Change of Scene
Ile Jeudi
Bob and Lin Griffiths
Fri 21 Dec 2012 16:53
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27:49.00N 15:45.88W
Monday 17 to Thursday 20 December 2012
Most of the week was spent trying to configure the
new laptop so that it can work as a back up to the old one with the
satphone. Unfortunately all the new laptop stock I could find came with
Windows 8 as the operating system. If you get as bored and frustrated
with PC's as much as I do, look away now.
This had only become 'standard' in November and I
don't like to be an 'early adopter' of new systems, preferring instead to wait
for things to stabilise. Although written for mobile
phones Windows 8 for PC's is based on Windows 7 with additional
touch screen facilities so it would 'hopefully not be a problem'.
However it soon became clear that much of the email and weather software I
needed to download, which had been written for Windows 7, would not run and
it is too early for Windows 8 versions! Lots of contact with software
suppliers and it seems we will have to wait.
We did have some success with the solar panel
regulator. I discovered that the one that had been fitted in Turkey was
for 10 amps. Since our two panels can produce up to 20 amps it was
perhaps no surprise the old regulator failed! The local chandler carried
the same make of regulator in a 20 amp version so I bought and fitted it.
Hopefully that will resolve our 'low volatge / high voltage'
dilemma.
Friday 21 December 2012
Distance Run 45 miles
As it was unlikely anything was going to happen on
the watermaker front until after Christmas we thought we would have a change of
scene. The south of Gran Canaria has a different climate to where we are
in the north and our friends on 'Zaurak' had been in touch to say how nice it
was in Puerto de Mogan and Ian and Judith had made some enquiries about our
getting in to the marina there (it has few spaces for visitors). We had a
tentative booking and decided to make a dash for it to the south.
We left about 9.30 in light winds and motored
around to the south west of Gran Canaria.
Leaving Las Palmas:-
 The Cathedral in Las Palmas 'old
town':-
 A little of the shipping at anchor off Las Palmas,
the largest port in the Canary Islands:-
 The attractive front at Maspalomas in the
south:-
 For some reason this place is called 'Puerto
Cementero'. It is on one of the most prominent headlands on the south
of the island ensuring it's visibility for miles around:-
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