There are as many strategies for provisioning and food preparations as there are boats crossing the Atlantic. Everyone seems to have very strong opinions and are not shy to share them. Some boats leave each person to fend for themselves, others live off tins and dry food only, but most plan either to cook underway or prepare in advance and freeze or vacuum seal things. Thank goodness we fixed the freezer in Addaya in July, we filled it!

Like most of the other family boats, Tina and Katrina and I did a few rounds of shopping. We went to Carrefour early to stock up our stores and to shop for things for cooking. We went to the market for eggs, fruit and vegetables. Both delivered these things straight to the boat. When we had everything put away, we went back for snacks and treats to fill all the storage spaces. We were full to bursting and we still weren’t sure we had enough, because enough also means the correct combination of things.

We started out cooking on board but there are a few problems with this, we have a space shortage, the freezer takes a few days to freeze something solid, and the space where we could prep food is in the main thoroughfare of the boats and Jon and Kevin were fixing things so they were often needing to get through. To save time Tina and I booked an AirBnB to use their kitchen, and while we were there, the washing machine, too. We were invited to use Gus and Elena’s home. It was beautiful and well stocked and the roof top terrace was a giant drying rack. Tina and I made nine different meals for five people and froze them in their freezer. We washed three loads of laundry and all the while had a wonderful time chatting to each other and to Gus who kept things moving by pouring us cava and entertained us. It was fabulous 🙂

Cooking and freezing meals is great for passages and has been working really well. We just choose something from the freezer in the morning. Another thing we prepared before we left was bread in a bag. (It is much easier to measure flour, baking powder and other ingredients when the boat isn’t moving much.) We have been using these almost daily and first the smell of fresh bread and then the taste of the finished product really boost the mood!

We keep bragging about how well we eat and it is largely because of this prep work.

By the way, we clocked another 140 nautical miles today. The sea got a bit rougher when we turned west and we are feeling it, especially when we try to cook something or do the washing up because things are sliding around everywhere.