We are going to leave this afternoon so I need to do a bit of shopping before we do. We take the dinghy over early because Mike has to return the hire car, and we meet Charles, Marie and Marie-Anne on he way and give them a lift to the supermarket. Mike goes off the fill the car with petrol while we shop.
The shopping is not an exciting experience. We have to go to both supermarkets to try to get the ordinary stuff that we want. When Mike arrives back in the car to return it to the quay, we all pile in then the car won’t start and we have to abandon it by the side of the road and walk back. It’s a good job that it didn’t happen yesterday when we were on that lovely, but totally deserted road over the mountains!
Mike goes to explain the demise of the car while I go to the fruit and vegetable market at the quay. At least their produce is good quality, even if it is expensive.
On the way back to Jeannius we notice that Aqualuna, one of the boats from the Blue Water Rally, has arrived. I met Gabbie, one of the owners, on the train station on the way to Gatwick airport in December, both of us laden with sailing bags and unable to get them onto the train, so we helped each other out and have been in contact since. They don’t answer the VHF so I leave them for a while until I can see people walking around then go over to say hello, by myself, in the dinghy, across a crowded bay! I arrive without mishap.
It’s lovely to see her again and we compare notes about our passages so far, arranging to go for dinner tonight if by any chance we end up not leaving today. I leave Aqualuna and go over to Chessie to see what their plans are. As they are not leaving until tomorrow, and Tucanon are leaving from Oa Pau tomorrow, Mike decides to stay until tomorrow as well. I sit and chatter with Jutta, but she is a very bad influence, and after a glass of wine, and then two for the road, I tipsily and very slowly drive the dinghy back to Jeannius. When I arrive, there is no sign of Mike so I have to tie up and get out of the dinghy all alone. I find him lying in the cabin and triumphantly stand at the bottom of the bed, announcing that I don’t need his help with the dinghy any more. The hiccup at the end gives away the fact that I am talking with a fair amount of tipsy bravado. He smiles benignly. He knows the truth!
After lunch and a small nap, we get ready to go ashore to meet Gabbie and the rest of her crew. We give everyone from Noeluna a lift over to the dock as they have had a bit of a catastrophe with their outboard motor – the bracket broke and it fell off and is now lying at the bottom of the sea somewhere in the bay. They had booked a diver for today but the sea was too churned up for him to attempt to recover it, so they are stuck for the moment.
Gabbie, her husband Jonathon and their crew Charles and Alan, are already at the dock and we walk to the restaurant together. When we arrive, Judith and Joe are also there and they join us. Our serving wench is one of the island’s third sex – dressed like a girl, but very definitely a boy. When our table is too slow choosing from the menu, he/she shouts “vite vite” and rushes off straight after taking the order. About twenty minutes later, Mike asks when I think our order is going to be taken, not realising the rest of us have ordered, even though he was sitting at the table when we were hustled! I then have to get boy/girl back and with Marie-Ann’s help, explain that Mike is yet to order.
Having seen how good the steak was the other night, that’s what I order tonight but it isn’t as good and having tasted Judith’s poisson cru in coconut milk, I wish I had chosen that.
We are the last table to leave. We walk back to the dinghy dock and say goodbye to Gabbie knowing that the two rallies won’t meet again. They are organised specifically not to coincide because most places could not handle that number of boats.
No comments:
Post a Comment