On March l the for sale sign came down so we have been busy with upgrades to the boat. We made new screens for the boat. We have a new 220v Bosch front-loading refrigerator. That required installation of a 220v system in the boat so we took advantage of that to finally buy a multi-national TV, DVD and VCR so now we can trade videos and DVD's with anyone. All of that is now installed. This was all paid for by installing a 220v frig (at 250 Euros) vs a 24v frig (at 2000 Euros). We are also installing a 24vdc-220vac inverter so we can use everything offshore. We had an electrician rewire our 12v alternators to accommodate one of the new high efficiency voltage regulators. We are also putting Link system monitors on all the batteries for better info on the electrical system and are replacing the wiring and controls on the wind generator. We have done some major maintenance on the engine cooling system. Hopefully we will be ready to go on the 14th of April. We have also been doing some sailing kind of stuff like accumulating charts and planning routes. We sold the soft bottom dink and will probably purchase a new rigid bottom dink this week, upright refrigerator, a multi-system television, DVD and VCR system. Since we will stay in the Med for at least 2 more winters with plans to head to the Pacific, 220v onboard makes good sense. I have been working above and below decks polishing and cleaning, making new curtains and taking inventory of provisions. In the next week or so, we will complete our provisioning before we leave. Even though we will be visiting ports that have provisions, Barcelona provides a wide variety of international foods and supplies.
We took a few days out of our schedule to take the train from Barcelona to Valencia to visit the famous Fallas 2002 festival. Approximately 800 paper mache giant figures line the plazas and streets. The planning and production of this festival takes a year. Every community built a fallas that was judged and awarded 1st, 2nd, or 3rd place prize. Besides the construction of the displays, each community was represented in a parade that continued for over 24 hours. Over 90,000 women, men, and children paraded adorned in traditional dress and accompanied by their local band that played the Valencia anthem. The women wore gorgeous brocaded dresses, matching shoes and traditional hair designs and veils. They carried large bouquets of flowers that were then offered at the beautiful San Jose cathedral. These flowers were used to create and decorate a four-story Madonna. At 2 pm in the main plaza, the Mascleta (loud fireworks) were held, each day getting louder and louder. Each local community also held their daily local fireworks. On the last day of the Fallas, each display was set on fire and at midnight a large aerial fireworks show was held. The city was filled with thousands of locals and tourists; we really enjoyed the beautiful city of Valencia, the fantastic festival, and the museums.
We have set up our preliminary sail schedule. When we leave Port Ginesta, we will head back to Mallorca and Menorca for a few weeks and then to Sardinia, eastern Italy, Croatia, Greece and Turkey. We have already made our winter reservations at the marina in Kemer, Turkey that is along the southern coast of Turkey.
We hope you enjoy the photos of the Valencia Fallas 2002 festival. We would love to hear from you; our email address is: KC2GPH@winlink.org.
Marie & Terry