From Sue.

Thought I’d add a paragraph and sum up the last (nearly) three months since we retired.

Obviously missed family and friends in the beginning and found it strange to think that this is now our life for a while and not an extended holiday, but it is surprising how quickly this way of life has become the ‘norm’, and the boat our home.

We are now in Croatia after a 30 hour sail from Corfu, and feel that the next month is going to be a holiday time for John and I.   We have been pushing the boat and ourselves quite hard for the last couple of months, having a timetable to keep to.  Getting to Santorini in Greece to pick up Judith and Viv, and getting through Greece to here so we can have a month here before turning round and getting to Sicily to pick up Brian, an old mate from Oz.   There is so much we have missed on the way, oh well! Will just have to see it next time around.

Apart from a massive heatwave when we were in the Ionian in Greece when all I wanted to do was go home and sit in the rain, I’m lov’in it.   Getting into the routine, meeting loads of people on the way, catching up with yachtie’s we met last year, all with loads of info about places to sail and interesting stories to tell over a beer or two.  Seeing some lovely places and meeting some great locals along the way, we have managed to get off the boat at times hire a car or scooter and been able to see some of the islands and places inland, rather than just ‘the sea’ but you don’t want to hear me wax lyrical, you want to know the ………..

Downsides

There are downsides of course!  Lugging shopping ½ mile from the supermarket, I’m beginning to look like Popeye in the muscle department – washing clothes by hand, I hav’nt done that since living in London when my Mum refused to do my washing when I went home to visit, and worse searching out the local laundries, negotiating price, and worse, it is usually a guy, and they insist on emptying your bags into plastic buckets and checking each piece, John’s jocks with not a few skid marks, and my knickers, it is so embarrassing.   When you get it back there is always some piece of underwear missing  and a favourite t-shirt which will now fit Teddy.

Overnight sails, when we have to take ‘watches’, I never seem to sleep, my eyes feel they have grit in them, and my bum aches from sitting for so long , but when we get to a new great place, it makes up for it.

Nerves, when we are anchored as happened in Turkey and a gale is predicted, we saw 60+ knots of breeze over the boat, and John was upset when I refused to cook any dinner; or we find the perfect anchorage, settle down get the beers out, and realize that the anchor isn’t holding and we are sliding out of the bay, so have to do it all over again .

Getting my haircut by sign language and a series of grunts, and I have to say the worst experience ever, I had to do my own bikini wax (it was a very scary moment) I was not going to trust that to sign language and a series of grunts.   Talking of ‘bushes’ it must be a national sport out here, I’ve seen a number of ladies in bathers sporting a nice privet hedge, even the odd Cyprus tree.

-  BUT

That apart it’s great.   Am looking forward to the Canaries and the Caribbean, and then who knows!

Sue