Life on board Naviga I

Oktay (the Captain) said the weather forecast was for rain at 5pm and so he wanted to head for a sheltered cove to wait out the wind etc. As we were sailing along Oktay called out that he had seen either a tuna or a dolphin, and as it turned out it was both. The dolphin seemed to be having a great time swimming alongside the boat, under the bow, around the stern and back again. It was pretty special to see it up so close.

After lunch at Kurucabuk Oktay said that he would have to drop sail and turn the motor on so we could get to where we were going to drop anchor for the night. The skies were getting gradually darker and darker and we could hear the distant rumble of thunder, then lightning and then sure enough at 4.55pm the skies opened and it poured down. The thunder and lightning was very impressive and Han and Elise were very pleased as they enjoy the spectacle of a storm.

Not as pleasing was the amount of rain that came through the roof of our cabin, and most of the other cabins, soaking both beds and the clothes I had left sitting on the bed. However, Oktay moved us to a cabin with a dry bed so that was OK. Carol wasn’t pleased at the rain as she wanted to sleep above decks again but the crew weren't sure it was a good idea. She managed to snag the only dry sleeping spot on deck - one that is usually used by one of the crew.

Sleeping above decks is rather nice, it is cooler there and not as claustrophobic so the four of us (Elise, Carol, Frank and I) slept above decks every night - except for that rainy night. The first night the duvet got a bit damp but then the crew rigged a shelter over the mattresses so we woke with dry bedding and a great view.

Watching the approaching storm

Shelter from the rain

Carol has been swimming and snorkelling but is a bit disappointed in the lack of diversity of the fish.

Oktay has been reading over my shoulder so he said I had to include that the forecast was for 35 knot winds this afternoon, with even stronger winds overnight. We headed for a small village called Selimiye where we were going ashore for dinner but due to the wind we had to move anchorage and have dinner on the boat. Not entirely a bad thing as the chef is very good.

Knidos

On the second day we stopped for lunch near Cnidos (or Knidos) and then Carol and Frank went ashore to have a quick look at what was left of the ruins of the 2000 year-old Greco Roman city, while the rest of us admired the amphitheatre from the boat.

From there we went to Datca where there was a small resort, and a campground as it turns out. Seems some Turkish campers are just as loud at 3am as in Australia. As we have been sleeping up on deck the sound carries quite well across the water, but Elise says I have no room to talk as we kept them awake until the early hours one night/morning dancing!

Knidos ruins	The amphitheatre
at anchor	Morning

From Istanbul to Bitez and beyond

Frank booked Istanbul Airport Transfers to take us from Istanbul to the Sabiha Gokcen airport where the budget airlines leave from. Once again Stephen had difficulty getting through the metal detectors – not sure if it was the metal pins in his arms or his boots. Anyway, they whisked him away to pat him down in a cubicle, and once satisfied he wasn’t really carrying a hidden weapon they let him go and told him to tell the guys at the second security gate he was OK?!

No need to tell you that the next checkpoint was also a major issue. One man was so obnoxious that two of the locals got involved in the debate, and it was only when a very attractive young Turkish woman gave the guy what for in no uncertain terms that they allowed us through. Phew!
The flight to Bodrum was mercifully short as there was a screaming baby in the seat behind Carol and another directly in front. The baby at the back fell asleep once we had taken off, but unfortunately the one in front kept up the screaming for most of the flight.

We were met at Bodrum airport (after successfully collecting all four bags this time) and whisked away in a nice roomy, comfortable and air-conditioned Mercedes 10 or 12 seater bus. Around half an hour later we were standing at a small harbor in Bitez village (Bitezyali) on the Aegean Sea looking out at a beautiful (and rather large) boat. The Naviga 1, our home for the next week.

Naviga 1

Hoisting the sails

We were lucky with our booking on this beautiful boat as she sleeps 16 but there were just the four of us plus a father and daughter (Han and Elise) from the Netherlands, and a staff of four to look after us. We were waited on hand and foot and we couldn’t recommend SCIC more highly.

One last thing about Istanbul

I forgot to mention all the stray dogs and cats on the streets. Most, if not all, of the dogs have tags in their ears. I read somewhere that this means they don’t have or can’t have rabies because they have been immunised. They all seem to have their own little spot and there is generally a bowl of water nearby or perhaps some scraps of food. None of them look undernourished and the same goes for the cats.

Two dog door!	“Cat mother’s” shop
Best salad ever – I had it twice. Goat’s cheese, walnut with pomegranate molasses!	I’ll pass on this one thanks
Stairs built by a wealthy man to make it easier for his children to get to school	Cat man

Not so uplifting were the number of refugees (I'm guessing from Syria) trying to eke out an existence living on the footpaths. Many had babies or small children with them and there was generally a hat or bowl or something for people to drop money into. The men were usually missing, we're guessing they were off somewhere trying to find some cash in hand work so they could buy food. Goodness knows what they are going to do when the weather changes and it starts to snow. Incredibly sad!

Istanbul day 6

Stephen was up for another outing so we started off by heading up to the top of the Galata Tower to admire the view. We couldn’t possibly leave without checking it out as we have been living right next to it for almost a week. You can get almost to the top via an internal lift so it wasn’t too bad, and the view was certainly worthwhile. Back down in the Galata square Turkish coffee was the call of the day but having been there done that once already I decided Apple tea was more for me. Those coffee cups are tiny and only the top half seems to contain liquid coffee, the bottom half is pure coffee grounds. I guess that’s why they provide you with water to wash the grounds out of your teeth

After coffee it was a slow descent of the cobbled hill to risk life and limb jay-walking amongst the locals to access the tram stop – not many people (including us) use the subway to get there, choosing instead to step out into the traffic, regardless of what speed it is doing. We caught the tram to the Topkapi Palace and started off with a walk around the Harem – does that sound small to you? Well it wasn’t, it was positively enormous but then it did use to house as many as 280 concubines, plus assorted wives, princes, deposed Sultans, Eunuchs etc. so I guess a small space wasn't going to be a lot of use. Carol got one of those audio guides and kindly acted as tour guide, but I think she was a little disappointed when she discovered it was already past 2pm as she had hoped to also fit in a 2 hour cruise down the Bosphorus. Ah well she did say she wanted to leave feeling like there was more!


View from the Galata tower

coffee stop	Apple tea for me please
Outside Topkapi Palace	Inside the palace
beautiful windows	decoration of a different kind (perhaps windows to his mind?)