May 1st-May 15TH

May came in with a new adventure for Boundless and a new decade for me.  When we left our winter home in Gaeta, Italy, we only went about 2 miles before we had a problem. A couple of water hoses popped off of the engine and filled the cabin with steam……ah the life of a sailor.  We put our sails up, but since there was no wind, we didn't go far!!!  Rudy finally repaired the hoses and we were on our way again!!!   When we got to Procida, the six other boats that were already there gave me a Happy 60th Birthday Party.  Everyone made a dish for dinner and a cake…. with one HUGE candle…(I think they were worried they would have their boat catch fire with sixty  candles.)

The next day Freespirit (Marsha and Alan), Seascape (Joan), Liljana (Liljana and Salah) and I took a ferry to the island of Ischia. We poked around for awhile, had lunch and then returned to our boats!!!  Later that night most of us went to a free concert entitled the "American Dream", in a church on top of a hill.  It was very usual to say the least.  For the first piece the flutist, pianist and the cello player wore masks and played eerie music on a darkened stage.  The second piece consisted of piano duet playing discordant music and the third piece was peaceful with a male ballet dancer. VERY INTERESTING!!!

We left Procida on Sunday May 4th for Agropoli, a bus ride away from Paestum another Greek ruin site, which we had visited earlier by car.  We had a potluck dinner with Seascape who traveled with us and Teka III who joined us on the way. We all stayed one night.  On Monday, we left with Seascape for a quiet cove around the corner from Camerota.  On the way, Joan reminded me to strap Rudy to the mast as we passed the island of Capri and the Sirens on the rocks near the coast. (Ulysses asked to be tied to the main mast so the Sirens would not tempt him!!) I tried, but he DIDN'T WANT ME TO!!  I guess he was afraid I might leave him tied to the mast!!!  He was saved since the Sirens apparently weren't out at the time of our passing!!!!

After a few hours of motoring we found a small idyllic cove. It was picturesque and hidden from the outside world.  It wasn't on any charts so we named it Seascape Cove after the boat that found it!!!  The only draw back was we could not get any signal on our cell phone…. no e-mail or phone calls!!!!  Rudy and John from Seascape went to the top of a hill with the phone and a laptop computer to try to get messages.  It was a success.  The next day Rudy went into the water with scuba gear and scraped the bottom of Boundless. It had a serious amount of growth from our winter in Gaeta.

We left Seascape Cove as well as our dear friends Joan and John on Seascape on Thursday May 8th.  It was a very emotional farewell for Rudy and I.  We have spent many, many hours playing dominoes, cards and traveling together.  They became family in a very short time and it is hard to say goodbye to family.  We hope we will see each other again……

We arrived in Salerno that night and had a very restful and quiet night.  On Friday the 9th,
Rudy left by train to go to Gaeta to move our car to a marina near Rome.  We have decided not to get our boat hauled and painted until will get to Barcelona. (Rudy did such a great job of scraping the bottom we gained about ½ knot of speed.)  I stayed on the boat to do wash and clean the boat!!!  The next day we arrived on the Amalfi Coast next to one of our cruising friends, Barb and Charlie on Sayonara.  We had cocktails on our boat that evening while watching the beautiful sights and activity in the town.

May 11th…..HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!!  Jaclyn and Stacy called me for Mother's Day and I called my Mother! (Only realized it was Mother's Day two days before!!…No T.V. no newspapers, no Ads!!!)

Sayonara left and a new boat (60 foot custom designed Alden built by Hinckley) came onto the wall next to us.  Since they were alone, Rudy helped them bring Chimera into the harbor and med moor at the town wall. Rudy took me to lunch in a restaurant (Il Mulino) up the hill. (Lemon cake to die for!!)  Then to walk off the calories, we walked further up the hill to another little town.  There was an elderly man in his garden and I stopped to say hello.  He talked to me for about 10 minutes while I was trying to explain I couldn't understand a word he was saying!!!!  I think he was warning me that the trail was too long and it was getting dark.  Rudy came back looking for me and then we continued for a while longer before turning back. 

That night we sat on our boat overlooking the town of Amalfi with the exotic and alluring fragrance of lemon blossoms filling the air around us.

On Monday the 12th, we went on a bus ride with Barb and Rich from Chimera to Ravello, the city of music and pottery!!  We walked around the village set high up on a hill and visited two famous Villas (Villa Rufolo and Villa Cimbrone) and their gardens.      
(According to the famous writer, Gore Vidal, the Villa has the most beautiful panorama in the world!!!)  Rich and Barb treated us to a wonderful lunch in a restaurant with another fantastic view.  Later that night we taught them…..you guessed it…….. DOMINOES!!!!  Tuesday afternoon, Rich and Barb left by ferry for Naples on their way back to the states.  Later that evening, Bernie and June, Chimera's full time captain and his wife came aboard.  We talked and June and I decided to go to Capri the next day without the men!!!  We were still concerned about the whereabouts of those Sirens!!!!

On Wednesday May 14th, June and I hopped a ferry and we were off to explore Capri. (I wore my Capri pants for the occasion!!)  We landed in the area called Marina Grande and then found the Funicolare to go to the Piazza, the center for the town of Capri.  We poked around in all the high-class shops and then took a bus to AnaCapri high above Capri.  We had lunch in a restaurant overlooking the square and then took a single chair lift, just like Mad River's, to the top of the island.  After taking some pictures of the beautiful surroundings, we went back down to Marina Grande and did some more shopping!!!  Our ferry ride was relaxing after a wonderful day in Capri!!!

Thursday May 15th was workday.  I did the wash and Rudy filled the water tanks.  (He changed the oil yesterday!!)  After cleaning the boat inside and out we relaxed and tried to absorb the sights and sounds around us.  Tomorrow we will leave here and go to Procida again since it is on our way to Ponza and then Rome to leave the boat!!!  It is less than three weeks before we fly to California and be with our daughter Jaclyn and future son Jason!!!  We can't wait to be with them on their very special day with many of our family and friends who will join us!!! Ciao