Month: October 2021
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Update 19/10/21
Just a quick update to let everyone know I’m safe and out of the hospital. I spent the night there and was eventually released today at around 2.30 pm. I imagined the trip was over and thought about what I’d do next in life. It was a good opportunity. They picked up on the same…
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Day 52 – Noli to Varazze
I slept on the beach and had a slice of pizza for breakfast, which if I’m honest, was pretty average. It was a standard morning and I felt normal when I left just after 11, with the aim of getting to Genoa. I took a direct line, out past a container ship, so was about…
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Day 51: San Bartolomeo al Mare to Noli
San Bartolomeo was my first step onto Italian soil, since I didn’t leave the marina in Ventimiglia. I explored the town and went shopping, excited by the new choice of food, even if it was just a supermarket. Still, I’d never tried dried kiwi before today! I cooked up some gnocchi and camped next to…
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Day 50: Ventimiglia to San Bartolomeo al Mare
I slept in a cosy little cubbyhole in the middle of the boat. When I woke, there was a fresh breeze whistling over the mast, and the boat rocked gently. I sipped a coffee and listened to everyone talk. The Italian language is so beautiful, I could listen to it all day. There’s so much…
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Day 49: Nice to Ventimiglia
I had a day off paddling in Nice, mostly spent thinking things through. I met Virginie and the manager of the watersports centre who gave me coffee, food and a bed in the centre for the night. Also, a clean T-shirt, which I took as a hint that mine probably stinks! Many thanks for looking…
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Day 48: Ile Saint Honorat to Nice
Ile Saint Honorat is only 1.5km long and 400 metres wide. Incredibly it has been home to a monastic community since the year 410, when Saint Honoratus settled there. Today 30 Cistercian monks live in the monastery and produce wine from the vineyards of the island. I walked around this peaceful, beautiful place and thought…
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Day 47: Saint Maxime to Ile Saint- Honorat
Porridge isn’t popular in France, and Robin found it amusing that oats are my breakfast of choice. So at breakfast, I showed him my secret porridge making method. Not sure he was convinced! By the time I left Saint Maxime at 12, it was roasting, and I made sure to fill up with my 5.5…
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Day 46: Port-Cros to Saint Maxime
I spent 15 minutes gathering up all the plastic on my little beach and stuffed it into a bag. The reward was finding a sealed bottle of water, still fizzy, that I actually needed, since I’d run out of water. Walking up to the top of Port-Cros, I was in awe of the beauty of…
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Day 45: l’île du grand Rouveau to Port-Cros
I woke up and unzipped my tent to see my surroundings, having arrived in darkness. The sun burnt off the morning haze and I walked up to the lighthouse, lizards scampering off the path into a crisp bed of dried leaves. From the lighthouse, I could see waves heading in the right direction and was…
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Day 44: Marseille to l’île du grand Rouveau
My rest day was mostly spent fixing equipment and eating. I also picked up a parcel with a new rudder and some blood glucose testing strips from Jorg, a guy I’d contacted on Warmshowers. Annoyingly, a second parcel containing insulin hadn’t arrived and we thought it had been stopped by customs. With no telling when…