Sunday 20^th January

On Friday the weather started to change. The wind’s been building, and a succession of heavy showers have hurtled over the hill and blasted through the anchorage. By day the sheets of rain are clearly visible both in the air and as a line on the water before they arrive. Even while still calm where we are, the sound of the wind in upwind boats rigging, coupled with the whistling of a dozen wind generators is quite startling. Then the gust arrives, the boat dances round and strains to the anchor, and there’s just time to close the hatches before the deck’s awash. By night, there's just a sudden awakening as the boat leaps around and the rigging howls. It’s meant enforced inside boat jobs – some varnishing, electrical stuff and servicing the forward heads. The owners of all these super-yachts just haven’t lived, never having had to change the piston plunger on a Par pump toilet.

As compensation, we went to France for Sunday lunch today – excellent. We sat for three hours in a little restaurant and went through the card – Menu Degustation: Rolled salmon and mahi carpaccio, Seafood brochette or mixed grill, Chocolat fondant with ice cream, all washed down by the house white.  Even a soaking on the way back in the dinghy couldn’t dampen the moment.