A day spent bumming around the pontoon, the kids revelling in having so many playmates within easy access. Hard drives were swapped, tools were borrowed and we had a washing marathon with kids running up and down the pontoon, alternating between boats. At one point we were all intrigued by what we think was a praying mantis which seemed to be trying to camouflaging itself against the pontoon.... not very smart when there are 7 small pairs of feet trampling by on a regular basis.The planned football and BBQ didn't happen but the just popping over for drinks on Alesea turned into an all night thing with me cooking burgers and hot dogs while Ian got pizza in. By 10pm I was flagging so headed off for an early night while Patrick and the kids continued to party!
Monday 10th September
Rain today, but not such a big deal as we had all agreed to do school with the kids in the morning then, much to the Laurin kids disgust, we dragged them off for a walk into town as we realised we hadn't actually been out of the marina. It was a little cruel as it would be their last day with their new friends as the others were planning on heading off the next day so after a brief walk and an ice cream we let them head back to play whilst Patrick and I went to investigate the supermarket.
Pulled pork for dinner followed by a walk with the other families for a second round of ice cream, although the walk was somewhat marred by the enthusiasm of the mosquitos in this place. We thankfully found an ice cream place with seating inside. Then back to the boats for more drinks.... third night in a row and I was seriously flagging, opting for a solitary can of shandy before heading back to Laurin.
Tuesday 11th September
Aware that our kids were going to be somewhat out of sorts due to the departure of friends throughout the day we were a little relaxed about electronics, allowing them to hide their heads in their devices in between short bouts of school. School was actually really positive, perhaps as a result of this so made me think about ways we could incorporate educational electronics time into our school day and if this would have the same effect. Alesea were the first to leave at about 7am, closely followed by Hullabaloo. Only Tatsu were around for the excitement of the air ambulance landing about 20m away from our boat. It looked like a transfer of a baby and its mother to the mainland, reminding us that we are on a relatively small island that isn't serviced by its own hospital. I can only imagine what that mother was going through! We were so spoilt back home with a hospital within 5 or 10 minutes drive that we sometimes forget how remote good medical care can be, even in other parts of the UK and Europe.In the afternoon Patrick needed some time alone on the boat to make a phonecall so the kids and I set off in search of yet more ice cream and the tourist office. After choosing a slushy and a cake rather than ice cream (we could sit down in a café with a TV screen to while away the time) we headed for the tourist office. My limited Italian had told us that there was some kind of music from films concert that night but I had no idea where. Also with the prospect of a few more days here and no beach I wanted to investigate other activities we could try. As we walked into the tourist office I saw a handwritten sign saying that English speakers should call a number for advice.... I'd left my phone on the boat for Patrick so decided to at least try to find out where the concert was. They old guy behind the counter spoke very little English but did speak some French so between us, speaking a mixture of French, Italian and English I got the location of the concert, the fact that kids would be welcome and it was free. Result!
Back to the boat for tea and then we showered and headed out to the concert location where we were ushered to some of the few remaining seats in a very small theatre. A little later than the 9pm in the advert the curtains opened and what I assume was a local dignitary came to introduce the performance. Then there was another guy who rambled on for so long that Esmé was already wriggling in her seat. It took a further 10 minutes for the dignitary to get him off the stage before the concert started. AJ loves music so was pretty engaged despite the language barrier but Esmé really takes after her Dad and was soon pretty bored. I suggested that she go back to the boat with Patrick but she wanted to stay with me but after another 10 minutes of extreme wriggling Patrick took her back to Laurin (much to her disgust). Unfortunately at this point the music picked up a bit and the remaining two pieces were a Mamma Mia compilation and then the CanCan. Maybe she'll be less of a wriggle bum next time we go to a theatre!
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