Back in the water after a hard day's work

We’ve been busy all day. Well, since she’s out on the hard anyway, we might as well…..

Kees sealed the bow thruster, installed a non-return valve and did all sorts of odd jobs here and there.

André spent the whole day working inside the water tank, diesel fumes included. Rinse, scrub and rinse again.

I sanded the three rudders and gave them a fresh coat of antifouling, along with the bow thruster. I also cleaned the rest of the hull, which had a bit of green slime on it.

All of this amid the hustle and bustle of the yard, with cars constantly honking at the gate and the racket of the machinery and the travel lift. Nice guys work here, outdoors, and they whistle a lot to get each other’s attention. Apparently there’s an island around here where people communicate by whistling. Give it a little longer and Google Translate will let you understand your canary!

All day long sailors wander past with all kinds of oohs, aahs and questions about our boat. Plenty of attention.

Anyway, we’re now sitting watching the boat being lowered back into the water. I’ve just had a lovely shower ashore to wash off all the dust and paint, which had got deep into my ears. I could easily have passed for a chimney sweep.

Have a great weekend, everyone. We’ll probably leave on Sunday, and then we’ll be out of reach for 800 miles.

I’ll add some more photos later.