It has been over two years since my
last blog update, and I won’t bore with you with work and holidays spent in
that period, but will crack on with the real blog stuff.
For those who are new
to my blog, welcome. As a blog, it has no real rhyme or reason, and due to the
nature of our life style, it gets updated an ‘ad hoc’ basis when I can find
time, in a safe place to get sit down and put fingers to keyboard to write it,
oh and when I have something of interest to write about.
19th April to 1st
May 2018
As most of you know, we left the UK in
what was to be an all too short heat wave – I’m not sure we can call it summer,
as I’m sure that’s booked for 27th June, and as I see from the UK
weather forecast, the cold and rain has returned!
We had, what I can only describe as an
extremely calm and leisurely trip, even by Ryanair standards, and arrived in
Corfu around 8pm. Just in time for dinner, back in the balmy Greek evenings,
although it’s still cold enough for jeans and a fleece.
The following day was
also extremely pleasant. Our bus left at 13:15, which then catches the 14:30
ferry (yes the bus goes on the ferry, and all the way to Athens), over to the
mainland.
The bus then takes a very pleasant coastal road to Preveza where we
collected our hire car followed by a five-minute drive to the boat yard. Having
located the ladder and power cable, we were on board by 17:45, showered and
down to the restaurant for a pre-arranged dinner with friends at 19:30.
The following morning, revealed the
usual (for this part of the world) red dust covered boat, and time for us to
put together a plan of action. However, I was very confused by the amount of
mildew and mould marks on all the surfaces, and David could not understand why
the battery monitor was misreading. All was revealed when he lifted the
companionway stairs to check the battery, only to find the engine compartment,
and all the bilges, full of water. As we are not afloat yet, this could only
mean one thing, we were not sinking! It did mean that there was a major problem
with our water tank and pump... So, before anything else, we now had to buy a
new pump and suck out all the water from the bilges, and we hadn’t even
unpacked.
Next on the list was a trip to the
supermarket to provision... there’s only enough gin in the bottle for one
glass, and not a drop of wine to be seen – eek! Whilst driving to Lefkas, we
saw the first of what would become quite customary tortoises crossing the road,
and not being able to find anywhere to stop and remove it from the middle of
the road, were relieved on our return not to see a flattened tortoise anywhere
en route!
Having been away from Alhambra for an
extended period (in this case two and a half years), one is always greeted with
surprises and frustration. Frustration in trying to remember where everything
lives, especially as everything that normally lives on the outside is now on
the inside (sails, outboard engines, oars, outdoor cushions, bimini, solar
panel), but also discovering what you left behind in wardrobes - a whole new
set of clothes awaits me.
However, as we start to put things back in their
place (nope, we’re nowhere near putting sails up yet), new and exciting areas
of the boat are revealed – I believe that when we get to the back of the rear
cabins, we will actually find a an undiscovered tribe of people living in there!
One of the most important things to be
done is to put the bimini cover up (shade is required asap), but also this is
where the solar panel lives, which is currently taking up a large space in one
of the rear cabins. Over the years, David and I have discovered all of the
“gotcha’s “ when putting these items back up. So, it came as a pleasant
surprise for the whole lot to get erected with no arguments and no bruises...must
be a first!
A second nice surprise was the arrival
of our two Fedex boxes full of goodies. Their expected delivery date was
Monday.
The most important items of which included 25m of white material for me to make a new
sun awning, 25m of grey material for me to make a new winter storage cover, but
more importantly than that, my new apron and oven glove, and a collapsible
salad spinner – salad has never been so easy!
We finished our second day on board with
another meal at the marina restaurant. Here we were greeted by one of the many
cats that hang around the restaurant an boat yards.
This one in particular
looked just like our foster cat, and the two kittens we looked after three
years ago.
In fact, she was so nice she even got up on my lap for a cuddle –
and then she decided to take a dislike to me and bit my hand – fortunately, the
very nice waiter behind the bar sterilised it for me by pouring neat vodka over
me. All in a day’s work for him! 
This year we have decided to be
ruthless with unwanted items on the boat, including all unwanted old clothes,
bits of odd material, and our blender is no exception. Having bought the
blender in Tobago in 2007, the intention was to make cocktails whilst sailing
around the Caribbean. After we bought it, took it out of its box, we found a
suitable place in the bottom of a cupboard and never saw it again, until today.
Whilst rearranging the bed linen cupboard I found it, hidden in the corner,
behind many long lost books (Caribbean sailing guide, guide to Minorca and
Majorca, Shark Stories etc – you never know when you will need a reference
book!). I took the blender out of its safe storage place, inspected it for wear
and tear, realised that it was for US voltage and plugs and that we couldn’t
use it on board now having changed all
the sockets, discussed in detail the pro’s and con’s of keeping it and finally
agreed to disposed of it. I will just have to make cocktails by hand now!
One of this year’s main projects is to
make a proper awning, which will fit perfectly over the boom and shield us, and
the boat, from the harsh Greek summer sun. For those who have been on board,
you will know that although our blue binimi looks great, it also attracts the
heat of the sun and makes it unbearable to sit beneath in the middle of summer.
The solution, we found, is to place a white awning over the top of the binimi,
to deflect the sun’s rays and bring some cool shade both inside and outside the
boat. 
To this end, before we left the UK,
David and I sourced, what we hope will be the correct material, waterproof,
lightweight and easy to store. On board, we have a 1950s Singer sewing machine,
which has been made use of many times over the years. Making an awning should
be simple, I hear you cry. Which it is, I reply. The difficulty lies in trying
to measure and cut to size two sets of 4.5m lengths inside a boat. The only
real place to do this job is in our cabin, by removing the mattress from the
bed. 
Now we have a reasonably large, flat surface in which to do so. Once cut
to length, another ingenious gadget I brought with me this year came in to play.
It is number two in usefulness to the collapsible salad spinner (did I mention
how wonderful that is).
Rather than pinning two sets of 4.5m strips of material
with traditional pins, I have used SupaClips. They slide into a feeder, (the
box informs me they can hold up to 40 pieces of paper at a time, or in this
case, layers of waterproof material). The days where pins where sticking in me
from all angles are gone. Once sewn, the clips slide off and replaced into the
feeder ready for next time – Brilliant!
It’s Friday and we have been here a
week already! Today, David embarked on fitting the new VHF radio we bought at
the boat show. Now, as with all things David, you cannot start one job without
another becoming the primary task. In this case re-varnishing the cupboard door
in which the VHF radio will fit, which of course leads to the entire navigation
table being strewn with wires for a couple of days until the desired effect of
varnish has been accomplished. 
However, as it is Friday we finished early and
headed to the bar for a well-earned cold beer, or two.
The remainder of the weekend continued
in the same vein, me sewing, David varnishing and fitting the radio, well
earned beers at sunset and collapse before 10pm!
The idea of having a day of rest on my
birthday was dispelled rather quickly this morning, with more sewing and final
touches to the awning, all interspersed with many, gratefully received birthday
wishes from all corners of the globe. 
The day finished with an exceptionally
good meal at the marina restaurant with sailing friends we’ve known since 2011,
back in Almerima, Spain.
D-Day. The awning is up, and bottom
sanding has begun. David is now walking around looking like a smurf in the
making, and I can begin my next sewing project – the winter boat cover. Watch
this space.
