Christmas gifts

36’29.8S 034’59.1W course 206′ speed 3,2kn

So what is Christmas like on board the Tecla.. Well it’s never really the same. This year Myrthe and Riva asked if we could organize a secret Santa party. A gift exchange that could be anything made from scratch, found on board, or drawn or written. And all the crew were in for this. And off we went! For days people have been secretive, hiding their project, collecting items from the deck or asking for more paper to write or draw on. It reminded me very much of the “Most Northern” Party we had during the North West Passage.. except we had no shops at all to spend 5 dollars in, so we made it all from items found.

And then the morning of the 25th arrived, all frenzies had to be done with, all gifts were left on the couch in the little reading corner and secretly people were passing by to see what was left and what others had come up with. The Christmas lights and decorations gave everybody a real feeling of Christmas. Our lunch was extra nice with cinnamon bread, scones with cream and tuna salad and of course fresh bread. After lunch we gathered outside as someone had to be on the helm. We turned off the engine and drifted for an hour, just to have some peace and quiet while we read our poems, roasts and small notes. And the gifts were amazing! So creative. Some were really well written stories in rhyme, others a small gift with a rhyme, some were a portrait of the person and others a Tecla with people in it that could move if you pulled the cords! So cool!

After the gift exchange we watched a movie, like you do on Christmas day, when your belly is full and your gifts are still new.

Other then that, we had a quiet day, no wind, so under engine until 00:00 when we set all sails, prepared for some rough weather to come. We have our small jib up, reeved mainsail and reeved mizzen. This also explains why we have such a low speed. But we know the wind is coming and so as not to have to wake up another watch, we got the rig up we are comfortable with. The wind is coming any way. And right now, its just nice and quiet. The moon is out, a few stars are out and the ocean is still very calm. We are heading into low pressure area latitudes though and the next few days we will have to fight a little harder to get to where we want to go!

All is well and thank you so much for all the lovely Christmas wishes! It made all of us smile from ear to ear! Jet