Dispatch from the Sea: Trading with Local Pirates...

Morning found the motley crue with me, joyed by both the sight of new land and a sister vessel flying our same colors, hull down on the horizon.

The locals did not swarm to meet us as they did yesterday. I assured the motley crue that they would be friendly, but I was prepared to find a population less prepared to barter and trade with us.

As I prepared the landing parties, my mate counseled to prepare our cash of weapons and trade goods so that we were prepared for any eventuality. Sage advice.

As I stepped to land, my level of anticipation increased as I spotted a Jolly Roger hoisted at the village.

The villagers were more advanced than I expected, perhaps accelerated in their culture through keeping company with pirates. They seemed to have advanced bartering methods, even keeping track of which of our ocean-going barks we hailed from.

There was a good vantage to keep an eye on our two small ships to make sure the pirates didn't board...

They also seemed to enjoy water, (although they were unwilling to share of drinking water freely) floating around on strangely colored mats apparently made of a reed in familiar to me.

We were able to procure fresh beverages, which were surprisingly cold and tasty. They demanded payment through the use of a strange card and added something called a "gratuity". When I inquired as to the cost, the response was, "Don't worry--we can settle up at the end of the voyage..."  Hmmm.

After a day visiting, and a lunch of foods familiar to me, our sister ship weighed anchor and bade us farewell. We now prepare to leave these tropical waters for the voyage to the North, and our home...

Current location: Latitude: 19.784695 Longitude: -72.249214 Altitude: 202.272477
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=19.784695,-72.249214 No Address Available