Advent

Dear reader, I am happy to tell you that Tintin is now looking suitably
seasonal. 2 advent gifts were produced yesterday by Fred - from
Kathryn, thank you! We now have a mini Christmas tree which is in pride
of place on the saloon table and a garland of LED Christmas lights
hanging up above, which lend the boat a festive ambience. Together with
Ben's Xmas songs playlist the spirit of Christmas on board Tintin is
growing.

Yesterday was a day when we solved quite a few problems - all very
satisfying - and we then had quite a bouncy night with winds gusting 30
knots for a while. We agreed that it would be Ok to have a more
relaxing Sunday and so far we are.

We are making wonderful progress with a very steady 18-20 knots of ENE
behind us and the blue water runner hoisted and poled out both sides in
the bow. The sun is shining, and the sky is blue with a few fluffy
cumulus scattered about. An hour ago we had a visit from our first pod
of dolphins for days and they were so welcome. Their arrival was
heralded by flying fish skimming across the water in front of them - I
guess to avoid being eaten up.

The angling society formally convened today with Fred, Ben and
Jimmy preparing their lines and now we have 2 out hoping for a catch.

I am absolutely loving this experience so far. It is amazing how far
away we look on a chart but it doesn't feel strange. Even though we
can't see any boats around, we are in touch daily at noon with others
on the SSB radio net and we feel far less alone.