Debi and Jack sailing on SV Iroquois

We've moved from the Douro River to the Rio Tejo, so from Porto to Lisboa. We're in the Oeiras Marina, a 20 minute train ride to Lisbon.

It's been a traumatic couple of days. The last night we were in Douro Marina we were hit by a large motor boat docking next to us. We had put both the selfsteering paddle and the water generator on the stern in preparation for the long sail to Lisbon and because it was really windy we were worried about him damaging them, so I stood on the boat and Jack went to take their lines. Well, I should have known that I couldn't hold off a big motor boat with the wind and current pushing it, and I couldn't. But luckily it missed the stern and instead it ripped off the outboard engine from the starboard side and slightly squished my right leg, which I stupidly had outside the stanchions in a vain effort to push the boat away. The block that held the engine broke in two. So now we have the outboard mounted on the bulkhead between the galley and salon down below  and I have some dandy bruises. But it could have been much worse so I am grateful and hopefully won't let my body get between two boats again. It's something I know in my head, but in the moment I forgot. We left at first light, around 7am and got off to a rough start. Without our leisurely morning routine we were both a little out of sorts, and the wind didn't kick in for a while so we were doubting our decision to go all the way in one trip of 34 hours. But eventually it filled in and we made great time. First with two headsails, genoa poled on one side and staysail on boom on the other. Then the wind shifted and we switched to prevented main and genoa. It also strengthened and we got down to three reefs. But it cut hours off the trip and even though we had to motor sail  the last 12 hours, we got here in 28 hours.

The Pohle family also got here on Sunday. We met them at a big square with a giant statue in Lisbon and had a nice dinner at a Fado restaurant, there were two men who performed about 4 songs twice while we were there. One had a Portuguese guitar and the other a Spanish guitar and one of them sang. The next day we met Pohles again at another square with a giant statue. While we waited for them we watched an initiation "ceremony " for some university students.  Not sure what department they were but the new students wore headdresses composed of paper penises in various color schemes. Later we saw other groups and a kind Portuguese man explained to me that each group was a different discipline and they shouted the names of it while marching around. The one he showed me was shouting "pharmacy". I didn't ask if he knew which school the penis was for. The older students all wore formal black suits with capes and many of them were carrying whiskey bottles or boxes of wine. It was the first day of school in Lisbon. On arrival Caitlin and Victor kindly treated us all to pastel de natas which were immediately and delightfully consumed. Then we walked around and saw the sights of Lisbon, many of which seem to be under renovation or construction, stopping every once in a while for food or drink. It's really nice to be in the company of friends,  but it does make me a little homesick. This is the time of year that we normally get Iroquois ready for winter storage and make plans to be home in Wisconsin for the winter. But instead we face another year of living aboard and moving first a little more south, then a lot east, and back north again. It's a big attitude adjustment. It was hard not to get a little teary saying goodbye to Jack and Terry.