Neverland - Neverland leg 2 - Days 9-10

Day 9 – 10 HALF WAY!

Spirits were high onboard Neverland as we crossed the halfway point. 1040 miles done, 1040 to go! We are still making slow progress with a maximum of 8 knots of wind but as it is halfway day we shall not dwell on what we don’t have and instead look forward to what we do have – freshly baked brownies cooked by our resident Mary Berry aka Tom!! Mmmmmmm. I’m stuffing my face with one as we speak which is annoying Tom because it means I’m dropping brownie crumbs into the keyboard of his Mac book. He looked particularly perturbed when I shook it over the side of the boat. The only other times I’ve seen him move that quickly is when the Dominos pizza guy rings the doorbell.

We had all decided that going for a dip in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean was an opportunity not to be missed and with the wind being as light as it was and the sea state being so calm today was the perfect day. Thanks to Sir David Attenborough, we weren’t naïve as to what was lurking in the big blue below us. We also knew that Mr Marlin wasn’t afraid of getting up close and personal, nor was the odd whale or pod of dolphins and we had seen pictures of the shark caught by another boat on route from Las Palmas to Sao Vicente. So it was with great trepidation that Tom and I stood on the stern mustering up the courage to jump. “Just get in and get out. That’s all you’ve got to do,” Said the little voice of encouragement in my head. Ok, on three. One…two…thr “HOLY S**T THERES A SHARK” shouted my loving Father. Of course, I thought he was just having a laugh at my expense... until I saw it. A bloody shark. Circling the boat. Apparently just a baby shark but still, a 2 metre long SHARK. Will we be going for a swim before arriving St. Lucia? Negative. It is important to me that I arrive with all my limbs and the ability to walk to the nearest bar, even if I intend on being carried home by my husband.

Once I’d got over the prospect of having nearly been eaten by a shark (yes I am a drama queen) I prepared our halfway day dinner. We started with olives, pistastio nuts and twiglets accompanied by a long awaited beer. This was followed by a chicken tikka masala accompanied by a second beer and to round off the meal, a tin of ambrosia rice pudding for me and Dad while Tom polished off the brownies. We went to bed with full stomachs and happy to be alive!!