Sailing Azure Seas

 

The last two days have been fervid, from a great dinner Wednesday night in Suquet, the old quarter of Cannes. We dined at Le Marais, which was worth the walk up the hill past all the other restaurants and cafes.

Yesterday, we decided to visit the hills and drove to Vence, had a coffee, then strolled through the Old Town and drove down the hill to St Paul de Vence for a lovely lunch of fish soup and salad.

The views and strolls through this old town are   remarkable and next time I hope we stay for a night and see St Paul de Vence under the stars.

Views at St Paul de Vence

We motored across from Porquerolles to Ile de Port Cros, heading ever westward.  Ile de Port  Cros is a National Park, with a tiny village.  The island is sanctuary for marine life including sea weed, sea gulls and fish. The seagulls are enormous.   The fish are curious and large.  They swim safely up to you safely in the knowledge, that there are no hooks or spears allowed.

The island is small with five forts, several cafes on the beach front and water so clear that you can see every fish and the bottom with its seaweed cover. My head knew I was in Provence, but my heart was telling me I was near an old fishing village in Mexico, even in June the trails are dusty but the native foliage is dotted with plants you would see in Mazatlan.   While we were there we christened our new BBQ with a lamb roast and it was most enjoyable.

The bay filled with boats in the evening and before sunset every mooring was taken and a few yachts had to anchor outside the protected area.

In the morning we were up early and motoring over to St Tropez, the wind was too light to put up even a gib.  In the distance, Blue could see a Customs Boat and when they saw us, a boarding party jumped into their dinghy and came over. The Douane checked all of our papers, asked many questions, luckily we have an email from the Australian Shipping Registration Office, showing that we are registering the boat in Australia, but we don’t have the paperwork yet.  They checked all of our passports and finally sent us on our way.  They wanted our email in print, we hope the paperwork arrives for us soon.

St Tropez was warm, full of tourists and it is only June.  We had a large salad lunch in a back lane cafe and then strolled through the town streets, eventually Rene and Gaila broke off to do a little shopping, James found his way to a ship chandler and Blue went scouting for the evening’s repast. St Tropez was filled with about 20 super yachts, so we feel quite humble here.

We had dinner at La Ramade and we were charmed by the tree covered patio and the traditional Provence food.

This morning, we are on our way to Cannes, getting closer to Nice Airport and Blue and Rene’s flight to England.

It isn’t always easy to find access to internet connections.  We will all be scurrying around when we first reach port, trying to ask for an Internet café in a different language than the day before.  And when you are out at sea, there is no hope of internet.  Occasionally, you are having so much fun, you don’t want to look at a computer. This past week we have had all of these scenarios, so that’s why this is the first blog in awhile.

After we left Ciutadella, we sailed to the North of Menorca and moored in Fornells. We decided we would stay on the boat because we had no hope of arriving on land with dry clothes due to a strong breeze in the harbour.  Instead we opened a bottle or two of Spanish wine, James cooked Salmon fillets and we sat on the deck under the Menorcan sky.

The next day we sailed to Mahon and wandered the streets, which closed completely at lunch time.  James and Gaila went off the markets, which were in an old building and had several fruit & vegetable mongers and sellers of Menorcan goods.

That night found us in Es Castell eating at a traditional Menorcan restaurant called Dinkums (Dual Income No Kids Under Menorcan Skies). Our table was six inches from the waterfront, so we were able to feed the fish while waiting for our mains. Note: Menorcan fish love bread, but they are very smart so they didn’t touch a French fry. We walked back up the hill to the taxi rank and here was a shop for traditional Menorcan sandals.  Even James and Blue bought a pair, so we hope to come back to Sydney and start a trend.

 

Early the next morning, we finished preparing the boat for the crossing to France, a trip of about 30 hours in the light conditions we experienced. The seas were calm and the day was sunny and warm, very different that the trip down to Palma.  We thanked Huey and sailed to France.

We landed in Hyeres late Saturday afternoon, too late for the Orange store to buy Internet time but in plenty of time to do the shopping – several great ship chandlers here, we found a bbq and a salad bowl. One of the great treats of Hyeres is a self service Laundromat.  One seems to meet the nicest people doing laundry. They are usually French and staying in one of the many holiday rentals in Hyeres.

We did look for an internet café at the port, but we weren’t successful, so Rene and Gaila had to wait to the next afternoon for WeeFee.  We had a celebratory lunch on Mercier for Rene with some lovely champagne from Epernay in the Bay of Langoustine. Later in the afternoon we motored over to Port Porquerolles and wandered around this interesting town, where mountain bike rental is a thriving industry.

The evening commenced with a bottle of well chilled Moet on Mercier, before the lovely dockside walk into town for dinner on the verandah of the lovely L’Orangeraie. We watched the sun set over a hundred masts.

 

Not all our adventures are on the water, on Monday we motored from Formentor to Port Pollenca and found a berth at Club Nautico. After running a few errands, we jumped in a cab and went to the old town of Pollenca.

We won’t forget Pollenca, because of the enduring memory of climbing up and down, her 365 steps up to the Inglesia Calvari.  We have been doing a lot of walking, mainly on flat avenues and laneways but this was steep.  The views over the town were worth it and made the tapas we found on our descent, even more delicious.

Tuesday we sailed to Menorca, we started out with little wind, but once we were out of the bay of Pollenca, the wind freshened to about 15 to 20 knots and the boys decided it was time to get out the asymmetrical spinnaker.  Blue did a splendid job on the bow and Mercier clearly loved the run under sail.  What looked like a boring four hours under motor turned into an enjoyable sail.

 

Approaching the island, you immediately notice the difference in the coastline.  Mallorca was sheers cliffs driving straight out of the water.   Menorca is like a flat plain above it. We arrived in Ciutdella, a beautiful old Medieval city, with influences from the Moors, Spanish and English.

There is a beautiful bridge near the Port and wonderful streets for our endless strolls.

Time to get moving, so enjoy the pictures.

There are three types of wind in the Med, according to folklore and local knowledge: Too much wind, too little wind and wind coming directly from where you would like to go.

We have decided that this local knowledge is truth, pure and simple.  We had to wait for days to leave France to sail to Palma.  We have seen a couple of days where it wasn’t worthwhile putting up the sails, because there wasn’t any breeze. On Thursday we managed to get to Soller, but Friday had us leaving for Andratx and it was dead on the nose. At this point the question begins to be, do we want to slog away in this wind for four hours or will we just sail back to Andratx and enjoy Rossini’s tuna carpaccio? No prizes for guessing, we went around the Islla de Dragonera and into a cove near Andratx and made a lovely lunch.  After a short but chilly swim, we attempted sailing to Soller once again, but in the end, we went back to Andratx.  For those of you who remember, we didn’t see Christopher Skase here, he did have developments in Andratx but they never came to fruition.

Saturday morning, there was no wind, so we cruised under motor to Port Soller and upon arriving Rene and Gaila took the electric tram to old Soller town and wandered around lanes and plazas looking at the architecture and generally people watching. The four of us went to a Port Soller waterfront cafe and had a sumptuous dinner of paella and sangria.

 

Sunday morning, sunny skies beckoned us to the Torrent de Pareis, a beautiful bay with a sandy white beach.  Rene spotted two wild Mallorcan mountain goats, a shy doe and a rather amourous boc (male).  The doe was clever, backing into small cave like openings or jumping quickly with great agility, escaping his designs. All of this over a bay of clear aqua water and a white sandy beach, under tall cliffs.

The coastline of western Mallorca is rugged with spectacular cliffs rising straight from the ocean.  Following the Treleaven recipe of enjoying the Med, we stop for lunch in a beautiful bay and in the afternoon make our way to the next overnight anchorage. Sunday’s anchorage is Formentor and it is postcard perfect.

Here is a message from Rene and some photos, we miss you all and wonder why you aren’t here.

Hi everyone, well here we are in paradise beautiful Azure blue water and silky white sand, the boat and tender are performing beautifully, the west coast is certainly different from the east…. we are heading to Menorca tomorrow and maybe catch up with David !!

Hope all are well at home……enjoy the photos !! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

 

 

 

Finally all the repairs and extras are organised and we are ready to go. Simon Crutchley, our dealer, who looked after Mercier so well, came to farewell us at the dock.  Hard to imagine not seeing Simon every day, as we have been in such close contact for the past few months.  We are sure that we will see him next summer if not before.  Simon might even make it to Sydney.

 

We left Palma Harbour and sailed south and then west, stopping for our first swim of the season and lunch at Isla Malgrats.  The highlight of this was showing Rene and Blue the stern of the boat turn into a swimming platform. It folds down to make getting into & out of  the water so easy.

The water was brisk and the cliffs and rocks in the area were imperious. There was a little grotto in the rocks just behind us. Small blue fish swam up to the boat to collect any tiny bit of food that went over the side.  They were voracious as well as beautiful.

After lunch we sailed to Andratx and went for a wander along the waterfront.In Palma, one of our favourite restaurants was Rossini’s, with their amazing tuna carpaccio.  At the end of the waterfront, here was Rossini Mare’s, a sister restaurant, so we had a little glass of rose and tuna carpaccio on the waterfront.

A lovely day to begin the next stage of the journey. Happy Birthday to Linda, Bobby and soon it will be Allysia’s will be soon.

Here’s Rene, and more photos.

What a wonderful day to start our journey round the island of Mallorca, firstly Happy Birthday to my little bro Bobby turning 50….ahhh, well we are fully loaded with water, diesel and food, gentle breeze and blue sky….after a short motor stopped for a swim and lunch then off to Andratx, incredible blue water :)lots of super yachts dotting the bays…..overnight here then heading to Soller tomorrow 🙂

Still pinching myself !! would recommend an early booking with ‘Mercier’ for next year !!

Love to all, Rene and Blue 🙂 🙂

 

After a weekend of side trips to Soller on the electric train and the gorgeous little town of  Valdemossa, Monday was a day of anticipation.  That is because we were being joined by our very good friends, Rowena and Richard Chapman.

We laid in supplies of French champagne, brie, grapes and almonds.  James went to meet them at the airport and bring them back to Mercier. We went for a long walk around Palma and found a little Italian restaurant for dinner, after we had Mojitos at Mr Mojito.  Funnily enough, they asked Richard if he was a relative.

This morning, James made us a lovely brekkie of eggs with smoked salmon, capers and dill. He then stayed to work on the boat, while Richard, Rene and I marched along the waterfront into old Palma town, to the Cathedral and the three of us literally followed laneways and alleys for hours until we realised none of us had brought a map.

We stopped for coffee and a reconnoitre, Rene ran and found a map and we were able to follow the map to the classic Mallorcan  pastry shop, and back to the boat.  Along the way we went to Zara Men and kitted Richard up with some very new colourful shirts, darling.

Rene is now going to say a few words, this takes the place of the Sona log.

Hola, we are now in Palma and it’s beautiful, we have raised Blue’s remaining ball and sampling some fine champagne

 

 

 

Mallorca is sunny and warm and after our last few days in chilly Provence. W,e are making the most of it.  We moved from Puerto Portals to a marina in Palma. Still parked next to big beautiful yachts but this marina is not quite as large nor are the boats.

The first morning, the Guarda Civil were on the dock, busily chaining a 75 foot ketch to the dock, ostensibly because the owners haven’t paid their marina fees for a few years.  The bill is Euro 200,000.  We will make sure the marina fees are paid before we leave.

Packing away leggings and jackets, getting the boat ready for the rest of the season, this has been the past week’s activities.  Since yesterday was Sunday, we decided to take a drive up to Polença and stop in some lovely towns along the way.  This was virtually a drive down to Cap Blanc and then a drive up the east coast of Mallorca.  We left Palma and headed for Santanyi, a 700 year old town near the Natural Park of Mondrago.  We drove through the large town of Manacor which looked like a thriving centre of commerce.

We had a lovely lunch in Artà, a very old and lovely town that seems to have been preserved from the development rampant on much of the island.  The tiny street our restaurant was on seemed to be pedestrian traffic only, so you could sit outdoors under an  awning and relax with gazpacho and salad.

We left for Alcudia and the National Park of s’Albufera and on the way passed major developments of condos, resorts and villas.  Many of them going for a nice price as the area has overbuilt and the banks are worried. One set of resorts will be catering to the Germans and the next will be catering to our friends from the UK.  We stayed overnight in a nice resort in Polença for E62 per night.  Bargains abound.

We arrived at Alcúdia, ambled through the cobbled streets of the old quarter, with laneways and one or two story stone buildings through out.  Alcudia has kept it’s heritage and thankfully the condo developers haven’t managed egress here.  It is lovely to walk around and people watch.

Alcúdia is developed on Roman ruins and the fort like walls were built in the 1300’s, to protect landowners from pirates and rebelling peasants.

We left Alcúdia after climbing to the top of the walls and roaming around the cobblestoned streets and squares for Polença and it’s port.  We aren’t sure if we will be able to sail into Port Polença, as we may draw too much water but we would love to spend more time there.

Monday morning, back to wait for workmen to get Mercier into better shape. Hope you enjoy the photos.