Friday: June 10th: Making the brief walk back to the dock in the morning I had lots to think about. Andy and Mia were there to meet me and say goodbye and let me just say that it was a very emotional moment for me. A novel mix of fear and exhilaration, anxiety and relief washed over me and I found it hard to keep my composure. Fortunately they had the sensitivity to make the goodbyes quick and I hopped back aboard Arcturus, took a look at my new home and, as middle aged men are wont to do, laid down in my bunk to contemplate the challenges and adventures that lay ahead.
The next three days I spent opening up all the boat’s numerous cupboards, drawers and other hidey-holes and inventorying all the equipment Andy and Mia had left me. And it was a very extensive list! I also did my best to fit into the eco-culture of this wonderful town by renting a bicycle to explore and provision. And cruising sailors being a helpful and gregarious bunch, I was able to make friends with Roger and Christian, a retired British couple whose summer home is a classic Dutch-designed sailboat whose name completely escapes me. Rog and Chris not only marked about a dozen little ‘naturhamn’ (natural harbors) on the charts in the archipelago where I could ‘swing on the hook’ for free, but Roger also strongly advised me to visit Sarbis, a gourmet food store just ten minutes away on the bike where I could stock up on excellent cheeses, charcuterie and seafood. Not ‘arf, as my father used to say….
Then came Sunday, and the arrival of my old mucker Richard Tildesley, a British expatriate in Spain whose idea of ideal cruising togs was not layers, waterproofs and topsiders but rather a houndstooth jacket, shiny black winklepickers and a trilby hat.
My poor old decks…
