Saying Goodbye to the Med and Hello to Tucson

We have left EcstaSea and the Med for the season and are now back in our Tucson home but wanted to update the last of our time there.
After our romantic inland getaway to Florence we returned to the boat on the island of Elba, which has become one of our favorite places now. As we began to feel the shift in the weather to fall we took advantage of our remaining time by anchoring out in all of our favorite coves around the island.
How blessed we feel to have this freedom and time to just "be" and continue to explore "within and without" (if you know what we mean). As much as we love the journeys and beauty of the islands, we continue to realize that the true journey is within as we explore who we are in relation to it "All"....
We continue to know ourselves through one another and are so thankful that this is the gift our love keeps giving to us. For us, it is the Only journey.....

These are just a few pictures of the beauty of the Mother in all her Glory.

One of our favorite coves by day and by night....
Perfect blue, clear water that when we drop our anchor in 30 feet of water, we can see it sink into the sand....




Finally, we needed to sail on to the island of Sardinia as the weather was changing and it was time to put the boat up for the winter. It was a safe and sweet passage and we cherished every ray of sunshine, the gentle ocean breezes and lapping waves on EcstaSea.











The handsome Captain taking it all in.....

Putting the boat up for the winter is quite a job and just to show that the Captain (and not just the first mate) also goes up the mast as needed--here's the proof !!

Then as the boat was hauled out of the water and put on the hard for the winter we felt secure and thankful for the people who help us make it happen in Alghero, Sardinia and we felt comfortable in leaving her. We flew out of Rome so enjoyed a few days sightseeing and getting our "land-legs" back before flying to Tucson home.
A few touristy pics of Rome....


























We celebrate this summer as we enjoyed returning to some of our favorite islands such as Mallorca and Ibiza, as well as exploring new areas such as the northern coast of Corsica and the Tuscan island of Elba. Returning to the "known" and expanding to the "unknown and new" created an easeful balance in our summer sailing experience. For all of it, we are grateful and appreciative.

After what we sometimes feel is an "eternity"(but well worth it), the long flight is over and we are home. Now we begin to adapt to living on a very solid, never moving terra firma and awake often wondering why we don't feel the wind blowing or our bed moving. We hide out and adjust and are ever thankful for the contrast and variety of our life. And just as we love EcstaSea and our gypsy life, we love our desert home in Tucson. All is perfect as it is......................