Ferry Crossing

“Boring isn’t it” says the octogenarian, by way of initiating a conversation with me. “Well if you want to get to Spain with a vehicle it’s either this or drive through France” I replied in a friendly manner. That was enough to allow him to continue with what he really wanted to tell me, which was that in his younger days he sailed around the world in his yacht. I seem to be getting adept at replying to people in such a way that it encourages them to tell me more. A shame I didn’t have this skill as a police officer, it may have come in handy, and prevented me from being labelled as one of the two “most boring bastards in the world”, the other of course being my work partner and buddy Andy M. In our defence the prisoner did say this as we slammed the cell door shut on him.

So back to Captain Pugwash, he seemed a thoroughly decent chap, slightly slimmer than his cartoon namesake, but it took intervention of his wife, presumably returning from the ladies room, to stunt his enthusiasm to tell me his life story. Nevertheless, he still had sufficient time to give me his first hand experience of several countries around the world before she dragged him off to the restaurant, probably muttering in his ear “For goodness sake Arthur, leave the young lad alone”!

I don’t know if he was called Arthur, but he looked like one, or at least how I perceive what an ‘Arthur’ looks like. Who I do know the names of are the ‘Pauls’ and Roger, no not Roger the cabin boy! Any similarity to the Captain Pugwash fable ends here. The Pauls and Roger are fellow bikers, I won’t bore you with the details but suffice to say, all interesting chaps in their own right.

Sitting in a quiet corner of the Commodore Lounge I have time to ponder the trip, and feel better about it. When in England I was starting to question what I was doing, leaving behind family and friends made me question myself. But sitting here I feel more positive, forward thinking, not looking at back. When in Exmouth and Portsmouth I could easily have headed north back into my comfort zone, I was tempted, but now I’m halfway to Spain I’m trying to grasp the nettle, and although it doesn’t hurt at the moment, I suspect it will.