Back to David and the Sunshine City

David did a credible job of putting Nine of Cups back together for my homecoming and then we unpacked the loaded duffels and poof! … poor Cups was a mess again. Piles of parts here and new gear there, all midst teak parts laying on any available flat surface in the process of being varnished. This is pretty much the norm, I reckon … always a boat project or two in progress.

Getting back into the swing of liveaboard life is always a big change for me. There's a major time change (7 hours) and temperature change … hot and sweaty versus cold and shivering. The “sunshine” city wasn't very sunshine-y on arrival. In fact, it was pretty wet. Walking down the pier in the rain to the boat, dragging the heavy duffels behind us reminded me of just how far away from the shore Cups' berth actually is. Hoisting the wet duffels aboard and then wrestling them down the companionway ladder was a chore. Unloading them and remembering exactly what we had ordered and why was a cruiser's Christmas at first, but stowing everything was near impossible. The morning walk to the club toilets seemed longer and heading to the clubhouse for showers was more of a hassle than it had been before. It's certainly less convenient than stepping a few feet into the shower in Lin's guest bathroom. The laundry was also mounting up, but tossing a quick load into Lin's washing machine wasn't an option.

David dove right in and immediately began an updated project list based upon the parts I'd brought back. His to-do agenda is still long, though he's already accomplished significant repairs during the past month since we arrived. There's a high-powered wifi antenna and router to install, a new three-line clutch to replace one in the cockpit that's seen better days, the new furler guard assembly for the jib to replace the one that got wrecked on our Mauritius to Durban passage and heaps of other hardware and parts for various projects.

My to-do list includes several sewing repairs, cleaning of the water tanks and winch servicing among other things, and then there's some writing to be done. We have, however, negotiated some time for inland travel in near future. As David has methodically been installing new parts and gear, I've been making plans for visiting game parks and other points of interest in this part of Africa. The chores are easier to handle when I know there's a trip incentive waiting at the end of the dirty work.