Marmaris, man-over-board, Turkish friends and a long sail to Santorini

We arrived back on board Deep Blue to find everything down-below in order, so after a quick tidy and shower we went to say hi to Wilfred, Sabina and their dog Don on Wisa. They had another visitor on board - a handsome German called Juergen. Juergen was a tall, fit man with an eye for the ladies. His hair style told me he was a young man in the 60’s but otherwise it was a surprise to learn that he was 69 years old. He had spent some years in London in the 60’s and had a Cockney accent! He was very good company but he had a sobering tale to tell about the day he fell overboard. I cannot remember how the subject came up but I will never forget the story.

Juergen told us that the event took place last year and the weather must have been rough because he had full oilies on - and unusual occurrence for him when sailing in the Med. He had had to go forward to sort his spinnaker pole out (and now I remember why he told the story because we have to repair ours). They had gibed and he was swapping the pole from one side of the mast to the other when the boat lurched and he went over-board with the pole. He was sailing with his wife and she went into a blind panic. The yacht was on self-steering and Juergen watched as she sailed away from him. All he could think about was how would Inga manage to get the boat to port without him and apparently she was wondering how she would explain to the police that it was an accident. It is strange what you think when you are in an impossible situation. J had his oilies and boots on and no lifejacket. They were heavy, he is in his late 60’s and is now treading water for his life.

He watched the boat sail away from him for two miles before he saw it turn round and by some miracle (he said God must have guided her) head straight back towards him. By the time the boat returned to the EXACT spot that he was in the water it was 20 minutes later. Inga threw him the lifebelt and the attached floating line blew towards him enabling him to retrieve it. The next problem was how to get aboard. He still had his oilies on and could not get onto the bathing ladder. Inga had thrown a sail sheet to him (so still attached to the boat) and he hung onto that for 10 or more minutes but thought he would die hanging there. Inga could not pull him up and he was exhausted. Then he had the idea to use a winch - Inga was then able to haul him aboard.
It was lovely to see Wilfred and Sabina again. They are such a lovely couple. We compared notes, had a few beers before taking our leave and going to the marina restaurant for Meza.

The next day I started my swimming routine. There is a bathing platform in the Marina and a new bar overlooking it. While I was swimming Andy was making friends. Bora was relaxing after 4 months with his Italian owner as skipper of a 35m motor yacht called Dragonfly. Dragonfly had been lifted that day and he was going to have a beer or two even though it is still Ramazan. Later his brother joined him - Andy recognised him immediately as Deria the customs officer based at the Marina. We were in for an interesting evening as both spoke good English.

They told us that their father had died at the age of 59 - a common age for men to die in Turkey. He was a heavy smoker. Bora is 31 and is getting married to his Turkish stewardess next month but is unsure about having children because he thinks he will die before they grow up - and I agree with him about the dying bit as he chain smokes and is over-weight.

Deria on the other hand is older, health conscious (he kept telling us about his cholesterol level and how he was working on reducing it), been married 17 years and has two children, a daughter aged 10 and a very special son aged 2.5. He told us he met his wife through an agency. They talked on the phone and by letter for 1 year before they met and he proposed. The second time he saw her was at their wedding. He has a good marriage, the secret he told us is respect - always listen and do not interrupt. We had hoped to meet Deria’s wife the next day as she speaks English but in the end could not because his son was sleeping (which would mean he would be up all night). He spoke about time to get to know his wife - the reason for only two children and the big gap in ages (perhaps I misinterpreted) and seemed genuinely happy with his family.

The two men are concerned about the Turkish governments move to Islam. They are for the army imposing military rule as the military are Attaturk. However, on the Kurdish issue they had strong but confusing views. The Kurds are the conduit for drugs from Iran and are all criminals on one hand (what all of them?). They cannot sell enough in the Bazaar to pay their rents, for instance - it can only be a means for money laundering. But on the other hand the Kurds are their brother and fighting them was like killing members of your family. I got the feeling that Bora had had a tough time in the Army. According to them, the Kurds have always been treated fairly by the state (we know this to be untrue, many only speak Kurdish and when arrested, until last year, could only have a Turkish speaking lawyer) and everyone is the same in Turkey and has the same opportunities.

Deria has worked for 24 years for the government. After 25 he gets a pension and then he and his wife are moving to her home town of Kushadshi where they intend to open a chicken restaurant. He currently lives in a rented apartment in the centre of Marmaris having had to move away from his house in the Northern suburbs as it became a British enclave - full of murderers and criminals wanted by the UK police. I apologised - we went there Christmas 2008 to collect our turkey and even though the houses are very nice I got an unpleasant vibe from the UK bar we visited, so I could sympathise with him.

They also told us about people trafficking that is prolific. For €5,000 boat owners will take you from Turkey to Greek Simi. There is a boat in Marmaris harbour - a rocket ship - that allegedly every day makes the trip with 20 people on board. Often though (and we have heard this story before) the boat just takes the poor refugees around the corner and tells them they are in Greece. These refugees are from Pakistan, Iran and Iraq.

We liked Deria and Bora despite all these gloomy tales. They were very friendly, open and generous. They invited us to join them for Hamsy - Black Sea small fish - the next day. Funnily enough Deria took us to our favourite Marmaris restaurant proving that we can sniff out the genuine article I guess!

A sail to Santorini, Greece Sept 9th - 10th
After getting back our sails, buying a new battery, refilling the water tanks and other general jobs we were ready to depart. So early on 9th September we set sail for the island of Santorini, some 140nm due west of Marmaris. The forecast was for light NW winds so we hoped to get a bit of sailing in but expected to have to motor much of the way there. The plan is to get West in one go and then island hop back to North Datç a peninsula to visit Karaç a SÖ gù t and some friends. We left the entrance of Marmaris bay at 10.45 with sails up - ever hopeful. But it was not to be - the breeze was right on the nose - so we motored until just before sunset when bizarrely the wind veered enough for us to sail West and was strong enough that we needed a reef.

The time before dark is an eerie time when you are at sea. You feel nervous that the light is going and soon you will not be able to see land. I had a good look around as we were going to be sailing through the night and past several islands and rocks, the first of which were just disappearing from view. I took note of where the one light house was, where the visible towns were and where there were ships. As it gets dark everything closes in - the lights seem on top of you when in reality they are many miles away. It is good to get your bearings before the only point of reference is the chart, the GPS and the stars.

First Venus shines out brightly from the darkening sky. The sun slips quickly away leaving a red glow. Then suddenly the stars turn on with the millions of pinpoint lights of the milky way sweeping over us. Tonight there is no moon but a large bright planet disc rises in the East - we have not yet identified it- but through the night it moves from East to set in the West. Once the darkness descends it feels good to be sailing under the stars, slipping through the water, watching the phosphorescence. The lights on the land help us navigate through the nearest cluster of islands and rocks. The next obstacle is a few hours sailing away.

We do 2.25 hour watches - 2 hours by yourself and the last 15 minutes together. It works well - 2 hours is long enough to get a good sleep while not too long fighting sleep on deck. Sunrise is as sudden as sunset. 10 minutes from dark to light. Fully light at 06.50 while I am on watch. We have been able to sail all the way through the night, navigated through unmarked rocks and tiny islands and Nisos Thira / Santorini is only 50nm and two islands away.

We nosed into the small “marina” on the South side of Santorin - minimum depth 2.9m. Why was I surprised that the marina is the usual Greek mess of crumbling, never finished concrete, strewn with fishing nets and building materials that will never be used and a newly built office and toilet block. We were greeted with a whistle and the gestations of the harbour master telling us to go alongside the end of a quay. As always happens when I come to Greece I have got myself all worked up again about the sloppiness of the Greeks. The brand new toilet block has NEVER been cleaned and is almost unusable already, the quay is a mess and dangerous and the harbour water is filthy though intriguing bubbles rise to the surface reminding us that we are moored in an active volcano! Unusually we went to sleep to the sound of gunshots and again were woken by, not a call for prayer but an hour long series of shootings starting at 0700. We think it must be small bird shooting time. Welcome to Greece! Today we explore and hopefully meet the friendly locals!