The journey continues.... Hondarribia was fun. The berth I was given in the fishing marina came with a few issues. The harbor in general, but particularly the fishing marina, is not well protected from the ocean swell. It is bad enough that the resident boats do not moor to the marina wall, other than to load and unload, they tie up to buoys where the swell cannot damage them. After two days I was allowed to move to a section of wall that was affected the least, and once there, conditions were manageable - still, the rub-rail on the Berkel lost a good deal of paint. During that time I received a guest. R. O., a longtime friend of my cousin Norm, flew out from his home, stateside, to join me for 3 weeks. R. has traveled in Europe and speaks some Spanish, so he has already been very helpful. Together we explored Hondarribia and made a day trip to San Sebastian, a city that is larger, and even more spectacular then Hondarribia. It has been good to have company, even to be able to talk to someone. Thursday we got a break in the weather and set out for Gijon, another city in the Bask region of Spain. We began the trip by taking on some fuel, but were on our way by 10:00. If you are hoping for tales of excitement and near death experiences - no luck. The 177 mile, 24 hour trip was very nearly without incident. The only thing that broke the boredom of a beautiful boat ride was being boarded by Spanish Customs as we passed Bilbao. This was my second boarding, so I was an old pro., saw it coming when they were still a mile off. Three fellows came aboard, reviewed the ships papers, and were satisfied with everything except the official credentials of the captain (me). They professed to never having seen a ship where the captain had no official papers, and called back to their boss to see what to do. Between them there were three cell phones and three radios in use - add in my VHF which was still tuned to their ship and the squawking and static was deafening for a while. Ultimately it was decided that all was OK and we were not to be thrown in the dungeon - for now. Then came the inspection, which consisted of a glance at any common areas but no entry into any areas that could be considered private, like sleeping quarters. The engine room was glanced at, but storage areas were, for whatever reason, ignored entirely. Cannot even imagine what they expected to find in my galley. In a perverse sort of way I was a little put off by the lack of interest in my boat. The fellow in charge had been so impressed with the Berkels wheel that he asked permission to take pictures, but the rest of the boat was of no interest to him, or the others. Go figure. There is more vertical relief in this area than I have seen elsewhere on my trip. From Den Helder to Spain the water was never more than 300 feet deep, now it is over 3,000 feet in places. On shore there are cliffs, hills, and even mountains - a welcome change from the flatness of the northern coast. Another unexpected thing we saw was an offshore oil derrick. I was unaware of any oil or gas production off the coast of Spain, so the presence of even a single platform was unexpected. The marina I am staying in is in the heart of the city so the old city and the new city meet right outside my door - very convenient. Gijon is another very old city, but my initial impression is that there is a very different perspective here, than in Hondarribia or San Sebastian. There is more new mixed in with the old, less of an emphasis on preservation and more on creating a vibrant city. The marina is a good example - the walls show signs of being very old, but the pontoons and amenities are all new. An interesting mix. I continue to find the Spanish people very engaging and friendly. There is a little more English spoken here than in France, but not much. As with the French, it appears almost a matter of honor to speak only your native tongue. Fortunately, the people in the marina office and the tourist center speak English well. Steve
Posted on: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 05:03:24 +0000
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