LEDs, tableware, a dinghy verdict, and surprises under the bed.

We started the morning the same way we start every productive day aboard: opening Jira. New tasks categorised, sprints updated, nothing left floating without an owner. It takes fifteen minutes and saves hours of confusion later. With the board tidy, we were ready to actually get things done.

And things did get done. Quite a lot of them, as it turned out.

The Day’s Work

The Toilet Situation

The guest toilet has two pumps, and — as with so many things on a well-loved boat — the wiring diagrams in the manuals are optimistically incomplete. Piet still needs to do a bit of extra research before we can proceed with confidence. It’s a small setback, not a crisis. Step by step, this will be sorted out.

The LED Victory

We had been bracing ourselves for the worst on the lighting: full fixture replacements, hours of work, a significant bill. As it turned out, the halogen bulbs simply swap out for LEDs in the existing fittings. Piet tested the first batch — they worked perfectly. The order for the remaining bulbs has been confirmed.

We had expected to replace the entire fixtures. It turns out we only need to replace the bulbs. Small win, big relief.

What Was Under the Bed

We moved the solar panels stored in the guest cabin to get a proper look at what was living under the bed. The answer: quite a lot.

First, a generous stock of children’s life jackets — covering sizes from 5 kg up to 40 kg. Perfectly suitable for Luca, as it happens, which is a rather convenient discovery.

And then the tableware. We lifted out piece after piece, increasingly puzzled — and increasingly delighted. A quick session with Google Lens and Copilot confirmed what we were looking at: vintage Alessi, a 2007 replica of an original 1970 design by Franco Sargiani and Eija Helander. Developed specifically for hotels, restaurants, and airlines. Collectors’ items, no longer in production.

The moment I saw them I was taken straight back to the 1970s — friends of my parents who would proudly bring out exactly these pieces at dinner parties, as if displaying something rather special. Which, it turns out, they were.

Alongside the Alessi set: an elegant French porcelain service with a gold rim. That one is still in production, so if we ever break a piece, replacements are possible. Good to know.

We’ve started a SharePoint list to document everything properly — each item recorded with its history. These things deserve to be looked after.

A Visit to the Bootique

In between tasks, we took a short walk to the marina’s Bootique to find Frank — the dinghy expert. He came straight to the boat to take a look.

His verdict: better than we had feared. The dinghy needs work, but it is not a disaster. The plan now is to get it to Frank for a proper overhaul — engine and everything else — to bring it back to full condition.

Frank also has contacts for leather restoration, which will be useful: the steering wheel, and the leather trim around the grabrail all need attention. We’ll follow up through him.

After the dinghy, Frank came aboard for a quick look around the interior. He complimented us on the build quality and the overall condition of the boat. Encouraging words from someone who knows what he’s looking at.

What’s Coming Next

• Checking, repairing, and replacing the rigging
• Removing the old name “Astahaya” and applying temporary “Adriana” lettering
• Lasso training and harbour manoeuvre practice
• Engine and generator overhaul
• Further work on the watermaker
• … and whatever else the boat decides to surprise us with

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One Saturday, six tasks, and a set of vintage Alessi we didn’t know we owned. Not a bad start to the weekend.

Regards, Ilse