Ku kandziyisiwile: 13.11.2019
At around 2:00 pm, I arrived in San Roque and was picked up by my host Valen (Italy) by car. After a 15-minute drive, we arrived at his apartment in La Línea de la Concepción in the center of town. But I was not only picked up, but also cooked for and received a 'private' Free Walking Tour through La Línea. Valen has been living here for a few years, is currently studying for a tax consultant exam, and could tell me a lot about the city's development, drug smuggling, and its relationship with Gibraltar.
I owe the accommodation on his couch (a private room with a comfortable double bed) to the fact that we work in the same field and both are vegetarians. I have only one review on the Couchsurfing platform. These are very important, as you almost exclusively rely on the reviews when selecting surfers and hosts. But Valen said that since we seem to have similar values, he will give me a chance.
In the evening, I was taken directly to a birthday party at the 'Jesus Bar' and met a colorful, international group of amazing people. Including Michele (Italy), who spontaneously invited me for a hike the next day. And so we did.
Since I've been sleeping so well, I'm no longer cold all the time, but my body is aching in some places. I will soon do a little yoga session and want to incorporate it back into my daily routine. I bought a space-saving yoga towel for that, which feels quite good. It's just too thin for the knees, so I have to put something underneath. Hopefully, my energy and flexibility will improve soon.
In the afternoon, Nina and I briefly went to the Ocean Village in Gibraltar and got a hat band for my cap. Since Nina got a pretty bad hostel in Algeciras, Valen kindly invited her to stay with us, so we will share the room from tomorrow on. So we can try out living together in a small space right away before we go on the boat.
By the way, we were supposed to leave tomorrow, but the SY Azzurra (mentioned boat), along with the skipper and part of the crew, is still stuck further northeast due to bad wind conditions and a leak in the diesel tank. The departure will therefore be delayed unknown, we will probably have to get used to that as well.