Greetings from the bridge of the 'Grey Pearl' coasting along in Italian waters. We enjoyed five weeks cruising the azure blue waters of Croatia, a country we recommend you place on your "must do" list. Early August we stayed in the charming medieval town of Trogir just north of Split. It was in this small harbor that Nordhavn's were well represented - 5 of us in all: 'Uno Mas' N40, 'Resolution' N46, 'Strickly for Fun' N47, 'Goleen' N57 and, of course, 'Grey Pearl' N62. A wonderful group of friends that we've been cruising with throughout the month of August. We managed to get away for a couple days and visit Stockholm, Sweden to attend a wedding of friends. A wonderful change of pace - home of the smorgasbord, Pippi Long Stocking, Absolute vodka, Swedish meatballs, herring any which way you want it, and, well, just beautiful people, too. Hey - it was nice just to use a head that wasn't moving. :-) We'll be covering some cruising ground from here on out until mid-September. We've already logged some 2,500 nautical miles on the boat this summer alone. Presently, Captain & Crew.that'd be me, are taking advantage of the favorable weather and doing a couple back to back overnight passages (50 hours underway). We decided we'll catch up on our sleep in say, sunny Capri. Then we hope to connect with friends in Portofino/Santa Margherita, Italy as they kick off their Italian holiday. Thereafter, we'll rendezvous with friends near Nice. Steve was a huge help to us on the Azores to Gibraltar leg/Atlantic passage.more importantly, he kept us laughing the whole time. We'll do one last leisurely cruise along the south of France and jet home in early October. We plan to freight the boat back across the Atlantic in November. It's been an incredible summer and quite a memorable Mediterranean adventure these past three years. The bottom line - our Nordhavn trawler, 'the little ship that could' and Braun's meticulous attention to maintenance detail has enabled us make our seafaring dreams come true. And.boy oh boy, we've got the bug. We're kicking the idea around for a Panama Canal/Pacific passage in early 2008. What can I say, but, stay tuned! Tina & Braun Tina and Braun Jones Grey Pearl Nordhavn 62 Editor's note: Photos of Grey Pearl and her owners are posted at <http://radio.weblogs.com/0137829/2004/06/30.html>.