Sunday · 19:43 – Breskens – Spring 2026

A Packed Day
in Harbour

Sails off, safety checked, lasso practiced — and a yellow rabbit bringing a little sunshine into the saloon.

Sunday evening, 19:43. We are back at Adriana. The heating is running on full as the spring evening bites harder than expected. Outside, the harbour is quiet. Inside, the saloon is warm and the refrigerator is stocked with good things — healthy food, and a tray of lamb with plum tomatoes and mozzarella waiting to become dinner. That, with a simple salad, will be all the energy we need for the days ahead.

The most important task for Monday is clear: remove the sails and bring them to North Sails in Rotterdam for check and repair. Everything else arranges itself around that.

The Navigation Station

My office,
on the water

A brand new large monitor now sits at the navigation station — my office. Whether the height and positioning will work in practice, I will discover this week. An extra supporting pillow and an armrest are already sketching themselves onto the shopping list. On Tuesday, the plan is to work from the yacht properly: a couple of conference calls, a training session, and some configuration and analysis work in SAP Logistics. The boat as a proper workplace. We will see how she takes to it.

Making Her Ours

A little more
Alessi

Like the monitor, several other things came aboard last week — small objects chosen to make Adriana feel like home rather than merely a vessel. The yacht is already full of Alessi, so we extended the collection. Some of you will recognise the yellow rabbit. It is an exact copy of the one in our kitchen at home — the rabbit that brings a spark of sunlight into the room, whatever the weather outside.

Although the evening was cool, we slept well beneath a double layer of blankets. With no wind, the boat sounds were minimal. This morning, the sun found us, lighting up the saloon and the new workstation in a way that made everything feel possible.

⊕

Monday’s Work

What got done,
what got added

🪢

Lasso Training

Piet organised dock-line practice — different positions, different angles, different looping techniques. The first throws went well. After number ten, the muscles had a different opinion. More tomorrow.Done

⛵

Sails Off

The team from Breskens Yacht Service removed both sails in under 50 minutes. Efficient, expert, no hesitation. A sailing yacht became a motor yacht for the time being.Done

🔧

Furler Oil Leak

Spotted during sail removal — an oil leak at the stay sail furler. Added to the Jira list. The hydraulics also sounded unhealthy. Two things to investigate.Jira — Open

🎒

Grab Bag Inspection

Started. A small guide book is the reference, Claude AI is the support. First conclusion: the content of the life raft must be known before the grab bag can be completed.In progress

Safety at Sea

What is a
grab bag?

Definition

An emergency grab bag holds important personal information and items that might be useful in an emergency. It should be stored somewhere easy to access, and be portable so that you can take it with you if you need to evacuate your yacht. Let all crew members know where it is.

The conclusion from today’s inspection is simple: before the grab bag can be properly assembled — radar reflectors, safety kites, strobe lights and the rest — we first need to know exactly what is already in the life raft. One step follows the other. We will get there.

Small Setbacks

The kitchen scale
stays dark

The Alessi kitchen scale — beautiful, as expected — does not respond to fresh AA batteries. No light, no life. A replacement will need to be found. Keeping the balance right in the galley matters more than people think.

⊕

Her Name

Measuring
Adriana

We started measuring the name Astahaya on all sides of the hull today. The intention is to replace it temporarily with Adriana — her real name — until she receives her final dark blue colour. A yacht should know who she is, even before the paint dries.

⛵

A couple of items checked off. A few new ones added. That is always how it goes — and it is exactly as it should be.

Regards, Ilse