Location: La Spezia, Italy
I was today’s skipper, meaning I was tasked with the duty of waking everyone up. Thankfully, Bad To The Bone blasting from my JBL speaker made quick work of any snoozing.
I was justified in my music-blasting as Captain Tom needed all hands on deck for our docking in nearby La Spezia, lovingly nicknamed The Spez. We were given a strict time slot, so punctuality was key. Additionally, some rough weather had blown in overnight, meaning the sea was choppy and the wind was high. Thankfully, Vela is crewed by some real swashbucklers, so we cruised our way over to The Spez. Just as we were about to enter the marina, a heavily Italian-accented voice came over the radio. “It’s too windy!”
Wind speeds had exceeded the marina’s limits, and no boats were to dock until the bad weather subsided. We had no choice but to limp back to Porto Venere and wait for a new time slot. Marine Bio class was held, and we learned a great deal about eutrophication and commensalism (and also had a few laughs at deep-sea creatures.) In no time, a new window for docking had opened at the marina, and we were once again underway to The Spez.
This time, Vela made it into the marina. We snaked around superyachts en route to our slip. Guided by a marina employee in a dinghy, we twisted and turned for what seemed like forever, only for another Italian voice to appear from the distance: “You gotta U-Turn!” We had been led astray. Thankfully, we had Tom at the helm and made it to our slip with no harm done. For lunch, we had exceptionally messy chicken tacos. Then, it was time for us to hit the town.
The Castle Crew, Laundry Lieutenants, and Snack Squadron split off in their respective directions with orders to be back at the ship by 5:00. Castles were crashed, linens laundered, and snacks secured, and it was 5:00 before we knew it. Back at Vela, we dressed up since it was time for a night out! We went down to a restaurant neighboring the marina and had some great pizza. Gelato was in order after our feast, and after securing it, we strolled back to Vela for some well-earned rest. Today was a good day.
-Lukas