The Man and the Mast, and Spanishifying the Saab…

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This week has been hot hot hot, and even us newbies are noticing the increased rate of tourist influx. The beaches are literally packed, and the crammed writhing masses are providing very good fodder for my new addiction – parasol photography!!  

We have adopted a local summer survival tactic of avoiding the beach on the weekend. Instead we do  mundane things like grocery shopping…… but we realise that even this is a summerfied experience ATM. On Friday it was impossible to park anywhere within several kilometeres of the supermarket but undeterred, I made another attempt in the evening, complete with Swedish chauffeur. His task was to either valet park the car, or just do some laps while I got the most necessary shopping. The Swedish chauffeur took to the task with relish – even adopting a possibly Catalan? parking technique of squeezing into a very small, possibly illegal space, with the side of the Saab firmly “touch parked” against a concrete bollard. The departure from said snug parking position was not without some paint loss….. we think the Swedish registration plates were blushing with embarrassment, or at least the Swedish chauffeur was a little hot under the collar!

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Some new experiences this week included:

-Walking to Garraf with a picnic. The walking track was a spectacular, steep windy path, overlooking aquamarine Mediterranean waters,with contrasting rocky bluffs above us.. The village of Garraf was also a visual feast… Gaudi buildings, whitewashed cliff top cafes, colourful beach, lively marina, and delightfully unexpected shady alcoves. We would love to visit again soon. While there, we had a rare moment of clarity…. aarghh!!! we were perfectly stereotypical tourists – (right down to the backpacks, socks, runners, and shorts!!) and LOVING it?

– Meeting an English couple and a Frenchman, who are newer than us as boat owners and live aboards in Port Ginesta. It has been nice to extend the warm welcome and small bits of helpful information to others as they have been extended to us. 💜💕💜😃

–Parasol photography… I have a new addiction… Trying to take nice photographs of parasols on the beach. I take gazillions daily, in bright sunlight with no glasses, and subsequently delete a gazillion minus one…. Sometimes the camera sees what I see, but more often it doesn’t….🙁💜 but I am really enjoying the visual juxtaposition of the bright, almost florescent reds and pinks against the azure sea and cobalt sky, and the neutral sand … a perfect foil. I think I am enjoying the visual beauty in the same way one enjoys the gustatory pleasure experienced when combining a triple cream brie with a perfectly ripe pear and a lively Sav Blanc… or a heavy Shiraz with tender beef or a really rich dark chocolate….❤️

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WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS:

BEST

• Bikes!! We finally bought the foldable bikes that have been occupying most of my waking thoughts for months! In 2 days I have clocked up at least 50 km – I hope our budget purchases are up to our requirements!! I have really loved walking, and we have the car if we need it, but the current parking situation will be avoided completely with bikes, and doing the laundry will not be a half day excursion.
• Cooking class with our boat neighbour. After giving us some tortilla to eat last week, this week Gema taught us how to make our own. Of course our “primero” attempt has some room for improvement, but it was fun to learn how to make them, and then eat with a very generous and kind friend from La Mancha.
• Watching a beautiful thunderstorm from under the spray hood, exchanging gasps with our neighbors over the THREE almost vertical rainbows!

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WORST

• A sick Captain, although the Barry White voice was fun for a day or two. (now I have the Barry White voice – not quite so funny.)

• Having to admit, after much TLC , coaxing, and patching, that the dinghy must now RIP. TBH the poor dinghy had several VERY large holes  – first repair unsuccessful, second one good, but new holes appeared repeatedly as inflated pressure increased. Humble dinghy has been in all sorts of yoga poses- and levels of inflation over the past couple of days, but sadly needs to retire from active duty – because if it were human, it would surely request a DNR…!!

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FUNNIEST

• Aforementioned Spanishising of the Saab, via very snug touch parking.

• Dropped washing, and subsequent hot pursuit on SUP. This is funny now, but not so much at the time, as is often the way!. As usual, I was doing a few different jobs at the same time, and somehow, the bag of washing fell from the jetty into the water and by the time I noticed, its contents were rapidly sinking and/or floating away before my very eyes!! All I could do was clamber onto the nearby SUP, and paddle in hot pursuit of the fast disappearing clothes. Fortunately Magnus´s “Ocean Racing Club” shirt from the Melbourne boat “Rogue” was saved, but a couple of favorites went to Neptune`s wardrobe.

FOOD AND BEVVY HIGHLIGHTS

• Tortilla made in aforementioned cooking class

• Fresh Gazpacho – drank icy cold in the cockpit on a really hot morning, after Gema passed it to us over the side of the boat to try – yum!! Fresh, zingy, perfect!

• Admitting to ourselves and our boat neigbours that we quite like the “homeless people” wine – and it fits into our budget.

• Trying to be a little efficient with shopping, we have eaten many pantry meals this week even though we are in a jetty. This has meant that my usual Australian mint based potato salad was replaced by mustard based one but I can’t say I’m unhappy with that. This was accompanied by some very crisp tuna patties…..oh my goodness what CAN’T you do with a tin of tuna !! 💜💜

BOAT WORK

• Sprayhood complete!! Super work by the multi talented (occasionally grumpy) Captain – taking the old one apart, and wrangling an uncharacteristically cantankerous sewing machine for THREE days! The result is well worth the effort (says me… I am not the one who sweated in the cabin to finish this important job…)

• We have now entered a live link in our “where are we now?” page of this blog…. So we are visible on Marine Traffic, and our location is updated as (when?) we move along.

• Logbook made and updated

• Rusty part of anchor chain cut off, ready for new extension.

• Investigation underway re constructing frame for solar panels  – tradesmen and other boat people consulted. WIP.

• Sails removed, “cabos” washing and inspection started, and some new halyards purchased. The Captain has spent some time on and around the mast this week, learning his way around the furling mechanism.

• VIP!! We have developed a good working relationship with a local chandlery.

• Dinghy… well, after some positive preliminary testing last week, we think a new dingy is required…. as per sad story above….

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