Every vessel has a log and into it is recorded important things like latitude and longitude, barometric pressure, boat speed and wind data. When I arrived back on Mina2, I found that the log had been conscientiously kept up by the crew in my absence, but it had turned into something of a girly diary. Let me share with you some of the gems that never made it into Selina’s blogs [my comments in italics]:

Selina’s been busy making Christmas decorations out of newspaper. Mugs [yet another name for the Downstairs Skipper] keeps trying to push the “Caju” sweets she bought in the market. They look like bats poo so no one’s taking them. Might use them as glue for sticking up the decorations……

“Drinks over @ MinnieB. Maria unable to relax as Pete ploughed through bowls of snacks as if he hadn’t eaten in days. Meanwhile we let cat out of the bag that alcohol flows freely on Mina2 as of about 10am. Turns out other boats ration themselves to one small can of beer each before 6pm…….

Leave anchorage in a rain shower. Mugs dashes for a bowl to collect rainwater imagining, I suppose, that she might bathe in it later. She is disappointed to collect only a thimble-full. Now talking of making a slit in the bimini to collect rainwater like Havanita do. [Bimini: sun shade over the cockpit. Havanita have NOT cut a slit in their bimini – they have a carefully constructed custom built tarp for the purpose]…….

Neil eats three Twix bars before even getting out of bed. Says he can – it’s Xmas....

Selina gets stung on arse and siestas get interrupted by ensuing panic. Neil courageously offers to extract sting….

Raining…. Neil says “Does anybody fancy checking out the mangrove swamps?”… Sarah: “Well, they’re just a bunch of reeds”. Enthusiasm on board today is unbounded…

CRASH, BANG, WALLOP   14.00 Arrive back in marina [bit worrying, that one]…

Had caipirinhas, sucos and carpetas at a beautiful bar on the beach. DS downed her caipirinhas of maracuja in shockingly quick time which set the tone for the rest of the night….

Went into Morro de Sao Paulo. Tapioca stall caught on fire which happily cleared a long queue to the bank! [bit heartless?]…

DS takes her many phones everywhere, inconveniently wrapped in thick rubber. One or all seem to go off at spectacularly inopportune moments…”I’m in a mangrove swamp….I’m in a monastery…I’m on a quiet idyllic beach…”

I hope you enjoyed these little insights into what life is really like on board Mina2, as from now on the blog will be returning to the turgid prose of the skipper.