Skipper, Sarah, Bill and Ben and the engine men

I finished my last blog with “let’s see what next week brings” – it certainly brought a lot of activity and also a lot of stress!

On Sunday we headed back down to Gemini J in order to clean the engine bay and change the wall lining / fireproof insulation. Skipper Nigel had bought some new insulation which was thinner than the old foam that was there. When we arrived at the boat we quickly realised that the engineers had been back – despite telling us they couldn’t come until Monday – and the engine was in place ! Which on one hand was great news, on the other hand it meant there would be no shiny new insulation installed. Still, it made for a less hectic afternoon and Nigel simply cleaned the old foam and as much of the engine bay as he could access ready for their return on Monday. In the evening the wind picked up and we wandered out for an evening drink which was nice if somewhat breezy !

On Monday we eagerly awaited the arrival of the engineers – and waited, and waited – but they never came, they had done Monday’s work on Friday (but hadn’t told us) and so were not coming until Tuesday (but hadn’t told us). We had no choice but to try to relax, in the afternoon we took the opportunity to relax and we inflated the paddle board and our new kayak ready for a bit of watersports once the afternoon had cooled down.

Funnily enough – when the time came only one of us was brave (or crazy) enough to try out the kayak (bet you can’t guess who) – and I have to say it is way sturdier on the water than it appears, this summer it will be great fun once we get out of the marina and into some coves and on anchor. The kayak has been named Ben (since it was inflated in the run up to 4pm and launched just after 5pm (UK time)…..let me know if you get it 😉

After kayaking I went out on the paddle board (now named Bill) around the marina to get more practise. I am really enjoying it and can’t wait to get out exploring a bit further afield.

Tuesday arrived and once again we were waiting, and waiting……..finally after a couple of phone calls we found out that the engineers had been driving to Cartagena when they were called upon to fix a fishing boat that had broken down in San Pedro del Pinatar – so near yet so far for us ! We were assured they would be with us as soon as they could. At 2 o’clock we decided we would leave, we had an appointment in the afternoon in Pinoso. Lo and behold we were just driving out of the gate when they arrived. We quickly went back and opened the boat for them and had a short discussion on their work. They had brought back the new instrument panel with it’s new back plate which they had made since it was smaller than the old one. They started work immediately and assured us they’d be back first thing on Wednesday morning to finish the job so we left the keys with them and agreed to meet the next morning.

On Wednesday we were up bright and early and ready for the drive back to Cartagena (grabbing a coffee on the way of course). When we arrived we were sorely disappointed to find Gemini J locked up with not an engineer in sight. Our hearts sank and we started the round of phone calls to find out what was going on……apparently a new propshaft coupling was needed and since it is not something standard it is being manufactured in Murcia. So – it probably won’t be til Monday or Tuesday that the job can be finished. I cannot express how disappointed we were by this point, in fact, the phone came close to being thrown in the marina in frustration. We were so cross that the engineers hadn’t called us to tell us what was going on and we had effectively had a wasted journey. Looking back on it, I think it was good that we were there each time they had been because it gave Skipper Nigel a chance to see how they are progressing. In reality, the engine is in it’s new home, some of the mounting bolts are in place, the new control panel has been installed and all the electrics are in place so it’s not all bad news. We were guilty of leaving the marina in quite a huff (not that anyone else knew that) and we came home feeling pretty fed up. By the time we got back and had a little cuddle with our kitties all was much better with the world and in reality it is only one minor setback in a really big undertaking. There was also the small matter of a football match to take our minds off everything in the evening.

On Thursday I went out for a sunrise walk which was lovely, followed by coffee in Pinoso. In the afternoon an important milestone was reached since Nigel got his second astra zeneca vaccine. It seemed odd that way back in April when had his first one we were planning to have been on our trip and be back in time for his second jab ! The whole process was extremely professional, it took us longer to drive to the health centre than Nigel was in there for and as of 24 hours later he has no side effects whatsoever.

And today is Friday – what a week it has been, who knows what next week will bring but the engineer has texted whilst I have been writing this to say that the joining piece has been made and that he should be back on Monday to finish (but he can’t say what time) – keep your fingers crossed! although if the match goes to penalties let’s hope it’s not too early 😉