Not So Fast

When we wrote in April, we were sad to be leaving Turkey, but
excited about our plans to leave the Aegean and sail the Ionian
Sea. Not so fast.

We have been in Marmaris Turkey since April 25, mostly on the
hard. On the hard is awful. The boat is propped up and one goes
up and down the ladder lashed to the stantions many times a day.
The red bucket is once again called into action.

We are here because four hours from Marmaris, scene of last year's
many techinical triumphs, we were taking on water. The reasons
for this are too technical to go into here and not at all worthwhile
for the non yachties on this list, but our problems have finally
been once again solved by Ilhan Demir's team at a cost not exceeding
the national debt of Poland.

While we were waiting for parts from America, we took a three
day beak and drove to Ankara and Pamukkale, two places were were
sorry not to have seen. Here was our chance. We thoroughly enjoyed
Ankara, a city with great energy, and the beautiful new Museum
of Anatolian Civilizations completed the picture for us of the
importance of Turkey in the development of civilization.

The travertines at Pamukkale are quite spectacular, although
the water had been turned off, but the best thing about that
visit was our stay at a charming guest house with song birds,
flowers, sun and no worries.

When we arrived back at the boatyard, our boat was missing, but
in the end we found her so no harm done. We also found more problems
connected to the original failure, so our time in Marmaris extended.

It was getting too late to stick to our original plan of taking
Horizons to Corfu to meet up with our time share yacht charter
there.

(The time share is a busman's holiday we bought in 2002. Every
other year we get a cabin on a catamaran and the crew cooks and
cleans and fixes and sails us to areas where they have local
knowlege. Delightful!)

So, with our boat finally back in the water at Marmaris, we took
off to see Crete in the south Aegean and Corfu in the N. Ionian
by ferry and air.

Since it was not yet the season, we were able to find clean rooms
with beautiful views, including one in a restored Venetian manor
overlooking the harbor at Hania Crete, for little money. We also
took a beautiful walk through the gorge at Zakros to end up at
a Minoan city excavation and our room overlooking the bay there.


We loved Crete. The people there are much mellower than in the
Aegean and the scenery is green and mostly unspoiled. Quite a
difference from the starkness of the Aegean islands or the boldness
of the Turkish coast.

Now, lest you think we had finally escaped boat worries, the
morning we were leaving Marmaris Jack asked Ilhan to check out
a problem he had discovered after our trial sail the day before.
We gave Ilhan the key and authorization to do whatever was necessary.
The problem turned out to be caused by the last piece in the
gearbox, under the engine. A big problem. Good news: it was fixed
when we got back and we didn't have to live in the mess and heat.

So, it is now almost two months since our last email. We have
covered a lot of territory by air and ferry, but Horizons has
not gone far. Our plans are now exceedingly flexible, but we
are still hoping to get to Italy by October.