Book your excursion for this year now - fishing, dolphin search, 2 1/2 hour pleasure cruise, 5 hour pleasure cruise with watersports or just watersports. Something to suit everybody.
|
Article in RTM
28 May 2006 - IT'S THE WATER
Of late in It's the Water, we have been circumspectly circumambulating the circumstances of dreams and dreamers in Paradise (a hyperbolic turn of
phrase if ever there were one, but lovely nevertheless). Do we follow our dreams to Paradise, encounter them in Paradise, or conjure them in Paradise?
All of these be true, depending upon whom we are - or might be.
Sometimes sweet dreams sneak up on us given the catalyst of paradisiacal surroundings to urge them on their way. As I began to grasp the remarkable
story of Michelle Scott, I was transported to my favorite verse in a downright inspirational song first proffered by the fabulous Annie Lennox and
The Eurythmics:
Sweet dreams are made of this
Who am I to disagree?
I travel the world
And the seven seas --
Everybody's looking for something.
Some of them want to use you
Some of them want to be used by you
Some of them want to abuse you
Some of them want to be abused
(Hold your head up--Keep your head up--MOVIN' ON)
Michelle's husband had a gutsy, gaudy, glorious dream. He was passionate about fishing in general, ocean sport fishing in particular - big game
sailfish specifically. He had been raised to love fishing, spent much of his free time fishing, and vacations were often spent in famous fishing
destinations around the world.
One day not so very long ago, he made a gut wrenching, life altering announcement: They would sell their family business (which happened to be
the business of cleaning businesses), their home in Lancashire, England, their cars, their caravan, pack up all their bags and woes including
the four children, Katy (19), Hayley (15), Ryan (12), Callum (10), their three dogs, and their remaining worldly belongings and head for Paradise,
which to the family's complete surprise is located in Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria. Dad (and Mom) bought a boat and business that offered daily
excursions to the fertile fishing fields of Gran Canaria, legendary home of the Blue Marlin - the greatest sailfish trophy of them all (Hemingway's
Old Man and the Sea).
Lifetime roots - family, friends, schools, not to mention language, history, and interminably miserable weather - were bid a fond farewell, and the
Scotts castoff for distant shores in hot pursuit of Dad's divine afflatus for an utterly new life.
Within three month's of their arrival, Puerto Rico seemed more a Fool's Paradise than the place where dreams come true. Nothing seemed to be as
advertised or at least as imagined. The boat, Sailfish, was not in good condition; the in-place marketing program was less than hoped for; the staff
were unhappy or uninspired or both; the business documentation was confusing, contradictory, and obviously in the wrong language; even the little stand
where tickets were offered to strolling tourists directly in front of where Sailfish lay moored was very discouraging. You see, it sits dead last in a
long line of competitors desperate to seduce excursion funds from folks long before they would ever reach the modest, little Sailfish sales stand. And
it transpired that ocean going excursions as a business in Puerto Rico is fiercely competitive. There are no less than 30 entrepreneurs enticing tourists
with everything from dolphin and whale searches, to yacht sailing, to cruises on tall ships, to party boats, to glass bottom boats, to SCUBA diving, jet-skis,
and parasailing, not to mention sport fishing boats galore. Combine all this with an intimidating draught of tourists, and the dream seemed suddenly improbable,
imponderable, impossible. Yikes!
Hopelessness turned to despair when the family Patriarch suffered a medical breakdown and returned to England. Worse, he didn't like Gran Canaria, Puerto Rico,
the business end of sport fishing, or any part of our so-called Paradise - not in the least.
Michelle and her brood had an emergency family meeting. They commiserated together regarding their dire situation and circumstances. Michelle knew nothing
of sport fishing, nary a word of Spanish, and encountered only discouraging words regarding prospects to salvage their floundering business. In fact, the
pole bearers were already offering up condolences.
All the family assets had been sold up and invested in the grand sport fishing dream. To do? Nothing to do but to go back to England and start all over
from absolute scratch. Well, that is what I would have done. Wouldn't you?
As it happens, Michelle is a dream maker, not a dream breaker. She had figured out real fast, despite all the bad news, that Paradise is just fine by her.
Her rich, dark tan and sun streaked locks tell part of the story. Eternal spring, the sun and the sea, clean air, an international community, and a chance
to mingle with people from around the world were intriguing and enchanting inducements for Michelle to stick it out. Her school aged kids seemed to be
integrating into the Spanish education system well. Katy, the oldest, thought the permanent party atmosphere divine. Michelle's mother, who came along to
enjoy her autumn years in the land of golden sunshine and warmth, participated in the vote. Michelle was convincing and the vote proved unanimous:
Paradise won! Michelle was given the family thumbs up to GO FOR IT!
Since that fateful day, there is a stirring in the port of Puerto Rico. Something seems to be happening at the little stand at the end of all the other
little stands. People are coming to Sailfish - in ones and twos and fours and mores. Michelle is womaning the Sailfish stand herself. Her eyes a sparkle,
smile delighting, she is on a quest to make the dream of Paradise come true for her family and herself. And she is making very good decisions. Her Captain,
Eduardo, has 30 invaluable years of experience fishing these abundant waters. Her Marinero, Pepe, (the onboard face of the boat) was hired for his vibrant
personality not to mention his gift of seven vivacious languages, to complement his passion for fishing. An animator by profession, the man knows how to
make people happy. Michelle is also lucky enough to have found a professional, fully-qualified mechanic, Trevor, on-hand to undertake any repairs in exchange
for living his dream - fishing whenever we wishes on Sailfish.
Michelle's enthusiasm and determination have won her a bank loan to refit and beautify the once proud Sailfish - and lovely she is again thanks to the hard
work of Michelle and the five men in her life - Eduardo, Pepe, Trevor, Ryan and Callum.. Michelle's mother has also invested in the dream and top-of-the-line
fishing gear helps lure the serious sports fisher folks onboard. The dynamic duo of Pepe and Michelle has managed to double the number of tour operators
signed on the dotted line to fill the Sailfish with tourists in search of a fun day in Paradise. The word-of-mouth is spreading fast. The Sailfish offers
a great chance to catch and release a big one and/or have a great day at sea.
So if you want to help a determined lady make her dream and the dream of her family come true in Paradise, walk on down, introduce yourself, and say, "Hi,
Michelle! Go girl, you do it!" And she will flash you a smile and a wink and show you her beautiful boat, Sailfish, floating just there, in the water. That's
where dreams come true! Afterall, it's the water!
|
|
