday We introduced ourselves on Cruisers Net, a daily morning radio show...and are now going out for dinner with a fun couple we met in Coinjock, then Southport, NC.  They are leaving tomorrow it turns out.
the Cruisers net told us where to go for Yoga, Cuban coffee and a women's sailors happy hour today.