Coconut Telegraph

I am sure that when Al Gore invented the internet he had no idea how it might trickle down to the islands. To be fair, all the countries and territories we have visited even third world types- have been on line. It is only a question of what line they are on and how they follow it.

As Americans we have come to take high speed internet for granted. One can pop into any coffee shop, library or hotel and zoom, your on line. Not so out here in the islands. We have found ourselves in curious circumstances while trying to "stay connected". We have shared the floor of an electronics store with eight or ten other cruisers all trying to use the same feeble connection. It was slow but at least it was only two bucks a day. Today we paid three Euros (about $4) for thirty minutes of slow internet usage with a French keyboard. Why would they move four letters to different places? In Louperon, DR we used Spanish key boards in the Verizon office. There is a special, secret combination of keystrokes to get the "@" thingie-can't send email without it. We have used the internet in bars, restaurants, a hotel office and even under a tree in front of a fire station. The second bit of local knowledge passed on to new boaters entering a harbor is where to get on line (the first is where to take your trash).

So, if we are slow to answer emails or update the site, it's not for lack of trying. Well, some days it is.
Glenn