Jun 2010 HOW A TURKISH KEDI ACQUIRES A SEA BERTH ABOARD CIRCUMNAVIGATING KIWI YACHT SY MUSKTELLE

After having to put to sleep our dear loyal 19 year old NZ cat “Murphy” before we left NZ we have spent the last three years sailing through Asia and the Middle East avoiding the plight of the countless cats that ply the waterfronts casting their pitiful looks our way for, at the least, kindly eye contact or ,at the most, a morsel of food. There are literally so many that even animal friendly people like us have to bite the lip and walk on.

That was until 10 December 2009 when one of the numerous dock cats (or “Kedi” in Turkish) at Marmaris Yacht Marina decided to board Musketelle uninvited through a small open porthole while we were out and help herself to a bread roll and then settle down on our bed.

When we returned in the dark B entered the aft cabin and thought she heard the floorboard make a funny squeak but on turning on the light found instead that the squeak was a ”hello” from a quite unconcerned and comfortable cat. Said cat was not at all phased at being sprung and gave the distinct impression she was pleased with herself. We were impressed by the fact that this visitor had used some nous to get in and make herself at home. She eventually departed and we laughed at her cheek but thought nothing more of it.

Later however said cat returned and started making the usual feline overtures that we interpret as friendly but we sent her on her way. However she persisted with more visits of variable duration, sitting on the deck and amusing us with her meercat impressions as she peered over the cockpit coaming to watch goings-on on the dock.

We then made the fatal mistake of giving her a name – a sure sign we had been twisted round her (not so little) paw. At the time we were having difficulty with the internet wifi signal at the marina being very unstable and, like the cat, coming and going. So we named her WiFi.

Thus far we had a visiting and named cat. However feline domestic bliss was not assured for this is really a wild cat that had been fending for itself around the marina for several years. At times she showed her real self – difficult to handle, untrusting and with a lightning left hook with claw advanced usually when least expected and when we thought we were only being friendly. Still she manages to amuse and winter and Xmas are both coming up fast…

No sooner is she installed on board and sleeping under the dodger than we start getting visits from other dock cats seeking to dislodge her from this board and lodging. The siege continued and one night B observed WiFi walking down the dock towards Musketelle when another cat shoulder barged her in a good rugby style tackle straight into the tide. Proving that cats can swim WiFi hauled herself out soaked through and very shaken. Of course she got the big dry towel rub down and much fussing over. Maybe it was all a set up as this event now had us protecting WiFi in her patch.

Next problem was that we were about to depart for France and London for three weeks for Christmas – what to do with WiFi ? Other cruisers rightly noted that we could just leave her to look after herself but guess what, we weakened. At vast expense, we put a stray dock cat, perfectly capable of fending for itself, into the cattery at the Vets.

The die was cast. WiFi now had all the appearance of an official crewmember of SY Musketelle and whilst in residence at the Vets she had all necessary vaccinations and treatments to allow her to sail to the EU and beyond, a microchip inserted in her neck and “pet passport” (ie health papers) issued. At this stage as far as we know she has not a single sea mile under her collar but the prognosis is good for at least getting around the Med and across the Atlantic to America. Not a bad turnaround for a homeless Turkish Kedi.



Wi Fi takes up the story

Mid January 2010 my new friends collected me from “the cat prison” and I was bundled in a new fancy cat bag back to my regular haunts at Marmaris Yacht Marina where we stayed until May which allowed me to get back into my old routines on Hotel Pier. This is the pier that I was introduced to after my birth somewhere in the marina back in 2007. It’s the place where I have survived nicely thank you for over 3 years befriending hundreds of cruisers from all over the world. I’m an expert at getting my way with most of them and as a result more food than I can eat has been available most of the time particularly during spring, summer and autumn. Winter is the big problem so I have to really work hard on finding a safe haven for this harsh time for vagrant cats.

              Here I am on 'my' dock at Marmaris Yacht Marina

Would you believe I have been taken on board a number of yachts on a semi permanent basis and some have even named me. I have been variously named “Arabella”, “Cleopatra” and then a lovely Swiss couple Trudi and Jurg got all regal and called me “Princess India” because at that time I was doing a stint on India Pier. Next Jeanette and Charles from the Dutch yacht Happy Days befriended me and called me “MiMi”.

Now I have fallen in with this lot aboard Musketelle who call themselves “Kiwis”. I have established that a Kiwi is a bird that cannot fly and, as a cat, that certainly interests me but these guys don’t look like birds and he even has fur on his face. She goes by the name of B and he P and they are not bad if a little pushy with me to settle into their routines aboard their yacht. They seem to forget that I know more than a little about yachts and theirs is by no means the best and biggest that I had the choice of selecting. So I keep up my guard that has served me well in my survival to date in the tough world of wild life at Marmaris Yacht Marina.

But let me tell you not all the cruisers have been cat friendly and some have downright mean, probably due to the ablution habits of us wild Kedi and particularly those dirty old tomcats that spray everywhere. Would you believe one Canadian cruiser gave me major grief by throwing me into the water one day in front of other cruisers. I sure gave that boat a wide berth thereafter.

Winter has passed, it’s now March, spring is in the air and surprisingly this stay aboard Musketelle has turned into one of my longer visitations for a number of reasons. Firstly they relented on my access to and around Musketelle and in no time at all I had the run of the ship with the exception a few no go areas like the dining table and the navigation station. But they at least dedicated a few sleeping spots for me which is a nice touch and if it was really cold I was even allowed on their bed.

The one difficulty was they started locking me in at night which was a real hassle to begin with. The other major hassle was that they put a plastic tag on my collar with a message in English which of course being a Turkish Kedi I could not read. But the long and short of it was my multiple feeding opportunities which I had perfected with the cruisers disappeared and in no time the only food I was getting was from the owners on Musketelle. I immediately smelt a rat and concluded they had betrayed me with a “please do not feed me” message. So to supplement my diet I made it my business to stay out on full moon and very still nights which is the best time for felines to pickup miscellaneous fodder and supplement the Whiskas diet they persist with.

The other nights I hankered for were when the men that keep the waters clear of debris with their big nets were on the Pier and they would throw me little fish, the absolute best meal on the pier. I would often take a sample back to Musketelle and liberate it alive and kicking in the cockpit which always got them going I can tell you. B obviously dislikes fish but P is with me on this even if he does not share my catch with me.

Early on we got the necessary ablution issues sorted out and they provided a dedicated cat potty with high tech crystals that mean no smells, so that was appreciated and I now use it all the time rather than going on other boats and in dinghies like all the other wild life around the marina. There is talk of another Kedi from the marina that goes to the loo on the ship’s human toilet but they have another thing coming if they think they are going to get me to perch on the porcelain, a parrot I am not.

P and B kept talking to me about sailing to America and New Zealand. Well I have been to India Pier so thought that America Pier and New Zealand Pier sounded fine. However it seems that this was not what they had in mind.

On the last day of Spring 31 May the owners played a trick on me that I was least expecting, and they cast off from Marmaris Yacht Marina as I was awakening from my afternoon snooze and now I am on the way to who knows where. As usual the owners are fussing around making life as comfortable for me as they can but even with four legs this continual slip slopping around at sea does take some getting used to.

Over the last three weeks we have sailed to some neat spots in Turkey visiting Bozburan and Bodrum and we even had a taste of Greece with visits to the Aegean Islands of Kos, Leros and Lesvos, my first foreign country. I could easily have got off at the fuel dock in Kos and had a walk around and even done a runner, but did not think it looked anything special.

I am making it my business to keep an eye and ear on everything that is going on around me aboard Musketelle and there is a pattern developing. Each morning we get up, we all have breakfast, they turn on the noisy generator to power us up, cool the freezer etc then they listen to the MedNet on the SSB (Single Sideband Radio) with other cruisers all over the Mediterranean and then listen to the weather forecast in Turkish and Greek, eeks !!

Then we up anchor and sail away to then drop the anchor at a new spot in the afternoon to relax and watch the sunset and then we all have dinner. At least I don’t get locked in at night now and can use the porthole next to my bunk to wander round the decks at night if I wish.

Initially I was upset at the main engine starting up when I was “below” (that’s a nautical term for downstairs you know). Now I am pretty relaxed about it especially if I can sit on the back deck and watch the water shooting out the exhaust at the transom (back of the boat). The only thing that really gets my hackles up is the water making machine that sounds like a jet engine and freaked me out when they first started it. Cat-astrophe! I accidently bit B’s hand and she had to go ashore to a local hospital for a Tetanus shot. Luckily I had a Rabies injection in January and the owners have been vaccinated to. I was very embarrassed by that outburst but it was only because I was really scared.

I am a little concerned we are leaving my homeland Turkey but I am now legally allowed to travel with the owners as evidenced by the official release documents issued by the Turkish Authorities in Ankara and Marmaris with the all important stamps and signatures. But can you believe under the heading Breed they have had the cheek to called me a “Cross Breed”. That hits a nerve let me tell you.

Currently we at Ayvalik near the Dardenelles not far from Gallipoli and we are sailing to Limnos Island in Greece on Sunday 20 June.......I will let you know how we get on.

Ships Cat WiFi

Sep 2009 GREEK SOJOURN

SEPTEMBER - Greek Sojourn

This is a busy month for us with all arrangements centering around B's father Alf coming to Europe with Dot to celebrate his 80th birthday with us aboard Musketelle in Marmaris. Is that not a great attitude !!! It puts the pressure on us to make it memorable. As they are doing a 12 day cruise around the Med, Aegean and Adriatic from Barcelona to Venice we decide to meet them for the day their cruise is at the Greek island of Thira otherwise known as Santorini the supposed lost Atlantis. We leave Turkey with the plan of spending a month cruising in Greece visiting 12 islands in the Dodecanese and Cyclades group of islands in an anti-clockwise circuit from Marmaris back to Marmaris.

Gidday Greece - After a daysail from Marmaris we reach the picture perfect Greek island of Nisios Symi in the Dodecanese Group, country number 18 in our nautical meandering. Symi is just 4 miles off the Turkish coast. In Symi they have retained the traditional low stone and plaster buildings hugging the waters edge and up the hillsides, painted pastel peach and beige painted with Med blue highlights. The motor vehicle rules in coastal Turkey but is a hinderance to life on the Dodecanese. As usual on arrival in a new country we shouted ourselves a night out dining at a local restaurant sampling the local fare and beverage even if in this case it was an Italian restaurant. Next morning we did a heart thumping climb to the monastary atop a hill overlooking Symi. (see pic)

A Meaty Story - On the walk back down to Symi town we found a hillside village butcher selling pork. Travelling in muslim countries we have not had pork since Singapore. This is a real treat so we buy a few kilos and are now porked out. The butcher asks where we are from and proudly shows us some Southland frozen lamb in his freezer which really impresses us. Then even more proudly goes to his walk-in chiller and emerges with his own local kill lamb with testicles still in tact. But at least they don't eat dog in Greece !!

Real Sailing Weather - The further north we sailed we experienced some great sailing in gutsy 20/40 knot winds fed by the local wind named 'the Meltemi' that funnels from north to south like a conveyor down the middle of the Aegean Sea. The other island on the must visit list is a request by P that we call at Mykonos for a trip down memory lane, given he was there as a 19 year old 39 years before. What a disappointment..in 1970 it was full of pretty topless lassies whereas today its been taken over by the gay male community who roam the beaches naked. After walking around the picture postcard but 100% tourist white-washed town we planned to stay one night, but as bad luck would have it a gale arrived and had us pinned in the town marina with a swag of other yachts for 5 days as battered yachts limped in and one even came ashore off the marina. This was our first grubby weather for months.

Santorini Anchorage Blues - 7 island stops since arriving in Greece we reach Santorini a day before Alf and Dot and do a recci of the island on a scooter with its major attraction being the villages built atop what is effectively the rim of the crater looking down into the caldera where the cruise ships anchor. The next day we meet them and give them a whistle stop tour of the island in a rental car showing them Musketelle at anchor before returning them to their luxury 2000 passenger ship 'Celebrity Summit'. For us anchoring at Santorini was a real problem because the caldera is so deep, with only limited opportunities to anchor and limited mooring buoys which were occupied. Thus the only suitable anchorage was on the open south side of the island in a shallow strip. You can guess what happened, the prevailing northerly that blows for 28 out of 30 days a month at this time of year decides to come in from the south at dusk and we are pinned on a lee shore with just 1 metre under the keel. It's sea state rather than wind that has us concerned but we think it will abate. At 10pm a local fisherman comes over to say he is moving his boats to the marina (which is too shallow for us) and we should move too. We had already been doing anchor watch and keeping a close eye on the anchor alarm and we knew we were not moving. Our only other option was to sail through the night to our next island but because we are both very tired, we elect to stand watches through the night, rely on the anchor alarm and take bearings off landmarks to ensure we don't move futher ashore. Come daylight we were totally pooped as we up anchor and sail away. We are generally risk averse and over breakfast agree we should have sailed at dusk. P recalled that surprisingly B was not worried so neither was he.

Return to Marmaris - We sail east toward Turkey making overnight stops at 4 islands and then a final stop at Symi to formally clear out of Greece. We take on 300L of cheap diesel (if NZ$2 per litre is cheap) and sail into Marmaris on 21 Sept, the same evening Alf and Dot fly in and B collects them in a cab from Dalaman Airport 90 minutes from Marmaris and they return to stay aboard Musketelle at Yacht Marin.

Family Party Time - We spend 3 days aboard including a night anchored off Marmaris town and celebrate Alfs 80th aboard with Lanson Champagne and also have a great night in the classy Yacht Marine Restaurant. On such occasions a few stanza's of lite poetry never goes amiss....

ODE TO ALF 23 Sep 2009

King Alfred George he was born
Eighty years ago this DAY
Comes all the WAY From Lowry BAY
To imbibe and say CHEERS
with the MUSKETEERS
Right here on Marmaris BAY

Its a right pleasure for B and I
To be looking you, Alf, in the EYE
Having you here for this special DATE
As if we were all at 238

On sombre note we have thoughts
For those no longer HERE
And also for Irene and Phil
Unable to take to the AIR
For tonights special toast
Celebrating the Alf for whom we CARE

We care for this olde FELLOW
Because he's a positive HAPPY
Cheerful and jolly CHAPPY
Never one for the STOUSCH
Prefers the Famous GROUSE
And loves the Limon CELLO

We recall the year O7
The widower comes to FIJI
A first to tropical heaven says HE
Meeting Chief Ronnie was GREAT
Catching fish from dawn to LATE
As we cruised the Blue LAGOON
It was over oh so SOON

Come the hilarious last NIGHT
Getting a bit tipsy and TIGHT
Half slaughtering a bottle of SCOTCH
He declares senior life is only 1st RATE
If you have a good MATE
And in a tear of joy
Announces Dot is that NOTCH

Life is now a piece of CAKE
Backward and FORD
From the Bay to the LAKE
And all above BOARD

If thats not enough
Full of ZEST
No time for REST
With Dot in TOW
They're in Turkey to SHOW
What it takes to celebrate The BIG 80 !!

Istanbul Visit - We left Musketelle at Yacht Marin and all flew up to Istanbul for a 3 day stay in the old town known as the Sultanahmet, close by the Blue Mosque and other major attractions.  We were in Istanbul to view the sights before Alf and Dot commenced their return flight to NZ.  Whilst we were there the city came to a standstill as the last Ottoman noble had died the day before at 97yrs old and as is Muslim practice was being buried in a mosque within 24hrs. There were police everywhere holding back the crowds as a sea of Muslim mufti and clerics surrounded the hearse as it pulled up outside the mosque and the crowd burst into song and some kind of Ottoman salute.

Highlights were visits to the Grand Bazaar, Blue Mosque, Aya Sofya and the home of the Sultans, the Topkapi Palace. The palace was the highlight and we spent a morning there on the huge grounds which overlook the Bosphorus and the Golden Horn. That afternoon Alf and Dot went on a cruise up the Bosphorus while B&P headed for the Turkish Naval Museum on the other side of Istanbul.

Old Charts Challenge History - We were heading for the Turkish Naval Museum to view an ancient map of the world including the East Coast of North America and the southern extremities of South America drawn by the Turkish Admiral Piri Reis pre-dating Columbus and Magellan.  The clear message is these discoverers had this and possibly other charts to aid them. Would you believe the map is no longer housed at the naval museum but in the cartography section at the Topkapi Palace where we had been all morning. But we then learned that you have to be a Prime Minister, a President or an Admiral to view this highly prized piece of chartwork. Oh well so be it...at least we were able to purchase a copy which we will frame for the study. The history behind this chart is absolutely fascinating and full of intrigue with copies getting to the Spanish and Portuguese via Papal involvement in mysterious deals all those years ago. This is a part of history Anglo, French and American historians do not wish to acknowledge because it rewites history and, to put the boot in, the Chinese are there in the background. Since reading '1421' P is on the lookout for literature on ancient cartography to learn more.

Back on the Water - After seeing Alf and Dot off we flew back to Marmaris and are now back at sea cruising north up the Aegean Coast of Turkey discovering new anchorages in the last of the Autumn weather for the month of October and maybe into November before finalising on a marina for winter. We are anchored under the fort at Bodrum as we write this blog.

Luxury Gulet up in Smoke - Before we left Marmaris an ultra modern 120ft long private Gulet caught on fire at 10am in the morning at its private dock 500m from Yacht Marine. The pall of toxic smoke quickly brought a large coastguard vessel to fight the fire and then a chopper with a fire bucket dropping seawater over it. Alas to no avail, by 2pm the huge masts were both toppled and by dusk the hull sank beneath the surface. Reputedly US$20M down the gurgler. P recalled how lucky he was with the big blue boat fire back in 98. Fire at sea is a most feared thing by mariners and never far from our minds on Muskie.

Jun Jul Aug 2009 TURKEY

We are still out there even if we have been most remiss not updating this blog since mid-June. Truth is since arriving in the Med late May life has seemed much more suburban compared with the previous 4 months when we covered big distances sailing from Asia across the Indian Ocean and up Pirate Alley and the Red Sea. Since arriving in Turkey we have felt that there was little to report given these recent months seem more like an extended summer holiday. But a few followers have asked whats up? so someone reads our ramblings which is nice to know. We will break the update into months....

JUNE 2009
Final Weeks in Alluring Alanya

We have Muskie ready to put to sea again after giving her some much deserved TLC during our stay in Alanya which we have come to really enjoy and like. But we still have time to check out things local and a bit of history. We discover the 'Senai' - an area in a Turkish town surrounding a mosque where all the artisans are located much like an industrial area in NZ but literally all the trades and services are located in the one area with whole streets dedicated to the same trade or service much like the bazaar. This structure is historic and dates back to the days of the Sultan when his tax collector could go to one area and collect the patrimony (taxes) in a clean sweep. Every town still has one. We have no trouble finding eager locals to get most boat things made or repaired or to buy almost anything. We have a bit of fun getting the banter going using our English/Turkish dictionary and drawing sketches of jobs and we always get there in the end.

Understanding Turkish Ways - picking up the language and generally immersing in the culture was an early priority as Turkey will be our base through the northern winter until we head west next April. As a kick start we treated ourselves to a handful of books on Turkey to give us a better insight and we have learned much about this very interesting country with a history of chaos largely due to her physical positioning between east and west. Even today there is a major trial going on to establish the involvement by 130 leading right wing politicians, academics, judiciary and high ranking military and police officers in an alleged attempt to overthrow the current government because they are concerned this liberal administration is moving back toward a non-secular state at the expense of the secular model around which the constitution is based and which was implemented by the famous founding figure of modern Turkey, Ataturk.

Ataturk #1 Turk - Mustafa Kemar later named Ataturk came to power after World War 1 and over a 10 year period in the 1920's introduced the current secular state, banned the Fez and other traditional structures as a way of forcing Turkey out of her old corrupt and backward ways to match the modern Europe on her western borders. Incidentally before getting into politics he was their leading General at Gallipoli. Almost every private business and government agency has a photo of a young Ataturk hanging in a prominent place and we see Ataturk monuments everywhere.

JULY 2009

Lycian Coast - Discovering Antiquity

P's sister Deb and Gaz from Grenoble joined us for a week as we commenced our coast hopping westward from Alanya to Kemer, magnificent Cineviz Limani and ancient Olympos before flying home to France. The B&P duet then continued cruising what is known as the Lycian Coast. A coastline marked with literally hundreds of anchorages in bays and inlets under steep rocky mountains. More than a few reminding us of an extremely dry Fiordland. Sailing along coast such as this, rounding headlands and entering bays to be confronted with the outline of ruins, fortifications and burial monuments often without another vessel in sight is a privileged way to experience these treasures.

Ruins, Ruins, Ruins - This is a coastline richly endowed with ruins most of which are still underground and undiscovered. We climb over ruins on hillsides, swim over sunken cities, marvelled at hilltop forts, aquaducts, underfloor heating sytems, elaborate sarcophagi and amphitheatres. The enormity of the quarrying, stone masonry and engineering to achieve these feats is mind boggling. The only conclusion is they must have had an endless supply of very cheap non-union labour. The scale and spread of these ancient civilisations is quite beyond comprehension and whilst these physical remains are impressive and interesting to view one cannot help thinking about the peoples that built and inhabited these places. So now we are borrowing and buying more history books to try to join the dots. It makes the exercise much more meaningful.

Love the Water - We continue to be amazed at the clarity of the waters we have encountered in Turkey and Greece considering these latitudes have hosted civilisations since the beginning of time. Needless to say we commence and end each day with a swim off the back of Musketelle and then a freshwater rinse with the transom shower. This is de-riguer for most cruisers and now that we are in European waters it is not unusual to sight the Germanics and Scandis doing it au-natural. The further west we sailed the more yachts and boats in general we came across. In particular the local Gulet.

Whats a Gulet ? - A Gulet (pronounced as in bullet) is a big, on average 80-100ft long traditionally built Turkish yacht, built of wood, often teak and mostly beautifully varnished, two masts, a big bow sprit and are purpose built for the eastern Med waters they ply. In recent years the design has been updated and some are being built in composites and steel as a sort of local superyacht. They carry mostly European tourists and provide for groups ranging from backpackers to small numbers demanding super luxury, on day and overnight/week long cruises up and down the coast. The more exclusive gulets have stylish names. The package holiday models are variously named Easyjet, Thomas Cook, Love Boat etc and their guests mostly sleep outdoors on foam topper pads on the cabin top under sun covers and because they party to boom boom music to the wee small hours they are invariably asleep when we pass them in the morning. Gulets very rarely sail, mostly using their engine. They have a reputation for being driven by gungho types who barge in to an anchorage and drop their anchor in close proximity to you, usually over your chain. However we are pleased to note that we have not encountered any problems to date.

Anchoring Etiquette - Its not only the Gulets....We have arrived in the equivalent of Manhattan as regards yacht population and the courtesies normally shared between seafarers often reduces to that expected in the big apple. The Germans and French lead the bunch requiring 'courtesy bi-pass operations'. They seem hardwired to anchor on top of you when the whole of the Med is available. We have no sooner had our swim, poured the first sundowner and one of these types will motor in drop his pick then drift back to nearly make love with our bow. When Deb and Gaz were with us we watched a German anchor within 10-15 metres of us by the technique of going semi stern-to the wind then motoring forward over the anchor and chain ending up well within our swing circle. At 1.00 in the morning he then expressed the view that we had dragged (we hadn't) and he declined to relocate causing us to have to do so. We have crossed him off our Christmas card list.

Mediterranean Climate - The thing about this part of the Med and Aegean is that the summer months are so settled you can guarantee cloudless sunny days from mid May until late September with temps in the 30's during the day and 20's at night. Neither of us have ever experienced such settled weather for so long, we now know what a Mediterranean climate is.

AUGUST 2009
Deep in Tourist Land - Closer to Hell than Heaven

We reached Marmaris a 110% tourist town on a big land enclosed bay with every type of nautical play activity on the water, on the beach and in the sky during the day followed by dining, dancing, lightshows and laser sky writing advertising overhead topped off by turbo sound boom boom music until 5am each morning !! A weird kind of continuous Eurovision Techno Song Contest day and night with mostly overweight half naked Brits proudly wandering around exhibiting tattoo and piecing ehanced bodies taking cellphone cam pics of each other for their Facebook websites !! Brit holidaymakers make up the majority of the visitors and there are so many Brit bars and restaurants everywhere it feels like Blackpool. We are certainly not here for this !!

Off the tourist strip there is a large number of marine chandlery and yacht service operators because Marmaris hosts 5 marinas and there is a large fleet of Gulets based here too. The reason we have come to Marmaris is to checkout the marina situation as a base to layover for winter, with our main interest being the biggest marina in Turkey the 2000+ boat capacity Yacht Marin Marmaris (http://www.yachtmarin.com/). We checked Musketelle into Yacht Marin to get the feel of the place, stayed a couple of nights, negotiated a winter rate and made a tentative booking from 01 November. We are impressed with the place but there is a definite lack of interest and friendliness by staff and we left with the idea that we will keep looking for other options and may even return to Alanya and the small friendly little marina that was such a neat introduction to Turkey for us. We have a couple of months to cruise further north to find something.

Marinas at a Price - The explosive growth in Turkish tourism over the last 20 years is largely waterbased and Turkey has replaced Spain as the cheap high volume destination. There is a huge captive market on Turkeys doorstep and the advent of the budget no-frills airlines are flying people in from all over Europe and the old Soviet states by the millions. Apart from price the attraction is a stable summer climate with clear cloudless sunny days for 5 months. The Gulet charter business is only one aspect of the boating business. The other is the charter yacht business and the private sailing community which are both enormous. They all need secure berths. The Turkish central government invested heavily in building major breakwaters along the Aegean coast and has then sought private investment partners to develop marinas behind these breakwaters. There are currently 30 major marinas in Turkey today with another ten due to open in the next few years. Some of these marinas are huge with wet berths for up to 1000 vessels and hardstanding for another 1000. Some are world class with hotels, helipads, swimming pools, restaurants, bars, library, wifi and all services. As a consequence of increased demand, prices to berth at these marinas is rocketing and fast approaching other overpriced Med countries. For a yacht our size 50-70 Euro (50 Euro is roughly NZ$100) or more per night is the casual rate at some.

Needless to say we anchor wherever we can even with the aforementioned ettiquette issues. We reason in a marina we are only renting water space and its the same water just a different spot. However come what may we will need a marina spot for the coming northern winter Nov/Mar as the gales in the Med can be vicious so we are using the next few months on the lookout for a suitable wintering over spot at the right price.

May 2009 Alanya Turkey

We reach Alanya Turkey 36.33N  31.57E

Pure sailing in the azure blue Mediterranean was a breeze after the testy Red Sea as we took three days to sail north from Port Said passing 50 miles to the west of Cyprus to make landfall in Turkey at Alanya. Arriving at dawn we first caught glimpses of high snow capped peaks to the north and as we closed on the coast we came up to a magnificent ancient Roman fort built on a prominent headland. As we got closer modern buildings on the beachfront came in to view either side of the headland as far as the eye could see.

Alanya is a tourist town basking in the Mediterranean early summer sun and we have already been here a month immersing in C3….culture, cuisine and climate. The sun has not stopped shining and the thermometer sits on 30c plus.

Our cultural highlight was a night at the opera Aida, outdoors under the stars in a 2000 year old Roman amphitheatre, Aspendos, near the ancient Roman built town of Side, where Mark Antony and Cleopatra reputedly honeymooned. Stunning venue and first class Ankara State Opera presentation, even if live horses were used instead of elephants, as in the original production.

Turkish cuisine gets our thumbs up with the fresh seasonal fruit and vegetables being a highlight, not to mention the Turkish delight ! As the waiters earn commission on diners served the atmosphere is entertaining too, they are partial to impromptu dancing around the restaurants, if not on the tables like their Greek counterparts.

Let us assure you it has not all been C3. On arrival we checked in to a brand new marina, Alanya Marina, 3km west of the town and still very much under construction. So much so that fresh water is only on tap 2 hours each day, the shore power system is prone to surges and decidedly unstable, the showers sometimes stop just as you soap up and one breezy afternoon our end of the pontoon came adrift, boats and all!. Hence they are not charging us to be here.

A photo from the Alanya Marina website pre the pontoons going in but shows the great view across the bay towards the town.

The hardstand area is however working well and they have a brand new 100 ton travelift with attractive rates for liftout, so as Muskies waterline was looking a bit furry with tropical marine growth we elected to pull her out for her annual bottom job. We came out for 10 days and spent the entire time working from dawn to dusk. We removed each of our 12 seacock thruhulls and serviced them, we sanded back the bottom, applied a new seal coat primer and then two coats of Hempel antifouling paint. Sanded and polished the prop shaft and Maxprop and applied a new etch prime and topcoat system that we are hopeful will hold the marine growth at bay better than the last product we used. A cut and polish of the topsides paint and she was looking good as we returned to the water.

Musketelle out

Musketelle in, note the change of bottom colour.

We will stay here in Alanya Marina until the first week of July finishing odd jobs that require attention before heading west day hopping along the Turkish coast from anchorage to anchorage rather than stopping in marinas.

We feel we have arrived in Europe even if Turkey is decidedly not Europe. We have both been to Turkey previously and from initial impressions it seems to have leapfrogged forward with the economy showing no obvious signs of recession, but being allegedly the 17th largest economy in the world, it’s a big robust engine.

Although a Muslim country, they seem to mesh capitalism with religion in a much more relaxed and successful way than the Muslim countries we have recently visited. We feel at ease and comfortable here, so far.

Indeed so comfortable that we attracted a neighbouring cruiser cat, Eddie (or possibly Teddy) from the German yacht eXcellente

We expect to be cruising around Greek and Turkish waters until next year and are currently making plans to winter over in this region as this is about as far south as one can get from the icy blasts of the northern winter which will be our first for three years.

We hope to do some extensive land travel in the region to experience among other things Ephesus, whirling dirvishes, camel wrestling and of course Gallipoli.

Tied up in Alanya B&P

May 2009 Egypt.... Part II

To the Suez Canal

After 36 hours plugging into headwinds avoiding shipping on the edge of the shipping lane and keeping clear of oil platforms we arrive at the top of the Gulf of Suez at midnight to join the queue of other 'ships' communicating by radio with Suez Port Control and get directed to moor at the Suez Yacht Club.
Picked up mooring in the dark at 3.00 am and collapsed into the bunk only to be woken with a rap on the hull at 8.00am by the port agents to set in motion our canal transit documentation and measuring appointment for later that day.

Canal Measuring Games

The morning proceeded to heat like an oven in contrast to the previous few days.A nice young chap came to the boat at 10am to commence the measuring game which results in calculations that estimate the cargo carrying capacity of the vessel as the means by which the canal authority charges for a transit.
The fact that as a pleasure vessel we don't carry freight is immaterial, this is the way it is, so play the game. Amongst cruisers there is widespread concern at the resulting overcharging because they measure from the bottom of the keel and not the bottom of the hull. The closer we got to Suez cruisers have been comparing anticipated rates that will be charged and we were expecting about USD$350 ++ based on our deep 2.70m keel draught.   P decides this official obfuscation is not on and lets said measurer know there is a 'present' for him pending, and whacko he conveniently uses the hull draught figure not the keel and we get charged just USD$138. We finally beat Egypt by playing the time honoured B&C game too!!

Pilot Games

5.00am next morning our official pilot by the name of Atea comes aboard and we are immediately off in the dawn light on the 40 mile hop up the canal to the halfway point at Ismailia where we intend stopping and going off to visit Cairo, the Pyramids and lower Egypt.

We have a quiet and uneventful motor with Atea who is very courteous having extracted his first 'gift' a packet of cigarettes (especially purchased as we don't smoke) within 5 minutes of departure as he had conveniently left his at home. Early in the piece he asked the non commital B if he would get a nice gift but did not raise the subject again until 15 minutes out of Ismailia when he asked P if there is a 'gift for pilot' in a way that suggests the pilot is a third person, presumably so it doesn't come across as a direct demand. We tell him we will give it to him in an envelope when he steps off.

Arrival Games

The arrival at Ismailia Yacht Club is still a few minutes off and what was about to unfold ended like we might have been seeking medical assistance to get him off..... Apart from one other yacht with no one on board the marina is cruiser free. As we arrive we commence reversing in to tie up Med-Style to the dock with P on the
helm and B on bow attaching the bow line to the outer bouy, with Atea twiddling his fingers and itching for the gift and to get off.  Next minute all hell lets loose with three guys on a nearby wharf yelling at us in Egyptian and Atea initially ignoring them but eventually responding as voices started to rise.
They gesticulate we must anchor off but we say no as we want the security of being alongside when we are away in Cairo.  Next the three guys are jumping into an official looking motor boat and commence motoring over to have this now yelling match face to face with our man Atea who is now really starting to earn his pilot fee. The boat approaches our bow at speed and is about to crunch us when B now gets into the act with fender in hand giving her best assertive plain English interpretation of 'move away and understand we are going to tie up to the dock'.

Muslim men cannot handle a woman like this in full flight so they reconcentrate their efforts on Atea who by now is jumping up and down on the foredeck with the look of a major coronary explosion on his face, screaming at these guys and at the same time talking to the harbourmaster on his cellphone. Motor boat duly
backs off, the screaming subsides and we stay put. Throughout P has remained at the helm controlling Muskie as the stern lines were still not fast. The security guard on the dock had been refusing to let us tie up and then when we do comes over and asks for a present of a pack of cigarettes. We establish the ground rules - "no". The whole exrcise had been real theatre that only Egypt can deliver. On-lookers sort of ignored it as if its an everyday occurrence.

No sooner are we tied up the mercury hits 40c and then at dusk a sand storm blows through at gale force dropping the temperature but is thankfully all over after 30 minutes. B is not at all happy with the goings on and thinks we should hi-tail it to Port Said and out of Egypt but P says lets sleep on it and not feel pressured. We do and next morning we establish the furore was all about 'Swine Flu'. Without establishing where we had come from or how long we had been in Egypt these misinformed, self-appointed gatekeepers assumed, being foreigners, we had arrived directly from overseas and may be a risk. This is a country that in a panic response has apparently slaughtered all it pigs in the last three weeks upsetting the non-Muslim pig eating and keeping minority.

Fuel Games

We spend the next day topping up the fuel tanks by ferrying diesel in 20 litre jerry cans at 100 litres a time from a nearby petrol station because there is no fueling service at this yacht club. The incentive is that we need fuel plus it costs only USD19 cents a litre compared to 10 times that in Turkey. The disincentive, apart from physically having to lug it about 250 metres from the taxi to the boat, is the B&C shenanigans at the security gate.

As the Ismailia Yacht Club is inside the canal zone it is in international waters so you have to carry your passport and clear in and out with Immigration. We had heard from previous cruisers that the Immigration security guards on the gate would not let fuel bearing cruisers in or out without baksheesh being paid, and with fuel movements by cruisers obviously being their major source of illicit income the amount of baksheesh being demanded would increase with each load. And we are not talking small baksheesh...try 4 to 5 times the value of the fuel !!

Well, forewarned is forearmed, Musketelles skipper simply stood his ground and uttered that universally understood word - "no". Admittedly he had to utter this several times including when summoned by the Head of Security and told it would be a good idea to pay a gift to the "good men on the gate". Which signalled he was also head of the scam. But P showed strong presence of mind and stuck with "no" even though the Head was holding our passports and looking like he did not intend giving them back. However he had no answer when P simply held out his hand and said "passports please".

Cairo, Pyramids and Bazaar

Egypt is not on everyone's must visit travel radar. We included ourselves in this category but we are really pleased we have made the effort on this voyage.
We have achieved what we planned and quite some as we have been captivated by the ancient history. Our latest 2 day land tour to Cairo has been a nice conclusion to our month in Egypt. Lets tell you about it....

We went in company with Californians, Marvin and Ruth from 'Toucan Tango' and travelled the 120km from Ismailia to Cairo by train at 6:45 am. The train was filthy inside and out (and we were in the most expensive seats - all of Egyptian 13 pounds about USD$2.30). P had to take his shoe off to kill a cockroach that was
striding menacingly towards B along the carriage wall.

On arrival in Cairo we caught the metro (underground) direct to a recommended hotel, the Hotel House Ismailia - cheap, nondescript, clean, perfect for a night or two and located right over the metro in the center of the city overlooking the Nile and within walking distance of the museum.

By midday we were on the outskirts of Cairo at Giza oggling at the Pyramids and other attractions after declining a hard sell for a camel, horse or carriage tour. One of the highlights at Giza was a huge 60 metre long boat, 4500 years old !!. The mummified Pharaohs were conveyed by barques rowed by 20 men down the Nile to Giza to their final resting place within the pyramid. The barque that carried them on this last journey was then dismantled and buried in a deep pit beside the pyramid to provide transport for the pharaoh to the next world. The one we viewed was that of the Pharaoh Cheops. Made of the finest Lebanese Cedar
timber, it was only discovered in 1954 and carefully and painstakingly reassembled over the next 20 years.

Back in Cairo (after one small bus, one ordinary bus and one metro) we rested then headed for the Ramses Hilton with the intention of watching the sunset from the 'Windows on the World' lounge on the 36th floor, reputedly one of the must do's in this city. Also since reading '1421 The Year China Discovered the World'  P was wanting to view from the Hilton the still faintly identifiable path of the first canal (100ft wide x 40ft deep) linking the Red Sea and the Nile dating from 600BC!!! 2700 years before the current canal.
We only have one night in Cairo and as luck would have it the lounge was closed for a private function. Tough. However we treated ourselves to a very good meal in the cafe in the Hilton - nicest lamb chops we have had for ages. We walked back to the hotel through the Cairo traffic, taking our lives in our hands at each intersection. Pedestrian crossings have no meaning in Cairo nor is a speed limit apparent. As Ruth said, it was like the Running of the Bulls!

Next morning we visited the highly respected Cairo Museum, opened in 1854 and housing the most enormous array of Egyptian antiquity including Tutankhamon's stunningly beautiful and intricate treasure trove. The Tut excavations uncovered literally thousands of pieces of his personal accoutrements including his clothing and footwear, bed and furniture, artwork and pottery, throne and crown, chariot and fighting bows, models of his homes and boats, jars containing his organs, even remains of his stillborn children etc etc, all left stacked around his mummy, for use in the afterlife. The actual mummified body was enclosed in the smallest inner solid gold sacophagus (case) that had his mummified body lying on its back with arms crossed on chest and finally the famous gold face mask was then placed over the head. The top lid of this first asacophagus was then wired closed and another 3 wooden gold plated sacophagus each slightly larger were fitted clam like to leave a larger than life godlike image the young King represented. The complete sacophagus was then placed in a series of 4 elaborately decorated and gold leaf sheathed shrines (very similar to a common shipping container) that fit into each other with 1cm to spare. Each was built in kitset form and carried down into the underground tomb and reassembled around the sacophagus. The outer shrine is literally the size of a 20ft shipping container and has similar end opening doors. These 4 huge shrines are all on display in the Cairo Museum. Having visited Tuts tomb in Luxor, we were able to put it all in context.

In the afternoon we visited Al-Ghoury the home of Khan el Khalili the famous bazaar flanked by 25 mosques and a massive Islamic University before returning by bus to Ismailia by dusk and the comfort of Musketelle, sort of  Egypted out.

Out of Egypt

Spent the next day provisioning for our passage north up the remaining 40 miles of the canal to Port Said and out of Egypt. At 5am the next morning we were off with pilot Mohammed. He requested and got his first Pepsi at 6am and must have thought he was onto a winner because next minute....could he have a cap, my sunglasses etc etc. He was not impressed when were non-responsive to his calls for this that and the other
so to pass the time we settled down with a geography lesson and played him some Maori music to remove the image he had that we were Dutch from Zealand.
As luck would have it he got a bigger than normal 'present' getting all our residual Egyptian cash. On arrival at Port Said it was a beaming Mohammed that alighted onto the canal pilot boat that collected him direct from Musketelle and without stopping we too were also very happy as we popped out into the Med and the next phase of our meanders.

B&P@SEA

May 2009 Egypt..... Part 1

We apologise, we are getting worse writing these blogs, its a month since we last tickled the keyboard. Our only excuse is we have been thoroughly captivated immersing ourselves in country #16 on our meanders.... . Egypt, land of Antiquity, Pharaohs, Tombs, Pyramids, Temples and ancient civilizations beyond any simple measure of comprehension to mere mortal sailors.
In contrast Sailing north up the Red Sea into Egyptian waters from Sudan we reached a spot off the Egyptian coast commonly called Dolphin Reef where as the name implies dolphins abound.

Pic Dolphin Reef

The reef is mostly submerged at both high and low tide and as we sailed towards the reef all we could see was a flotilla of large and small boats anchored as if on a painted ocean. As we got closer the outline of the surrounding reefs just under or just breaking the surface became clearer and we found our way through to

anchor in flat water in the center of a very big beautiful white sand bottomed lagoon.

We were here solely to swim with the pods of dolphins that inhabit the reef and planned an overnight stop and swim. We departed 5 days later !! as the place just grew on us with the snorkelling and swimming with the dolphins just such a treat. Who does not like dolphins... they are amongst the prettiest sleekest mammals so we could not help but dive in whenever we could to join them. Each morning they would return to the lagoon following their evening at sea feeding outside the reef. They seemingly enjoyed the company of humans and allowed us to swim among them freely and they among us. It was one of those special experiences. One cruise yacht stayed 3 weeks.

Big white 80/120ft long white mini cruisers carrying 15/30 mostly European divers and snorkellers would anchor for 2/4 days and the dolphins seemed more than happy with this endless stream of human invaders. On arrival we anchored near a particularly flash white cruise boat and P flippantly suggested we could enquire if we could buy dinner aboard to give B a break. Would you believe the next day they came across and invited us to come over that evening for sundowners. Turns out the guests were all French with one token Brit couple, all living in Monaco and Nice and they ask us to stay for dinner.

Next day we joined them and their resident dolphin expert for dolphin swimming including lessons in dolphin etiquette to maximise the experience. We returned the hospitality with B making morning tea and a big bake of pikelets with jam & uht cream which went down a treat.

Med Moored Port Ghalib

We sailed from Dolphin Reef to Port Ghalib. The wind was continuously strong from the NNW, the direction we were going, and the sea state typical Red Sea - short big swells that suddenly slow the boat. Motoring rather than sailing means bashing into these winds and seas. Sailing means a smoother ride (sort of) but
involves tacking out towards the middle and then back in, large zig zags as shown by the track on the chartplotter, so takes twice as long and twice the distance.

We formally cleared into Egypt at Port Ghalib and had our first taste of modernity for some months at this massive new resort and marina development on the southern Red Sea coast of Egypt. This place is on a marsa (inlet) on the edge of the desert with its own international airport handling wide body jets from

all over Europe and even the Philippine Presidential jet flew in whilst we were there. They have built their own power station, sewage treatment and salt to fresh desalination plant so its totally self sufficient. It also sports it's own wrecked yacht at the entrance to the marina, a German who came in at night with no engine in 25 knots of wind and now is arguing over the huge fine the authorities wish to impose on him for damaging the reef.

A sad expensive tale

Stage one of five already includes 4 major hotels and a traditional Egyptian Souk (shopping bazaar) plus Eastern and Western restaurants on a waterfront boulevard setting around the marsa. Sun, sea and diving are the drawcards but it was not anywhere near as busy as it should have been. Global meltdown is clearly affecting everyone everywhere. The whole complex is owned by one very very wealthy Kuwaiti Arab, one of 10 he is developing throughout Africa and the Middle East. So this is where all those extra petro dollars are going when we fill the tank.

We berthed on the main boulevard Med style with the stern onto the dock and the bow connected to a mooring. For the first time since Thailand we connected up to power and water and were able to run all our systems including the washing machine. No wonder 8 days flew by even if for the last 3 we were both grounded well and truly with some sort of Egyptian tummy eruption....to put it mildly. We feel lucky to have got through Indo, Asia, Sri Lanka and Yemen etc bug free only to be flattened in Egypt.

Hurghada

Entering Hurghada Marina 

We elected to do an overnight motoring hop to Hurghada even though the wind and waves were not fun. Hurghada is the center of the Egyptian dive industry which is simply huge and based around the large number of islands and reefs in the crystal clear waters of the Red Sea adjacent to this port. As a consequence there are a large number of hotels and a tourist shopping and services center that is entertaining to walk around particularly of an evening.
With Europeans being the customer base everything is open until the wee small hours. Parked up in a good marina with good security we decide this is the spot to leave Muskie for some eagerly awaited land travel.

Land Tour Observations

Time for immersing in the ancient Egyptian culture with a land trip to visit the upper Nile River Valley, Luxor, Valley of the Kings and Tuts Tomb etc etc. We elected to take a local air-con bus 250km inland to Luxor and spend a few nights at the recommended 3 star Hotel Emilio with a splendid rooftop pool and outdoor restaurant overlooking Luxor Temple, the Nile and the Valley of Kings in the distance. Even the bus trip through coastal mountains and desert to the brilliantly fertile plains beside the Nile was a visual treat.

It was harvest time in the fields and the methods are still very traditional with those ever present hard working little donkeys popular and clearly still efficient. You can use a donkey all day in the fields then use it to trot into the village in the evening or go shopping. You don't need to worry about fuel spikes, you don't need to pay registration or a licence to ride and all ages can take the reins. We even saw five year olds in control. Since Yemen we've been getting to like donkeys!!! but must admit they would not cut it on the Auckland

Harbour Bridge or going up the Ngauranga Gorge.

The use of irrigation canals to spread the Nile waters is very impressive and probably thousands of years old. The land use is comprehensive with every fruit and vegetable you can think of being grown. We saw wheat barley, lucerne, sugarcane, strawberries, grapefruit, kiwifruit, peppers, nuts etc. They have a dairy industry and even a good wine industry and its not a bad drop. In preparation for Europe's renowned prices we have stocked up on some pleasant whites and rose plus their beer, Sakara Gold and Stella is as good as the best.

Everythings BC

BC Definition 1: Bribery & Corruption

So far Egypt and her people have been more pleasant than we were expecting despite the B&C. Everything here is B&C for tourists and locals. Egypt is a country that created civilisation as we know it along with so many discoveries and firsts for humanity, yet Egypt is sort of still back there at the back of the pack.

If in doubt ask a taxi driver - we hired a taxi driver for the day to take us out to the Valley of the Kings and we very respectfully asked him about baksheesh. Over lunch in a restaurant he lowered his voice and said that bribes & corruption are endemic at all levels for everyone and hold Egypt back.

Relating to our travels he said simply getting a passport, opening a bank account, wanting to transfer money in or out or just travelling overseas would involve questions from the authorities and a necessary "gift". Another example, the best students don't necessarily get to study or become academics or professionals. Degrees or certificates can be "acquired" by payment of a "gift" at the end of the study period, even if the student has not passed the course.
Others told us that wages in Egypt are so low that baksheesh is accepted as the standard way to upsize earnings.....puts the Western concept of minimum wage laws into context!!.

It was disconcerting to wander around town or tourist attractions and not be able to speak to a local as even making pleasant conversation or asking a simple question would result in the hand being held out with the request for a tip or gift. Even eye contact would get the frenzy started.

Buying things/services (even a taxi ride in horse and cart) generates some real theatre as prices are negotiated and baksheesh wheedled out of you. They want your money and stop at nothing trying it on...they are masters at it but with our exchange rate we have to be firm. We often say "not american" and they do a double take and back off.

BC Definition 2: Before Christ

At anything up to 5000 + years old Ancient Egyptian culture is more BC than AD. That's hard to come to grips with but when walking around above and below ground you soon get to feel that you are treading on special ground. The monuments and temples and tombs with their story carving artwork and hieroglyphics in stone are truly impressive and we were most impressed by the colorful painted stone some of which is still vivid if out of the direct sunlight. The peak of the Pharaohs and their Priests power was 2000 years BC.








You've got to marvel at it all.... for us Tutankamon's Tomb and his actual mummified body and Hatshepsut's Temple were highlights in the Valley of the Kings, whilst the mammoth Karnak Temples and the Museums in Luxor were highlights in town. We visited Karnak both at night for a spectacular 'Light and Sound' show among the ruins and then in the day. The interesting thing about the ruins is that clearly the Pharaohs and Kings and Queens built over the top or around their predecessors in an effort to honour their gods and in some cases even plundered their forebears tombs to enhance their own.


All in all a pretty self-idolising lot we thought. Cremation sounds much fairer and better for the planet. War and looting has sadly taken its toll on many treasures and some major monuments or bits thereof have found their way around the world. Can't help but think the decent thing would be for those to be returned to Egypt.



Today

We have left Hurghada and are currently at anchor at Bluff Point 27.40N 33.48E at the top of the Red Sea at the entrance to the Gulf of Suez waiting for the 30 knot breeze and wave patterns to drop before slipping the 150 miles north to Port Suez to enter the southern end of the Suez Canal. So far we have been here 2 nights. Its pretty cool too, we have put on two T-shirts in the evening and we are asking ourselves why we are heading further north to winter in Europe.

Its only mid May and we feel like we have really achieved some mileage under the keel compared with last year as we measure crossing the Indian Ocean, the pirate infested Gulf of Aden and now the Red Sea as milestones.  We plan to stop halfway through the canal for a few days at Ismailia and go off to do Cairo and the Pyramids. The Luxor visit has really got the juices going and we have purchased a few books to enhance the knowledge. We will be real Egyptologists when we slip out the northern end of the canal into the Med.

mailto:P@SEA