Logbook Entry

Dates: 09/15/08 – 9/16/08
Distance: 18 nm
Sailed from: Porto de Colom, Mallorca
Lat: 39°43’N
Long: 03°28’E

Just as we were about to continue and make the crossing to Menorca, the wind switched, so we decided to put in at Cala de Ratjada for a night. What an experience! We rafted off a 48′ charter boat with eight Austrians onboard, and by the end of the day, we had four boats rafted off us. And we were only one of about five rafts, all five and six boats deep. It felt like a mini-Horta marina experience, the Azores being another place where rafting up to a seawall is the only option. Almost every other boat was a charter boat, and most of the people aboard were German.

This is a port to go ashore for dinner out and a good party. We walked through town and found one bar complete with German beer-drinking music over the loudspeakers — everyone was singing right along. Lisa did a double take, “Wait a minute, aren’t we still in Spain?” We didn’t sleep much that night as the crews of boats outside of us straggled aboard at all hours, walking right over our sleeping berth until about 4:00 a.m., and then the process repeated itself as others started to rise and go ashore beginning at 7:00 a.m. Despite this, we had a nice time, and even enjoyed a glass of wine aboard the neighboring Austrian boat.