It turns out the guys in Turkey that repaired the stabilizers weren’t nearly as knowledgeable as we thought, and didn’t do as good of a job as we thought. They were supposed to Continue reading
This morning when we got up, in our sheltered marina it was blowing 20 knots of wind with gusts of up to 40 knots. The portion of the bay protected by the sea wall was full of whitecaps. And, of course, it was raining. Eric adjusted the lines to prevent chaffing. We wished we had a second mooring line. All the boats in the marina were rocking away in the heavy wind.
By noon, the wind and rain had lightened up significantly, so we headed out. We took the bus into the center of town. Downtown is probably only a couple of miles east, but definitely beyond walking distance. We got off in the main town square. The town square has a lot of greenery and a few statues and is a pleasant place to sit and relax. Then we walked around aimlessly. Downtown is eclectic. There are buildings that are probably at least a couple hundred years old standing next to brand new buildings. Every style of architecture that has been popular over the last few hundred years is represented. There are high rises and little one story buildings side by side. It is a neat mix of modern and old, a town filled with diverse character. The streets are wide, modern and tree lined. There are a few monuments scattered about which add to the character. We like it.
After about an hour, we decided to Continue reading
Yesterday conditions were pretty much exactly the same as the day before — sunny day, pretty sunset, dark night, light winds, relatively good seas, good speeds thanks to higher than normal RPM and cooperative currents.
At about midnight the wind started to pick up. By 0400 there was 17 – 21 knots of wind apparent on our nose and the seas had picked up to the point of being mildly uncomfortable. While the waves weren’t huge, they were sharp and confused, hitting from all directions. The sudden jerking motion it creates tends to be unpleasant. As the day wore on, it got windier and rockier. Oh, and did we mention that we were on the sheltered side of the island? It has to be absolutely miserable on the windward side.
We were running close to land at the south side of the island when dawn broke. We were surprised to see Continue reading
Yesterday was yet another chore day. Sometimes we feel like the boat chores are cumbersome and we wish we were traveling like a regular tourist, where every day is a sightseeing day and you never have to take time away from sightseeing to clean and do maintenance. But our trip to Paris was a reminder of why we chose to travel by boat. Going to and from Paris we schlepped our bag on several trains, busses and subways, and up and down at least a million stairs. Our bag was small and light, but it was still a hassle, especially on the tightly packed subways. How much of a hassle would it be with the big, heavy bags we would have for long term traveling? And it is so nice to have your own bed and your own bathroom, never having to wonder if your hotel is going to be up to your preferred standards. Another bonus of traveling via private boat is not having to pack up your stuff every time you move on to the next place. And, we have figured out that no matter how you travel, whether plane, train, or boat, traveling for many hours wears you out exactly the same. We prefer the privacy and comfort of our own home as we travel, instead of in an uncomfortable, public medium.
Eric was busy all day. He Continue reading
We were catching the train back to Toulon in the early afternoon, so we didn’t have much time for sightseeing today. This morning we raced off to the Arc de Triumph, located in the center of the world’s largest traffic circle, Charles de Galle. The Parisians seem to have a weird fetish for putting important monuments in traffic circles. 12 streets radiate out from the Charles de Galle traffic circle, going to all sections of the city. There is an accident every 18 minutes in the circle, so some auto insurance companies have a clause that this circle isn’t covered. The Arc was commissioned in 1806 by Napoleon to commemorate his victories, but when he started losing battles, the work stopped. It was eventually finished in 1836.
We got off the subway and went over to the intersection. Yep, it is an arch, much the same as the ones we saw in Rome. And it’s tall.
We wandered from street to street on the outside of the circle looking for the tunnel that goes under the street into the circle. We eventually found it on Champs-Elysees. Like the other arcs we have seen, it is Continue reading