Well so much has happened since the last update.  It was too sad to write about really.  We left Cowrie to her new owners on 24th October.  It was so difficult to leave we couldn't look behind us.  Lots of friends waved us off and it was imposible to believe that we wouldn't be back.  It feels as though we've only come home for a visit.  But time moves on and the kids need to go to school so the choice was made.

Thank you to all our friends who have sent us christmas messages from Turkey and a far our thoughts are with you daily.  We'll be back....

 

Here in the Uk we've relocated to Suffolk and everything is coming together.  After a stressful school appeal we have Tom into one of the best state secondary schools in the country and George in a local primary school.  we are renting a brand new house: 5 Library Mews, Rendlesham, Suffolk, IP12 2BF for anyone who's lost touch with us.  We have also (nearly) bought a house in Woodbridge which is a Barton special i.e. a bit of a wreck that needs doing up.

It's lovely to be by the sea and to be able to see the tide come and go and to watch the wading birds feeding at low water.  Last night we went into town to an open air carol service.  There must have been over 500 people round the christmas tree.  Next year we'll be able to walk down from the new house.

It won't be long before we are afloat again. A new boat, a new name but for now I'll sign off.

September has been eventful.  When I last wrote we had sold Cowrie to a lovely couple from the UK who we knew would look after her well.  This was not however to be as due to ill health the sale could not continue.  We contacted a broker to get the sale up and running again and were amazed to receive a call the next morning to ask if we could do a viewing.  The long and short is that Cowrie was sold again, this time to a German man called Heinz.  Sadly for us this means that we have to leave Turkey in October and head back to the sunny UK.

 

After we’d recovered from the unaccustomed stress we set off for a final cruise.

We planned to visit two anchorages on the Turkish coast but once out of the heads we decided to change our plans and sail to Rhodes.  Up with the Greek flag and onto a much better sailing angle.

Mandraki harbour was the usual chaos.  Yacht groups tying off berths which they wanted to keep for paying super yachts who will pay a 100 euro back hander for the privilege.  We managed to squeeze into the last remaining space.  Our reason for being here was that we’d had little success in finding a way to ship our belongings home from Turkey.  Amazingly the Greek post office is the cheapest way to do it despite quotes from shipping companies.  We gathered together boxes from skips and fumigated them for cockroaches.  120 kilos of books, saucepans, lego and K-nex were posted to Macclesfield.  We’d sold our RIB but a neighbourly boat let us use their tender to take the parcels across to the other quay and to the post office.  After a stock up of wine and beer we sailed back to Turkey.  Another flag change. 

 

We spent the night in Bozuk Buku with a yacht called Concerto who did the EMYR with us.  It’s rare to find yourself in an anchorage with someone you don’t know!

A forecast for high winds sent us into the sheltered harbour of Bozburun where we met back up with our friends from Full Flight who we began the season with.  The wind didn’t quite materialise so we sailed down to Ohaniye (this was where we joined the EMYR last May) and spent three pleasant nights at anchor, barbecuing, doing school and sailing the Optimist.  We had borrowed a foldable dinghy from a Frenchman called Alain.  It was a strange, wobbly, coracle.  I think he got the better deal with our RIB.  The sea is still warm but as the air in now slightly cooler we didn’t swim.  Mark went underneath the boat to scrape a few barnacles off the bottom but the cross wind was quite chilly.  We heard that another Yacht Marine boat were in this anchorage a couple of weeks ago and a mini tornado blew through, knocking the boat flat and ripping off their solar panels.

Roam II arrived and we all sailed to Greek Symi (yes, another flag change).  It was lovely to see the town again.  In the harbour was Hannah from the EMYR and Freya and Simba from Yacht marine.  Great to catch up and a good crowd for drinks.  Simba have two dogs and they drive out to Turkey each season.  They very kindly offered to take some of our stuff back.  We quickly filled two large holdalls and passed them over with Tom’s guitar and George’s keyboard.  This was fantastic as we now should make it home within our baggage allowance.

We ate lots of pork chops, ham pizzas and stocked up on salami before our final voyage to Marmaris.

 

Our last passage was not without incident.  It was forecast to be SE2 which meant motoring to windward in a gentle breeze.  When we got out there it was blowing ESE 6 with a constant wind speed of 25 plus knots and gusts over 35 knots.  We tried to sail as close to the wind as we could but even with two reefs in the foresail we had the lee rail under and items were launching themselves over the tops of the cupboard fiddles.  The kids weren’t impressed.  It began to rain and the sea was bouncy.  Mark shouted over the wind, ‘Are you sure you want to sail round the UK?’

We swung into Bozuk Buku to regroup.  A quick lunch and a call to mum for the latest forecast.  Tom and I took stugeron and we headed back out.  After an hour the wind decreased and we continued to Marmaris.  We were glad to arrive and got a good berth on Charlie pontoon in the old harbour.  It was lovely to have the boat still and have no motion after such a bouncy day.  Pork ribs and red wine were greatly enjoyed.

We are now spending time waiting for the boat survey on the 14^th and keeping up with school.  Each day more of the winter live a boards arrive and we are able to see old friends.

Breaking news!

 

We’ve had a busy few weeks aboard. As we entered our second year afloat we began to think of how we would like to spend our final year. After ruling out the Atlantic Crossing due to time constraints we decided to put Cowrie on the market as it might take a year to sell her. Our thoughts were that we’d like to sail the French canals and Cowrie is too big also she’s a Med boat and would sell better out here. If we sold Cowrie we’d buy a smaller boat and sail home.

A Moroccan man was coming to look at her and Mark was busy cleaning (I was in the UK) when an English couple who were chartering a boat came down the pontoon and asked to have a look having seen the For Sale sign which Mark had put up. One week later we were looking at homelessness!

However, Bob and Jacqueline are a lovely couple and Cowrie will take good care of them. We remain aboard her until December where we are putting phase 2 of our cruising plan into operation.

We are coming home to sort out houses etc and will buy a new boat. In the spring we set off for a circumnavigation……….of the UK. Yes we miss the tides and the rain. If you fancy doing a leg with us or eating fish and chips on a quayside near you, let us know.

 

Other News

Becky (niece) has been out for a visit. Tom and George were captured for a hair cut. Tom and George met Charlie and Rosaline from the uk and built a wigwam.

We sailed to Ekincik (known as Egg and Chips) and then on the Yacht Marine. We have met up with old friends and are resting up for a few days before heading to Simi due to a white wine crisis.

 

As England gears up for the bank holiday weekend we remain in Gocek bay. The temperature is still near to 40 each day and nights are sticky. After my sister Sarah came out to visit I flew home for a cool down. It was great to wear jeans and a sweat shirt and to see Mum and Dad. I flew back out with my niece Becky and we are showing her the familiar sights. In a week or two we will be back on the move heading north through Turkey into Greece. Mark would have moved sooner but his crew rebelled. The winds are stronger in the north of the area and there are more Katabatic winds at night. The Meltemi season will soon be ending and with that hopefully the temperatures will decrease and school will begin.

For the next few weeks we are enjoying going nowhere fast. The bay is about 15 miles long and is enclosed by many islands. Fethiye is at one end, we go here once a week to water up and top up the batteries at Hotel Plaza. Internet and pool also.  Gocek is 10 miles across the bay and we can stock up with food every 3 days or so which is as long as the fridge can store fresh meat. Solar panels would solve this. Maybe next time? Boynuz Buku is the next bay down. Very sheltered and nice for a swim and a peaceful, safe anchorage. The kids have built stone jetty there. (Still under construction. Due for completion 2009.  Planning permission not granted.) At the bottom are a series of popular bays and good snorkelling. We have discovered ‘Water bay’. The water boats and the Gullets water up here. After very precarious mooring we went on the make shift water boat jetty (bashed together steel and floor boards) and used the 3 inch wide fresh water hose. Photos show us showering and bathing the kids in the anchor locker. Great for washing towels too.

A friend or Mark’s has been out to see us and sister Sarah is due in 4 days, followed by niece Becky. Tom can’t wait for his X box to arrive with Sarah. It was so hot yesterday that on the way back from the shop I went into the marina hairdresser and had my hair chopped off. Much cooler but not sure it was such a good idea. No pictures yet, sorry

Kastellorizon

A quick trip to a Greek island for bacon. Kastellorizon is only 2.5km from Turkey but remains Greek. Apparently run badly by the Italians from 1922 many islanders emigrated to Oz. Strange to hear so many Australian voices in a Greek village as many come on visits to see where their grandparents lived. A beautiful harbour with clean, clear water. Only the harbour front is inhabited but many buildings are being renovated. We travelled on to Kalkan on the Turkish coast the next day.

 

Katabatic Wind

We’ve read about them and heard about them but so far not experienced them.

By day you anchor in some idyllic spot in the lee of the land to protect you from the sea breeze. You expect the wind to die at night and give you a peaceful night’s sleep and awaken to a swim in still waters. BUT….. if you anchor near mountains in very hot weather, as the sea breeze dies, dusk falls and you pour yourself a glass of wine the wind switches and screams down the valleys and hill sides straight at you.

Mark’s bumpy forehead is testament to the fact that he slept in the cockpit with the mosquitoes. I lay awake below listening to flapping halyards. Suddenly at 5.30am a wind shift and our anchorage was a distant memory as Cowrie decided to lift her own anchor and drift out of the bay.

Our understanding is that winds like this die in the night as the land and sea temperatures even but not at all. It blew until about 8am and the just to spite us died to nothing leaving an 8 hour motor to Fethiye in a swelly sea.

 

Fethiye

We sailed down passed the marina and tied up to a hotel pontoon. Bliss. Water, electricity, internet and a pool. Lots of rally boats and Yacht Marin friends to catch up with. Stayed two nights.

Decided to sail down to Gocek bay.

 

Storm

Looking for the perfect anchorage Mark was surprised to hear me say ‘Humour me, I don’t like the look of the clouds, take me to shelter’. As I am the weather witch he wasn’t to argue. However the wind increased and although anchored in a sheltered bay with a line ashore, the wind turned, the rain pelted and the anchor dragged. Not before the nearby Gullet had his bimini torn in two and the super yacht beside us had to cut his 4 shore lines.

We abandoned our shore line and collected it later. Tom did a fantastic job with the anchor and I kept us off the rocks with full throttle and the bow thruster.

The bay was mayhem. Gullets, super yachts and charter boats trying to hold station bow into the wind as 40 knots of wind tried to cause further chaos. We went for open water and out of the boat soup. Two hours later we were tied to a pontoon with a beer chatting to friends and talking the talk. Such is the relaxing lifestyle we’ve chosen!

 

 

 

It's great to be back at anchor. The daily temp is over 30 degrees and we are just swimming round the boat. The photos give you a taste of how lovely the area is. We are north of Finike and south of Marmaris (by about 70 miles). The craft are happy to be off the roof and all the toys are out. We are moored for the night on a restaurant jetty as we can water up and top up the batteries. George sank his snorkel yesterday which he was sad about as it's what he does the most of. Not sure why he put it on the back of the canoe but it was too deep to dive for. He has now spent his last savings on a new one which leaks a bit. We may head for Kastellorizon tomorrow which is a small Greek island in the hopes of finding sausages!

The final push!

We left Israel on Sunday 29^th June on a course for Southern Cyprus. 180 miles. On route we caught our first and probably last tuna. I say last as it was total carnage. Blood everywhere. Tuna scales which stuck to our feet are still being found and are perhaps even down the bed. We love tuna but 4 days later we are mighty sick of it and mark has suggested we eat out tonight. Only 3 steaks to go.

Just as night fell our engine failed to start. Mark quickly realised that the battery was dead. We decided to put into Limassol for a new one and to refill the wine stores (yes again) although I’m not allowed to drink as I’m still on some strange antibiotics since being ill in Egypt. I was even given Tape Worm pills ‘just in case’!! The tablets also say I must keep out of the sun which is tricky.

After a 12 hour stop we continued towards Paphos but the wind was good so we just cruised on by. 200 miles to Turkey.

We arrived on Wednesday afternoon, shattered but so glad to be here. 4 days. 400 nautical miles. A record by our standards. It really feels like we’ve achieved something now that we can finally slow down. I think I’ve even persuaded Mark to stay put tomorrow before going to Kekova Rodes for some well earned swimming round the boat.

The rally is over but not the touring.

We set off for Jerusalem with the crew from Zia and met up with the Gone Natives which for me was great as Dr Desiree gave me antibiotics and some tiny tablets that would stop a rhinoceros from needing the toilet. After 5 days with no food I managed to eat a boiled egg! Very exciting.

We walked into the old city and wondered through the narrow bazaar. The church of the Holy Sepulchre was hidden away behind these streets. It’s where Jesus’ body was laid and the sites of Calvary and the cave. It’s not like a normal church, it rambles on into other rooms and floors with Catholic parts also.

The Western Wall (Wailing Wall) was next. No photos allowed on Shabbat (The Sabbath) but Mark forgot. The ladies side was very hot and no one was wailing. The Men’s side however is air conditioned!! How rude. Lots of wailers inside. Sadly the Dome of the Rock (Muslim holy site where Abraham offered to kill Isaac) was closed on Saturdays. We went to The Mount of Olives to look down on the Dome and got brief glimpse of the Gardens of Gethsemane which is now only a courtyard.

We headed down to the Red Sea via the Dead Sea and had another float.

Arriving at the Jordanian border it was quite a shock to get out of the car into 45 degrees. The formalities took about an hour in which I thought death may be preferable.

Our hotel in Akaba was very old but the rooms were cool and the pool was very welcome. The whole town is duty free and the Jordanians are very nice. A laid back style of Islam. This is our tenth country and our 6th currency in 6 weeks which is a mathematical challenge.

The other two crews had taken a detour to Be’er Sheba to see the Israeli Airforce museum, yawn. We expected them late that evening. However they didn’t reckon on the border closing at 8pm and they had to find a hotel in busy Eilat which cost their budget highly.

In the morning we took the shuttle to the Red Sea. The snorkelling was fantastic, we saw Nemo! Mark had to snorkel beside me as I tend to panic if anything touches me. Portuguese Man o War stings tend to leave you jumpy. We were due to head back as it had become quite hot however the others all turned up and the afternoon became a pleasant one of beer drinking in the shade. As the local brew was 8% most fell asleep. I’m still not risking alcohol.

The next day we were taken to Wadi Rum. A Wadi is a dry river valley. Wadi Rum is in the dessert at altitude and has huge rock formations. We took a Toyota Jeep and followed in the footsteps of Lawrence of Arabia. We climbed to his spring, saw his old house, went into a gorge with 2000 year old graffiti, climbed up to a natural stone bridge, listened to the silence and ran down sand dunes. The sand was red hot and all our feet were scolded. We drank herbal tea with Bedouins (Not easy when wearing a higab). But the best fun was when the truck broke down and we had to push it! Twice. The clutch had leaked all the fluid out. Eventually he found some clutch fluid or vegetable oil and Mark and Joe helped him put it in and we managed to leave the circling buzzards and get out of the dessert. The Gone Native crew went for the full experience. They spent a day in their jeep and the night in the desert. We however heard the call of the pool in Petra.

Arriving with red feet we jumped into the hotels nice pool.

We were in Petra by 7am. It’s a long sandy walk down into the Siq which is a narrow gorge. Very dramatic. It finally ends with a view of the treasury which is the best preserved tomb/temple. Petra was carved by the Nabateans 2200 years ago. It was a bustling trade city which based its architecture on Roman and Greek styles. They buried their important dead in finely carved tombs in the valley and lived in an open valley area. A monastery perches on a hill above. 800 steps of a donkey ride away. The Romans took over, fearing the Nabatean’s power. After 2 earthquakes and the increase of trade by sea the Nabateans ceased to be an identifiable group. It was a long haul out of the valley and we used our last 3 dinas on a horse ride for the children as their legs were tired.

Back on the boat we are preparing for sea. The longest passage we’ve ever done. 200 nautical miles to Cyprus. Nearly 2 days journey. Then another 150 to Turkey. The blog may be quiet for a while. Can’t wait to be at anchor and swimming round the boat as it’s only 9am here and the temperature is already 30 degrees with a high humidity. See you in Turkey!

Well we made it!! Tonight is the grand finale Rally Dinner.

 

6 countries

15 ports

46 days

9 night passages

1196 miles logged

28 parties

55 stugeron

3 packets of diacalm

 

We will be here for a week or two and tomorrow we visit Jerusalem and then into Jordan to Petra.

 

Now, how do we get back to Turkey??

50 boats of the original 82 sailed for Port Said. Some crews had teamed up for this longer passage and a number of the smaller boats preferred to wait for us in Israel as yet again the wind was blowing from the direction in which we were heading which led to a long roly trip. To motor in convoy, dressed over all into the Suez Canal made up for that.

Egypt was a mixture of sweet and sour. An amazing country with a corrupt core.

On arrival at The Arsenal Basin we paid our immigration fees which included $52 for the pilot boat per boat. This boat was an old bashed about launch which came alongside asking for gifts as we arrived. Port Said is awash with police with side arms and everywhere the buses went we had full military convoy which closed the roads for our buses to pass. It made you feel unsafe actually. The first issue we had was with fuel. Diesel outside the marina was quite cheap but the authority said that we had to pay 3 times as much. This is the ‘Back shish’ mentality. That extra money went else where. As I type Mark is at the fuel station down the road as he found out that back shish works both ways. He pays a ‘fine’ to the guard on the gate which is still cheaper than the diesel they want to sell us. On the first trip he took George and the guard hasn’t charged him.

Our trip to the Cairo museum was wonderful. The journey was fascinating too. The Nile waters flood the fields and rice paddies are tended by small holders. Each little concrete house has a pigeon loft as they are a staple food. The owners don’t paint their houses as they’d have to pay more tax.

The bird life was amazing; trees full of roosting Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Pied Kingfisher, Hoopoe, Reed Buntings, Spur Winged Plovers, Western Reef Heron, Terns, Egyptian Swallows and a number of exotic birds which my book doesn’t name!

It was fantastic to see the Tutankhamen exhibition and London certainly can’t have much there as we saw so much. George ran from case to case looking at all the exhibits that he recognised from his topic this year. The museum was not air conditioned however and was uncomfortable.

We were dropped off at the bazaar next and spent time fending off street hawkers. I had a henna tattoo and we found a bead shop. We crossed the main road into the real Cairo and were quickly the only westerners there. People were very welcoming. Cairo is a sprawling city with broken buildings and litter. We saw puppies curled up in the filth and a dead kitten. Despite that it’s a vibrant, fast moving city.

The Felucca trip on the Nile was fun. The poor guy got a lot of advice from us and was encouraged to go faster! Mark and the boys kept tacking sides to try to make us faster as the other Feluccas were getting away from us.

The trip to the pyramids was marred slightly as the tour guide was on the make and we got little time there due to a stop for shopping that enabled her to take a cut. Our bus was the only one which didn’t get to go into the pyramids which so upset people that they made their views known. The guide left the bus in the centre of Cairo at a set of traffic lights! Luckily Mark took us to see the 3000 year old boat which was found in a rock tomb beside the great pyramid. It was to enable the Pharaoh to sail into the underworld. When I visited 25 years ago the pyramids were out in the dessert. Now Cairo has come to the foot of the pyramids and the biggest shock was to see that nowadays The Sphinx overlooks Pizza Hut and KFC!! Horrifying.

Our trip back took us along the banks of the Suez Canal. The ships looked to be moving through the fields. Each day two convoys pass through. 12 hours in one direction and 12 in the other.

We are currently waiting for the exit formalities to be completed. Another example of Egyptian inefficiency as we are supposed to be gone. The final push. Herzlia (Israel) next stop.   

On our arrival in Herzliya we met up with the boats who had stayed and learned that they had had two rocket attacks whilst in Ashkelon Marina. One rocket landing 200 yards away from the boats. Apparently the fishermen barely looked up it's so common!

Today we took a tour to Masada and the Dead Sea.

Masada was amazing. If you don’t know the story… the site is in the Jordanian desert overlooking the Dead Sea. Which is 500metres below sea level.  Herod the Great who was a bit of a psycho built a palace on the top of this pinnacle. In 73AD or there abouts when Herod was no more 1000 Jewish Zealots used it to escape from the Romans who’d had enough of the Jews under mining their rule. The Romans turned up with 4000 troops and 6000 slaves and surrounded Masada with a wall to stop the Zealots from escaping. They laid siege for 7 months. When the Zealots realised that they were going to lose they committed mass suicide so as not to give the Romans the victory. Israeli soldiers are sworn in on Masada.

The temperature there was 42 degrees and the ground temp was 60 degrees. The Dead Sea was fun but the heat was incredible. A free day tomorrow so that George can do the washing. An early start to Egypt follows after a Rally Dinner (what? Another one?)

The Lebanese have a thing about not wanting boats to sail to Israel so you pretend to go to Cyprus. It’s very difficult when in the night Oscar Charlie (The Lebanese waters control) calls you up and asks you individually where you are heading when it is obvious that your course is set for south. That’s our story but it seems to have been our fault that the entire fleet was ordered out of Lebanese waters at a 90 degree angle and ordered to remain 12 miles off shore which added 15 miles to the passage. We said we were heading for Haifa, the next boat said Famagusta and the last, Port Said but we think it was Haifa that made them react. Oops!

The radio was wild all night. New waypoints, Israeli Navy border patrols, calls from the UN warship and visits by the Israeli gunships whose wash had to be surfed down. Not much sleep in an already swelly night.

Haifa port is now packed with rally boats, some 16 deep. The water is polluted by the power station but the Little Egrets and the Hoopoe seem to like it. Mashona said it was because the fish here are easy to catch as they are on the surface gasping for breath. Apparently the Israeli navy used to practice diving here but there were too many cases of cancer. Don’t touch the warps!

The Yacht Club here provided us with an excellent welcome evening. A barbecue, wine and good music.

We took the tour to Nazareth and visited various Christian sites including the site of The Annunciation (where Gabriel appeared to Mary), Mary’s house, The Sea of Galilee and the Golan heights.

The bus arrived back at 7.10 so it was the usual panic to get all showered and dressed for the evening. Many Israeli families had invited people from the rally to their homes. We were invited to visit the Eppler family. We had a wonderful evening with Amir, Dganit and their children Tamar, Ido, Sharon and Noa. Dganit had cooked us a whole variety of dishes which were delicious. The children were soon running though the house with guns and light sabres. George on a dobbin horse with an Acoubra on his head! We were able to learn a little about life in Israel and as I type we are expecting them shortly aboard Cowrie.

Tonight we sail for Ashkelon and look forward to seeing more of Israel.

A very roly passage followed. Lots of people sea sick but I have a wonderful skipper who having ensured that I was fully drugged up let me sleep from 10 until 5am after which, when the horizon was fully visible I took over until arrival in Ashkelon.

Mark had done such a good job re mooring the fleet in Iskenderun that we were given the dubious honour of being first boat into Lebanon to berth the yachts in Jounieh as some of the fleet have gone into Beirut marina so we headed out of Syria early and worked a proper watch system to ensure maximum sleep. The UN warship called the AIS carrying boats to ask security questions and a gunship approached us at dawn but only seemed to want to wave.

Mooring successfully accomplished and we headed for the Olympic sized pool!!

This marina is very French, upmarket. The small ski boats are fuelled and washed by the Marinaros so the owners just step aboard and go. There are tennis and basket ball courts, grassy areas, a park, boules pitch and table tennis hall. We ate fresh tuna from the BBQ (sadly not ours).

We toured ourselves and went to Byblos an ancient citadel and up into the mountains to Saint Chebel’s tomb. But if you are in Lebanon the place to visit is the Jeita Grotto. After the hype I was prepared to be disappointed but the caves were mind blowing! No cave can ever match it and Walt Disney would be pushed to create it.

The evening dinner dance was by the pool and free wine flowed all evening. We ate salmon parcels and steak which were delicious but the Rally Tummy is haunting us both and the EMYR diet is working a treat.

We thought hard about taking the children into Lebanon and Beirut after the recent troubles but our concerns were misdirected. We hadn’t reckoned on the taxis.

Think a busy city street in India and you may have a clue. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that they drive on the right, they pick the quietest side. Pavements are for short cuts, never look behind you, you’ll have no seat belts and the taxi may have no lights. If you take a van/mini bus to Beirut close your eyes for the journey or chose the rear facing seats.

Beirut is a mix of brand new and shelled out buildings. The military presence was obvious and I’m ashamed to say we visited MacDonald’s for lunch.

We have now been rejoined by a few yachts who had difficulties.

Annya of Christchurch is back minus Annya who broke a rib in Mersin. Emerald Lady caught us up in Syria with a new gear box. Mersin managed to get Shelter a missing part for their auto helm within 24 hours from Istanbul so they were able to continue but sadly Cenou left us here so the children have had to say goodbye to Celine and Anouk.

Our berth in Lattakia is less than desirable, rafted 3 out with a second anchor as the sea bed is so covered in rubbish that our anchor won’t hold. It is very humid and the fishing fleet create a constant wash.

We set off at 7am to Crak des Chevalier which claims to be the greatest castle in the world! It was the headquarters of the Knights of St John and stands 2300ft above sea level. It was rather impressive.

On to Palmyra where we had lunch in a Bedouin tent of should I say oven!! We’d been warned that 90% of last years rally got ill here so we ate only the bread. The flies were horrible.

Palmyra is an oasis in the middle of the Syrian desert. It was in a powerful position as it stands between the Arab countries and the Mediterranean. The 2000 year old remains were covered in sand until discovery. It is completely awe inspiring.

We barely saw our 5 star hotel as we were out again first thing to Damascus. Our guide is from Maalula. It is the only village left which speaks Aramaic, the language of Jesus. We visited the museum, Ananias church (where St Paul was taken after his vision and was baptised there), Omayyad Mosque (second only to Mecca) and the Old Damascus Souk (bazaar).

Exhausted we were back on board by 8pm. There is a full day trip tomorrow from 7.30am and again the next day but we’re toured out for now and may explore Lattakia ourselves.

The fleet slowly started leaving Iskenderun as the afternoon went on and then suddenly a rumour spread that the unstable air was going to bring winds up to storm force 10 in the Iskenderun Gulf. All boats were asked to hove to and wait for confirmation.

After much waiting and stomach churning the coast guard told us that the wind was 200 miles behind us and that we’d only catch the tail end of it and winds would not exceed force 5 so off we went.

This is where the diet began as I have my first does of ‘Rally Tummy’ and as I type this I haven’t eaten for 48 hours and I’m starving but at least the stomach cramps have gone.

The trip to Iskenderun was a fast sail getting us in at dawn. Iskederun is a commercial town which has no tourism but is very welcoming. All day the mad Iskenderun barber has stalked the quay looking for victims!

Mark and the boys went to the rally dinner last night and I stayed on the boat. I should have told security however as later a the police came aboard to check on the boat as they’d seen lights. I heard these heavy footsteps over my head and met an armed policeman on the deck I’m not sure who was the most surprised. Nice to know that I had 3 policemen protecting me while the whole rally was away.

Mark and the boys took a mini bus with a few other boats to see the mosaic museum in Antakya (Antioch) and the church of St Peter (it’s in a cave and was used from 49 AD so that worshippers could clandestinely listen to the apostles of St Peter, St Paul and St Barnabus. Sadly it was closed but local children showed them the labyrinth  of escape tunnels running from the cave.

Like you I will have to make do with seeing the pictures.

Mark had an interesting trip into Iskenderun where a local man offered to get him a prostitute!

Poor George is hiding on board as every time he gets off the locals take his photo with their mobile phones or kiss him and tug his hair.

Tonight we have a Pot Luck Cocktail party. We are concocting a sparkling sangria number with our Cyprus brandy and Greek red wine. Tomorrow its time to move on again, Syria next stop.

Today didn’t go to plan. The forecast was S 3-5 beaufort i.e. on the nose. Boats set off from lunch time onwards but we decided to wait until 6ish. The first boat turned round at 5pm having faced 2 metre seas and 35knots of wind. Many boats followed until the coastguard announced worse to come and the whole fleet was recalled. As we were one of 4 boats not to have set off, Mark and Claude, group 6 leader used hand held radios to re berth the fleet.

24 hours later we set off. 3am slight seas and the wind filled in for a good motor sail to Syria.

As we came into Mersin harbour we passed a fishing boat who called out, ‘Welcome to Mersin’ and that was wonderful. The coastguard came aboard to ask if our entire group were accounted for. The machine guns in the cockpit were mesmerising. The people here are pleased to have us and the cocktail party on the first night was amazing. Far too much wine was drunk! The hotel provided a buffet, traditional dancers, local children dancing and then had us all on the dance floor learning Turkish dancing. Mersin itself has a population of over 1 million and the shops go on for ever.

Due to the wine, I volunteered to be the ‘lost and found’ boat.

Yesterday we took a full day tour to Tarsus (where St Paul was born) We went to St Paul’s church. We were amused to read that the church is only 100 years old and that there is no evidence to link St Paul to it. After 1 hour in a coach without air conditioning we puzzled! The children were very good as we certainly saw a lot of rocks yesterday and it was about 30 degrees.

Another great rally dinner completed our stay.

Sadly Blackfoot Warrior, who had engine trouble in Cyprus have now had to return to the UK due to a death in the family. The catamaran Shelter is hand steering all the way due to an auto helm failure and if no part can be found they may leave us here.

 

The latest news for Lebanon is that things have improved and we are waiting to hear from the marina. They will not invite us if they are not sure of our safety. The marina is very well organised and has an Olympic sized pool. If touring Lebanon is not safe we will not leave the complex.

 

Tonight we depart for Iskendurun. This is a busy shipping area. All commercial vessels are required to carry AIS (Automatic Identification System). At night rally boats with AIS receivers call the captains of these vessels and inform them that they are passing through the EMYR fleet and they change course to go around us. AIS enables us to know a boats cargo, port of departure, heading and boat name and is a great aid to safety. In Turkey all passenger carrying boats and soon charter boats are required to have it.

On our way to Cyprus we saw a turtle sculling by and dolphin, at one point a little fledgling bird stopped for a rest in the cockpit.

The evening of our arrival on Cyprus we were invited to a cocktail party at the Castle.

It was a fantastic setting and Mark and I were introduced to the President of the Republic of Northern Cyprus. We are in the Turkish side of Cyprus. Brandy Sours and wine were consumed whilst the kids stormed the castle. A flag ceremony ended the party. We joined the crews on Cenou, Gone Native and Zia for Pide (Turkish Pizzas) and Kebabs in the old town.

We chose not to do the organised tour and headed for the supermarket. The children thought that Christmas had come. Cadbury’s chocolate, marmite, cheddar cheese, sweet chilli dipping sauce, weetabix, T bags, salt and vinegar Pringles and Robinson’s squash were quickly in the trolley. Brandy is £3 a bottle here. No bacon found although you can get it in Northern Cyprus.

In the afternoon we took the RIB round to the old town. (And then back again as Tom had forgotten his shoes!) Part of the fleet are moored here where restaurants line the quay.

We revisited the castle again as the ship wreck museum was now open. The children were able to show us all the passageways they’d found the night before.

A fantastic place to visit. The wreck was found off the bay 30 years ago and it had laid there for 2300 years in the couch grass. It was loaded with wine amphoras, mill stones, almonds and grapes. The historians were able to plot its final journey from Samos, to Kos, to Rhodes and Cyprus using their knowledge of where it’s cargo came from. They think that there were 4 crew on board and that they had taken the sail down just before the storm sank her. The metal sail hoops were in the sail storage area. The almonds were perfectly preserved and the grape seeds remained.

The evening saw us in our pirate costumes, parading through the streets of Girne old town to The Dome Hotel where we ate a fantastic buffet dinner, danced and were entertained by a belly dancer. Simon, Mark went back to the dessert table 3 times and ate 3 vanilla slices, 1 chocolate éclair and 2 other cakes!!

We depart for Mersin today on the Turkish mainland. 108 nautical. It will take all day to fuel the boats up (cheap fuel on Cyprus) as there is no fuel until mid day. They have allowed 30 minutes fuelling per group however there are 10 boats in our group wanting fuel and for example, one of the catamarans takes 30 minutes to fuel by itself so doing the maths it’s going to be a long day!

I forgot to mention on the last blog that our annual fishing total has got off the mark and now stands at One. We caught a 2.5lb Mackerel on passage from Finike to Kemer. We ate pate and Mackerel pizza for 2 days.

 

One or two boats have had difficulties on the rally so far. Twice Eleven have had alternator problems and had to join us a day late in Alanya. Emerald Lady are still in Alanya with their gearbox a 6 hour drive away in Ishmia, they hope to catch us up in Mersin. One boat crew has flown home due to a death in the family. Annya from Annya of Christchurch had an accident on the tour, we heard, and is now in Alanya hospital for at least two days. We wish her a speedy recovery. Two boats returned to Alanya on our night sail with engine problems but have now both rejoined us and Nirvana II from our group has dropped out of the rally due to a falling out during mooring in Alanya! It shows how prepared you have to be for this sort of event as the pace is tireless and some boats set off after the winter without services to engine filters etc. Our chart plotter decided not to work last night and we had to dig out the paper things but we did hit Cyprus so Mark can’t be too rusty.

 

Gocek to Alanya

The RIB guys did a fantastic job at 4am of dragging us all out backwards from our tight moorings. Apart from a hail storm and no wind the trip to Alanya ended with a ‘Pot luck supper’ on the quay and a few glasses of red.

We joined the tour or the caves and castle the next day and had a fantastic trout lunch sitting in little open huts above the river.

A speedy shower and change then into formal dress and off for a cocktail party at the Castle Brewery followed by a 6 course dinner dance on the beach ended the day.

We left Alanya the next day at 2pm for the over night passage to Cyprus. We had been sold the wrong flag for Northern Cyprus so the acrylic paints came out to knock up a flag. The passage had the most horrible swell. I had managed to acquire Stugeron and then spent 7 hours of the passage horizontal. Mark is, as I type, sleeping.

We motored the 45 miles to Kemer as there was no wind. The marina is lovely and the town is modern. We are moored two and three deep and have a bit of climbing to do to get off. Arrival cocktails were held overlooking the marina. The morning was hot and we took the children to a water park. The Turks also have outdoor gymnasiums for adults which are fun. You can swim with dolphins here too.

In the evening we attended our first rally dinner which was held on the sea front. There was a four course meal, wine and dancing, ended by a flag ceremony for all the nations in the rally. I am now sporting a sprained ankle due to falling off my shoes and no it wasn't the wine it was the cobble stones!The morning was all go again, this time it was inter group Olympics. But not before Mark had spent a couple of hours up Emerald Lady's mast fixing the lights. Green group won the tug o war and two bottles of champagne. The events were sponsored by a wine company, a beer company, coca cola, pepsi and a fire extinguisher shop!! So some winners got fire extinguishers. Wine was drunk before each race, some of which began at 10am. A less than sobber affair. A donner kebab lunch was next but don't be thinking we could head off for a nap. A flare demonstration was after, followed by a slide presentation at the town hall to look at where we will be visiting. Is that it? Can we relax yet? No! A crew briefing in the bar first. Now at 5.45pm we were free to prepare our boats for the 75 mile passage to Alanya. 4am start with the Joker boat dragging each of us out from our squeezed in position. No wind forecast so it