Tuesday, October 12, 2010

In which your not particularly brave correspondent takes to the sea...

Thursday, September 30th...

Ros likes the sea, she enjoys swimming and snorkelling. Me, I have a pact with the sharks - they stay in the water, and I stay on the land. And so it was with some misgiving that I was persuaded the day before that hiring a boat for the morning was a good idea.

However, this morning, I turned up in Latsi, just west of Polis, willing to give it a try (I understand that there are no sharks in the Mediterranean so, if you don't tell, I won't), and listened whilst the finer point of driving a motorboat were explained. In truth, I wasn't paying too much attention, for fear that I might have to drive the thing myself.

The day was warm and sunny (again), as we cast off and headed sedately westwards along the coast. It was perfectly charming, if a mite dull, as we made about eight knots (this is a technical term, I am told, and is faster than eight miles an hour - but not much). Ros and Sally took a swim but, although they were wearing snorkels, were unable to spot any aquatic life.

By noon, I was struggling. It was hot, and my discomfort on the sea was beginning to manifest itself, so I decided to take a nap. Whilst I slept, more snorkelling was undertaking, further up the cost this time, and fish were spotted (or they may have been striped, I wasn't told).

We then made our way back to Latsi, at somewhat greater speed this time, as Captain Brij had slightly lost track of time. This did mean that the crew got somewhat drenched by spray, but it was quite a lot of fun, and we did make it to port just in time.

To be honest, I would be slightly better off sitting on the beach with a cold beer and a good book, but for Ros, I'm perfectly happy to make what is, after all, a very small sacrifice...

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