Days 10-11: October 19-20, Georgetown and the Boat Festival

I woke up the next morning to heavy rain. That 30% chance last night had turned into a sure thing, making me extra grateful that my bike was on a covered porch and I was in a fluffy, comfy, warm, and dry bed. The family I stayed with had to leave for work in an hour, so I went ahead and got up, hoping that the rain would stop. I figured I would head down to the cute downtown strip and find a place for breakfast, possibly with an out of the way nook I could stash my bike while the last drips finished up and the sun came out.

Joe had hinted that he wouldn't mind coming to breakfast with me that morning, so I sent him a text to see what he was up to. Before they left, Gary and Laura told me I was welcome to spend another night, as there was a boat festival the next day that was well worth going to. Joe picked me up a little while later and after driving down the main stretch, he took me to George's--a local buffet style diner--for breakfast. They made the eggs to order, and the french toast and pancakes on request, and it was very reasonably priced. Then it was on with some necessary chores: finding a place to ask about my broken phone and battery charger, going back to the library for a bit, doing laundry at his house (and catching up on some TV!) and finally diner at Tony's, where we had some of the best steak and cheese sandwiches (he couldn't stop raving about their special sauce).

After dinner, we walked around downtown on the boardwalk, found a jogglin board (it’s like a long bench-meets-rocking-chair that you sit on and "joggle," or bounce around. I thought it seemed kind of dangerous, but was assured it was quite stable.) We also got some ice cream because we passed by a shop that had just made some fresh waffle cones and I couldn't resist the smell. And finally, I got hit on by a pirate! That's how the story goes anyway. He's an ex-marine who travels around with his merry pirate friends and does re-enactment type things with working cannons and old timey guns. He told me if I joined him on his boat, he could take me past the Florida Keys down to the Bahamas or somewhere. It was a good time.

The next morning, it was super cold outside. Gary was fully focused on his calculations for the boat building competition, which was going to be taking part in. My mom was going to come in around noon, as it was a weekend and I wasn't too far away to visit yet. I caught a ride downtown and was immediately taken with how busy it all was! There was a whole side-street block in the middle of it all with huge tents for the boat builders. On the main street there were beautiful boats lining the sidewalk for people to admire, and all sorts of arts and craft stalls for me to peruse: a woodcarver chiseling out a 4 foot tall mermaid's hair, stained glass sailboats, and paintings of all kinds. There was also a tent where kids could make their own wooden boats and a kiddie pool to race them in. The pirates were walking up and down the stretch carting a mermaid they had "captured" and boasting about how fast she was. It was a great time.

My mom had to really search to find a parking spot, and once she did I showed her around, where we found Gary and Laura (who she thanked for taking care of me) and Joe's parents (his mom had to ask mine mother to mother how she could let me do what I'm doing), and then we found a spot to eat some lunch on a balcony overlooking the river. We stopped in to the boatmakers tents a few times to check their progress, but they were all too focused to notice us. After a while, we left the hustle and bustle so I could show my mom the awesome park I had been thinking of staying at. It was high tide unfortunately, so no crabs. My mom could only stay for a few hours, so she couldn't stay for the boat race at the end. I didn't really want her to leave, as I wasn't sure when I would be able to see her again: I would probably be too far away next weekend for her to visit very easily.

Joe and I wandered around for a bit waiting for the end of the building portion and the beginning of the racing portion! Everyone had crowded onto the boardwalk, trying to get a spot where they could watch and see if anyone sank! We rushed up to the balcony where my mom and I had eaten early to watch from there. It was a little difficult, but we could see a bit. There was one guy who was paddling standing up like a paddle surfer on his surf board, and he was quite a sight. We all wondered if he was doing it like that because his boat was taking on water. Unfortunately, we couldn't figure out which one was Gary's boat.

After the race, the scores were announced: Gary's team had come in 3rd overall! No boats sank this year, but one took on so much water when they put it in the river that they pulled it right back out again.

We went up to an artist friends' loft (he's kind of a big deal) who plays guitar off his balcony at night to serenade all of those eating at the little cafes under him. I really enjoyed looking at his paintings lining the walls of the entryway, stairs, and the walls of his apartment. We all chatted for a bit, and he mentioned that two of the places keep calling the cops on him with noise complaints when the rest of his band joins in sometimes. I think its ridiculous, as I know a lot of places would pay big bucks to hire someone to do what he's doing simply because he enjoys it. He says he plans to start a petition about it: "Let them play!"

Joe's dad came in his truck to get my bike and bags to take them to his house. Gary and Laura were fantastic people to put me up for a few days, and I was so very happy that they let me stay with them so I could see the boat show, but I didn't want to over stay my welcome. Saying goodbye was the hardest one yet, as they had come to feel a bit like extended family over my short stay.

Watching the beautiful sunset on the bridge as we drove over it felt a little like cheating, but I got over it. Any mileage lost could easily be made up for with all the city riding I had been doing in other places, if I wanted to get picky.

We went out for dinner at a Chinese buffet, but I remembered that I needed to stock up on food since I expected to be riding in the woods for two days or so and the raccoon had gotten about half of my food. We found a 10 cents bin after I had already checked out and had a few minutes being silly with the random toys found in it, and then we saw a young girl who couldn't have been more than 13 in knee high pointy high heeled boots and a tight mini skirt. It wouldn't be Walmart without at least one person to gawk at... She looked like she had gotten into her older sister's closet and intended to go clubbing.

Dinner was awesome, and I particularly enjoyed my fortune: Your observations are useful to others. Then it was off to bed, with anticipatory thoughts of my journey into the unknown continuing in the morning.