Rain in Gijon !

No wonder they call it the Emerald coast…… It does rain here.  We sailed along the coast to Gijon. ( pronounced  CHiCHon… the g and J sound like the Scottish CH in loch…….. go on …..have a go !!)  A much larger place this time. The Spanish holidays are definitely in full swing now. There very few Brits. In fact not seen many at all en route so far.  No doubt when we reach La Coruna we will see more as that is the usual landing place across the Biscay for many.

The marina has full amenities and is close to the ‘goings on’ in town. Mind you . we cannot find a Chandlers anywhere. which is unusual for a town with such a big marina) I do prefer the smaller places but they tend to not have as much in the way of getting washing done easily etc ( ….when bent over a big bucket and scrubbing clothes by hand, i think of my grand parents and their parents before them hunched over back breaking work…. we are so lucky these days).

Gijon Marina

The rain/ mist has made it feel quite damp aboard but we are lucky to have a small electric fan heater to keep the chills at bay.

We found a restaurant where i had a fillet steak that they brought out on a ‘sizzling platter’  with a burner underneath which you could then cook it to your liking. What a great idea. it was kept warm and each piece cut off and eaten to perfection.. Mmm

We missed the Wimbledon final were our very own Scotsman Andy Murray was playing in the final against Federa. The first time we have had a Brit playing in the final since 1976 ! Unfortunately he lost… we got to a bar as it finished!

Somoya is behaving really well. No major problems and only a few niggles like the hatch hinges and handles  which really need changing, more due to there age than anything.

We are adapting to boat life quite well. It is cramped at times … like being in a small caravan when it has been raining all week!  Storage has worked ok but the need for better hanging space for clothes is always there. a hanging pole over the ‘seaberth’ may be an option to maximise the usage of space. cooking is no problem but we have been eating out ( which we must curtail as the money runs out!!) The Oven is poor. It takes at least twice as long to cook anything and top temperatures will not be that hot.  I think we will invest in some kind of BBQ that can be attached to the outside of the boat.

We are extremely pleased we forked out the expense and  had the chart plotter placed at the helm. It has made life much easier particularly when navigating at night or coming into harbours. I still plot our position on the charts every hour or so just in case the electronics fail.  All the time and effort Chris  and Niall put onto the electrical system has paid off with no problems there either.  We have used the generator  to top up battery power when not in a marina but as we have not had any great length of time away from a power source we have yet to test that to its full. The amount of water in the tanks still have never been an issue for us yet, not run out anyway!

My neck has been suffering on the bunks though… am waking up most mornings in pain. Not sure what to do about it yet. . will have to think about that one.. meanwhile painkillers are a wonderful thing! Interestingly  Chris’s back problems are much better which is a good thing….

I think we are ready to be getting a bit further away from the wetter days now so aim to leave early tomorrow and head for Ribadeo. … Our friend Clay from the USA asked me to get the “map” page up and running. I haven’t quite worked it out yet! it seems to just bring up google maps and not a blog map that records your journey… …  will keep looking Clay

Going to hire bikes for the afternoon……….. That’s one thing ii would like aboard…. well one of many things…. like a bath,, Jacuzzi, comfy bed, fridge freezer….!!….. oh well.. one cant have everything  :p

Cheerio the noo

P.S. Birthday greetings to our friend Mike Howes who is currently sunning himself ( or birdwatching morelike) in France!

xx