22nd july 2007 - braila; sunrise

"Of all that I have shown thee, since that gate
We enter'd first, whose threshold is to none
Denied, naught else so worthy of regard,
As is this river, has thine eye discern'd..."

Dante Alighieri; Inferno, canto xiv

"it's six in the morning, you never get up so early,
normal people are going to work..."
this georg ringsgwandl song is going through my head as i sit here on the "village square" using the cool freshness of the morning and the solitude to record the events of the previous day for the logbook. on the bank - large numbers of cyclists and pedestrians, normal people, going to work; on the water - decelerated activity, boats that pass sluggishly by. today is sunday, a concert-free day. no idea what i'll do. it's certainly going to be swelteringly hot again. last night it was 30ºC in my cabin and 38º the day before. perhaps i will go in the dinghy to the opposite side of the river to swim and/or fish. i haven't really tried it yet. i rather halfheartedly drew a rubber jig through the water a few times. you need time and tranquility for fishing. there hasn't really been any of that yet. apart from the time during travel. and since our speed downstream averages about 15 km/h and the river is flowing at about 5km/h, we are moving at about 10km/h in relation to the water and not even dragging would work.