Time to move on???

Getting bored with Alvor now. Too many tourists. Time to move on to the more 'authentic' Portuguese places......

Just waiting for Alan to get back (we are keeping an eye on his boat) then we're heading East.

Alvor beach

I have decided that I am never gonna lose weight by eating less - I love food too much. So, maybe excercise will help??? Did a good session on the blue canoe this morning before the wind got up (not mine!) Then we went for a long stomp on the beach. Now I realise that one days activity is not going to show much result - apart from a few aching muscles. God I am so lazy!! But I really, really, really want to do this (honest, Norm)
Okay lets see how I get on tomorrow :)

could be Hayle Towans.....

Mike's much braver than  me!

BTW my Windows Solitaire score is now 6451

Phantom Lady & Life O'Reilly laying peacefully at anchor

Over the years a lot of  (non cruising) people have asked me 'what do you find to do all day on a boat?'
Let me tell you, between sleeping, eating, drinking, relaxing, reading, sunbathing, socialising with fellow boaters, there's a lot to do! Why only last week we had to shop for food, keep this blog up to date, re-varnish my toenails (Mike doesn't do his, but he did have a shave today) - get the picture? How am I going to get time for all the excercising I've got planned tee hee??

Colin & Mo

Our lovely friend Mo (half of Colin & Mo) has decided she doesn't want to carry on with travelling so she is going home next week so she can spend more time with her family. I think Colin is going to try going on alone because he has spent a lot of time and money on getting 'Amy' ready for this trip and his burning ambition is to sail around the world. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. I really hope everything turns out good for these nice people, wherever they end up.

Okay, okay, you asked for more.......

this is what the locals do all day instead of working - it's everywhere

wish mine were......

three wise monkeys

Colin and Mo have arrived - yay!

This is  the newly spruced up local place of worship - obviously there was paint left over.....you wouldn't paint your house this colour if you had to pay for it would you??? (or maybe you would....sorry)


Mike is very excited this afternoon cos his mum and dad are going 'online'. They've bought themselves a laptop and a broadband contract (all because of my blog!) so he's going to 'Skype' them at 5pm.

Looking like a proper 'liveaboard'

Yup I reckon she is. Especially with our home-made MK1 bimini (or sunshade to the uninitiated). Most people have posh uv resistant 'sunbrella' material run up at great cost. Oh no, not us - 17 Euro in a French hypermarket for a stripey cotton bedspread. Proper pikey!

And talking about looking like a proper liveaboard.....these are the hairstyling facilities on board

I told you it wasn't a luxury holiday....

a blowdry is a quick whizz round in the dinghy with your head upside down!

blowin' in the wind

My (not so small) smalls. Glamorous it ain't hahaha

It's Sunday

a pint and Radio Cornwall on the internet - what more can a man ask for?

Alan and his mystery companion have gone up to their house for a couple of days to do some essential maintenance before they leave for the big trip across the pond. We are keeping an eye on their boat.
Whilst on the subject - there's always something to worry about on a boat. I reckon you sleep with one eye open (metaphorically speaking). Whilst ashore you always have the boat in the back of your mind...is she okay, not dragging her anchor, being robbed, sinking.....??? It's not like being on a luxury holiday you know!!"

In other news. The seagull that we rescued yesterday from the sandbank behind the boat was dead this morning when we got up. Oh well. We did our bit. I wanted Mike to give it a burial at sea but he insisted on taking it ashore to the bins.

How low can you go????

remember, we need 2.3m to float

This is getting ridiculous....but she hasn't fallen over yet!

Unlike these poor sods.........

they're trying to use the genoa sail to get off the bank

They fell over proper later but it was too dark to get a photo. Brand new boat, obviously a very green owner and crew. They slunk out of the anchorage as early as they could the next morning.

What can I say?

Its a great anchorage.

That's about it.

Despite being aground twice a day.......

Yum yum, fresh figs for breakfast. Absolutely gorgeous - thanks Alan

Puffing Billy rows out to the boat for a coffee.....and Dees nail varnish!

locals cockling on the sandbar behind the boat

Its been a bit rolly on the anchorage this morning. I think its cos its Saturday and all the locals are out in ther powerboats. Give a Portuguese something with an engine and he only has two speeds - flat out and stop :)

Aaaargh! get me out of here!!

Mike has been suffering for the last couple of days. His elbow which he hurt falling in in Cascais (remember, dear readers??) has gone a bit septic and it keeps bursting and erupting in the most inconvenient places.........

tourist heaven

Do people really go on holiday to watch football??????

fish, fish and more bloody fish :(

it's just too hot man........

Portugals new rubbish bin system

You put your rubbish in and it goes down the chute. Separate bins for different things. Decimated the local feral cat population :(

Colin & Mo will be here tomorrow from Sines. Also, we heard from Pilgrim (Nick & Andrea) who have successfully crossed the Bay of Biscay and are currently in North Spain. Hope to see them soon!

PS I can't believe only 5 people are reading this blog!! If its true I think I will quit doing it. Please sign my guestbook!!!!! Ta

Newlyn on Tour!

in 'The Doghouse' (not a patch on 'The Star')

Edward Harvey bought me a drink!

????

????

So, after a few drinks Mike is showing off in the dinghy on the way back to the boat............

spot the deliberate mistake!

Hard aground on a sandbank. Just not paying attention........

Had a great night aboard Life O'Reilly with Alan and the mystery woman. Got very drunk on Caipirinhas (what a dangerous drink) - Alans recipe is pretty damn good :)

the morning after......

And suddenly -

aaaargh! our boat needs 2.35m to float

Hard aground ! (well, soft aground really cos its mud - thankfully)

PS I need more signatures in my guestbook!!

Alvor

Alvor is full of bottle white or lobster red English and Irish folks

view from up the mast (again)

Alan and his mystery companion took us shopping to the local hypermarket this morning in their van.
It was great cos we were able to stock up on lots of heavy items such as bottled water, beer and tinned foods and deliver them straight to the dinghy dock.

Can't believe the prices in the supermarket here - more expensive than UK for most things. Don't think the weak pound helps particularly but 6 euro for mouthwash is ridiculous.

Another calm and peaceful night last night on the anchorage though the wind has got up this afternoon.
Joe is on shore leave too at the moment so we have got the boat to ourselves and we can finally run around naked!!! (only joking)
Debating whether or not to call into Gibraltar before we go to the Canaries. We can get really cheap diesel there and they've got a big Morrisons store so we can stock up on all our favourites at good prices......

And finally - the blue canoe!!!

She's a beauty! (with thanks to our friends Norm & Sara)

God it hurts your shoulders!

He's naturally much better at it than me :)

Onwards to the Algarve

Mike investigates the dead body floating by the boat

No wind again so we're motoring - at least we can charge all our computers, ipods, mobiles, toothbrushes, beard trimmers etc etc whilst under power
A real treat is an absolutely huge pod of dolphins with us for about half an hour, swimming and playing around the boat. I even heard for the fiirst time their calls to each other. Wonder why humans have such an affinity with these creatures??
We are able to sail comfortably for a few hours during the day when we get a little breeze on our beam before once again it drops away to nothing and we have to put the engine on again. (Trying not to motor too much the price of diesel being what it is - we burn at least two litres an hour with our Perkins 50 hp engine)
Cottage pie for tea (thanks to Mike) and we will round Cape St Vincent the most westerly point of Europe at about 4am.
Have to wait in the entrance to the estuary for the tide to come in a bit then we are anchored next to our old friend Alan on Life O'Reilly by 11.30am

Skipper is pleased to get us all in safely

A tricky navigational channel into the lagoon and we only touched the bottom once! (ironically in the buoyed bit)

At anchor in Alvor


Dee has jumped ship to go and stay with friends Fred and Carol. The lure of unlimited hot water and Coronation Street has proved to difficult to resist and she has decided a life on the ocean wave is not for her.....

Robbie has also left to go and attend to the demands of his business empire

Wish I'd had my camera with me hahaha

Colin & Mo - they're on their way around the world!!

We'd gone ashore at Cascais to say bye to our old friends Colin & Mo. Needless to say a few drinks are involved........
Now Mike has previously had a bad experience with our dinghy getting caught under the stone pier on our last visit to Cascais a few years back so he decided to use a small anchor on a bungee cord to hold her off this time.
The idea of bungee is its stretchy so you can pull the dinghy in when you want to get back on it.
Well you can imagine I'm sure the combination of darkness, alcohol and slippery steps where the tide has gone out.......Mike starts pulling in the very reluctant dinghy but he's put the anchor out that little bit too far.
Suddenly he loses his footing and is catapulted out into the water by the dinghy overpowering him. Shit it's a good job I'm holding the laptop bags!
He is soaked and has hurt himself on the concret steps but is laughing uncontrollably whilst I am cursing that I didn't have my camera out and asking him to check he still has his wallet.
On the second try he still can't get the boat close enough to step in so before I can stop him he does a flying dive into it but as he simultaneously lets go of the rope the boat catapults out again and he is left floundering in the water. Finally he manages to get into the dinghy, pull up the anchor and come and get me from the steps.

Mikes stuff drying out

Too drunk and fed up to blog today :(

The things you gotta do to blog

I have honestly walked all over Cascais looking for an internet connection so that I can upload my blog
We have finally found an Irish pub with very expensive drinks but free wifi :)

just finished this book - its excellent

Banksy was here???

think it needs a clean...

P.S. can you lot sign my guest book please