Lisbon – a Tale of Four Cities

Interior of Lisbon Cathedral (Se)

An elegant square in Baixa, Lisbon

Relaxing after the tourist trail with a white sangria

Torre de Belem from the river

 

After having the pressing feeling that we must keep up our southerly progress down the Portuguese coast, it was with much relief that we rounded the Cap de Roco into the estuary of the Tagus.  Our approach round the headland was rather a rude one though…..having had very little wind but plenty of rolling swell – the worst combination – we were suddenly propelled along by huge gusts from seemingly nowhere.  Previously resigned to motoring on upriver Colin suddenly jumped into his happy ‘all possible sails to the fore’ stance…first the headsail and then as we rounded the corner into yet more luscious wind the main sail as well!  Thus we sailed brazenly up the Tagus being passed (in their own big ships channel I hasten to add for those of a nervous disposition) by no less than three cruise ships heading back out to sea. 

We had decided to ignore the marinas which littered the river’s edge and continue up almost as far as was possible to Marina Parque de Nicoes.  It had been built as part of a the huge Expo 98 project which included snazzy apartments , bars and restaurants overlooking the marina (and very lively and noisy they were at times); long stretches of riverside boardwalk leading to a mini city in itself with a huge aquarium and other attractions, more restaurants and a massive  shopping mall and metro station making it easy to get in to the metropolis.  Some fellow German ARCers, last seen in Bayona, helpfully gave us the salient travel information and on their advice we purchased the 6 euro day ticket which then let us access all areas of the city either on bus, tram or metro.

The different areas of interest we felt we needed to access were like separate cities in their own right with very different characteristics which personified the history of the place.  Our first stop was Alfama which is a maze of winding steep, narrow ancient streets largely unaffected by the earthquake which destroyed much of Lisbon in 1755.  The treasure in its midst is the impressive twin-towered Se (cathedral) – built for the English Crusader Gilbert of Hastings when he ousted the Moors from the area in 1150.  Much renovated in the intervening years of course but it had retained its simple grandeur.  Alfama is full of medieval atmosphere and many intriguing cavern-like dark shops and bars.  Realising its potential as being firmly on the tourist trail, there is much work afoot to improve some of the decomposition of crumbling buildings but as we wandered through the alleyways avoiding the washing lines strung in every conceivable sunspot, we hoped this would not ruin the feel of timelessness there.

We walked from Alfama to the second ‘city’ of Lisbon skipping at least six centuries in about an hour on foot!  Baixa was the part of Lisbon most affected by the 1755 earthquake.  It was immediately obvious when we were confronted by such neo-classical grandeur that, tragic though this event undoubtedly was, from the ashes had risen an amazing phoenix in the shape of new Baixa.  Under huge monumental arches down broad tree-lined streets leading to elegantly statued and fountained squares accommodating fashionable eateries and bars peopled by the smartly suited intelligencia of the ruling classes of Portugal.  All designed in a grid the tall pillored buildings housed all the offices and ministries of import as well as what had been the royal palace before the last of the royal line were assassinated in one of the elegant squares in the early 1900’s.  We lunched at a modest restaurant in a side street (being poor pensioners the ones in the elegant squares were out of the question) people-watching as the great and the good of the city (and many tourists too of course) hurried about their business. 

Finally, Belem.  Well along the river and beyond metro-lines it necessitated finding a bus.  In reply to our tentative Belem?  enquiry  the weary bus driver beckoned us on and we hurtled along the busy riverside road until we could see our destination approaching.  And very noticeable it was too.  The Torre de Belem sits proudly on the river’s edge – a huge square tower all white stone and Moorish arcaded turrets set in a very affluent area of museums, parks and gardens.  We had first met the Torre when sailing up the river to the marina and leaned then that it had been built at the height of the Portugeuse Age of Discovery in the late 15^th and 16^th centuries (thereby filling the time gap somewhat in our Lisbon tour) and that the actual caravels departed with much fanfare to their foreign oriental shores from the tower. From onboard our little discovery vessel the story seemed salient to our own private voyage and really resonated with our personal sense of expeditionary purpose.  From the land and at closer quarters the Tower looked even more intricately decorated and beautiful with its blue river backdrop. As if not to be outdone, a little further upstream is a much more modern (1960’s) monument dedicated to the same theme – The Monument of Discoveries.  This one is also carved in bright white stone and is in the shape of a huge caravel with all the pertinent figures who took part in the Golden Age in statue form along the ‘guard rails’ on both sides.  A very impressive and beautifully executed monument indeed.

Enough touristing for one day!  Back to the boat (by bus this time with more confidence) for gallons of Sangria (white Sangria in these parts) and reflecting on our impressions – all positive – of Lisbon.  We stayed in Parques de Nicoes for several days soaking in the city atmosphere and discovering the pure indulgence of having a large supermarket shop delivered directly to the boat. Marvellous! But we then decided we must make a move somewhere more conducive for a timely departure on our own voyage of discovery – 600 miles to the Canary Islands.   So back down the river we went, saying a sighing farewell as we passed the three little cities we now knew as part of the whole Lisbon.  Most poignant of all was passing the Torre de Belem again and feeling that just like our Portuguese forefathers we too were departing there to discover distant lands.

                            

Dash between Portuguese cities – with snag of the propulsion type

The new marina in Oporto was quite a revelation to us – modern both in architectural style and in progressive customer service techniques like free hand delivered fresh bread rolls each day…..but somehow all this in no way prepared us for Oporto the place.  Not that it was terrible,  (not another Santiago de Compostela diatribe I promise) but it was rather overwhelming as it combined a touch of modern city with a huge tranche on both sides of the wide Douro of medieval and 18^th century former glory…..and much of the latter was very sadly in a state of decay.  On day one, obviously our priority was to visit one or more port lodges which were conveniently situated on ‘our’ side of the river…”just a walk along the riverside until you get there…” the marina staff informed us.  After a long , hot 3 mile trudge (very along the river and then very uphill) we arrived at Cockburn’s lodge for their Premier Tour and Tasting.  Off into the blissfully cool vaults we were taken to stand amongst the huge vats and barrels and to have all the different types of port processes explained to us in minute detail, every grape crushed being given equal importance it seemed until we were escorted upstairs to the tasting tables where us Premier few were indulged not only with the everyday ruby and late bottled vintage but also a single vineyard vintage which was velvety and seductive and would in normal circumstances have enticed us straight to the checkout to buy a very expensive bottle…but the thought of our trudge back to the boat brought us back to a sozzled reality and we did not buy anything.  Back along the fishing rod strewn river and through the terraced fishing  villages  and communal laundry areas with washing on makeshift tree-branch lines and suddenly we are staggering into the glitzy marina again ready for a siesta but having failed in our secondary mission of seeing the rest of Oporto on the other bank of the Douro.  That mission we accomplished the next day, taking the advice of the marina office again and taking the water taxi from the nearby village to the opposite bank and catching the tram into the city.  We really felt like hardy travellers and were then able to take in the beautiful in its almost- unadorned- simplicity Romanesque Se (Cathedral) which involved of course another up-hill sweaty stagger and most amazing of all the most incredible railway station interior murals……installed by a rich port nobleman in the city’s heyday.  Downhill, via seemingly endless alleyway steps, past tiny dingy cottages unaltered by time and modernity and then out onto the bright riverside again festooned with cafes and dodgy-looking sellers of fake sunglasses and watches! Plying the river were boats full of tourists either on river cruises or in the port lodge pointy-bowed barques all displaying proudly the company name on their hulls or sails.  From this bank of the river all the port lodges were clearly visible on the other side…and writ large on the side of the buildings were all the familiar British names….what a life those early Port Entrepreneur Bravados would have had in the Oporto of the early 1800’s!

After raiding the supermarket and staggering with our bags back to the marina it was time for us to sail away from Oporto early the next morning with many miles to cover.  The day was surprisingly ‘claggy’ and not the bright blue sunshine we had come to expect as our right already (..oh those faraway grey Norwegian days…..).  By evening we arrived in Figueira da Foz which was functional in the extreme and not a place we were tempted to linger.  We did, however, venture into the market the next morning – a huge covered affair with the biggest selection of fresh produce we have encountered so far and to add to our glee (well, Gilly’s anyway) outside there was a flea market selling everything from fine antiques to bric-a-brac. Empty handed  (:(), we were then  on our way again this time in hot sunshine to Nazare.  To our dismay, when we put away the sails and turned on the engine just outside the marina, it was evident from the noise and the lack of drive that all was not well.  We just about made it into the marina basin where the little Portuguese Harbourmaster was beckoning us onto an impossible berth (impossible without a working engine that is)…we seemingly rudely ignored him and rather flung ourselves alongside a British boat handily moored conveniently for us to drift unceremoniously alongside and up from below came a startled Paul.  Paul and his wife, I should explain were occasional acquaintances…occasional in the sense that as they were heading south in order to leave their beautiful pristine Halberg Rassy yacht in the Algarve, we occasionally bumped into them and compared notes. In Navare however we were mightily pleased to see them and this time literally bumped into them, albeit gently, so that Colin could dive down and free the webbing fisherman’s nylon bag from around our propeller.  Leaving Paul somewhat bemused and rather impressed with Colin’s sailing-without- a-prop-in-a-busy-marina skills and diving skills, we were then able to return to the little toothless Harbournmaster and tie up in the spot he had suggested to us in the first place whilst we tried to explain to him in sign language why we had not obeyed his instruction in the first instance.  Apart from this excitement Navare marina had very little to offer.  It was a good 40 minutes in to town and there were posters on lamp-posts  telling us that this particular weekend there was a fiesta in town, the highlight of which was a bull-fight….so we rather thought we would give that a miss.  After a local walk the next morning we set sail again with our newly purring engine.

We had one further place in store along this straight Portuguese coastline before we sampled the delights of Lisbon which will feature large in the next blog. Stuck out like a wart on this featureless coast is the bulging headland of Peniche. It is primarily a  well-protected and very busy fishing harbour with a little pontoon for the passing yachties in the most exposed spot available….thus, when a fishing boat left or returned to harbour which was almost a continual activity we rocked and rolled alarmingly in unison with all the other visiting boats.  It was all rather tedious and unnecessary as there were huge signs saying that the speed limit was no more than 3 knots a rule flagrantly ignored by all fishermen.  Despite this, Peniche was delightful and fairly unspoilt with old traditions still preserved exemplified by the lines of fish drying outside some of the cottages. It was once – until 15^th century at least – an island – housing a massive fort (forteleza) the remains of which overlooked the harbour.  And who should be tied up there ready and waiting for us…but Paul!  Drinks were later had aboard pristine Halberg Rassy where many musings were had, as stems of glasses were steadied at all times against the perpetual rocking and rolling,  about speeding Portuguese fishermen et al.

Onwards to the delights of Lisbon next…..

The Last of the Spanish Mainland

Raising the Portuguese courtesy flag.

Beautiful Castelo

View of our anchorage from the ramparts, Bayona

The fishing fleet of Pobra do Carmelinas

Sorry, if the technical bit previously did nothing for you if you are purely reading this from the tour guide perspective.  Colin has put so much work into the renovations and improvements to Resolute for this voyage and there have been difficult choices to make and different opinions to consider as to what would perform best for us and be within our means. At the request of those who contributed to the decision-making process it seemed salient to review those choices and take stock of the performance to date. However, now to catch you up with the places we have been since our last perhaps rather too jaded and un-jaunty account of Sandiago de Compostela nearly 2 weeks ago. From Portosin we continued to explore the Rias venturing round a very rocky and hazardous coastline into Ria Aruso which is the largest by far and has an abundance of little fishing villages, small towns and anchorages.  We took full advantage of these starting with a few days anchored off the Ribiera beach and getting into the dinghy to explore the busy fishing town and do essential shopping.  We then sailed further down the wide estuary taking every care to miss the littering of viveros – the wooden frames used to grow shell fish by the locals – and the little boats to-ing and fro-ing continually.   At the top of the Ria we stayed in marinas at Pobra do Caraminal and Vilanova both vast fishing harbours but with separate welcoming yacht marinas.  In both places the main topic of conversation amongst the international skippers and crews (the new arrivals on the scene being from numerous Irish boats) was the strong and constant easterly wind.  Fortunately for the local harbourmasters, this vouchsafed that many boats stayed put much longer than intended suspecting that, contrary to all available forecasts, the strong winds (and associated uncomfortable swell) prevailed out on the Atlantic coast.  Despite the dire warnings from the harbourmaster at Vilanova (“you leeve in dis busy wind?”) and many of the other boat-crews therein we decided to make a break for it and well reefed for the conditions we tentatively set sail out of the marina and the Ria our pioneering spirit to the fore….only to find that a few miles nearer the coast the wind completely disappeared rendering us once again with full sails flapping as we lolloped along in the swell and Colin staves off with great fortitude the moment the engine has to take over. Thus we arrived in Baiona (Bayona) and picked up a visitors buoy just outside the splendid yacht club marina. Of all the places we have visited so far, for me at least, Bayona has been the toughest to leave. The outlook from our paupers-buoy vantage point was spectacular as the Monte Real Yacht Club itself is housed in part of the ancient fortress which still glowers imposingly on the high promontory. As ‘transit’ vessels ourselves we were told that we were permitted to use this clubhouse, but were reminded that we would have to dress in accordance with their code….we suspected this would not include the shorts and flip-flops we class as our de rigeur wardrobe these days.  The service, as one would expect of such a long-established and self-important yacht club marina, was impeccable and Signora was discouraged from doing her own laundry as there were staff on hand to see to all such menial tasks. The town itself is high on chic as a fashionable up-market beach resort in a pleasant Kensington meets Clacton way, but also with winding ancient alleyways with interesting one-off (forbidden!) shops and bars adding a touch of the Brighton lanes to the eclectic mix.  There were wonderful piney walks along the turreted Napoleonic walls with staggering views to the off-lying islands and the Atlantic beyond. As you can discern then…we liked it!  We were fortunate too to meet some lovely kindred spirits there (a German couple and their son also embarking on the ARC plus) – and to re-acquaint ourselves with others and found ourselves hosting them all on board the night before we left which almost entirely drained our wine cellar! Our heavy hearts on leaving Bayona were lifted somewhat at the prospect of coming to Portugal…somewhere long promised and anticipated to Gilly and hitherto only hastily visited in Army boats full of unwieldy young soldiers by Colin.  Our first taste was on our arrival in the hidden treasure of a town called Viano do Castelo on the banks of the Lethe.  It had gained prominence in the 15^th century when many of the intrepid Portuguese explorers set sail from there and had then grown rich from importing  some of the spoils of their journeying.  Consequently, amongst the lively harbour streets were dotted beautiful 15^th and 16^th century buildings.  There were strong links too to England and the port wine trade and we found that even today English boats were still made to feel very welcome. The Portuguese ‘main event’ (with apologies to Lisbon yet to come if I am selling you short) though was to follow….Oporto….from where I now write.  From early in the planning stage Oporto has posed a problem to us as there seemed to be no marina near the city itself – only one on the outskirts called Leixos.  However, rumour control amongst our fellow travellers had suggested there was indeed a new marina just inside the River Douro but grim warnings were in force about the difficult entrance and approach across the shifting sands of an undredged broad estuary with swell across the entrance posing another hazard.  It was therefore a decision not lightly taken to go ‘off piste’ (well, ‘off pilot book’, anyway) and give it a try which we have successfully done with another less certain Swiss yacht following at a safe distance in our wake. So here we are and Oporto will be a fine place to begin the next blog instalment (contain yourselves) ….once we have had time to inwardly digest all it has to offer….and to clear our port- saturated brains too of course!

Colin enjoying Atlantic view, Bayona

The Technical Bit – 3 Months in!

 

This is intended for those readers who are sailors and is perhaps of less relevance to those friends and acquaintances who are following us on the blog out of some strange sense of loyalty.

It is now 3 months since we left Southern Norway, our home and Resolute’s  cruising grounds for the last 3 years, and we now find ourselves in Porto having covered a little over 2000nm  including passages down the North Sea and across the Bay of Biscay.  We spent a considerable amount of time in Norway re-fitting and have also undergone one pre-planned stop in the UK.   Resolute, a 1984 vintage Moody 41, was until the end of last season equipped mainly for coastal sailing with the capability to do the occasional offshore passage.  The work prior to departing Norway was focused on equipping the boat for comfortable safe longer passage making with a crew of two.    The intention was always to join the ARC for the outbound crossing but we do intend to linger in the Caribbean and South / Central America for at least 2 seasons so wanted to build in a level of independence beyond that required for the ARC. 

Long range communication was the first and most complex area we grappled with.  We do not want to be bothered by internet all of the time but we do need reliable weather / navigational information on a regular basis especially when on passage.  Plus, whilst on the high seas, we do want to retain some e-mail connectivity with family and friends.  After much deliberation we have gone for a dual solution:

The first part is an ICOM M801E with a Pactor 3 modem and a SailMail account.  This has worked extremely well.  The SailMail notes about setting up the radio complimented the ICOM manual.  It worked the first time I tried it and to date we have never had to wait more than 20 minutes to get on air.  There are 2 add-ons in the software that have also more than proved their worth.  Firstly, the downloading of FAX has been invaluable and keeping up with the Northwood schedule has given substance to the watch keeping routine.  Secondly, in areas of difficult reception the SSB / SailMail combo has outshone our Clipper NAVTEX.   The absolute must is the GRIB weather files – preloaded into your e-mail box automatically whist on passage and available almost instantly via the internet whilst you are passage planning.

The second part is a Thrane and Thrane Sat C for which we have an airtime contract with AST.  This gives us three principal services.  First, a guaranteed almost instant world-wide (if you accept that most people like us are not going to venture above 70N or below 70S!) e-mail service for a lower cost per byte than any of the Sat Phone solutions we could find.  Second, access to the EGC SafetyNet Nav and Met messages.  Third, a guaranteed link into the GMDSS Distress, Urgency and Safety alerting system.  In short professional advice is now only a 2 digit short code e-mail away.  All of this from an omni-directional aerial using the same laptop that runs the sailmail.  The fitting and commissioning was a little more protracted than with the SSB (probably because I elected to go DIY in Norway on equipment I purchased in the UK) but it has worked perfectly since AST supplied an upgrade to the software.

We have always relied exclusively on our Raymarine Smart Pilot with a linear drive unit connected to the steering quadrant and simply do not expect to hand steer whilst on passage.   Our original back-up plan was simply to have a second drive unit on board.  This was based on the belief that it was the drive units that were most likely to fail at the least opportune moment.  Our insurance company however required that we had a second independent means of steering aboard as a pre-condition to covering us during the Atlantic crossing.  So the spare drive unit has not been added to the spares list but the stern is now adorned by a Hydro-Vane.  I was initially quite sceptical – but Harriet has now earned her place on the crew list.  Not because we feel the need for her to get us out of a situation that demands “we survive our dreams” but simply because with a well-balanced sail plan she is able to steer in almost any condition without using any of our precious amps.   Should the main rudder fail then, unless it jams hard-over, Harriet is also more than able to steer the boat into any simple berth.  She has been an instant hit with Dervish our older, slightly noisy but very functional Ampair 300.  The combination means that in anything other than light airs, even with the Sat C, fridge and a small freezer on, we now make more electricity than we routinely use!  This of course might change as we head into warmer climes. 

Talking of electricity we run on 4 x 120 amp hr sealed gel batteries. When Dervish can’t keep up (and we are on the move) these are charged via 65amp and 100amp engine driven alternators linked to a sterling alternator to battery charger rated at 200amps.  Disappointingly, in terms of re-charge times, the output from this lot falls from 100amps with the batteries at 11.6v to about 70-80 amps once the system has been running for about 20 minutes.  I am sure Nigel Calder would tell us that we need to start with a power use survey add in the moon phase and then do all manner of calculations to work out what size batteries are needed before moving on to charging solutions. What we have has evolved over time and is the largest battery capacity crammed into the available space linked to the biggest re-charging capacity possible on our engine.  Currently, we are not sure if our expectations are too high, or the batteries too old – but both alternators work so we are just going to live with it safe in the knowledge that a fifth 120amp hr battery does nothing but start the engine and is charged, by the Sterling box, on a separate circuit.  Quite important as I don’t think Sea Start extends this far south!

In terms of the rig we have done little other than replace the standing gigging and dust off the tri-sail, storm jib and acquire a working jib as a second headsail for the downwind legs.  We toyed with the idea of a second pole – but time and resources ran out and the second sail seems to fly free (and does not impede the Furlex drum) on the spinnaker halyard providing the wind is kept on the opposite gybe.  A task for Harriet!

Having got the downwind rig and Harriet sorted we turned our attention to man over board recovery.  We already had a Raymarine life-tag system fitted and are obliged by the ARC rules to carry either a dan-bouy / horseshoe lifebuoy combination and a separate horseshoe lifebuoy or some more expensive alternatives.  In addition we have the normal combined lifejacket / harness and jackstay arrangements.  It seems to me that the combining of the harness and the lifejacket has conflated 2 differing requirements.  A harness is designed to stop crew from falling overboard.  If used poorly (not uncommon) it at least keeps the person attached to the boat until it can be stopped and the person recovered.  A lifejacket is simply there to keep a person afloat and is therefore, in my mind, of less utility than a properly used harness.  I completely understand the RNLI’s lifejacket campaign.  For them, with Coast Guard support, and all that sophisticated search equipment it is important that a person remains afloat and alive for as long as possible and for that we drew on the lessons learnt in such tradgic circumstaces from an incident off the Isle of Wight where a ferry ran down a small yacht.  Crutch straps, integral spray hoods and reflective patches are for us not extras but essentials.  However, in the middle of the Atlantic they have in reality as much relevance as my Sea Start membership, here the emphasis needs to be staying on the boat.   So we are strict about wearing harnesses at night and when conditions require.  However, being strict means that as a routine device they have a real impact on quality of life.  So by day in calm conditions we judge them to be too intrusive and the risk low.  At this point the harness is exchanged for a small money belt that contains, amongst other things an AIS Smartfind.  The Smartfind has one important advantage over the life-tag in that it tells you where the person is now not where they fell over the side.  So should either of us get blasé to the point where we are actually incompetent the life-tag alarm will alert the off duty crew member and the AIS will provide a location.  When you consider that even working flat out it takes one person some 15 minutes to go from asleep downstairs to safety turning a boat running  under twin headsails back to windward the importance of the AIS becomes self-evident.  Add this to the experiences of a crew member last season, who having fallen over the side on a harness / life jacket combination, was forced to cut herself free because once the lifejacket inflated she could no longer breath and the dangers of a combined harness and lifejacket to passage making yachts becomes even more stark!  In terms of recovery we have a helicopter like lifting strop which goes on either the main or spinnaker halyard and one of those throwing lines to establish contact.   

Downstairs not much has visibly changed.  I did however spend a considerable amount of time last winter maximising the stowage by fitting shelves into and locker fronts onto every available piece of real estate.  We also acquired a water-maker as it seemed that this would give us greater independence once in warmer latitudes.   To date it has been used to avoid having to take on board the heavily chlorinated, and therefore undrinkable, water found everywhere south of Scandinavia.  We have gone for a simple modular non re-cycling model from ECH₂O Tec, which whilst using more power than some of the more complex models is supposed to be more durable.  Only time will tell.  Holding tanks (45 litres each for black and brown water) have replaced the third water tank that used to occupy the space under the forward berth.   With 2 of us on board, and if we are careful, this gives us about 48hrs before we need to pump out.  This is just about the minimum which is socially acceptable – but does provide an impetus to keep moving.   In the luxury category we converted the forward heads to an electrically flushing model.  These seem to come in 2 types, the cheaper models making more noise than their more expensive cousins.  We went for the cheap one.  Mistake; on passage, it wakes the off watch crew, in harbour it wakes the whole pontoon.   

For coastal navigation we rely (actually overly rely) on an Raymarine E80 which runs NAVONICS Gold charts.  We have over the last 18 months acquired a plethora of cruising guides and built folios of Admiralty charts for all the areas we are visiting or passage making in.  I would not pretend to have all of the detailed paper charts required to get into every port along the way – but should (and I sincerely hope it does not) the E80 fail while we are coastal sailing we have the means to enter the largest ports in any area we may find ourselves.  For offshore work the E80 gets a rest and we revert to paper and maintain a plot based on the GPS.  For more serious stuff I have a sextant and a software package from WinAstro which takes most of the guess work and all of the hard labour out of sight reduction.  Loitering in a corner is Lt Cdr Harry J Baker’s very thin and useful set of 2013 astro tables just in case the 4 GPSs on board all fail and my batteries are exhausted to the point where I can’t even power up a laptop – or – more likely I get bored and want to enter the world of manual sight reduction.   By far the best book on board is James Clarke’s Atlantic Pilot Atlas.  The arrows are far simpler to understand than the Admiralties’ roses and the text is a straightforward logical explanation of the weather patterns.

Of all the questions watch-keeping has been the most common.  We have no secrets. We simple follow the Royal Navy tradition of 4 hours on and 4 hours off starting at 1200hrs.  We also observe the RN practice of the dog watch ie the period from 1600hrs to 2000hrs is divided into 2 watches and we are both awake together.