Minecraft Mafia Meets Mega Yachts

Wow, how has this week come and gone so quickly?

I am currently writing this from the CDG Paris airport while waiting to board my flight home to Canada for 6 weeks of work.

We have had a whirlwind fantastic week.  Our Minecraft mafia crew joined us in Gulf Jean.  The boys fell right into step with playing with them even though they haven’t seen them since November.  On our first day the new arrivals were troopers and were able to stay up for a dinner at a beachside restaurant along with a great play in the sand and the surf despite their jet lag.  The next morning, we completely raided the Gulf Jean Saturday market and filled our storage with delicious food to make sumptuous meals for the remainder of the week.

Our first full day we chose to head out to the local islands for a day anchorage so we could enjoy the refreshing water and get comfortable on the boat.  We anchored on a sand spit off a shallow channel between the islands.  The kids all jumped in to enjoy the water, there was a paddleboard mission to shore and then there was the highlight of my week.  The boys have been asking repeatedly to try scuba diving so the can breathe underwater and see what the water looks like when you look up.  After a safety briefing and equipment test of the boat, we jumped in one kid at a time.  Once they were comfortable at the surface with the regulator, we took them 2 feet under with a small weight belt so they could experience the magic of the underwater world.  They both did fantastic!  They are now very keen to do some PADI Bubblemaker session so we are hoping to get this done in the Balearics after James’ 8^th birthday.

The following day we headed further West to St Tropez.  Unfortunately, this was one of the few passages we have had where there simply was not enough wind and we reluctantly resorted to motor sailing.  The ubiquitous boat traffic made for lots of chop but overall, it was an unremarkable passage.  We anchored off St Tropez again amongst a dearth of Mega yachts.  We were by far the smallest boat in the anchorage for the entire time. 

Interestingly, St Tropez was even more ostentatious than Monaco.  The level of dress was astounding and we found ourselves sticking out amongst a sea of Dior, Fendi, Ferragamo etc.  Despite that, it is a very cute little town and the maritime museum at the top of the fort was really well done and fun to explore as a group.

Jay and I even managed to head out one morning for a dive around one of the designated sites at a rock.  We saw lots of starfish, sea urchins, dory, one octopus and numerous sea cucumbers.  As we came back towards the boat, the kids were snorkelling above us and chasing the bubbles from our regs.  Diving in the Mediterranean is not like diving in the Caribbean, but I still love the feeling and sound of being submerged under the water and being a passive observer amongst the sea life.

Ultimately, we left the mega yachts behind and set sail further West to the Porquerolles, a series of natural islands just South of Hyere’s.  The new crew did great but definitely got their first taste of swell and heeling without having their sea legs.  The handled it like troopers though.  Meanwhile, James and Evan who are now fully accustomed to the motion of the boat, stayed inside to build magnet tile slides and play for the entire passage.

The Porqurolles are a beautiful cluster of islands just south of Hyere.  We anchored off the main island for two nights and thoroughly enjoyed exploring the beaches, snorkelling, walking along the many paths and more snorkelling at the boat where we were anchored right off a ledge that was filled with numerous fish.  Alas, the day finally arrived where we needed to head into Hyere, berth at a marina and start packing to return to Canada.

The boat is due to undergo some routine maintenance and major upgrades over the next few weeks.  Jay’s to do list is longer than my arm.  He will fortunately have some assistance with the boys as the grandparent crew is heading out to keep them entertained on more adventures in France.

I will update again on all the upgrades and maintenance when I return.