Dificult to leave Mindelo, but the formalities are made and Monday we will sail for Sao Nicolao, then Boa Vista and Sal. Dakar is schedule at the begining of October. Here it’s good to live, people are kind, handsome, not rich but well educated, marxisme was here. The town and people are surprisingly clean, and hence there is no water. We were at last granted of some rains and Skøiern needed to be cleaned after several months of drough and sand winds. We cut Dick’s hairs, he was too hot, and for Zoé she goes deeper in the art of siesta.

Hola amigos ! It will be soon time for us to go South, we will leave Hiero Septembre 1st, heading to  Mindelo, Cabo Verde. We loved Canarias, really  contrasted, and we had always wind and heat. Here in Hiero, Puerto de La Restinga, added to the wind the swell is breaking everything in the port. Just some fenders destroyed, but it was very impressive. Graciosa was the most beautiful anchorage, La Gomera the most beautiful we have to come back  longer. Gran Canaria was the place to stock food for 4 months, we can look future quietly now. We go on following the tracks of the greats discoverers : Colombus in Bayonna and La Gomera, Vasco de Gama in Sines. As for Magellan, it will be later…In San Sebastian, La Gomera, the charts from Martin Benaïm tell us that we are going into the unknown ! (Pictures: Graciosa, Fuertaventura, the Pico del Tiede in Tenerife, La Gomera, Dick at shower, Hiero and the chart used by Colombus)

We are about to leave Maroco for the Canarias, and if the wind permit it we will anchor first in Graciosa. Maroco was great, we loved it, especially Safi, El Jadida, Essaouira, even Mohamedia poluted by its oil rafinery. In Agadir marina we could made good works in  Skøiern, especially varnishes, inside and outside,  the  floors and a big cleaning. Anne Marie tried to kill the washing machine of the laudry, but din’t succeed ! We get more than used with rhamadan ( for pastries, pastillas and other kefta), but the call of the ocean  is stronger.

Last call in Portugal in  Faro lagoon, at anchor in Culatra island. Here you can already smell Africa! It’s hot, an atmosphere of end of world on a sand island, storks, no cars. There is many people, the fishermen live here, many other come to the beach, for holydays or a week end with the ferry, just coming out of an african river. Kids, small mamies, dogs and cats, it’s joyfull and quiet, bars are full and beer flows….

Soon Maroco, first Mohamedia, it’s seems to be moving there, the wind is coming…