Joel Rendall

Not all gigs are created equal. As musicians, we all have those performances that aren’t the most thrilling. Sometimes it takes a lot of mental energy to stay focussed and interested.

This young kid is in the process of learning that right now.

But this is quite amazing – he’s playing the bass notes, plus two notes in his right hand. I can’t imagine the monster player this guy is going to grow up to become. That is, of course, is if he can still bare to look at a pair of mallets in 10 years time.

This photo was taken in Punta Arenas, Costa Rica. I’m wondering if this sign might have been subject to poor translation.

In every port we visit in Central America, fruit is always fresh and plentiful – especially coconuts. Today, I had some Agua de Coco (Coconut Water), from a freshly opened coconut. It cost me $4, plus $1 tip. Compared to other places, this is pretty pricy. This is normal because we were close to the beach.

When I finished drinking the water, I asked the waitress to whack open the coconut so I could eat the meat inside. Coconut flesh is a great source of raw fat, which can be challenging for a raw vegan to get on a ship. Surprisingly, she wasn’t going to charge me to cut open the coconut, but I gave her two more dollars anyway.

Coconut flesh doesn’t appeal to me too much when it is fresh, because it is still pretty slimy from having the water inside. Ideally, I’d let it sit in the sun for a couple hours to dry out.

Since we are not allowed to have food (nor Magic Bullet blenders) in our cabins, it would be wrong for me to make a Coconut smoothie. But using my black-belt Photoshop skills, I have constructed a photo (left) to show you what this scenario might have looked like.

Also shown is a bottle of real vanilla extract, which I paid $8 US for. I had to look in a few different shops to find vanilla that was in a glass bottle. I made sure I got a glass bottle, because in the hot (caliente) weather, I’m sure that some serious toxins would be expelled from the plastic bottles. I’m told it’s cheaper for them to use plastic bottles, and t’s also easier for tourists to get through the airport with plastic bottles.