SLIPPING INTO THE QUIET LIFE
16th July 2022
We awoke to clear skies in Giannutri but before we could set off a sea mist/fog rolled in and we could see nothing. After an hour or so it cleared and we could head off, motoring towards the next anchorage outside Rome. It was a very uninspiring spot but it served its purpose of a quiet, sheltered spot.
In the morning we were off motor sailing down the coast past the beaches where every available space is taken up with the "Beach Clubs" where the impressive rows of chairs and umbrellas would give comfort to any "obsessive-compulsive-have-to-have-neat-straight-lines" kind of person. We have come to call these beaches, which are on every available patch of sand, and when there's no sand, the rocks "Battery Beaches". There always seems to be a Public Beach as well and looking from the water at those beaches they always look more fun. An array of different coloured umbrellas placed haphazardly on the beach not a neat straight line in sight!
Towards the end of the day we rounded a headland and arrived in San Felice Circeo. (SFC)
SFC was a lovely looking town and we were able to anchor near the marina which made tying the dinghy up easy so we could escape to shore.
We were on a mission the next day to source some gas for the boat after a faulty bottle lost us almost a months supply. Suffice to say, nothing in Europe involving gas and gas refills/replacements is easy. We did have a lovely walk to a hardware shop looking for gas then a bit further to a bar that sells gas bottles. By the time we found the bar selling gas and discovered we would need some fittings from the hardware shop it was siesta time and the hardware shop was closed so we went back to the boat empty handed. The return journey was made on our bikes and with success the fittings from the hardware shop and a 10kg gas bottle from the bar (strapped to the crossbar on Tony's bike - sorry we didn't get a photo of that) made it back to the boat and we were again "cooking with gas!"
We spent the next day in SFC just chilling on the boat and getting some jobs done and relaxing. I think that's what this caper is all about.
The next morning we set off motoring again with Gaeta being the destination in mind. Along the way just past a town called Sperlonga we found a number of boats anchored near some caves in the cliffs so we joined the boats and anchored and got the dingy down for a look. Not that impressive but a great excuse to stop for lunch and a swim before continuing on until Gaeta.
Gaeta had a fort built upon a headland and when we rounded the headland we were rewarded with the view of a big bay and another gorgeous town set on a hill. We put the dinghy down and went exploring in the town for a few hours before sunset. We were eating our dinner on the boat being serenaded by the opera singer from the shore.
We awoke to clear skies in Giannutri but before we could set off a sea mist/fog rolled in and we could see nothing. After an hour or so it cleared and we could head off, motoring towards the next anchorage outside Rome. It was a very uninspiring spot but it served its purpose of a quiet, sheltered spot.
In the morning we were off motor sailing down the coast past the beaches where every available space is taken up with the "Beach Clubs" where the impressive rows of chairs and umbrellas would give comfort to any "obsessive-compulsive-have-to-have-neat-straight-lines" kind of person. We have come to call these beaches, which are on every available patch of sand, and when there's no sand, the rocks "Battery Beaches". There always seems to be a Public Beach as well and looking from the water at those beaches they always look more fun. An array of different coloured umbrellas placed haphazardly on the beach not a neat straight line in sight!
Towards the end of the day we rounded a headland and arrived in San Felice Circeo. (SFC)
SFC was a lovely looking town and we were able to anchor near the marina which made tying the dinghy up easy so we could escape to shore.
We were on a mission the next day to source some gas for the boat after a faulty bottle lost us almost a months supply. Suffice to say, nothing in Europe involving gas and gas refills/replacements is easy. We did have a lovely walk to a hardware shop looking for gas then a bit further to a bar that sells gas bottles. By the time we found the bar selling gas and discovered we would need some fittings from the hardware shop it was siesta time and the hardware shop was closed so we went back to the boat empty handed. The return journey was made on our bikes and with success the fittings from the hardware shop and a 10kg gas bottle from the bar (strapped to the crossbar on Tony's bike - sorry we didn't get a photo of that) made it back to the boat and we were again "cooking with gas!"
We spent the next day in SFC just chilling on the boat and getting some jobs done and relaxing. I think that's what this caper is all about.
The next morning we set off motoring again with Gaeta being the destination in mind. Along the way just past a town called Sperlonga we found a number of boats anchored near some caves in the cliffs so we joined the boats and anchored and got the dingy down for a look. Not that impressive but a great excuse to stop for lunch and a swim before continuing on until Gaeta.
Gaeta had a fort built upon a headland and when we rounded the headland we were rewarded with the view of a big bay and another gorgeous town set on a hill. We put the dinghy down and went exploring in the town for a few hours before sunset. We were eating our dinner on the boat being serenaded by the opera singer from the shore.