36:41.78N 02:47.47W Hello from Almerimar

Tioram 4
Tina & Tony
Wed 14 Oct 2009 15:49
Well Hello to family and friends

We have been very fortunate to have had a lovely summer in Mazarron. The
weather was kind to us if not a little hot in July when the spanish told
us it was the hottest July for 3o years---great but a little over whelming
at times touching 40c.

Sleepy Mazarron transformed into a busy holiday resort for spanish
tourists, mainly families and retired. It gave the area a really nice
atmosphere with great beach scenes during the day of wall to wall
parasols. Tony commented that you would be able to walk from one end of
the beach to the other in the shade----probably true !! Also lots of
simple cafe culture and great photo opportunities of large family groups
bbqing on the beach at 11pm and lots of elderly women and gentlemen
wondering back and forth to the beach ( which sadly we missed--never
carried the camera at the right moment ). It's a photo opportunity we
don't want to miss next year. There is something great about the spectacle
of very elderly people dragging, sometimes literally their chairs and bags
to the beach. Lots of couples and ladies who looked like sisters but lots
of men or women on their own. You can assume that they either lived in
Mazarron or had holidayed there for years.
Some of them looked so frail and so determined. Ladies with new sparkly
plastic beach shoes, usually very rounded in volumous swimming costumes
and fine fabric swathed around them----big floppy hats , beach balls and
chair dragging being them. Lots of old guys sitting under palm trees with
large hats, fully dressed often asleep--siesta.
We enjoyed their determination--- a lesson learnt that either together or
alone there is something magical about sitting in the sun with the
microcosm of life and fun going on around you.

We have enjoyed having family and friends visit us during the summer and
will post a few photos alongside this blog. One of our pathetic but
hysterical activities this summer has been jumping off the back of the
boat in groups using the self timer on the camera. A practice which
creates hysterical laughter trying to time your jump mid shot rather than
an empty shot of splashed water. There were moments with our great friends
Lesley and David where I thought that I would drown choking with laughter
swallowing mouthfuls of sea water !!!

Another dear friend of ours has requested some photos of bad weather and
or 'miserable' photos, just to create balance---and yes we have had a few
stormy days in early sept, Tony managed to get a shiner of a black eye
when he decided to slip on the side deck at sea and head butt our bimini
frame---- but sadly we don't have those photo moments for you.
However we do have some of me spending all day sweating over a sewing
machine sewing our stackapack system back together ready for the Atlantic
crossing ( a large bag on the boom which collects the lowered sail). We'll
endeavour to photograph any other 'grumpy' days just for you TIM !!!

We left Mazarron on Monday12th for an overnight sail to Almerimar and
Gibraltar. An emotional moment to leave Mom and Dad on the dock along with
their friends and Mazarron neighbour. It will probably be 8 months before
they see Tony again and would have been 6-7 for me, however I will have to
go home early next year for some routine post treatment medical checks---
a great disappointment to break up our long planned adventure but the up
side is I get to see family and friends.

We are now sitting in Almerimar just west of Almeria. We intend to set off
this evening for another overnight to Gibraltar. I'm not a fan of short
handed overnight passages but we really don't want to go into unknown
ports at night and especially dodging large tankers in the straits of
Gibraltar. Our trip this evening should take 18-20nhours so we should
spend a good few hours approaching Gib in daylight.

Our plan is to be in Gib thurs to then relax overnight and then provision
with fresh food and 'make ready' the boat for the arrival of our friends
Janet and Dominic for the passage to Gran Canaria---about 720 nautical
miles.

Hope you enjoy the attached photos?????

All our love

Tina and Tony x x x





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