And So To Turkey
Posted at 2:51 AM, Jul. 19, 2008
Savarna is now safely on the Netsel Marina (right in the town of Marmaris) on the pontoon run by Phoenix Yachts a local charter company managed by Dodo (an Austrian) and Sally (an Englishwoman). They also look after boats in the absence of owners and in our case are charging EUR120 a month to open the boat up, run the motor, run the electronics, keep the batteries charged, manage the work that we are having done, cleaning the deck and topsides and then a stainless polish and hull polish just before we get back in September. A few things about the marina:
- the rules state that no grey water discharge in the marina at all i.e. no dishwater, showers on board etc. Except it is ok to put a diver under to clean off the hull? Work that one out.
- we have signed a contract for 7 months (the longest possible) and on top of that get an extra 69 free days. So that effectively gives us until mid April 2009.
- the fairways are very narrow and well under one boat length. This means that the bow line (tailed back to the dock) is at an acute angle which doesn't provide as much control in my view. Apparently in the winter storms they run a network of ropes backwards and forwards across the fairways from bow to bow. They maintain that there is never any damage - lets hope that is correct.
- getting in and out of the marina if there is any wind blowing is a skill given the narrow fairways - from my own experience not for the faint hearted.
We had tried emailing the Marmaris Yot Marine for several months but they never replied to our emails so when I finally rang them they said no berths available. I suspect that they may be the better option in Marmaris but at least where we are is right in the town. In any event if they cannot be bothered replying to emails it is not the place for us!
In Symi we were tied up next to an American (from Dallas) Catalina 47 called Pisces owned by Chad who is sailing around the world and will cross the Altantic to complete his circumnavigation later this year. His boat was swept out to sea from Phuket in Thailand during the Tsuami so he had some interesting stories about the substantial repairs he had to have done when his yacht turned up again with major damage suffered. He crews on the big boat circuit in his spare time and was first mate on a superyacht during the America's Cup in Auckland. He had on board two temporary crew who were helping him get to Rhodes (the long way). One was a Swede called Matts who has his Gibsea 42 permanently at Netsel Marina and the other George the Scotsman who having got fed up with life in PC England sold up and bought a Gulet in Marmaris which he is in the process of restoring/repairing while he lives on board - also in the Netsel Marina. So these guys were a great source of information about Marmaris that was most helpful. They also ensured we had a very very late night during which the Ouzo stocks were totally exhausted.
Departing Symi
When we went to check out of Greece the Customs/Police office at Symi was again full of refugees. On enquiry I found that there are about 50/60 a day turn up every night from Turkey so it is a major problem - mostly from Afganistan but also Iraq and Iran both of which have borders with Turkey. Apparently they are provided with temporary papers and are then given 30 days to sort out their correct identity etc and if they do not succeed they are deported. I can imagine that probably never happens as the refugees disappear into Europe.
Greek wine remains a relative mystery - we only dumped one bottle as undrinkable. The wine varieties are unpronounceable and there seem to be lots of them (varieties like pinot gris, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc or cabernet are very uncommon). Each island clearly has its own wine growing and production and seemingly its own unique varieties in many instances. Consequently if we found a wine we really liked by the time we had opened the bottle and drunk it we had no idea where we had bought it and were not able to locate it again. Kos was the only place where we found imported wine including Chile, NZ, Australia, France and Italy. We did a big stock up of French and Italian wine for use in September/October.
We had a good sail to Marmaris motoring the 7 miles to the Cape that marked our left turn for the 20 odd miles up the peninsula (with 25-30 knots right across the stern) a full main and no headsail, to the bay where Marmaris is located and the bay surrounded by pine trees and then 30 knots on the nose for the 5 miles up the bay just to finish off the cruise. Got into the marina on Sunday evening 13th July.
Numerous Gulets on the town quay at Marmaris
We used an agent that Chad recommended to clear in by the name of Ali Yanar (mobile 0537 206 2422). He cleared us in within an hour and also got Pam a 3 month visa (Australians need a visa but Kiwi's do not) and charged us 70 lire (about NZD77 or EUR35). No negotiation needed as that was the price that he had charged Chad after negotiation so he did not try to pull one over us - so he is a fair guy and most helpful also and saved us several hours.
The town of Marmaris is no doubt not at all representative of the real Turkey but we found the people very friendly and the town a delightful place but pretty overrun with holidaymakers including plenty of Poms but also a lot of Russians as not far to Moscow and direct flights into Dalaman airport a 90 minute drive away. The street back from the waterfront is pretty amazing and called Bar Street - it has a number outdoor bars and also large dance clubs adjoining each other, often open air inside, that pound out music at a deafening decibel level most of the night. How they all hear inside, being right next to each other, is a mystery - we of course had to check out the street and went into one of the larger clubs for a while. A great scene if you are a lot younger than we are! Language is not proving to be an issue as English is taught as a second language at school.
The final approach into Marmaris
The boat is in good shape with only a couple of small jobs to get done - the boom vang broke where the top of the vang sits into the groove underneath the boom itself so it is simply a case of removing the vang and doing a stainless weld. There is also a fair bit of play in the starboard wheel so I stripped that down and took off the panels underneath but could not see the problem other than it appears to be inside the gearbox. One of the advantages of Marmaris is that every brand and every product is represented - there are about 3 streets full of chandleries and marine suppliers, upholsterers, engine guys, electronics guys etc. I even found some 24 volt bulbs, which up until now I have not been able to find in NZ or track down on the internet, so will get a box when we get back!
Weather wise the Aegean through the Cyclades was always around 25 to 28 each day so it was pleasant and not to hot but as we got to Kos and then Marmaris the temperature jumped up into the low 30's so it is definitely warmer nearer Turkey. I have yet to get my mind around the weather systems as the high seems to be around 1007 hectapascals (millibars) whereas in NZ a high is around 1020 to 1030. Marmaris is about 36 degrees north and Auckland 36 degrees south but there the similarity ends. Until Marmaris the only clouds we saw were at Santorini - but don't worry we did not get bored with continuous blue skies!
With George the Scotsman nearby he will be a useful and helpful contact for us on the marina and last Wednesday we had an enjoyable evening dinner with George plus Matts the Swede and his wife and daughter. The revelry earlier in the week at Symi was not repeated - I think Matts was still remembering his hangover!
Cheers
Keith