37 41.9 N 000 68.1 W Mar Menor
Tuesday 22nd June 2010

Birthday. Thank you for all my cards, messages and gifts!

We have no wifi connection here, so will have to catch up with others later.
We came yesterday to Mar Menor, an inland sea about 12km long by 4km wide, separated from the Med by a sand dune covered in high rise buildings. There is a narrow gap in the dunes that you squeeze through, then pass a bridge that opens on the even hour for you to enter this shallow waterway - reminded us a little bit of the Ijsselmeer. We anchored off the tiny island of Perdiguera, where gunpowder was manufactured in WWII - the island itself is full of caves, dead seagulls, ruined army bunkers and, unfortunately, Spanish litter. A shame as it's a nature reserve and there was a whole colony of egrets. I have seen them in two's and three's, but never a colony of over 100.

But, the water was clear and warm, the swimming was good and had bbq'd steak for birthday dinner. Only other excitement was the arrival of three black RIBS, filled with chaps also dressed in black, got dumped overboard to swim ashore, carrying weapons. They landed on said island, carried out reconnaissance, whilst the RIBS themselves roared around on practice manoeuvres - they ruined their professional appearance by waving at us. More interestingly, they returned in the dead of night like something out of James Bond, black figures silhouetted against the night sky. But if they were after seeing how stealthy they could be I couldn't give them high marks!