February 10, 2014
After we returned from our beach outing, I was sitting in the cockpit, enjoying the scenery and the water sparkling in the late-afternoon sun. It was lovely, but I knew it would fade from my memory unless I figured out a way to make it stick, to “anchor the moment.” What to do? Well, pouring a glass of wine tends to be the go-to answer, something to do while enjoying a pretty scene, but it was early enough I didn’t feel like starting down that road.
I then had a great idea: I could go for a swim! Since I rarely swim in New Zealand, and never late in the day, it would go a long way towards etching this moment into my memory. So I donned my full-body lycra suit (warmer than a bathing suit and I don’t have to worry about sunscreen), got into the dinghy, and slowly lowered myself into the water. It was a bit chilly at first but felt good once I was in. In fact better than good—it felt fabulous to be swimming and gliding along in the sparkling water. (Below, a few photos; click to enlarge any photo.)
Rich came out to watch over me and get some pictures, enjoying watching me swim but opting to stay put on the boat. I stayed in awhile, finally coming in when it started to get cooler outside. At that point, jumping into a hot shower felt amazing.
Soon after we had dinner, we opened a bottle of wine and headed out to watch a beautiful evening and sunset. It was a nice end to a day made special by making a little extra effort to do something unusual.
Below, panorama of the anchorage in the evening light…
And a gallery of the evening and sunset…
–Cyndi
