Christmas Plans

Dear Santa, You might remember me from last year. I'm the little kid on a boat who is sailing around the world?"

 Maia is working on Christmas cards and Christmas letters today. We want to pop them in the mail before heading out of here. We've actually decided on a destination for Christmas. For a variety of reasons we're not heading south as quickly as we first planned. So Ceilydh is going to go Christmas caroling in La Paz this year.

For the past hour we've been going through the options for our Christmas destination but it was the happy memory of getting mail at Club Cruceros when we were cruising 15 years ago that really sold us on the little Baja city. So for friends and family (and any random strangers who want to surprise a homesick little girl with a Christmas greeting) we can receive letter mail or *very* small packages at this address:

Maia Selkirk

S/V Ceilydh

Apdo. Postal 366

La Paz, CP 23000, BCS, Mexico

Expect things to take 2-4 weeks to arrive. Roughly about the same amount of time it will take us to get there…

Tips For Cruisers in the Sea of Cortez

The Sea of Cortez Islands are a amazing place filled with nature. Animals who don't live anywhere else in the world live there. So we have to protect the natural beauty and not set up big resorts that put out advertisements saying, “Have your dream vacation here only! Meet a friendly dolphin! Make 1000's of new friends!”

That's not why we're here folks! Ok maybe for the friends part but . . .

You can visit the Islands though sooooooooooooo 

 If you want to do that here are some tips . . . .

1.         Before you get to the Islands brush your shoes and clothes because there's a type of grass called buffalo weed and it burns really fast and you might have the seeds on your shoes.

2.         Don't scare the birds because they'll fly away. There’s one type of bird that only has one chick a year and if she is scared away from her nest a rat could eat her egg or chick and the population could go extinct.

3.         Don't bring pets to the Islands because they'll make a mess and they could bring a disease.

4.         Don't collect shells because it's illegal.

5.         Here's one thing you can do – have fun.

 

The reason I know all this is because here in Guaymas a parks person came and gave us a presentation and she told us all the rules.

My Great Grandma

May 24, 1920-November 12, 2010

 My Great Grandma was a war bride. She came to Vancouver Island on a ship and then on a train with her two baby daughters, Mary and Margaret, from Scotland in January 1944.

She didn’t know if her new husband would ever return from the terrible war that was tearing the world apart.

She settled on Vancouver Island and had two more children, John and Jim. Her children grew up playing and working on the beautiful Island and they had children of there own. Her family has grown amazingly—she has seven grandchildren and seven great grandchildren.

 My Great Grandma loved to knit, and bake (she made the best scones ever) and to garden. And she had some of the most delicious apples I’ve ever tasted—one year we picked so many we had to have apple pies for weeks. She loved jewellery and cats. But I think most of all she loved her family. And we love and will miss her.