San Teodoro, Mabini, Batangas to Maricaban Bay, Busuanga,
Palawan, Philippines
31 October 2012
I’m
Paraluman’s first mate and my husband, Raul, is the
skipper or captain. That means that he’s at the helm, makes all the decisions and shouts out
orders which I carry out immediately. He stands behind the wheel and the
navigation instruments while I do all the physical non-thinking work. I run
around the boat, pull the lines, grind the winches, set the travelers, lift and
drop the anchor.
 |
| Windsurfing, still my alltime favorite kind of sailing because it's sooo fast! |
I’ve been sailing for 20+ years- windsurfing, hobie cat and
dinghy sailing, crewing for a keelboat for 10+ years, and recently started
kiteboarding. But there’s something about helming a big keelboat like
Paraluman
that intimidates me until now. Being used to windsurfing where control is within
reach of my own hands and feet and the response is instantaneous, I still can't
get used to Paraluman’s size and am easily frightened when she heels or it’s
time to gybe or tack.
 |
| Raul, my husband and captain |
Our past sailing trips are always relaxed and made up of
short hops between destinations. We never sail at night and break long trips
into several legs. We aim to be anchored safely by mid-afternoon so we are
grilling our steaks and drinking our vodka tonics by sunset.
