We had only completed the first leg of our journey, and already we found ourselves stuck in a marina because of bad weather. I know these things happen all the time when you’re cruising, but seriously – in the first port of call?!

Our boat felt even more frustrated than we did, she kept bobbing and rocking and pulling her lines, as if trying to say it was time for us to go. But the wind and the waves told us the opposite.

So we tried to make the best of the situation. At least there was shore power available so we could charge our batteries, watch a movie cosily tucket up in a bunk while it was raining outside… But wait! The outlet looked nothing like the plug in our power cord! And who knows how long we would have to stay here, and the dog’s food in the fridge would start to turn. The sky was covered in clouds so the solar panels weren’t charging. We would absolutely need some sort of an adaptor for the plug. Besides, we hadn’t really brought too much food for ourselves because we had expected to be in Tallinn by now, hoarding all kinds of good stuff from the supermarkets. There were no shops in Viinistu, and eating all our meals in that nice restaurant would have meant a serious breach of our travel budget – in the first port of call!

But we found a bus stop in the village square, and soon enough a bus came around. We hopped on, payed a mighty sum of 0.70€ per person (dogs travel for free) and rode into the closest town, Loksa. It was raining – no, it was pouring! – when we started our search for the adaptor, and for some food. The latter part was easy, but the salesman in the fancier looking of the town’s two hardware stores shook his head to our electrical problem. However, in the other store, one of those good-old-time shops with floor to ceiling shelves full of miscellaneous tools, screws, bolts and other bits and pieces, I spoke to a very nice gentleman who actually took his time to listen to what the problem was. And behold! – he found all the parts needed for the adaptor, and then he made a phone call to the caretaker of our marina who promised to assemble this electronic widget for us. Problem solved!

Now there was just the part about getting back to the marina. The next bus was going to be in the evening, many, many hours away. We went to a pub for some lunch and to ask if there were any taxis to be found. No, there weren’t – but the bar tender’s brother had a car and apparently nothing better to do, so he offered to give us a ride. And the lunch at the pub was excellent – self picked mushrooms made into the most delicious soup! So in the end it all worked out, and we were impressed with the people’s kindness and willingness to help a total stranger.

Back in Viinistu the skies had cleared enough for a nice walk through the picturesque fisherman’s village.

The wind and the waves were still pounding the shore, preventing us from leaving, but providing a lot of subject matter for photography.

• Turning that wheel across the Southern Baltic

July 24, 2018

• Sailing as it should be – and shouldn’t!

September 21, 2016

• Step on a foreign shore

September 8, 2016