On Monday we made a visit to the Medical Center. But, we weren't the only ones. It turns out the economy of Mindelo is boosted by the sailors of the ARC+ through the chanderly, the restaurants, fuel docks, souvenirs, and also the medical centers. We went to check on my ribs after a fall in rough weather. At the reception waiting area of the medical center we ran in to, not one, not two, but four other members of boats with one ailment or another. 
We were entertained by the way business is done. First you pay ahead for the consult with the doctor. Then you see the doctor and the doctor writes orders of what he wants done. Then you pay for those procedures prior to having them done. Then you return to the doctor after the procedures and another set of orders are written and again payment is made. Needless to say, they were very happy tending to so many battered sailors. 
There is never a dull moment on or off the sea. 

P.S. My ribs weren't broken-just beat up. All is well and we're preparing for tomorrow's departure. The weather should be perfect for a smooth sail away from Cape Verde. Keep a lookout for us on the YB tracker of the ARC+ Fleet Viewer. 

Well, folks today is the day! We had our Skippers briefing. We had our send off party and then our send off fireworks. I believe we are ready to go! And we are quite excited-it should be a really good sail. The starting line signal will go off at 1300 local time-which is 8 am East Coast time. We have our tracker on our boat now and all the boats are on the map and we can be located.  Go to the website on the opening page you'll see a link to this address-it's titled ARC+ 2019 FLEET VIEWER. You can click here to see it. https://www.worldcruising.com/arc_plus/eventfleetviewer.aspx
Things have been very busy here. In order to get from one place to the next there is so much walking. I have been averaging walking about 4 and a half miles a day. My body is very tired but also getting into very good shape. Now if we could just lose a little weight, that would be nice. It's been a great week of preparations and making new friends. 
Please remember that after today Facebook linking this website and our SAILBLOGS will go silent-no more automatic posts there. In order to follow us please go directly to the website and click on all the links to keep up with us. It has been so comforting and encouraging to read your notes to us. Looking forward to seeing you in just a few weeks. The days a quickly going by. Much love to all.