Anchored out for the past week or a bit. First was under the Castelo de
San Felipe in a place that has several Escullo / Esculla in it and i
dont' understand the subtle difference/s in Spanish. Nice enough spot.

Then we made our way to a place alongside Islote de Fraile. I thought
this was for sick people that they didn't want on the mainland so they
chucked them there - it's only something like 50 yards across a rocky
causeway. But then I looked up my Spanish dictionary and Fraile is a
Friar so it was a retreat place for monks. A bit rolly so I had to get
up and push the boom around with a little sail on it to shift me back
into the swell. Used my new home-made u-beaut Boom Brake. It was a
great idea but it ended up costing me more that one I could have bought
premade. However, I don't have lines running all across in front of the
dodger and I can use it to haul the dinghy up on the front.

Then we wandered around a place called Cabo de Palos. The approach on
the south is all wilderness, a few beaches with parking areas. Around
the corner and you'd swear you'd arrived in Myrtle Beach!! There is an
inland water body immediately behind all the hotels and apartments so
the comparison is valid. They just go for miles and miles and miles.
Anchored off Playa Levante, which all you Spanish Speakers will know is
the Eastern Beach. Not a bad night.

Left at 9am the next morning for maybe Calpe but we had good wind and
excellent conditions so we decided to head out to sea a bit and go to
Formentera instead, about 120 miles away.

Things were going just swimmingly, nice motion, reasonable miles being
made. A huge pod of dolphins came over to play for a while until they
got bored by us going too slow and went off the get a feed.

After the sun went down, the wind died. Bummer. Here we were on the
Mediterranean approach to Valencia. I've got a big-ass Maersk container
ship coming from my starboard at 19knots. There's another Italian
coming out of Valencia and headed across my bows and god only knows what
behind me. I did the only thing a sane man would do in the circumstances.


I turned the ****ing motor on.
Sorry.

We are now in Formentera complaining about Island Prices like everyone
else here. Pleasant enough. Off to Sant Antioco on Monday I think.
See if the Italians can put up with us for a while.

On 2012-10-20, injipoint wrote:

[snip]

Sounds really nice


We are now in Formentera complaining about Island Prices like everyone
else here. Pleasant enough. Off to Sant Antioco on Monday I think.
See if the Italians can put up with us for a while.

I doubt it, they seem to get all worked up and shouty
for no reason!

Hang on, you're in Spain and you're heading for Italy?
Do you not like the French?


Justin.

On 21/10/2012 2:00 PM, Justin C wrote:
On 2012-10-20, injipoint wrote:

[snip]

Sounds really nice


We are now in Formentera complaining about Island Prices like everyone
else here. Pleasant enough. Off to Sant Antioco on Monday I think.
See if the Italians can put up with us for a while.

I doubt it, they seem to get all worked up and shouty
for no reason!

Hang on, you're in Spain and you're heading for Italy?
Do you not like the French?


Justin.

Schengen! Almost used up our 90 days in the EU Schengen bits and need
to get out for 3 months. Wintering in Tunisia, and have absolutely no
inclination to go anywhere near Algeria. It's full of Algerians, same
as Egypt is full of Egyptians.

From here to Sardinia to Pantelleria to Monastir then home to Oz for
the first time in about 2 years to visit for Xmas.
Then we can start our 90 day Schengen crap again through Greece and into
Turkey for a while.

France later. Bruce might be able to afford the South but I'll be
looking for peasant country where the wine is .50p a litre and the
baguettes are the same price!

I have this grand plan but it keeps changing week to week. I've been
places I've never heard of and haven't been to places I thought I
couldn't live without seeing.

We take it as it comes and where we can make. Good fun.

BTW, I think we had a brief discussion some years back re a place called
Sussex by the Sea? I think it was with you.

I asked my Aunty Pat about it. It was a picture of me being held by her
in one photo and my mother in another photo and another lady in a third
photo, all on the fence of a house called "Sussex by the Sea"
Turns out it was taken when I was just shy of 1 year old and we (my
mother and I) were visiting my Aunty Pat's sister in law who was renting
a flat there while her house was under construction. Mystery solved.
Funny how this stuff gets important as you get older.

"injipoint" wrote
I have this grand plan but it keeps changing week to week. I've been
places I've never heard of and haven't been to places I thought I couldn't
live without seeing.

We take it as it comes and where we can make. Good fun.


And that's what it's all about.

Safe voyaging.

On 2012-10-21, injipoint wrote:
On 21/10/2012 2:00 PM, Justin C wrote:
Hang on, you're in Spain and you're heading for Italy?
Do you not like the French?


Justin.

Schengen! Almost used up our 90 days in the EU Schengen bits

Ah! Of course. Being from European parts I forget
there are limits for visitors from outside.


From here to Sardinia to Pantelleria to Monastir then home to Oz for
the first time in about 2 years to visit for Xmas.
Then we can start our 90 day Schengen crap again through Greece and into
Turkey for a while.

Turkey are trying to get into the EU, and I expect
they will be within the next four or five years,
Schengen will probably be part of that for them.


France later. Bruce might be able to afford the South but I'll be
looking for peasant country where the wine is .50p a litre and the
baguettes are the same price!

Sounds like my kinda place. I know it can be done on
the French canals, I don't know how much luck you'll
have on the coast though (I'm referring to cheap
wine).


I have this grand plan but it keeps changing week to week. I've been
places I've never heard of and haven't been to places I thought I
couldn't live without seeing.

Sounds like a great life!


BTW, I think we had a brief discussion some years back re a place called
Sussex by the Sea? I think it was with you.

Sounds very likely, especially seeing as that's where
I am, Sussex by the sea. Oooh, you'd have lots of fun,
here, there's this thing that you forget all about
(mostly) in the med, it's called 'tide' 4m neaps and
7m springs. Depending on your heading you can find
yourself going twice as fast as you expect, or nowhere
at all, most entertaining! ;-)

It's a long way around Spain, Portugal and France to
get to England. There are some beautiful parts, and,
if you can occupy yourself for long enough here, we're
not Schengen members, so you'll be outside and can go
back to France (or wherever) after. According to
Wikipedia, Turkey isn't a Schengen member either, so
some time there'll reset your 90 day count.

Justin.