Grace
We have finally settled in for the winter after limping along for most of the summer. I can't believe that Grace put up with such treatment. After we got the winch fixed, that is winch not wench, we sailed away from Serifos with Ios in our sights. The pilot book said good holding in the anchorage, but everytime we dropped the anchor it bounced. The water was so clear we could see it laying on its side on the bottom, so we pulled it up and did an overnight sail to Simi, a beautiful island, is there any other kind, just off the coast of Turkey.
You have all heard our Panormitis saga so I won't bore you again. Suffice it to say, that our new friend, Constantino, saved our bacon.
We are now safely docked in Yacht Marina, Marmaris, Turkey, a huge, beautiful, fully equipped marina with good food, good showers, a laundry and a bus into town every half hour because we are out in the country in a pine forest which reeks of the heavenly smell of mountain pines when the dew falls. As we were walking to the restaurant for dinner last night, we had to stop to wait for the full moon to escape the clutches of the mountaintop. I have never seen a sail washing station or a dinghy engine testing station. The marina has lifts that move boats up to 220 tons, and stacks them in rows according to the launch date.But the best thing about Yacht Marina is Brian, a young Englishman married to a Turkish girl. He brought a wonderful affinity for diesel engines to Turkey. After disassembling our exhaust elbow, which he declared a disaster waiting to happen, he took our lift tank away for new fittings and a thorough cleaning. After reinstalling it and the new exhaust elbow we have been carrying around for 5 years, Grace just gushed. Jerry had checked the exhaust elbow many times, but the problem was internal. I couldn't believe the condition of the parts Brian pulled off. It's a miracle we limped this far. When we are on the hard, Brian will remove the exhaust system again and repair a cracked muffler, so that we will may able to sail wonderfully next year with the assurance that we will be able to stop once in awhile.
I love Turkey! Now, where have you heard that before?
Oh, yes! When we got to Italy, again in Corsica, and then there's Greece. No one has ever said that I'm not fickle and fat. The food here is great!We plan on being pulled Nov. 17th, take the bus to Izmir on the 20th, take the plane to London the same day, and catch a plane to the states whenever we can catch one. We will be seeing you!!
xoxoxox I must go get the lamb chops ready for Jer to grill.
- October 29, 2004