Today was our first day off after a scramble to get from Medway to the Solent in just 4 days. In a way, Sirena IV has come home to Gosport. In 1978 she was built at the historic Camper and Nicholson yard, which used to be just a short distance from where we are berthed now at Haslar Marina. She is nestled near to the former lightship Mary Mouse where we had a splendid meal last night.
This area really is all about warships. Not only are there three WWII gun-ships moored close by (all are heading for the Dunkirk 70th anniversary next month) but if you look across the water to Portsmouth, you see HMS Warrior in the historic dockyard and a bevy of today's Navy ships, all grey metal and mysterious white domes.
And near Haslar Marina is the Royal Navy's Submarine Museum, where we went on board the only surviving WWII era submarine, HMS Alliance. It is in amazing shape. Our guide had been one of the crew- he pointed out his former bunk, and told us how he had been made very deaf by working for years in the engine room with no ear protection. A big surprise: the museum had two periscopes which poke out above the building, which meant we could spy on our own dear yacht sitting there in the marina nearby! Back in our floating home there was a sudden emergency on our pontoon. A yacht was just arriving, and the woman stepping off it fell badly, hurting her ankle and banging her head and face. We rallied around, picked her up and helped her on board, and suggested her husband call the marina staff who had a paramedic on hand. Luckily it turned out she didn't need hospital treatment but was quite wobbly and shocked.
Tonight Nic cooked a delicious stir fry and we decided where to go next - a quiet place far from any warships. 
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