Our plan was to stay at Marina Orikum for maybe a week. However, a global pandemic had other plans for us.

I can’t complain but this may turn into a covid-19 isolation whinge so, be warned and excuse me for my humanness or womanliness, I rock at it.

I’m not perfect by a long shot. I have flaws galore, patterns for miles, hang-ups on hang-ups and triggers that explode.

 

Week one

Well this is novel! A notification from the Marina Director – a lovely Albanian/Italian man for which English is perhaps his third language. On 12 March 2020 he wrote;

Hi Kim, I want to inform you that because of the coronavirus the Albanian government has forbidden all the movements until Monday, so you cannot leave the Marina from tomorrow at 06.00 to Monday at 06.00.

Regards.

Luigi

 

Ah, no problem it’s just for the weekend. We can handle that. That little voice in my head says, ‘we’ll see.

Friday was breeze, light winds and a glorious sunny day. Spent the days in shorts which we were thankful for in March. We collected rubbish for half an hour or so which was good for the body and soul – and enviro. There is so much rubbish here at the marina, it’s saddening and maddening!

On Sunday we were informed of updated travel restrictions. We can travel between 5-8am and 4-5pm each day.

Well, that’s not so bad.

Monday arrived and I wondered how long this would last. The bird flu didn’t stop us so what is all the fuss about this covid-19 thang?!?

Thursday arrived and we decided to do a BIG shop while we still had a vehicle. We jam packed that thing and over the next couple of days we filled our jerry-can with diesel to top up fuel stores. Preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.

Marina Orikum
MIMPI at Marina Orikum

Week two

Friday and week two, we started to feel under the weather – what the?!?!?

Achy, tired and headaches. I even got a dreaded cold sore which I haven’t had for ages. Argh?

Was this covid-19? Who knew? We certainly didn’t and didn’t see the point of freaking out and running to a crowded doctor’s surgery where English is not the first language. We stayed put, hunkered down and binge-watch Game of Thrones. All that blood and gore and death made covid-19 seem like a puddy-tat.

A weekend curfew was put in place once more. We didn’t mind.

No, we don’t have covid-19. Our symptoms were more than likely from stress about the current situation and disappeared as quickly as they appeared.

We did our washing in tubs on the back of the boat. It’s good exercise all that sloshing, wringing, rinsing and hanging. Plus, the boat ends up looking like a laundry – classic!!!

We actually had a shower. It’s not a daily occurrence aboard Mimpi I’m afraid but I am getting comfier with it believe it or not. Read those thoughts at Stinky on a boat <insert link>

I did have a whinge to the Marina Director about the bathroom facilities – to read that blog follow the wee-trail to Marina bathroom rant.

Finding beauty in the everyday
shower day

Week three

Weekend complete travel bans still in place and minimal movement during the week.

Steve is always reading this and that and this and that – his brain is always chewing, digesting or producing something.

Anyhoo, he came across an update saying permits would be required to move around the area including just going to the shop AND get this only one person per family and only for ONE hour would be allowed to leave the home.

Okay, this is serious and how on earth does that work for us??? No vehicle and no residency status??? Our shopping outing take at least a couple of hours and involves a trolley, two back packs and handheld bags if needed. Oh dear.

We threw caution to the wind and just went about our normal shopping routine. We are the only ‘turista’s’ in the Orikum area. Local police eyeballed us when we walked into town – in fact everyone pretty much stares as we walk by – but didn’t bother to approach or speak to us – phew! They probs don’t speak English – ha!

We woke on Saturday 28 March and had lost an hour and it took us an hour to figure out that daylight savings had started. Then we laughed at ourselves for an hour. Hashtag old fart moment!

Also had a dmc about watching the idiot box. I was starting to feel a bit of cabin fever this week from hours of binge-watching movies and tv series. Did some stomping and complaining and convinced Steve that we should spend more time outside.

Seeing each other in the light of day we realised it was also time for haircuts, again! What fun and frivolity this creates?!?! Steve is still an unprofessional hairdresser newbie so still gets quite nervous when I say ‘haircut?!?!’

Oh and another shower – bonus!

This week – the end of March – marked the departure of our Italian Marina Director, Luigi. After 10 years of service, he is retiring and leaving Albania. No idea how he is going to manage that with borders closed but he said he planned to travel to Italy and then Sweden to his family – who knew! We found out one day and he is gone the next. Farewell Luigi.

He is replaced by an Albanian guy, Avenir. Haven’t had a formal introduction as yet but we’ll wait and see. Maybe he doesn’t speak English – oh dear, that will prove challenging.

Still went shopping together without an official permit and weren’t arrested, lucky us!

Sunset at Marina Orikum
Going cray-cray

Week four

Ooookkkkaaayyy I’m officially losing it and at risk of killing my husband!!!!

Every move he makes, every breath he takes….is annoying me!!!

AND he knows it.

PLUS, when he tiptoes around me it makes things worse AND when he tries to fix it, it makes things even more worse, worserer, oh you know what I mean.

We even had a day of silence!

I have been writing in my diary to vent, meditating to calm my farm and I even did a high intensity work out in the attempt to burn of some of this angst.

To be fair I think I’m premenstrual and haven’t done a lot of movement in recent weeks, thus the convo to get outside more.

Once again, we traipsed into Orikum to do our weekly shop.

But something different happened along the way – read about it at Albanian TV appearance no.1 <insert link>

For more lockdown highlights visit Lockdown in Albania continues