The Log of Wandrin Star - John and Wilann on their next chapter: October 2012

A nasty bug called pneumonia struck Mr Skipper Man 2 days after arriving at Panama City marina. Strange town, no car, don't know anybody, sick human - not good circumstances. The crew at the marina were super friendly & super helpful & super concerned - they helped me round up a minicab to get us to the walk-in clinic they told us about.

The doctors there were great - & but it took 3 visits, 2 butt jabs, 3 antibiotics & 1 lot of steroids to finally get him 100% well. Oh yes, & about 7 weeks.

We were in need of some serious recovery. We talked about how good a comfy bed, proper shower, ac & tv would all aid this, so we picked this hotel. The staff were great. In fact, every single person we met in Panama City was friendly & helpful & concerned.

Our home away from the boat for a week. It proved a good decision, especially when the insomnia set in. Hard to sleep with pneumonia - you lay down, you start coughing. You start coughing, you can't start. Or sleep. So the tv was a good companion, especially with the London Olymics in full swing. Mr Skipper Man was one sick guy.

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Before leaving the boat, coffee got spilt on the laptop - of course, it didn't appreciate this & promptly died. We tried drying out the keyboard, but it was a goner.

So it was off the Best Buy, just across the street from the hotel, for a new computer. An added complication & unexpected expense.

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We talked about renting a flat for a few weeks until we were fully recovered. Serendipity stepped in because the first search on Craigslist brought up Paulette's flat in her house on Oak Road, with all utilities included with tv & wifi. Bless her, what a lifesaver! Met her, saw the flat, decided it would be perfect, so we moved in on August 14th.

839 Oak Ave, Panama City, Florida

http://www.mermaidsdontcook.com/

The flat is down the side at the back. Paulette is fab & her flat was just perfect & just what we wanted & needed.

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Decided we need some wheels for the time being, until we decide what we're going to do long-term. After a week in a rented car, tracked down a good one on Craigslist - here is "Vlad" the Volvo.

The first car-style vehicle we've had. It's low-down! Very comfy & now that we know it, we can find it in parking lots.

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Spent quite a few days in Mexico Beach, about 20 miles east down the coast. It's a gorgeous beach town, so we started thinking about maybe buying rental properties. We met the fabulous Mary at Sundance Realty.

http://www.maryblackburn.com/about.html

Not 100% convinced this is a business we want to get into, but it's fun looking & doing all the calculations. There's a huge rental market there, especially from Tyndall base.

Had lunch here, right on the beach. Food was good, staff not so much. Odd, it's not as if they were very busy. Still, we had fun & enjoyed the view of beautiful Mexico Beach.