Sailing Letter February 2015

This has been a cold and windy month compared to what is usual in Almerimar.  Some nights without sleep due to waves and howling winds!  In the middle of February we got so much rain that it flooded the streets.

We have used the time to do projects onboard and also taken time for excursions in the neighborhood. We had to go to Malaga to change the rental car, which we only could rent for 3 months. We took the opportunity to visit IKEA to buy some stuff, like Swedish caviar and candles. Otherwise we manage without problems with what we can get in Spain.

21:st we picked up family and friend at the Malaga airport for a week’s holiday. We went to Sierra Nevada for a couple of days of skiing. Fantastic surroundings, blue sky, sunshine and +4 degrees at 2600-3100 meters. Peter and I were not really trained (due to flue (Peter) and hurt leg (Eva)) but managed to enjoy ourselves anyway. Our friends who are more experienced, expressed that Sierra Nevada was well worth a visit.  The views are marvelous and occasionally you can see the Mediterranean sea from the top. Since you are well above tree level all slopes are visible so it is easy to find where to go.

On our way home to Almerimar, we stopped at the Guadix cave hotel “Tio Tobas”, where Peter and I have been once before. We had booked a 2 story cave for the 4 of us, where we enjoyed a good dinner with open fire, after a nice bath. The cave held the normal temperature of +18 degrees, which does not change over the year and gives a healthy indoor climate. Surroundings were a bit different compared to October. Now we could see the Sierra Nevada in the distance, glazed with snow.

Back in Almerimar, the spring had arrivedJ, so we could give our guests a couple of days with sunshine and more than 20 C. All in all a very pleasant week.

Last day of February we prepared our boat for taking her out of the water, to check the conditions of the anti fouling (cupper coat) and the anodes, so right now we are “on the hard” and will spend the first week of March here.

Boat projects.

• Varnished interior details
• Ordered new dinghy (Plastimo)
• Chalking the deck
• Ordered spare anchor (fortress) that will be used together with 5 m chain and a line in the aft, to keep us in the right direction for the swell.
• Bought new bed sets (in Spanish, without knowing the proper words for it, but it worked). In Sweden we have always used fleece bed sets in winter time to keep the humidity away. Those I have had to make myself. Here in Spain synthetic bed sets are very common so we found some micro fibers that work fantastic.

Nature

• It has been cold and windy, with some rain. This has given the start for spring. Feb-march is supposed to be the green season in this desert climate and we start to see trees getting their leaves back.
• A tree with yellow “fluffy balls”: no clue what it is
• Ginst flowering here and there (most flowers around Almerimar/Andalucia are yellow)
• A cactus-succulent that is common in all parks have now showed us its pink or yellow flowers

Gastronomy

• We are following the season when preparing our dinners. Now we get Cauliflowers, big beans, small artichokes and some unfamiliar mushrooms. Otherwise most vegetables are fresh all year, since they are harvesting most of them 4 times a year.

Until next time – hasta luego

BR Eva, Peter

enjoying the sun at 2500 meters altitude

Short sailing trip (motor)

Front of our two storey cave apratment

cave bathroom

cave village

Storm damage