Nice

7/6/09

Bonjour from Nice, where the last 24 hours have been a crazy mix of highs and lows. The lows started off yesterday night when 30 knot winds battered the boat where we had anchored and a 1-metre swell forced us to pull in and reset the anchor twice at 1am, then again at 2am. Following the second time I reset the anchor, I smashed my ankle on the winch, which has resulted in a fair bit of swelling and a good deal of pain. Then, after a sleepless night, I went for a morning swim, put my newly purchased snorkel set on the side of the boat, where it fell off and sank in over 30 metres of water. Then finally to top it all off, we took a walk around a nearby Island where a massive seagull shat on me! Guess you've gotta laugh at that!

Then our luck changed. The wind picked up and we sailed in gusts over 40 knots to Nice where we hit a new Painkiller speed record of 12.4 knots, and made it more than 15 miles in less than 1.5 hours. The swell was huge – 3-4 metres – which was kind of scary, but exhilarating none the less. Upon reaching Nice we took a nap, had a shower, and were off to check out the nightlife. Then we found what we had been looking for, but weren’t sure existed– the French version of Troppo, Scubar and Ranch, all in one. Oh, and did I mention it was the Swedish national day? Lets just say Simo and I celebrated the occasion fittingly!

So today we are having a recovery day, lazing around enjoying baguettes and French cheese, reminiscing on the night that was, and getting ready to do it all again!

Au revoir!

Matt.