03/06/08 Re-positioned the outboard engine bracket and horseshoe life-ring in order to move the danbuoy to the stbd side (it fouled the solar panel on the port side). Glass fibred the underside of holes in the stern deck where previously cables had entered the gas locker. A very hot day and unless spanners, screwdrivers etc are left in the shade, they quickly become too hot to pick up again! An early evening drink onboard Storm Dodger with Eve, Kev, Karen and Astrid ended with another soaking when Astrid went mad with the hosepipe again!
04/06/08 More 'glassing' of redundant holes during the morning. Astrid wanted to take the kids to Çinar restaurant for lunch, so I donned the chauffeurs hat and took Leah, Catriona, Aiden (Nisroc) and Jordan (Zachariah) out to this large open air eatery, set in an olive grove with trickling water falls and streams, which is filled with ducks, chickens, fish and turtles and where the kids can run around and 'explore' in safety. After lunch, we drove over to Keci Buku and the village of Orhaniye, to walk out on the sandbank into the bay - where the four little ankle-biters, fully clothed, got absolutely drenched. (photos) Returned to the marina around 7pm.
06/06/08 D-Day for Paul, Toni and daughter Jordan on Zachariah as they launch their boat for the first time. I went with them to lend a hand berthing etc., first taking the boat out into the bay to see how she handled under power. Eve returned from Rhodes with the crews of Baleena/Ganova and Nisroc, relieving Astrid and I of our 'dog-walking duties'! (Kev and Karen have two big dogs, named Barney and Dino, onboard Nisroc). Paul, Toni, Astrid and I went along to the Orange Bar for dinner during the evening, rounding it off in the marina bar about 1am.
07/06/08 Murat phoned to tell me he thinks he's fixed my depth sounder, so a trip into town with Astrid to collect it and also to find a shop making fitted sheets......we had an address of 34 Sokak (34th Street) but despite looking for ages, asking various people, we couldn't find it. I spotted a small back street sail makers and decided to ask in there about a sun-awning as Mehmet still hasn't phoned back, and also asked the non-English speaking owner about 34 Sokak. His wife joined in the animated conversation..... then it was follow me.... and around the streets asking butchers, greengrocers and anyone else - but without success. Back to his shop, sit down, he phones someone and then gives us tea and biscuits while we wait. A guy turns up and starts asking what our problem with air-conditioning is?? Give up!! He agrees to give a quote for the sun-awning, tells us to finish our shopping and he will take us back to Yacht Marine in his car, so off we go for sausages etc, (and find 34th Street just around the corner - but no sheet shop!) then return to his shop, and after more tea, he puts us in his car, serves iced water and drives us back to the marina. After measuring up the awning, it then transpires that he also makes fitted sheets and curtains! You have to laugh, but he was so helpful and eager to please.
08/06/08 Sunday.....day of rest.....and too hot to do much anyway! Joined the crowd on Nisroc for a beer during the evening.
09/06/08 Re-fitted the depth sounder and powered it all up.....nothing, no reading, no pulse 'tick', nothing! Took it all back to Murat during the afternoon and also ordered my sun-awning, fitted bed sheets and new curtains from the friendly sailmaker we found on Saturday. He promises to have it all finished by next Monday.....watch this space! Astrid, Leah and I had a tour around a gulet in the harbour, courtesy of another Turk we met in the sail makers, and it was very nice, eight double en-suite cabins, large saloon and an enormous engine room - all for just 8,000 euros per week charter! Bought some chicken curry and rice as a take-away from Tansas supermarket, which is now filled with bikini clad Blackpoolesque types, and jumped on the dolmus back to Storm Dodger to eat.
11/06/08 Spent yesterday emptying the after cabin into the cockpit area (can't move there now!), then tidied up the wiring through the lockers before going over to Storm Dodger to welcome Roger back from the UK. A simple drink there turned into a bit of a party with a full boat ......and the inevitable water fight! More work in the aft cabin today, then to the Orange Bar in the evening.
12/06/08 More clearing out of stuff that has been un-used since Gillingham, threw away my pillows and bought some new ones, took four bags of paints, varnishes, and all manner of unwanted stuff to the bins. Mevlut, the sail maker came to measure up for curtains and sheets (after I had chased him on the phone!) but the completion date has already moved back by four days to Thursday. It just seems to be the Turkish way of life! I had a surprise phone call from Rob (Slip Anchor) so it was great to speak to him - and there is a possibility of he and the family coming out to Turkey for a holiday, so that would be a good reason to party!
13/06/08 Friday the thirteenth......I should have stayed in bed! All seems to have gone wrong today, Mevlut came with the new sheets, but only brought two instead of four - and he'd made them identical to the old ones which are useless....why did he think I wanted new ones? He then put a screw which was too long into the curtain tracks and damaged the gel coat on the other side which I will now have to repair. My boat insurance is due for renewal and the company is making stipulations about single-handed sailing so I will now have to begin the long-winded process of form filling to get quotes from all the other companies. Who thinks yachting is all about sitting in the cockpit drinking cocktails in the sunset?? Went over to Storm Dodger just before 7pm to say cheerio to Astrid who was flying home to UK for a few days, then had some dinner and watched a DVD.
14/06/08 Mevlut came again with the new curtains, which I was not happy with and sent back.....along with the sheets delivered yesterday. Part of the trouble with Turkish trades is....they understand their job - but not boats, therefore it is difficult to make them understand exactly what can and cannot be done onboard. Went to the Orange Bar for dinner with Roger, taking the two girls Leah and Jordan with us.
15/06/08 Ditto yesterday but without the Orange Bar.
17/06/08 Woke feeling a little fragile after going last night with Roger, Kev, Paul and Harry to the Taj Mahal in Marmaris for a curry and on to Bar Street afterwards. Mevlut finally finished the curtains yesterday and came again today with the sun awning - which didn't fit. He kept telling me "problem" (the only English word he knows) and pointing to my lazy jack lines. As he became louder, so did I, much to the amusement of surrounding boat crews. I finally took down the awning myself and told him, "problem...you made it wrong. Take it away and fix problem - or no money". I think he understood that! He will probably be back tomorrow. Astrid returned in the late afternoon from her flying visit to England and we all went to the bar for a beer, then a rum onboard Storm Dodger.
18/06/08 Spent most of the day clearing gear away so that Ann, who flies out tomorrow for seven days holiday with me, will at least have somewhere to sit! I can't understand where all the stuff has come from, I've been ditching unwanted gear by the barrow load, yet there seems to be more than ever, and worse......nowhere for it to go! Is my boat shrinking?
19/06/08 Collected Ann from Dalaman airport at noon (mad dogs and Englishmen...!) welcoming her into the 43oC of heat. Made our way back to Yacht Marine and a cooling bacardi 'n' coke (or three) onboard Storm Dodger. Ann then had a 'catch up' sleep whilst I made us a light salad meal before heading off to the bar and Happy Hour. David invited us back to his boat for a drink but Ann was by now feeling the pace of travel and heat and went to bed. I joined Kev, Karen, Eve, and Roger at David's and we partied on until 5am.
20/06/08 Started my birthday off with a trip into Marmaris with Ann, Roger, Kev, Paul, Toni and Jordan for a full English breakfast at the Pineapple restaurant, then G & T's back at Storm Dodger. Mevlut came and finished the sun awning in the afternoon, it still isn't what I wanted but I'm tired of the struggle to make him understand, so I'll make alterations myself at a later date. Decided on our evening meal at The Orange Bar with Roger and Astrid, catching a crowded dolmus around 8pm and returning to the marina bar about 11pm, where the televised Turkey/Croatia match was being screened, then back to the boat for the obligatory bacardi and cokes!
21/06/08 Last night's surprise win for Turkey puts them through to the semi-finals, so we've arranged to all go down to The Orange Bar on Wednesday evening to watch them play Germany.
23/06/08 Went into town with Astrid, Ann, Roger, Leah and Jordan - and Mutley the dog! Took Mutley to the vet for his rabies injection and to have him clipped, it's too hot for all that fur. Had some lunch in our favoured Mexican restaurant (Casa Bonita) before returning to the boats. We all went to the bar at Happy Hour to have a drink with Kev, who leaves tomorrow to work in Egypt for a while, then, for the first time in ages, we ate in the marina restaurant.
25/06/08 A relaxed day before going into town in the late afternoon to collect my depth sounder, which is still non functioning, and which I will now send back to the UK with Ann in a last ditch attempt to get it repaired. Paul, Gabby, myself, Ann and Yolly (Roger's Mum on a visit again) went by car to the Orange Bar at 8pm, Roger, Astrid, Paul, Toni and Jordan going by RIB for our evening meal and to watch the football semi-final. It was a good game which had the waiters and locals dancing and jumping all over the room each time Turkey scored but ultimately subdued at the final whistle......and Germany go through to the final.
26/06/08 Ann left for Dalaman airport by taxi at 0900, along with the couple on Kama, the boat next door to me. It's been good to have company onboard again but a pity that we couldn't actually go out sailing. Because of the ongoing problem with the depth sounder and with insurance renewals, I am now resigned to staying here for some while longer.....maybe even another winter! I also seem to have contracted the Marmaris malady again (cold/cough/sore throat) and spent most of the day in bed before venturing out in the cooler evening to watch the second semi-final (Russia - Spain) in the marina bar with Yolly, Harry and Astrid.
27/06/08 I was forced to cancel a trip to the Turkish Baths today because of feeling rough.....and had another day in bed! All who did go on the trip reported that it was great and they would go again - so maybe next time? We had snow in the afternoon!! Well, at least that's what it looked like, but it turned out to be a big forest fire across the bay and the north-west wind was blowing the high pall of smoke in our direction, covering my boat and all others in falling ashes. Several helicopters were dumping huge buckets of water onto the blaze but it was some hours before it was extinguished.
29/06/08 Yet another very hot day! A lot of crews have gone, or are going back to their respective homelands for the two coming months as it gets very warm here during that time. Astrid sailed onboard Chagazee with John and his son Michael, for a few days in Gocek bay, and Roger, myself and Yolly took the nippers Leah, Aiden and Catriona to Çinar for our evening meal after which, we paid a visit to the Hetman Hospital to have Yolly's hand X-rayed following an earlier fall in the marina bar garden - nothing broken, just sprained, bruised and swollen.
30/06/08 Another month over and still no nearer to sailing!! However, Storm Dodger's list of jobs is coming close to the end and maybe I'll get to sail her for a day or two? Hardly any wind today, so the humidity was high and the sweat rolled off me as I tried to get some little jobs done. I should really have gone back to the Hetman Hospital as an ongoing eye problem is beginning to cause me some irritation. I'll try to get there tomorrow. Dinner in the marina restaurant with Jan of Luturna.
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