Previously: MacGyver lead his team to new adventures. This episode: At the mercy of the sea. Petri woke up at night and noticed that the boat (with a motor) was missing. He woke up team leader Tuomas (=MacGyver) and Marcus. By dawn it was apparent that the stormy sea had taken its toll. Tuomas informed the proper authorities (the Finnish Boarder Guard) early in the morning about the missing boat so that no rescue operations were done in vain.



So come breakfast time and we were already missing a boat. Serious faces around the table: obviously we are not in Kansas anymore. The wind calmed down during the day but the waves were still quite high: no visitors today. Grey sky and misty weather all day long and a mild case of Monday blues. Nevertheless our team managed to keep its spirit high and stay active at work.

Men at work: MacGyver and his brave men worked hard all day. A lot of moving and shaking once again. Petri welded, and he also made some skillful knots. According to Petri (whose family tree includes many sailors) knots have fabulous names in sailor slang - at this point it is probably best if you use your imagination. The point of all the busy work was to finish the lift.



And so they did! So now the lighthouse has a lift that makes moving things from the ground up to the entrance floor much easier. Water, firewood, food and other supplies can be lifted, and the dangerous steps can be avoided. Well done indeed.



And the best feature of the lift is that the construction can be removed and rebuilt easily. (just unweld??!) I did not quite get the technical explanation of it, but I'm sure MacGyver will properly inform his followers): so it is a handy device to help lighthouse workers at their work - definetly NOT a permanent part of the old building.

I got this far without mentioning Aira the Cook. Well here we go. She baked 64 (sixty four!) pullas. "Pulla" is almost lost in translation.



Pulla is a Finnish pastry dating back from ancient times and is a gift from heaven: it calms you down, lifts up your spirit and keeps you proud of your national identity. Thank you Aira. Again.



The rest of the team kept the every-day operations going; dishes, waste disposal, picture taking etc. -- so things ran smoothly today.
Lena spotted seals sleeping at their regular spot. Anyone who has ever been here knows that the seals pretty much hang out on their favourite rock. Some seals were seen swimming earlier today -- when (finally!) we could see anything in the waves.



And seagulls and terns and eider ducks are still here. I forgot to mention that a huge log had run ashore in the storm, and this morning it was gone before we had time to take a picture. The storm is over now, and the island is accessible for us to walk around and swim in the smaller ponds - last night even the floor of the sauna was full of water due to the waves.



Life in Märket could be described as a battle of wills: teams vrs. the sea. Like breaking the waves.


Aira, Ella, Leena, Lena, Lotta, Marcus, Petri and Tuomas


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