Catania to Riposto with Peter and Brigida

Day 5 of our 10 day trip.

Peter and Brigida flew in to Catania close to midnight on the 26th of September and met us on Dragonfly at Blu Marina, inside Catania harbour.  Zefi and Theo were delighted to discover we had guests the next morning. After breakfast we se off to explore Catania.

The kids by this point had been eaten alive by mosquitos -evil ones that targeted their hands and feet.  We had plug-in repellents, deet and anti-histamine cream but these few days were highlighted by squeals of frustration at painfully itchy bites. I would often wake at night to their buzzing and hunt down the horrible things around the cabin.

Ashore we found a wonderful antique shop with a stunning 1820's mercury mirror in a Sicilian gilt empire frame.  It had a crack in the glass but could be a perfect replacement for the widescreen tv that dominates the saloon.  We might have to stop in again on our way back down in December.  We love watching films but prefer a projector and screen that can be stashed away most of the time.

We were still dodging thunderstorms and managed to buy raincoats for Julia and myself but failed to find anything for the kids.  For this same reason I left my Leica onboard -a decision I later regretted as we stumbled upon a buzzing street market.  Perhaps the difference in photos from camera vs phone is obvious, if not, the camera ones are often posted with a black frame.  In the old town square we found a wonderful traditional cafe serving delicious pastries with the grumpiest waitress!

Being a Saturday, the fish market was in full swing. We were late but there was still a chaotic energy as market stalls tried to sell the last of their produce.  People bustled in every direction while we tried not to lose the children.  Peter bought a round of oysters while Zefi turned her nose up at the sight of anything slimy!  The variety seafood, meat and fresh produce was amazing.

Peter and Brigida brought along colouring books and pencils for the kids, which Zefi can be seen carrying with her everywhere.

Heavily laden with lots of fresh food, we headed back to the boat.  We cast off from the marina in Catania mid-afternoon on the 27th with the aim of anchoring below Taormina.  We wanted to make good progress so we could spend a couple of days in the Aeolian Islands.

Sporting our new waterproofs -these were bought just in time as we were about to hit some severe rain!  It's hard to show with a photo but the sky went black and visibility dropped to about 50 meters.  It was forecast to clear by the evening so while the others were snug down below, myself and Peter were battered by the elements. Eventually we  decided to forego our planned anchorage by Taormina and seek shelter in the closer marina at Riposto, beside Mt Etna.  As expected we arrived at the marina as the skies cleared and a beautiful evening lay ahead of us.

We dined onboard after a wander around Riposto and picking up a couple of nice bottles of wine.  The next morning we refuelled and set off again.  Our fuel usage relies on a bit of maths and guess work as our fuel gauge needs to be repaired.  It turned out we had used half of our 240l tank since leaving Malta and covering 185 NM. This was expected as the winds had not been very favourable and the engine had done a lot of work.  We have two full fuel canisters in the forward locker so running out was not a worry.

Soon we will figure out how to post screenshots with our progress track but for now we are still getting used to the new chart plotter.  The log began at zero with the refit in Malta so shows exactly how far we have travelled.

These guys like to have a proper breakfast together each morning to start the day!

We set off past Toarmina on our way towards the Strait, plotting a course for the tip of the mainland to make use of the favourable sailing conditions and to keep clear of the shipping channels.  The kids were delighted to briefly spot dolphins then Theodore snoozed while Zefi busied herself with a photoshoot for her toys.