Equinoxes and solstices are the only calendar events that seem to matter to me anymore. Religious holidays never did, nor did all the "shopping holidays" like Xmas, Halloween, and Valentine's day. When we still worked, long weekends were important, but now all our weekends are a week long. Maggie and I still observe birthdays but even those lose their significance as we see more of them.
Pagans: that's what we are becoming. The seasonal events punctuate time for us because they indirectly impact the weather and the weather tells us what we are able to do - use the weather to travel or seek shelter from it. This year our Winter Solstice celebrations here in Sicily were special.
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| Ibla di Ragusa |
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| Merry Christmas |
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| Louie and Molly |
The cruisers living aboard their boats here in Marina di Ragusa are all very nice and a lot of fun. So last night a few of us caught the bus to nearby Ibla di Ragusa to see how this fairy-tale town was dressed up in lights for the holidays. It was beautiful. We had the baroque streets to ourselves as we strolled on the cobblestones. After a drink to toast the sun's return from the Tropic of Capricorn, a snack and more strolling, we took the local bus back to the main town. As the bus wound its way out of the valley that encircles the hilltop town, we could look back to see the town highlighted by its streetlights and Christmas decorations.
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| Lighting the stove |
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| Solstice Group |
The next phase of our pagan celebration would have us gathering around a fire. We collected some kindling on the way back to the marina from the bus stop and rendezvoused on H2OBO and lit the fire in the new wood-burning stove that I had installed the day before. The heat from the stove and from our drinks, the faint aroma of burning wood, and our lively conversation all made for a very cozy setting and one somehow appropriate for the shortest day of the year. I am sure it was a scene that has taken place every winter solstice stretching back to humanity's origins.
The stove has transformed life on board. Electricity here is costly; folks are spending 4 or 5 euros a day to run small electric heaters to heat their boats, so they use them sparingly and their is always a little chill in those conditions. But we have been collecting wood from the beach to burn in the stove and have been basking in the glorious heat without thinking about the cost. My morning routine now consists of getting out of bed, starting a fire, and making a coffee on top of the stove with my espresso maker, while the boat warms up for Maggie when she rises from bed.
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| Jessica, Ange and Branko |
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| Ange taking the dogs for a ride |
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| Branko trying to find his stove part |
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| Branko driving the Ragusa train |
So life is great here. There are ample activities and attractions to keep oneself busy if you want to avoid doing chores, which I have been doing so far. And that is why the solstice is important. It reminds me that from now on the days will get longer, and, as the new cruising season approaches, it is time to start preparing for the new adventures in the upcoming year.
But before I get to it, I think I will just throw another log on the fire.....
Branko
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