Down to the wire

Vineyard looking good.

Well, we had some work done on Aleria in Vigo over the winter.  Now we are in the final throes of getting ready to sail the next leg of our slow circumnavigation of the Mediterranean Sea. It's a sea, not an ocean. I've never known the difference, until now. My sense is that a sea has places to stop all along, whereas an ocean requires a crossing -- but who knows. Like the Caribbean Sea, you can sail from island to island to get across it.

NOAA says, "Many people use the terms "ocean" and "sea" interchangeably when speaking about the ocean, but there is a difference between the two terms when speaking of geography (the study of the Earth's surface). Seas are smaller than oceans and are usually located where the land and ocean meet. Typically, seas are partially enclosed by land. Seas are found on the margins of the ocean...the Bering Sea is part of the Pacific Ocean."

So now we're heading into a sea again. We've organized a house and pet sitter, settled the garden, cleaned the house and packed what we thought were the right things. The crazy thing when you sail seasonally is that you can never remember exactly what you left on board and what you need to bring. We wrote down exhaustive lists last year, but can we find them? No!

So here we are packing what we think we might need. Not too much as it will be warm. Not too little as we are sailing down the coast to Portugal fairly soon after we arrive. Lots of angst. Lots of anticipation. I find myself wanting to go yet wanting to stay. I take mental pictures of the gardens, the cats and the donkeys.

I'm certain it will be great to get into the Med, I've been dreaming about it for years. But I just wish I could tele-transport back and forth at will. In case I forget something important. In case I miss my kitties too much. In case...

Cinquo guarding the donkeys.