Day 7 – mess day – this is one of the most strenuous duties since leaving the Canaries, the day starts at 7am and finishes about 2pm. After that I have time for a shower and a couple of hours rest then at 4pm all hands are called to set some square sails. We set the fore course, and upper and lower topsails, and the main upper and lower topsails (and kept the jibs, set when leaving the Canaries).We were told we have about 500 miles to run to the mouth of the River Guadalquivir which takes us to Seville, I guess that was a straight line course – since when have we ever sailed in a straight line !! A lovely few hours of sailing was bought to a (temporary) end as we when came on watch at 8 – the squares were clewed up, and the engines were on overnight. The night watch till midnight was chilly, but the wind was not as ferocious as previous nights. Whilst it was cloudy the stars and planets of worlds beyond ours showed in all their glory when the clouds dispersed. This morning we have re set the sails and as I write (am on watch again) the sun is out and there is blue sky. Melinda (Fwd Port)
