chispa

Jan and Ann Vonk's Voyages

Beginnings Of A Dream Jan qualified as a Master Mariner in the Netherlands in 1968 (one of the youngest ever), hence his love of the sea. He resigned from the merchant navy in 1971. However, living on the Highveld, and about 500kms from the sea, did not diminish 'first love'. Sailing on the Vaal Dam was a poor second to the dream he always had of circum-navigating the World. He retired as soon as he could and we settled in Hout Bay, not far from Cape Town. For months he agonised over which yacht to buy until Chris, our son-in-law sowed the seed of a catamaran. Then came the decision of which model. We settled on a Dean 36, a model not yet built. Even the mould had to be constructed before work could begin in earnest in January 1998. Launch date was 16th July 1998. It was all very emotional and took ages to happen. The mastless yacht was transported through Saldhana Bay and then lifted into the water by crane. The mast was then slotted into place and off Chispa sailed, across the bay to Mykinos Marina near Langebaan. The name Chispa has two meanings .... Our surname, Vonk, means spark in Dutch and Afrikaans Whilst sailing to Argentina, Jan acquired the nickname, Chispa, which means spark in Spanish. ...it is also slang for drunkard. Jan swears this cannot have referred to him.

Building chispa   Getting ready   Atlantic Crossing   Caribbean   on to Malta   to Turkey   Turkish Coast   to Greece   Croatia   Croatia/Italy   Greece & Turkey revisited   Odes to Chispa