001 - CARLOFORTE
03/03/16 00:00 Italy
Dear friends!
It‘s about time for a quick update on B‘s and M‘s whereabouts. Believe it or not, but we are arrived, and happily on board the VERA, our light blue sail boat and future home. This morning, we made good use of the fine weather here, and finally went for »Due latte macchiato e due cornetti al cioccolato!« at the Bar Napoleone at Carloforte‘s beautiful waterfront. »Bar Napoleone 2016!« has been our mantra for many years. And now it has become reality. The VERA is well, all systems seem healthy, so now we are in the process of fitting every item, tools, spare parts, electronics, clothes and much more stuff from our overloaded car into its proper place on board. Kind of difficult, but B (at least) thinks it doable…
Quitting the job, and moving out of our cozy home in Berlin / Eichkamp was not easy, and at times hard and dirty work. It also felt strange and uncomfortable. Was this the right thing to do? Right now, we think along the lines of MMM: »By experimenting with voluntary discomfort, we learn to appreciate far more of our life, and can be content with a much simpler and more wholesome one…«
Last Sunday, we met our new and very sympathetic tenants in the morning, went through all the systems and questions, handed them the keys, climbed into our low riding Audi with its ridiculous ginormous roof rack, and left for Italy. Most of our furniture, a heap of books and a pile of things (and the nice old Mercedes, too) are now packed and under awnings in our ramshackle shed in Adlershof. Mid April, we‘ll have to refurbish another flat there and rent this out, too. This suits us good enough, as we need to drive our trusty Audi back to Germany anyway, as it is in need of a new owner. After that, early in May, we plan to fly back to Sardegna, take the VERA onto the hard for a week or two, doing new antifouling and fitting new seacocks. And then, we‘ll head out for good. Strange thought: One day, someone will unwrap the old Mercedes in Adlershof, and go: »What’s that? Whoa! Unbelievable!«
The itinerary for this season looks straightforward: Leave Carloforte early in June, meet with Laura and Mark from SV SABBATICAL III in Stromboli, explore the romantic Aeolian islands with them, and then head up north to Amalfi, Capri and Ponza, before a short hop west to northern Sardegna. July or August should see us passing the Balearics, on our way to Gibraltar. From there, if this universe allows it, we‘ll sail on for the Canaries, where we intend to stay put through Christmas and well into the new year 2017. And then? South. Brasil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile…
Lots of love, and please keep us posted, B and M / SY VERA / Carloforte / Isla San Pietro / Italy
P.S. Here is another lovely one: »Believe me, my young friend, there is NOTHING--absolute nothing--half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.« From ‘The Wind in the Willows‘ by Kenneth Grahame
P.P.S. A good update should come with a pic, don‘t you think? As the camera is still buried in the car somewhere, we can only offer a recent substitute. On the right side, you can see the VERA in mid February at her mooring at Marine Sifredi in Carloforte, waiting for us (and the sea) under her winter awning:
It‘s about time for a quick update on B‘s and M‘s whereabouts. Believe it or not, but we are arrived, and happily on board the VERA, our light blue sail boat and future home. This morning, we made good use of the fine weather here, and finally went for »Due latte macchiato e due cornetti al cioccolato!« at the Bar Napoleone at Carloforte‘s beautiful waterfront. »Bar Napoleone 2016!« has been our mantra for many years. And now it has become reality. The VERA is well, all systems seem healthy, so now we are in the process of fitting every item, tools, spare parts, electronics, clothes and much more stuff from our overloaded car into its proper place on board. Kind of difficult, but B (at least) thinks it doable…
Quitting the job, and moving out of our cozy home in Berlin / Eichkamp was not easy, and at times hard and dirty work. It also felt strange and uncomfortable. Was this the right thing to do? Right now, we think along the lines of MMM: »By experimenting with voluntary discomfort, we learn to appreciate far more of our life, and can be content with a much simpler and more wholesome one…«
Last Sunday, we met our new and very sympathetic tenants in the morning, went through all the systems and questions, handed them the keys, climbed into our low riding Audi with its ridiculous ginormous roof rack, and left for Italy. Most of our furniture, a heap of books and a pile of things (and the nice old Mercedes, too) are now packed and under awnings in our ramshackle shed in Adlershof. Mid April, we‘ll have to refurbish another flat there and rent this out, too. This suits us good enough, as we need to drive our trusty Audi back to Germany anyway, as it is in need of a new owner. After that, early in May, we plan to fly back to Sardegna, take the VERA onto the hard for a week or two, doing new antifouling and fitting new seacocks. And then, we‘ll head out for good. Strange thought: One day, someone will unwrap the old Mercedes in Adlershof, and go: »What’s that? Whoa! Unbelievable!«
The itinerary for this season looks straightforward: Leave Carloforte early in June, meet with Laura and Mark from SV SABBATICAL III in Stromboli, explore the romantic Aeolian islands with them, and then head up north to Amalfi, Capri and Ponza, before a short hop west to northern Sardegna. July or August should see us passing the Balearics, on our way to Gibraltar. From there, if this universe allows it, we‘ll sail on for the Canaries, where we intend to stay put through Christmas and well into the new year 2017. And then? South. Brasil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile…
Lots of love, and please keep us posted, B and M / SY VERA / Carloforte / Isla San Pietro / Italy
P.S. Here is another lovely one: »Believe me, my young friend, there is NOTHING--absolute nothing--half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.« From ‘The Wind in the Willows‘ by Kenneth Grahame
P.P.S. A good update should come with a pic, don‘t you think? As the camera is still buried in the car somewhere, we can only offer a recent substitute. On the right side, you can see the VERA in mid February at her mooring at Marine Sifredi in Carloforte, waiting for us (and the sea) under her winter awning: