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La Contenta - Day 8: Sing, sing a song



Day 8: Sing, sing a song
 
Today got off to a fine start with a swim as the sun rose.  The skies were a heady mix of orange and pink and the sea a deep glassy blue.  It was pure bliss to slip into the water and truly experience the vastness of the ocean.  It was at this point that we saw the first of several birds.  This one circled the boat two or three times and at one stage we thought it was going to land and take a rest.  During the course of the day we must have seen a dozen more.  Each flying on their own, low down close to the sea, at times almost skimming the surface the sea with their wing tips.  They were all on a similar course and must be on a migration path. We would love to know if anyone else has seen them and can identify their species.
 
A lazy morning followed.  Being becalmed has certain advantages – we had time to do a little cleaning and clothes washing.  It was a perfect sunny drying day. We had another swim before lunch playing in the deep blue of the water and diving down to check the hull. After lunch Cal went up the mast to further secure our Sea Me antennae.  He is used to working both at heights and with ropes, and came down relaxed and smiling. 
 
This afternoon we had a tiny bit of wind and spotted a huge squall four miles ahead.  We willed LC towards it and managed to pick up 10 knots of wind and 4 knots of boat speed.  We were so excited!  It’s amazing how ones perception of speed can shift so quickly.  Two days ago we would have been disappointed with 4 knots of boat speed, and now we were delighted.
 
Our good news of the day – we now have a boat song.  All 12 verses of it!  Written in classic Irish style it depicts, with humour, the daily plights we have been experiencing and the characters on board. We have started to learn the choruses (yes there are two!) and had a full unabridged rendition at sundown.  It needs a little polishing, and the tuning of some voices is a little dubious, but we like it.  We like it a lot.  It felt so good to sing.  To sing our song..... ‘On the happy boat La Contenta’


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