The week before we cruise

While we were winding on the trip with Jill and Rod, the bowthruster stopped working. Grace was having to use it a lot, because the winding hole was exceptionally shallow at the bow, and she had to manoeuvre a lot more than usual, but it just stopped working. Fears that the motor itself had come to harm (it had sucked through a good deal of silt mud) were allayed when we saw that the pilot light, too, had gone out, suggesting a power supply failure.

Back at the marina the next day, however, there were no blown fuses, and I was at a loss as to what the problem could be. I contacted Simon, our usual electrician, but he couldn't assist until Friday, when we were returning to St Albans. No problem, though. We alerted the office that he would be asking for our keys, and he duly arrived in our absence and discovered that the battery isolator had overheated under load, and melted. He texted me to let me know that he would replace it Monday or Tuesday, just prior to our setting out on our next cruise.

Last Thursday, the weather was very windy, with squally, heavy showers - yet again! So we went to the cinema to see Pompeii, a film which has had very mixed reviews.

A slave-turned-gladiator finds himself in a race against time to save his true love, who has been betrothed to a corrupt Roman Senator. As Mount Vesuvius erupts, he must fight to save his beloved as Pompeii crumbles around him.

It was, erm... entertaining at least, and dramatic, with good use of 3D. But the story was weak, the script poor and some of the acting wooden. But it was free, and out of the wind and rain!

Friday, we returned to St Albans for a friend's wedding on Saturday, which was a great occasion. And it was good that we were back at the house, because Jess had a nasty problem with Photoshop whilst finishing off the artwork for Said the Maiden's forthcoming CD. Grace spent many hours on this, putting things right.

Back to Kantara tomorrow, to get ready for our three-week cruise to Brentford.