One can’t write of museums in London without mentioning the incredible policy of free admittance. If one subscribes to the philosophy, as we do, that human capital is the greatest resource a country can have, and that the education of those humans is in the best interest of everyone in that country, then it makes sense that all people would be welcome to explore and learn in the magnificent museums that call London home. I especially love that with just an hour of free time, one can just meander into a museum without a huge commitment of money, one can appreciate the art without worrying about the commitment of time. .
One of the most magnificent collections of antiquity art in the world is housed in The British Museum. In addition to the traveling exhibits, one can see the most comprehensive collection of Egyptian and Persion artifacts dating back thousands of years that likely exists in any single collection. I can’t help but make special note of some of one collection of artifacts that has been in the news a great deal: The famed Elgin Marbles.
The above images were taken at the British Museum
Some of what follows is taken from “ Lord Elgin in athensguide.com. “ and some from the British Museum and our tours of the Acropolis in Athens.
Lord Elgin, as ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, spent alot of time sketching what were believed to be the “best examples of Classical architecture in the world”, and had hoped to bring these models back to England to inform future buildings. It is widely disputed how exactly the “marbles” came to end up in England. The British museum claims that it was with permission and for the benefit of the precious artifacts themselves that they be brought back to England. The other story is that late into the dead of night, this Caryatid was chiseled away from her post where she stood with her 5 sisters. The debate continues and has been elevated to current affairs with the Prime Ministers from Greece and the UK refusing even to see each other if this topic is to come up. While it has been my position that disputed provenance of country treasures should error on the side of the country of origin. Indeed, having been to both the acropolis and the Athens museum where the remaining Caryatids remain, I believe that this stunning sculpture should be reunited with her “sisters”. Polls indicate that most UK citizens agree with me. But in a shout out the the amazing museums in London, not just the British Museum but also the Tate Modern, the Victoria and Albert, the Science and the Natural History museums, the National Gallery and the Guildhall and many Im missing – ARE ALL FREE! Anyone may walk through the doors and meander for as long or short as they wish at no cost whatsoever. Of course, if one wishes to donate money to this amazing enterprise, donations are graciously accepted. But donations are not compulsory which makes art and history available to EVERYONE regardless of financial ability to pay. This makes the case for England protecting treasures rather than trying to profit from them a bit more credible. And bravo for the UK for having such a policy. Entrance into the acropolis is about 20 Euro. There is also a fee for the museum – which is absolutely their right. But I just want to point out that the British museum charges no admittance to see any of the precious artifacts in their collection regardless of citizenship, age, or ability to pay. Here are some photos of the famed Elgin Marbles…
The photos of the original Caryatids above with the lovely Tracy are the original Caryatids in the museum in Athens. They were once where the replicas are displayed on the right at the Acropolis. The center photo with Jack and our guide is a lego reproduction including Lord Elgin chiseling the caryatids from the temple. The lego is a gift donated to the Athens museum from Australia.
The National Gallery is an absolute must stop in Trafalgar Square. The collection of Renaissance and Impressionist art is extraordinary. Van Gogh, Titian, Rembrandt, Ruben and the list goes on. Again, free to browse the collection of art, all are welcome!
Never a big fan of modern art, we explored the Tate Modern Museum for a short while and we I enjoyed seeing several Lichtenstein and a few other thought provoking exhibits, overall the exhibits were not really my cup of tea. Below are some photos. I must confess, Im also not a fan of the architecture of the museum. In fact, when I went looking for photos, I realized I never took any for this very reason.
Alec spent the day visiting The Science museum, always a favorite. There he said that they charged a 5£ admission – and the last time I went I thought they charged some small fee also. But when my niece and her BF went, they were not charged – so it may be “day dependent”. In any case, if you like science, you will love this amazing museum.
The Museum of Natural History is extraordinary! I wish we knew that the schools were on half term break because I have never been in a more crowded museum but what a great thing that these kiddos were enjoying their break from school in, of all places, the museum!
Established in 1881, the building is one of the finest in London and shares the famed “Exhibition Row” in south Kensington with the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Over 80 million specimens are exhibited here including the most comprehensive collection of dinosaur bones we have ever seen. Included in the collection are the remains of a magnificent blue whale.
One simply cannot see all of the museums in London on a single visit but whichever you choose, you are sure to be amazed.
A couple of ways to get a bird eye view of the amazing city of London is, of course, the London Eye. We did this with Tracy and Jen when they were here with us in 2019 but when we tried to take Kelly a few weeks ago, it was closed for maintenance. But, on a budget and free for those who plan, the Sky Garden is a wonderful way to get a view of the city and enjoy a cup of coffee. For more information go to www.skygarden.london From there you can book free tickets, but you must book your free tickets a few weeks. Alternatively, you can book a table at one of the restaurants at the top.
View of the Shard taken from the Sky Garden above and taken from the Tower Bridge below.
Probably for me, the prettiest modern building in London is the Shard. It is decorated with lights celebrating the holidays or the coronation or any other thing and I just love it. One of the greatest things about London is the peaceful cohabitation between brand new modern buildings and the ancient remains of the Roman era. And for some reason, it just works! Jack asked if we could see if there was a restaurant on the top and there are several. So, in honor of the Chinese New Year and to celebrate our impending departure, we booked into the Chinese restaurant in the Shard. Given that it was a completely disappointing meal – and one of the most expensive we have had, I’m going to omit the details. But the view was extraordinary.
My favorite old building would have to be the amazing Tower of London. The original structure, the White Castle, was built by William the Conqueror in the 1080s. One can walk around the outer structure and read about the history without even hiring a guide but, of course, the guided tours are amazing. Without even paying the price of admission, one can walk around and appreciate the history and architecture. While the White Castle can be hard to find walking the perimeter, it is clearly visible from these photos taken from the Sky Garden. Also, it is clearly visible from either the Tower Bridge mid-point or from the London Bridge. Viewed from a distance, the White Castle is clearly visible. A word about the Tower… If you are visiting London and looking for a special treat that few ever enjoy, you can book tickets several months in advance to see the nightly closing of the tower. The Beefeaters have an entire ceremony of the keys whereby they lock the gates of the Tower of London. This ceremony is closed to the public except for advance ticket purchase and even requires a dress code. A simple google search will reveal the details. Also interesting is having dinner in the tower, which my mother and stepfather once did while traveling here on Tauk. Mere mortals such as I could only imagine what a privilege that would be.
The shopping in London, it goes without saying, is world class. We are not big shoppers, but we can hardly resist a trip down Bond and Regent Street to peruse the windows. Even for non-shoppers like us, it’s fun to see the lovely baubles and extravagant luxuries. Of course, Jack fell in love with the world’s largest Lego Store in Leicester Square. Often there is a line to get into the shop which has the most extraordinary collection of assembled and ready to purchase Lego. After years of life without Amazon and several other stores which are only a “click” away from your wildest dreams, we are all pretty happy to be back in a place where getting a scale that measures in pounds or a hairdryer with a US plug is no big deal.
We had an amazing and memorable time in London. Planning to head next to Portsmouth on the South coast of England and it will likely take a few days to get there, (depending on the weather). So long to the gorgeous St. Katharine’s Dock and with many many thanks for your kind hospitality.
Photo taken by Don and Emma – thanks for seeing us off the dock!
Im going to try to accomplish the Herculean task of distilling the past 3 months into a post that is readable and enjoyable while attempting to impart knowledge of London as well as completing the primary task of making a diary entry for our chronicles of an exceptional 6 year journey. So bear with me if this, at times, seems like a wander.
The Charming St. Katharines Dock
Gratitude’s home for the winter this year is the most idyllic and unimaginable locale given that we are in the middle of one of the largest cities in Europe. London, which houses approximately 9 million inhabitants with an additional 1 million visitors daily, can feel, at times, overwhelming. But a short 15 minute walk from the Tower Hill tube stop and visible from the Tower Bridge is the lovely St. Katharines Dock.
Charming, is the most obvious description when I look out our window, but a peaceful pearl in the midst of controlled chaos is what it feels like to come home to this place. There are 3 basins which comprise the SKD facility. Impeccably maintained, manicured and cared for by a team of the most able specialists in marine accommodation we have ever seen, St. Katharines is a true haven and a worthy stop for any visitor whether on the boat or visiting via hotel. Facilitating this unlikely task, given that there are times when the shoreline of the Thames is a mudflat, is a locking system which permits a stable depth in the marina despite the twice daily rise and fall of 10 meters (roughly 30 feet) of tide water. Watching boats “lock” in and out is itself a tourist attraction and Science lesson. Gratitude has a front row seat for the arrival of new boats which can only happen during the high tide and 1 hour on either side. The staff are as kind as they are efficient and manage all manner of tasks from locking arrivals and departures in and out of the marina, to facilitating black water pump out, as well as the meticulous cleaning and maintenance of shower, laundry and general facilities. Not inexpensive, this is likely the most “pricey” moorage we have paid in Europe, it is less expensive then anything comparable in the US and given its location and quality of accommodation, we feel it is a good value for the money. On a personal note, shortly after our arrival, our eldest, Pratt (nearly 17 year old cat) became ill. Since he was already diagnosed with several maladies which indicated his imminent passing, we felt certain where this was heading. Claire and others in the SKD office helped us with making vet appointments as well as just general kindness when the inevitable happened and we had to let Pratt go. They even found homes for his food and other items on board, and brought us flowers which was way above and beyond and just the type of gesture one appreciates from a neighbor, even a neighbor as short lived as us. Losing Pratt was a terrible blow to the whole Gratitude family. We loved him immensely and he gave us so much. We miss him terribly as we continue to miss his sister who passed away over 2 years ago.
Christmas in London
Over the Christmas holidays the increase in traffic, both pedestrian and motor, was palpable. We were so looking forward to the holiday lights, shopping (though we aren’t big shoppers), shows and holiday excitement and we were not disappointed. Pure energy – most of it positive- infused all of our interactions despite the masses of humanity. The Christmas markets, which could be found literally from end to end in the City of London, provided wonderful hand made crafts as well as delicious street food. Each borough or neighborhood provided its own take on Christmas decorations keeping shops and restaurants nearly full throughout the holiday.
Victorian Games entertained during a full boat holiday
After the 10th of January however, the crowds thinned obviously and things returned to “normal”. What is normal? Well, for us, that means getting somewhere on the tube or in the West End can happen with a minimum of jostling; and the weekly (sometimes more) trips to the gorgeous Borough Market were a joy rather than a misery. During the holidays, some of our favorite vendors even changed their offerings to simplify customer interactions. If you are a visitor to London and you like food, dont miss the Borough Market. It is a joy to meander the stalls and appreciate the incredibly high quality of food – from hot street food, to butchers, cheese mongers and farm fresh products, Borough Market has it all. A couple of our favorites are the pulled pork on ciabatta from “The Black Pig”, Mango sticky rice from the Thai food place, and the famous mixed berry cobbler from the “Humble Crumble”.
We opted to bring the Black Pig pork sandwich home. Some of the various stalls at Borough Market
Most of these places were impossible over the holidays but now one can get in a somewhat reasonable line. I prefer to eat sitting down to standing up but every couple of weeks, we can’t resist a trip for lunch, and more regularly, the butcher and bread makers are worth a regular trip for galley staples. Speaking of food…..
FOOD IN LONDON
Im not sure where the poor British ever got a reputation for having food that wasn’t amazing. Sounds like a rumor perhaps spread by the French? But I can’t say enough about the wonderful culinary experiences we have had here. Last night we enjoyed a ridiculously delicious lobster dinner at a gorgeous restaurant called Smiths of Wapping. With stunning views of the Thames and the Tower Bridge, and a creative menu with absolutely everything served to us not only perfectly prepared but thoughtfully presented by attentive and efficient staff, you must add this to your list to visit. Also, and it pains me to add to their already epic lines, the Dishoon restaurant for Indian food. Seriously, Im dreaming of it. They have a few different locations around London, mercifully, since Im not the only one who could eat there 5x a week and be happy. Likely due to their past colonization of India, there is no shortage of amazing Korma or Tikka but Dishoon is its own amazing thing.
Dishoon!Tea Fortnum MasonFrom top left to right Dishoom Indian food, Fortnum and Mason Tea, The Feathers Pub, The Park Row bottom row
Park Row in Piccadilly has an interesting and creative menu executed brilliantly. And Gordon Ramsay has several restaurant’s here also but I must truthfully confess that we were unimpressed by his restaurant in the Battersea Power Station (Bread Street Kitchen). The menu was interesting but we felt poorly executed and seasoned. But that’s just our opinion. Nicholson Pub, a chain it turns out, had really well prepared pub food. We accidentally discovered the first one, Williamsons Tavern, after a very long 20,000 plus step walking day on the first day of Kellys arrival. Not only a delicious pub menu of traditional pies and chips, we had the added benefit of dining in a historical landmark. A short 2 minute walk from the Mansion House Underground station, the pub is tucked down a narrow ally and once housed the Lord Mayor. Built shortly after the Great Fire of 1666, and restored in the early 20th century, this is clearly a favorite after work spot for locals in the area. Despite the distinct odor of ale (likely achieved after decades of the spilled nectar soaked into the timber floors), the food was delicious and the staff lovely. It would make a perfect lunch or dinner spot for a tourist given the convenient location next to the real Lord Mayor house, Mansion house as it is called, plus a short walk to several bridges, government buildings and the famous St. Paul’s Cathedral – Not the only work of the famed architect, Sir Christopher Wren, in the area. See if you can find his other amazing, though far lesser known, church, St. Mary Abchurch behind Cannon Street.
More work of Sir Christopher WrenSt Pauls Cathedral
It goes without saying that the British tradition of High Tea is alive and well and being served all over London. I can’t write a paragraph about food and fail to mention the delicious “tea” we enjoyed at Fortnum and Masons Diamond Jubiliee Tea Salon. Despite the claim that Queen Elizabeth and Catherine, Princess of Wales, opened the lovely Tea Room, there isn’t the slightest hint of snobbery amongst the staff. Gracious and warm service with the award winning tea and delicious pastry was a highlight of the most recent trip with Kelly.
THEATRE IN LONDON
One simply does not come to London and not soak in all possible live entertainment in the West End and beyond. We are doing our best to see as much as possible and what follows is an overview of what we have done and what we have tickets yet to do on this, our final month here.
A Christmas Carol
Jack and I, together with Emma, a marina friend, went to the Madonna concert at the O2. She was an amazing performer and was a shining example of what can be possible for a 60 something women. Strong, beautiful and capable, she entertained the crowd after the curfew of the 02 and completed an amazing performance.
Madonna Live at the 02
We first heard of the longest continuous show on the West End (with the exception of the covid closing) when visiting Agatha Christies summer home near Darthmouth on the south coast of England. The “MOUSETRAP” has been a favorite in London since 1952. A murder mystery in which the audience is invited to do their own sleuthing, but more importantly implored to keep the secret of “who done it” the show has never been filmed or played outside of the West end. While one can resolve the mystery with a simple google search (DONT DO IT!!), part of the fun is the joy of joining tens of thousands of others who have seen this fun murder mystery played out on stage in live theatre. We enjoyed this with my niece Sarah and her boyfriend Ryan. They are not fans of musicals, so this was the perfect live show to watch with them.
After the passing of our beloved Pratt, we 3 were in serious need of some laughter, it being the best medicine for a broken heart. We went to THE BOOK OF MORMON and we did get a good laugh. A few caveats, I would not call this wholesome humor. It was irreverent and at times inappropriate but the cast was great and once you know what to expect, it delivers in spades.
The Christmas season brings some time honored traditions, but this year we replaced the Nutcracker with a live performance of A CHRISTMAS CAROL. Performed brilliantly, this play was a perfect addition to our holiday play list.
Steve and Kim visited just prior to Christmas and we enjoyed a beautiful Bulgarian Christmas Choir performance.
Kelly came for a visit and since she is a regular patron of live Broadway shows, I wanted her West End visit to be a treat. Based on some solid reviews, we bought tickets to Moulin Rouge. Wow, a stellar performance of music and choreography, it was one of the finest live theatre performances I have ever enjoyed.
We are going to see SIX next week and Phantom of the Opera at the end of the month. Encouraged by the closing of the same show on Broadway, we want to make sure we see this iconic performance before it goes away.
HIDDEN GEM
There are hundreds of hidden gems in London. My favorite thing to do is just head off in any direction and go where the spirit moves, with nothing more then a lose plan or itinerary. Most recently when Kelly came to visit, we did just this on the day of her arrival. After dropping bags onboard Gratitude, we made a point of seeing my very favorite Borough Market for lunch, then across the London Bridge back over to the North bank where we just meandered around the neighborhood near St. Paul’s. We discovered (or rather re-discovered since I accidentally found this with Alec and Jack in 2019) the London Guildhall.
Notice the black circle outline – this depicts where the Roman Amphitheater once stood in 70AD
The Romans, when founding Londinium, placed their Amphitheatre here in 70AD. If you are lucky enough to get the birdseye view, the black marble circle is where the Roman built their amphitheater and where (buried deep below) you will rediscover ruins which were uncovered during the renovation of the Guildhall museum. When these ruins were discovered, work was halted and experts consulted. The remains of this Amphitheater are housed in the re-designed museum which takes advantage of these precious remnants of the Roman era.
But the Guildhall in medieval history was a crucial center of commerce and this amazing space has represented the merchant class since the early 15th century. The flags hanging throughout the Great Hall represent each of the original 12 trades which brought so much wealth and power to London. Trials were held here from 1400s and even Lady Jane Grey was tried and found guilty of high treason and sentenced to death here. There is a large sign indicating some of the more famous and noteworthy trials which have taken place in the Guildhall. The roof of the Guildhall was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666 and sadly once replaced would burn on 3 more occasions before the current roof would rest in 1953.
Gog and Magog I dont think many have seen these views!
The Guildhall is the locale of the Lord Mayors Banquet and has been since 1502. Queen Elizabeth celebrated her 90th birthday and her Ruby Jubilee here as well as making her famous “annum horribilis” speech following the Windsor castle fire in 1992. Many events are memorialized in large master works paintings throughout the Guildhall.
Kelly and I accidentally meandered into the space and, like children, looked through the window to gaze inside. Amazed at the beauty within, we asked for admittance to look around. Nearly laughed out loud to our faces, we were turned away. But the guards at the entrance to the nearby museum beckoned us inside and, reluctant to seem ungrateful, we graciously accepted. I was anxious to show Kelly 2 treasures that I already knew were inside anyway: 1, the Magna Carta from the 13th century. We saw this in 2019 on our earlier visit. And 2, the beautiful Roman amphitheater. Which is where the security guard found us.
I don’t recall this mans name and since Id be mortified to get him into trouble, I wouldn’t mention it here anyway. He whisked us off on our own private tour. INCLUDING THE AMAZING GUILDHALL!!!. He said he felt so sad for us being turned away after peeping through the windows and he wanted to make it special for us! This kind man escorted us through each of the interconnected buildings telling us stories, and inviting us to take these photos.
Whether you can wrangle your own private tour of this incredible space or not, the museum, the courtyard and what you can view through the plate glass windows is worth the trip. The more important lesson though is wherever you visit – especially in London, be sure to carve out time for the slow meander and going to where the spirit moves you. These have unfailingly produced the greatest memories in these years of travel.
Other hidden gems in London include the countless neighborhoods, each special in their own way. The hippster areas of Portabello and Camden town are so much fun. Id recommend, if youre a big walker, taking a meander through “little Venice”. You could get off the Camden Town tube stop and have fish and chips at Poppies, or the best Malaysian food you will have outside Malasia at the Camden Lock food truck area. Then walk along the river passing The Regents Park to your left. You will even see some animals from the zoo as you pass. (Thanks to Gus and Helen, long time St. Kats London locals for recommending this to us). This is a lovely walk and you will find floating book stores and even a puppet show. Portabello has a similar but totally different vibe and you will certainly find many fun stops along the way. No matter which of the 32 locals districts you find, you can’t be disappointed.
Soho, Covent Garden, Carnaby… these are just a few of the areas in the Piccadilly Circus area. You could spend a day strolling the streets discovering cool shops and amazing restaurants. Following Moulin Rouge with Kelly we made a reservation for some comfort food bar-b-que at DIRTY BONES. Seating us before confirming our reservation, I didnt realize we booked for the wrong day. Turns out, our mistake, we didnt have a reservation. They didnt treat us as criminals! They were gracious and invited us to remain where we were and we enjoyed an amazing comfort food dinner here, despite the fact that they were fully booked and very full.
This has well exceeded my usual length for a post so Ill stop here and continue next with Museums in London.
Go Knights!!
On a short aside, our journey is coming to an end soon and with the plans begun in earnest for our return, it is getting harder than ever to remain in the moment. We have had incredibly happy news this week which must be chronicled here. Jack will be attending The Pine School in the fall. We returned to the US for a brief 10 day whirlwind visit in November, during which time, we witnessed our niece get married in California, and Jack visited and interviewed at 3 schools in the Martin County-Palm Beach Country areas. Since November we have been holding our breath and crossing our fingers that Jack would find a home in one of them. GO KNIGHTS! And Congratulations to Kelly and Kyle!
“The only true voyage of discovery, the only fountain of eternal Youth, would be not to visit strange lands, but to possess other eyes, to behold the universe through the eyes of another, of a hundred others, to behold the hundred universes that each of them beholds, that each of them is…”. Marcel Proust
From the bow of GratitudeThe gorgeous Tower Bridge
The first time I believe that I read a paraphrased version of the above quote by Marcel Proust, was while reading The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghase. He attributed the quote to one of his beloved characters. I fell so in love with the quote, I sent it to friends who shared with me that it has been around much longer than my character, then sent me to do some exploration of the original. Thanks Anne!
What I actually read was “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new sights, but in looking with new eyes”.
This sentence, in the context of our most recent coming home to London, has been resonating and rattling around in my head ever since I read it.
Just a few of the first meals we enjoyed that first week
You see, when we first arrived in London having just crossed the Atlantic Ocean on our beloved Gratitude in 2019, we had this whole voyage ahead of us. We had nothing more than the names of cities and countries, some marina ideas, a ton of cruising guides and guidebooks on the shelf as well as countless home education books and resources. But the new eyes to which Proust refers, we didn’t even have a hint of. I imagined that we would see new places and learn new ways of doing things, but I could never have imagined the “new eyes” that I would gain all these years later.
The new eyes that we returned with made me aware that things were different – Subtle shifts in the way we viewed things 5 years ago, and even huge shifts were apparent.
5 years ago, I remember thinking that the entire tradition of a royal family and the belief that one can be chosen by God by birthright to rule other men preposterous. But upon returning, I have new eyes. I can see the ways in which the monarchy, at its best, is a unifying force for the UK during times of strife at 10 Downing. The Labour Party arguing with the Torys, the Brexit and party gate nonsense, none of that mattered as the entire United Kingdom mourned the loss of a true public servant. I don’t think either of our two countries has seen a true public servant in our politics in a good many years. But the way that the Queen was able to unify her entire country was humbling and beautiful, and I ate my words that the Royal Family has no place in the 21st century.
Some of these revelations are a source of embarrassment for me, but I’m coming clean so that I can share with you the way that travel has changed me in a way that would have been impossible without leaving my country.
I remember being very disconcerted by the Muslim women in burkas which are somewhat common in England, especially London. Since it was fairly unusual for full coverings in the US, I grappled with this initially. I can tell you that any sense of dis-comfort has totally dissolved over the past 5 years. Nothing like living in a Muslim country for 10 months and making many more friends with women who dress differently to help you to see the humanity all around you.
I am ashamed to admit that I had, 5 years ago, no desire to go to Germany. I had read too many books about the Holocaust and WWII to be comfortable in a country that could allow their leaders to engage in such horrific atrocities. Well, I have done more reading about my own country, and I have learned that though WWII was more recent than our miserable past treatment of African Americans and Native Americans, the truth is, we are still failing to come to grips with our past in this regard. And I believe that sadly, with the right person saying the right things to stir up fear and anger, it would not be a stretch at all to imagine the entire thing happening again – in our country. So, we went to Germany, and we were treated more generously there by Germans than at any of the stops along the way. I now have utterly different eyes, not only toward Germany and Germans, but also toward my own country and leaders.
I had some real reservations about Türkiye and Montenegro, but they remain 2 of our favorite places.
I have new eyes when it comes to the way that I do things – laundry for example left to dry on lines looks so much more beautiful, lasts longer, and uses far less precious resources. And manners… let’s talk about manners…
I read a book recently that inferred that the Carnegies were shunned from high society due to Mrs. Carnegies’ failure to understand the very vague guidelines of how long a sleeve should be. Which brings me to a fairly big breakthrough I had a year or 2 ago. Struggling to get to the bottom of why I was so irritated that dear friends failed to follow social norms and manners common in the US, I started inquiring about the many ways in which we are trained to treat people as “others”. The ways that society has made “us” and “them”. The way that countries do it, clubs do it, social groups do it. Just to test my theory, I put my knife in my mouth in the presence of friends from England for whom such a faux pas would be unforgivable and truly, it honestly seemed to upset her. My goal, of course, wasn’t to upset a friend, but rather to make the point that all of these “rules” are terrible dividers to friendship and peace and unity. I’ll be honest, there are still times when I have to talk myself down when Im around someone from another country who doesn’t know the subtleties of American culture. But the pause that I have learned to take between feeling the “slight” and recognizing that there was no slight at all intended, is the difference between who I was 5 years ago and the new eyes I have now.
We returned to the beautiful St. Katharines Dock in London after another glorious summer of cruising and had the sense of “coming home” for all 3 of us this past October. At once we couldn’t wait to discover old favorite places and restaurants. But the joy of hearing one’s own language (even with a different accent) after years of funneling thoughts through “google translate” cannot be overstated. The thrill of walking into a restaurant, understanding the menu and being able to order this without that, with even a modicum of confidence that the order would be understood, never mind processed correctly, was an entirely new experience for all of us.
The reason we originally chose the UK for our first summer was that I thought we should get into the deep end of the proverbial ethnic pool gently. It was a super wise thing to do since there are more similarities between the UK and the US then differences. And for the same reason, Im glad that this is our final stop before heading home to the US in April. It is providing a sort of gentle re-entry. Jack ADORES London. For most of the 5 years he told people it was his favorite. The “favorite place” with Jack is a moving target but suffice to say, he is so happy to be back.
We are planning to remain in London until sometime in February, we will come out of the water to do some bottom work in March and Gratitude is going to get to take a ride home to Florida in late March. Originally, we had planned to cross the Atlantic on the Northern route to ME. But the most dangerous thing on a boat is a schedule. And with Jacks first day of school likely in August, we couldn’t guarantee we would be back on time. Rather than avoid the stress and potentially pushing our comfort in weather that was likely to be lousy heading Westbound, we made the difficult decision to ship her home. On the upside, we will have a relaxing (relatively speaking) summer and return with time to settle in and catch our breath before Jack starts school.
I’ll do another entire post on the city of London because it is such a fun, safe, clean and wonderful city. 9 million people live here with another 1 million visitors each day. In spite of that, people are moved swiftly and safely through all of the boroughs and townships easily and efficiently with an amazing public transportation system. There is a ton to write about and share with you about London but for now I’ll leave this here.
We have been at this for a while, Alec, Jack and Me. A rough count is 30 countries, and lots of islands, cities and towns along the way. We have enjoyed meals, customs, holidays and deeply meaningful conversations with so many people who carry a different color passport than us. Each of these interactions makes a solid impression on us and our most fervent wish is that these experiences will inform the human that Jack is when he enters the world as an adult. This summer we have been humbled by the experiences we have had with so many truly amazing people who have opened their homes and their lives to us in ways that I don’t imagine I have ever done before in the US (unfortunately). We have hardly met anyone who wasn’t fluent in their language, our language and learning or practicing another 1 or 2 languages. We have been so impressed by the willingness to learn and humble oneself to lean into another culture by the people whom we have shared this summer. I thank each of you from the bottom of my heart.
As I sit here preparing to share my experiences of Germany, the new and old friendships top the list of the best part of our time here.
We began our adventure in Germany after arriving at the entrance to the Kiel canal. Scotland and the Caledonia Canal initiated our appreciation of canals, and we loved the Kiel for the same reasons. The 98-kilometer freshwater canal has been here since 1898 and, through it transit, on average, 32000 ships yearly. The canal eliminates some 250 miles of potentially treacherous seas to the North of Jutland in the North Sea for ships heading into or out of the Baltic. All along the route one can see clever and resourceful ways in which the transit authorities have accommodated the communities that they have bisected to create this wonder. There are ferry’s, bridges and even a cable car suspended over the canal. We encountered every size and shape of vessel and despite the foggy conditions, we had a wonderful passage over 2 days.
Pleasure boats such as Gratitude must stop for the night which we did in Rendsburg and at the end in Brunsbuttel. An unplanned stop, friends we met in Portugal 4 years ago were in Rendsburg and texted us as we headed their way, so we decided to spend the night and enjoy a meal and some stories.
Thomas and Christine (https://danja.de) have just completed 2 Atlantic crossings as well as thousands of miles of sailing through the Caribbean and US Eastern seaboard.
Thomas and Christine
It was wonderful to see them again and get caught up. Despite loving Rendsburg, we decided to press on and get to Hamburg so we might have a few days of relaxing before Colins arrival. We managed to transit the Brunsbuttel lock (in very heavy fog) and make it to Hamburg after a full day of cruising on the Elbe River. Once in Hamburg, we enjoyed a few days of walking and familiarizing ourselves with this very cool town. The largest Port in Germany, Hamburg has about 2.5 million residents in its urban area.
The Speicherstadt, or warehouse district, is the largest in the world with red brick buildings standing on timber foundations. The district has been designated a world heritage site. Adjacent to the Speicherstadt is the Kontorhaus district and also a world heritage site due to the notable buildings and architecture. Of greatest interest to us, however, was the immense canal system and we learned that there are more bridges, 2500 of them, than in Venice and Amsterdam combined. It made for a fun meander around the town both by us and later with Colin. There are several day trip boats that make the journey up and down the canals, but all of the commentary was unfortunately in German with no English translation available.
We visited the Elbphilharmonie concert hall, a stunning building on the river which reflects the sun and even appears to change colors as the day progresses. We were moored right in front of the building, and we noted how people congregated at the time of sunset but the view from away from the building was the prettiest then as the reflection of the setting sun changed the building to a beautiful orange hue.
St Nikolai and St. Michael, 2 of the original 5 Lutheran main churches are major landmarks. What remains after the WWII bombing runs of Hamburg is just a shell of the beautiful gothic spires which remain of St. Nikolai, the second tallest building in Hamburg. St. Michael remains and is one of the most famous churches in the city. We went inside St. Michaels, and it was lovely inside.
The lovely Frank and Iris Penkwitt
We flew Colin into Stuttgart since the beginning of Volksfest coincided perfectly with Colins planned arrival. Jack and I traveled to Stuttgart the day before so that we wouldn’t risk a train delay and not be there on time. Before I share the particulars of Stuttgart’s answer to Oktoberfest, I have to take a moment to impart the significance of this experience and, in particular, give a standing ovation to our hosts, the Penkwitt family. There are, in my opinion, several ways into a culture, including the language of course, the food (a favorite of mine), and the celebrations of heritage and holidays. There are the moments of shared humanity such as when I held the embrace of a Russian woman at the start of the war in Ukraine. There are the moments of humility when someone comes to our aid either to help us communicate or to manage something in a place foreign to us (often the train or subway station). Sometimes when we travel to a country, it can take weeks or months for us to feel as though we have “gotten” who the people are who call a place home. Other times, we “get it” in days. We feel so privileged to have been the recipient of the most extraordinary acts of kindness and generosity on this most recent adventure to Stuttgart. And through this generosity, we learned the sounds of the German language from the lips of people who embody the most incredible spirit of kindness, compassion, and generosity. We were invited into the home of a beautiful family – certainly the most intimate of gestures to extend to relative strangers, who prepared food, and shared their community and family with us. They treated us to Volksfest, Stuttgarts Oktoberfest, and shared the history of this celebration. They showered our child with kindness and heard him when he spoke – they saw him. They prepared meals for us and introduced us to one after another special dishes unique to Germany. Frank, Iris, Tom, and Celine, words cannot convey adequately how we appreciate your kindness and generosity on our behalf. I truly hope that we can one day reciprocate your hospitality and friendship.
We met Frank and Iris when we were docking in Edgarsund, Norway when they jumped off their boat which was moored forward of a space we were trying to squeeze into. They offered to catch lines rather than staring down their noses, inspecting our arrival for signs of weakness. There are often those who, rather than helping, would prefer to stand back and wait for the arriving boat to provide fodder for entertainment. Having a capable and willing set of hands on the dock to catch lines is always a welcome site and this help was just the beginning of what we hope will be a lasting friendship. While we had only spent a few minutes talking, among cruisers the conversation typically begins with places one has been or future planned experiences. We shared with them our plans to make it to Germany to take our nephew to Octoberfest and Frank warned that without preplanning, those tickets would likely be sold out. Without missing a beat, he invited us to share in the celebration with his family in Stuttgart, Germany and we quickly accepted. Sometimes plans take on their own momentum and this was just such a case. Before long, we had train, plane, and hotel reservations made and the hat was over the fence!
We had a couple of months and several stops to make before we would arrive in Germany however, but the contact made, we stayed in touch and on the planned date, we arrived in Hamburg.
So, several miles have passed under our keel since our chance meeting of 15 minutes, and here are these lovely people meeting our train when Jack and I arrived. Our cat Pratt has been a bit vulnerable since the last time we left him out of our care, and not wanting to subject him to more caregivers, Alec opted to stay behind. In addition to caring for Pratt, Alec always has a long list of jobs to get done on Gratitude and he was anxious to knock some of them out while we were away. The first stop after the 7 hour train from Hamburg to Stuttgart was dinner. An absolutely perfect place – home cooked local food in the quintessential town one conjures when you think Germany, we relaxed and got reacquainted before being dropped at our Airbnb.
The next day, Jack and I went to the old castle in the old town and walked around getting the lay of the land and having breakfast, then Frank and Tom collected us and brought us to the Mercedes Museum. I had mapped out the bus that would take us to collect Colin from the airport but in one after another gesture of kindness, Frank insisted that they would take us, even parking and walking in to meet him right outside customs after Colins 24 hours of travel. Ever the consummate hosts, they fixed dinner imagining that Colin would be more comfortable relaxing in a home after all the travel.
The following day was a blur of activity as we drank beer, ate enormous amounts of meat and food (if you’re American, think Thanksgiving here) and had lots of laughs. The Volksfest was terrific and had something for everyone. Originally a big agricultural festival similar to the county fairs in the US, the first Cannstatter Volksfest (translated to mean peoples festival) was celebrated on September 28, 1818. In a tradition that continues to this day, every other year cattle are brought here to be judged. The tents are huge and look more like permanent fixtures rather than the temporary structures that are built each year for this event. And housed in these tents are hundreds of wooden benches and tables on which thousands of people are served gallons of beer. The tickets are for either daytime or night and there is talented live entertainment provided for either seating.
Our generous hosts treated us to hours of entertainment and stories and ordered plates full of the most delicious meat and sauerkraut we have ever tried. Jack is a fan of pretzels and on this trip, he had his fill! After lunch, we rode rides and played games and had a terrific day. If this was not enough, Frank who has been collecting Lego for years, offered Jack a Lego from his collection. We spent the evening winding down at the Penkwitt home and fell into bed exhausted that night from all of the fun.
Colin is a big fan of Porsche and since he missed the Mercedes museum, we went early the following morning.
Frank and Iris collected us from the museum and took us to a wonderful town called Tubingen, a 30 minute drive from Stuttgart. We meandered the town and after delightful stop to enjoy Flaammkuchen and a beer – then yet another stop at a Biergarten, we were off for the Hohenzollern Castle.
It is such a shame that Alec wasn’t here because Frank does sightseeing the way that Alec wishes I did it. Each stop is punctuated with a rest for coffee or food at a Biergarten or café and the entire event is relaxed and enjoyable. It isn’t often that we meet a couple with whom we connect so well but Frank and Iris are truly kindred spirits, and we hope to have the opportunity to re-connect with them along the way.
Colin Jack and I returned to Alec in Hamburg where Jack spent a day getting schoolwork done and Colin, Alec and I took a walk around town. After a couple of days, we took a 1.5 hour train to Berlin where we spent the day doing sightseeing a bit more hectic than the way Frank and Iris do it. One after another sites and falling exhausted into the train for the ride home. In the short day there we saw several places including the Berlin Wall, the Brandenburg gate, the Memorial to the murdered Jews, the Reichstag building, the Holocaust Memorial, the Potsdamer Platz and the Berlin Cathedral, Checkpoint “C”, among others. While we tell Jack daily that his schoolwork is our highest priority, the words felt hollow as I asked him to finish up standing outside of a Starbucks with to-go service only. But we do tend to cram things in when fellow Americans show up since we want them to see as much as possible.
The final stop on our Germany experience is Cuxhaven. Colin specifically asked for a boat trip and while we would have liked to make it all the way to Amsterdam on a 36-hour passage, the weather was not conducive. So, we instead did a day trip down the Elbe river to the North Sea and Cuxhaven. We are now positioned to be able to leave when the weather permits. But our time here has been perfect. Mostly we have been busy getting caught up on life admin chores and our inability to move has made for the perfect rainy windy snuggle weather. The town is cute and improbably, we found an adorable secretary in an antique shop which Alec has managed to get into the lazarette for home. I usually like to buy a small token to remember a country but I don’t often buy a piece of furniture. This particular piece is from 1860 and was so lovely, I hated to leave it behind. So someday when Jack is reading this or moves this antique into his family home, he will remember from where it came.
We are absolutely at the end of our Schengen time, and thus at the end of our summer cruise. We have one more stop we hope to make in Bruges Belgium. Recommended by friends from London, it has been 4 years sitting on our bucket list. Our goal of arriving in London by October 15 is on pace and it looks like with some cooperation from the weather gods, all will come together nicely.
Leaving Smögen, Sweden we enjoyed beautiful passage conditions to Skagen, Denmark. The northernmost tip of Denmark, Skagen is a holiday port for Swedes and Danes and the harbor was full of lively holiday weekenders making the very most of the final summer weekend. The shops and restaurants were full to brimming with live entertainment and patrons were spilling onto the streets and keeping the movable party going well into the night hours. Alec and I had a little wander around town while Jack did some of his school work and we found a lovely bakery in which we had our first “danish”. The first time I had danish in Denmark was 7 years ago or more and I havent forgotten the pasty like confection and the real fruit filling which put to shame any same named pastry sold in the US. We brought enough to bring to Jack back on Gratitude and enjoyed it for a few days onward.
defaultWe have arrived in a true biking country!
Needing some exercise to burn off these delightful treats, we got an early start the next morning and rode our bikes to the very Northern tip of Denmark, Grenen, where the North Sea collides with the Baltic. I say collides because due to differences in density, this is exactly what happens. The waves come from different directions and slam into each other. Curious what it might look like from above, I asked Alec to bring the drone so we could get a wider perspective and these photos are the result. I especially love the ones where you can actually see the waves coming from opposite directions.
Leaving Grenen we stopped at the Skagen Grey Lighthouse which has become an international bird center. Given its path on the migratration routes of hundreds of species, there are sightings of both rare species and several birds of prey.
Continuing our ride we stopped at the location of the former lighthouse then enjoyed an evening in town for dinner and ice cream.
Leaving Skagan, our next stop was Læsø, a wonderful little island 12 miles off of the Jutland peninsula. Boasting a year round population of less than 2000 people, there is regular ferry service and an active community. Nearly deserted this time of year, we had no trouble finding a nice place to tie up and enjoy dinner.
The following day we rode our bikes to the Læsø Salt “factory”. Dating back to the Middle Ages, with a brief pause due to overforestation, Læsø has been nearly continuously producing salt in their kilns. Due to a high natural concentration of salt in the flats meadows due to the dry summers and with the final concentration done in kilns, Læsó has been able to produce unique and natural sea salt. It was the hungry kilns which caused the deforestation and subsequent interruption of the salt production. Once the forest returned, so did the salt production. The salt is still concentrated in the exact methods used in the 1200s. I may be biased but I think this is the nicest tasting salt I have ever eaten – Maldon used to be my favorite because of the flaky texture but this has that special texture but a lovely taste which I think is unique.
We passed many farms and lots of animals on a way. This was a wonderful stop and we can see what a vibrant and fun place this must be at the peak of the summer months. Though we enjoyed the quieter post peak season visit.
Continue in our trip down the Danish coast, we spent a night at Grenaa, then to Aarhus.
My birthday float
Itself a very cool town, Aarhus, Denmark was established in the 8th century. Despite the multiple museums and a vibrant city life, there was far too much to see for us to have managed it on this short visit. We planned this stop for my birthday (I prefer to be stationery when the anniversary of my birth comes around) and we decided it would make a nice place to rent a car and travel to the Lego House. We did make it to the Food festival and enjoyed the town and Cathedral with its ancient frescoes.
Long before we began our summer trip, Billund Denmark has been high on the list. Jack, an ardent Lego fan, has had “Lego Designer” on his short list of dream jobs. The birthplace of Lego is Billund, Denmark and with Legoland (we have our own in Florida so we didnt go) and the Lego House, we were excited to explore all that Billund had to offer. Introduced by a mutual acquaintance, we met 2 Lego employees (a designer and a product manager) who shared so passionately their love of Lego as an employer and the storied history and commitment to excellence which has fueled our own sons quest not only for a kings ransom worth of Lego, but also a desire to work for the company.
The Lego house has several “build” rooms with access to over 25 million bricks. And if inspiration is what you are craving, you will find it in room after room of amazing design and builds by Lego experts and fans alike. Jack has had a few sets high on his dream list and was hoping to find them here at the Lego store. Not only did we find sets he has wanted, we even got a few sets signed by the designers themselves. Since the designers work nearby, sometimes they will pop into the LegoHouse gift shop and sign a few of their own creations. Of course this is something one can only experience and find at the Lego House so we left with more than a few of Jacks Christmas gifts in hand. The highlight of our day was certainly the trip to the friends and family museum which our friendly Lego employees escorted us through. Detailing the fascinating story of the Lego company, I could feel and appreciate the passion and enthusiasm that workers have for their employer here.
Next stop, Gilleleje. A small fishing town on the North coast of the peninsula North Zealand, we first came here nearly 10 years ago when visiting Alecs Danish cousins who had summer homes in Tisvilde. It is a super cute town but the main reason for our visit this time was to meet up with one of Alecs cousins, Ida who lives a shortish drive away in Frederiksund. We feel like we are moving so fast through this visit of Denmark but family is the most important of our stops in Denmark. All of Alecs cousins look exactly as they did 10 years ago! There must be something in the water or the air here. We enjoyed a lovely evening with Ida, then continued our trip to Copenhagen the next day.
Gratitude in front of the Royal Residence
Copenhagen
I love love love Copenhagen. A city of 1.5 million people there are more than 745,000 bicycles. According to Wikipedia.org, More than 62% of residents commute to work-school-or university by bicycle – more than in the entire US! We heard from family members that the tax on automobiles is 180% of the cost of the car – an astounding figure, but one which adds up to a far healthier and longer lived constituency . Given that the healthcare is universal and tax payer funded, incentivizing healthy living makes sense. According to the city of Copenhagen, for each kilometre cycled, the city saves 1.21 Danish Kroner. But there are far more benefits in terms of wellness, city air quality and not the least, parking and traffic congestion. Even the Danish postal service delivers by cycles. Typical of a well run municipality, they dont just make a mandate, they back it up by providing not only incentives, but the roads, bike paths, and cycle tracks to make it safe and easy. We had an absolute blast riding safely along with traffic following signs and our own traffic lights, in tune with and alongside hundreds of others safely doing the same. We have gotten pretty comfortable riding our bikes – they are essentially our car now – but doing so in large cities terrifies me with Jack riding neck and neck with cars. But in Denmark – all over, not just Copenhagen, I felt safe and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. On many trains, bicycles even ride free!
According to Catharina, Alecs cousin and history teacher extraordinaire, Christian IV is the reason for the lovely canal system. It was reported that upon returned from a trip to Amsterdam, he loved the city so much he wanted to replicate the canal system in the capital city of Copenhagen. Christian IV made his mark on Copenhagen in many other palaces and structures in the city and as we cycled and walked the lovely streets, Catharina showed us many of the contributions he made during his 60 year reign. Christian IV was the King of Denmark and Norway from 1588.
Unusual for a large bustling harbour, swimming is not only permitted, it is encouraged. There are steps, ladders and open places everywhere to encourage the occasional dip and people do swim all hours of the day! I loved watching the free and uninhibited way that many Danes stripped down from their work clothes and jumped, naked in the water, only to dry off and get dressed and return to work. Imagine how exhilarating one would feel after such a swim! In certain areas there were hundreds if not thousands of bodies laying on the quay in the middle of the day on a Friday. Alecs cousin said that they would be permitted, even encouraged to go enjoy the lovely day that was happening and do more work next week perhaps. Which brings me to what must be my favorite aspect of Danish life.
On this Friday at mid-day, everyone in the city seemed to be outside!
I have never seen such an amazing work life balance in any place we have visited. It is common to take a month off from work in the summer and another 2 weeks at Christmas and another 2 week at Easter. In Sweden, they take off the entire 2 months in summer. Nobody gives it a thought that your email hasn’t been returned for weeks or months in the summer since EVERYONE is on holiday. When someone has a baby, both parents take leave. We learned at the Lego House speaking with an Engineer that she is permitted to take more time off in the summer than the usual month and just adjust her yearly salary to reflect this reduction in hours worked. A healthy work life balance seems to be the highest priority in Danish society. Students are given a stipend on top of their education being payed for. Imagine having the financial freedom to pursue whatever educational goals you had for yourself without fear of loan repayment or starving to death while trying to study to get a degree. And healthcare is universally paid for and free. It is the Danish viewpoint that healthcare and education are human rights. I know that many Americans reading this will bristle but imagine if the greatest minds of our time and the absolute most important resource our country had, was allowed to be tapped simply by permitting someone an education, or the freedom from oppressive debt simply because of an unlucky diagnosis.
Everyone reading this by now knows that visiting fresh markets are my favorite thing to do in Europe, but a very close second is the bakeries. And Denmark has elevated the humble bakery to a thing of absolute adoration. Trays of amazing confections emerging from the kitchens, the Kringle and Danish are otherworldly. Coffee is enjoyed all day here and cafes are busy all day long. Restaurants are plentiful and shops sell really interesting and individually made jewelry. There are still the occasional touristy souvenir shops but they are fewer and further between given that this is a regular cruise ship destination.
And finally, my last favorite thing about Copenhagen is their commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2050 and to reduce emissions by 70% by 2030. Evidence of this country wide commitment were everywhere and single use plastics were non-existent. Clearly Denmark is leading the way toward the solutions to our global problems. The city further uses discarded refuse, along with human waste, to produce heat, electricity and biofuel. According to 8shades.com, The CopenHill power plant turns waste into energy and provides heat and energy for tens of thousands of homes and businesses. Further, this plant emits only steam and was built to provide a ski slope for recreation. In fact, throughout the city one can see mixed use new construction happening according to strict new building guidelines of marrying practicality with recreation.
Denmark Politics
Similar to many other former strict monarchies in Europe, Denmark became a Constitutional Parlimentary Democracy in 1849. As with many other Parlimentary governments in Europe, if no party has enough votes to rule on its own, it must form a coalition government.
Claimed to be more than 1000 years old, these days the roles of the Royal Family are primarily that of a figurehead. Time will only tell what will happen to this and other monarchies in Europe but to hear our relatives speak of their royal family, they seem neither “royalist” nor anti-royal, though I never posed the question directly. I will admit to having had mixed feelings during our time in Europe and when we first arrived, I found the entire “royal” business bordering on the absurd. This viewpoint I can now see as lacking the depth (dare I say ignorant) necessary for such a conclusion. Certainly the limited (tabloid) exposure most westerners have of some European royal families contributes to this viewpoint. But my time in Europe and particularly with the passing the UK Queen Elizabeth has deepened my appreciation for the role that they play in their respective countries. Given that the Danish royals may be spotted, on any given day, playing tennis at the courts frequented by the public, or running down the quay near the royal residence, adds to their familiarity and from my point of view, makes them far more valuable as an ambassador for their country. Perhaps in the countries where paparazzi are permitted to run amok and citizens lack the common decency to allow their public figures to live and socialize freely without constantly being harassed, the royals become, born of necessity, more veiled and covert and in need of giant yachts and expensive private aircraft just to conduct their business and family lives with any semblance of normalcy. All of this nattering is essentially to say that the Danes seem to be managing this very well. They give their public figures space to live and thrive and their royal family continue to serve as ambassadors in a way that doesnt disgrace their country. I have witnessed how royal families can bring a country together and become one source of national pride and character. Perhaps there is still a role to play for royal families in the 21st century, though I would have denied it vehemently if you would have asked me this 5 years ago.
I would be remiss if I failed to mention how much I love Alecs Danish cousins. This is our 3rd visit to Denmark and each time we have been treated to beautiful meals, and kind and thoughtful explanation of their shared heritage. We are Americans to be sure, but knowing from where one comes is an important part of appreciating who you are. It is a privilege to share this with Jack just as we share with him his relations on my side of the family. Many many thanks to Catharina, Peter, Emily, Erik, Diane, Pål, Dorthe, and Ida. Thank you for your kind and generous hospitality. We look forward with eager anticipation of our next visit!
PS. We left Copenhagen and planned our final night in Denmark to be Klintholm to see the famed fossils encased in the chalk like cliffs lining the shore. We awoke to pouring rain and giving in to one of the sweetest Danish pastimes – Hygge- we settled into a rainy day snuggle and left the fossils for another time.
Leaving Smögen, Sweden we enjoyed beautiful passage conditions to Skagen, Denmark. The northernmost tip of Denmark, Skagen is a holiday port for Swedes and Danes and the harbor was full of lively holiday weekenders making the very most of the final summer weekend. The shops and restaurants were full to brimming with live entertainment and patrons were spilling onto the streets and keeping the movable party going well into the night hours. Alec and I had a little wander around town while Jack did some of his school work and we found a lovely bakery in which we had our first “danish”. The first time I had danish in Denmark was 7 years ago or more and I havent forgotten the pasty like confection and the real fruit filling which put to shame any same named pastry sold in the US. We brought enough to bring to Jack back on Gratitude and enjoyed it for a few days onward.
Needing some exercise to burn off these delightful treats, we got an early start the next morning and rode our bikes to the very Northern tip of Denmark, Grenen, where the North Sea collides with the Baltic. I say collides because due to differences in density, this is exactly what happens. The waves come from different directions and slam into each other. Curious what it might look like from above, I asked Alec to bring the drone so we could get a wider perspective and these photos are the result. I especially love the ones where you can actually see the waves coming from opposite directions.
Leaving Grenen we stopped at the Skagen Grey Lighthouse which has become an international bird center. Given its path on the migratration routes of hundreds of species, there are sightings of both rare species and several birds of prey.
Continuing our ride we stopped at the location of the former lighthouse then enjoyed an evening in town for dinner and ice cream.
Leaving Skagan, our next stop was Læsø, a wonderful little island 12 miles off of the Jutland peninsula. Boasting a year round population of less than 2000 people, there is regular ferry service and an active community. Nearly deserted this time of year, we had no trouble finding a nice place to tie up and enjoy dinner.
The following day we rode our bikes to the Læsø Salt “factory”. Dating back to the Middle Ages, with a brief pause due to overforestation, Læsø has been nearly continuously producing salt in their kilns. Due to a high natural concentration of salt in the flats meadows due to the dry summers and with the final concentration done in kilns, Læsó has been able to produce unique and natural sea salt. It was the hungry kilns which caused the deforestation and subsequent interruption of the salt production. Once the forest returned, so did the salt production. The salt is still concentrated in the exact methods used in the 1200s. I may be biased but I think this is the nicest tasting salt I have ever eaten – Maldon used to be my favorite because of the flaky texture but this has that special texture but a lovely taste which I think is unique.
We passed many farms and lots of animals on a way. This was a wonderful stop and we can see what a vibrant and fun place this must be at the peak of the summer months. Though we enjoyed the quieter post peak season visit.
Continue in our trip down the Danish coast, we spent a night at Grenaa, then to Aarhus.
Itself a very cool town, Aarhus, Denmark was established in the 8th century. Despite the multiple museums and a vibrant city life, there was far too much to see for us to have managed it on this short visit. We planned this stop for my birthday (I prefer to be stationery when the anniversary of my birth comes around) and we decided it would make a nice place to rent a car and travel to the Lego House. We did make it to the Food festival and enjoyed the town and Cathedral with its ancient frescoes.
Long before we began our summer trip, Billund Denmark has been high on the list. Jack, an ardent Lego fan, has had “Lego Designer” on his short list of dream jobs. The birthplace of Lego is Billund, Denmark and with Legoland (we have our own in Florida so we didnt go) and the Lego House, we were excited to explore all that Billund had to offer. Introduced by a mutual acquaintance, we met 2 Lego employees (a designer and a product manager) who shared so passionately their love of Lego as an employer and the storied history and commitment to excellence which has fueled our own sons quest not only for a kings ransom worth of Lego, but also a desire to work for the company.
The Lego house has several “build” rooms with access to over 25 million bricks. And if inspiration is what you are craving, you will find it in room after room of amazing design and builds by Lego experts and fans alike. Jack has had a few sets high on his dream list and was hoping to find them here at the Lego store. Not only did we find sets he has wanted, we even got a few sets signed by the designers themselves. Since the designers work nearby, sometimes they will pop into the LegoHouse gift shop and sign a few of their own creations. Of course this is something one can only experience and find at the Lego House so we left with more than a few of Jacks Christmas gifts in hand. The highlight of our day was certainly the trip to the friends and family museum which our friendly Lego employees escorted us through. Detailing the fascinating story of the Lego company, I could feel and appreciate the passion and enthusiasm that workers have for their employer here.
Next stop, Gilleleje. A small fishing town on the North coast of the peninsula North Zealand, we first came here nearly 10 years ago when visiting Alecs Danish cousins who had summer homes in Tisvilde. It is a super cute town but the main reason for our visit this time was to meet up with one of Alecs cousins, Ida who lives a shortish drive away in Frederiksund. We feel like we are moving so fast through this visit of Denmark but family is the most important of our stops in Denmark. All of Alecs cousins look exactly as they did 10 years ago! There must be something in the water or the air here. We enjoyed a lovely evening with Ida, then continued our trip to Copenhagen the next day.
Copenhagen
I love love love Copenhagen. A city of 1.5 million people there are more than 745,000 bicycles. According to Wikipedia.org, More than 62% of residents commute to work-school-or university by bicycle – more than in the entire US! We heard from family members that the tax on automobiles is 180% of the cost of the car – an astounding figure, but one which adds up to a far healthier and longer lived constituency . Given that the healthcare is universal and tax payer funded, incentivizing healthy living makes sense. According to the city of Copenhagen, for each kilometre cycled, the city saves 1.21 Danish Kroner. But there are far more benefits in terms of wellness, city air quality and not the least, parking and traffic congestion. Even the Danish postal service delivers by cycles. Typical of a well run municipality, they dont just make a mandate, they back it up by providing not only incentives, but the roads, bike paths, and cycle tracks to make it safe and easy. We had an absolute blast riding safely along with traffic following signs and our own traffic lights, in tune with and alongside hundreds of others safely doing the same. We have gotten pretty comfortable riding our bikes – they are essentially our car now – but doing so in large cities terrifies me with Jack riding neck and neck with cars. But in Denmark – all over, not just Copenhagen, I felt safe and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. On many trains, bicycles even ride free!
According to Catharina, Alecs cousin and history teacher extraordinaire, Christian IV is the reason for the lovely canal system. It was reported that upon returned from a trip to Amsterdam, he loved the city so much he wanted to replicate the canal system in the capital city of Copenhagen. Christian IV made his mark on Copenhagen in many other palaces and structures in the city and as we cycled and walked the lovely streets, Catharina showed us many of the contributions he made during his 60 year reign. Christian IV was the King of Denmark and Norway from 1588.
Unusual for a large bustling harbour, swimming is not only permitted, it is encouraged. There are steps, ladders and open places everywhere to encourage the occasional dip and people do swim all hours of the day! I loved watching the free and uninhibited way that many Danes stripped down from their work clothes and jumped, naked in the water, only to dry off and get dressed and return to work. Imagine how exhilarating one would feel after such a swim! In certain areas there were hundreds if not thousands of bodies laying on the quay in the middle of the day on a Friday. Alecs cousin said that they would be permitted, even encouraged to go enjoy the lovely day that was happening and do more work next week perhaps. Which brings me to what must be my favorite aspect of Danish life.
I have never seen such an amazing work life balance in any place we have visited. It is common to take a month off from work in the summer and another 2 weeks at Christmas and another 2 week at Easter. In Sweden, they take off the entire 2 months in summer. Nobody gives it a thought that your email hasn’t been returned for weeks or months in the summer since EVERYONE is on holiday. When someone has a baby, both parents take leave. We learned at the Lego House speaking with an Engineer that she is permitted to take more time off in the summer than the usual month and just adjust her yearly salary to reflect this reduction in hours worked. A healthy work life balance seems to be the highest priority in Danish society. Students are given a stipend on top of their education being payed for. Imagine having the financial freedom to pursue whatever educational goals you had for yourself without fear of loan repayment or starving to death while trying to study to get a degree. And healthcare is universally paid for and free. It is the Danish viewpoint that healthcare and education are human rights. I know that many Americans reading this will bristle but imagine if the greatest minds of our time and the absolute most important resource our country had, was allowed to be tapped simply by permitting someone an education, or the freedom from oppressive debt simply because of an unlucky diagnosis.
Everyone reading this by now knows that visiting fresh markets are my favorite thing to do in Europe, but a very close second is the bakeries. And Denmark has elevated the humble bakery to a thing of absolute adoration. Trays of amazing confections emerging from the kitchens, the Kringle and Danish are otherworldly. Coffee is enjoyed all day here and cafes are busy all day long. Restaurants are plentiful and shops sell really interesting and individually made jewelry. There are still the occasional touristy souvenir shops but they are fewer and further between given that this is a regular cruise ship destination.
And finally, my last favorite thing about Copenhagen is their commitment to becoming carbon neutral by 2050 and to reduce emissions by 70% by 2030. Evidence of this country wide commitment were everywhere and single use plastics were non-existent. Clearly Denmark is leading the way toward the solutions to our global problems. The city further uses discarded refuse, along with human waste, to produce heat, electricity and biofuel. According to 8shades.com, The CopenHill power plant turns waste into energy and provides heat and energy for tens of thousands of homes and businesses. Further, this plant emits only steam and was built to provide a ski slope for recreation. In fact, throughout the city one can see mixed use new construction happening according to strict new building guidelines of marrying practicality with recreation.
Denmark Politics
Similar to many other former strict monarchies in Europe, Denmark became a Constitutional Parlimentary Democracy in 1849. As with many other Parlimentary governments in Europe, if no party has enough votes to rule on its own, it must form a coalition government.
Claimed to be more than 1000 years old, these days the roles of the Royal Family are primarily that of a figurehead. Time will only tell what will happen to this and other monarchies in Europe but to hear our relatives speak of their royal family, they seem neither “royalist” nor anti-royal, though I never posed the question directly. I will admit to having had mixed feelings during our time in Europe and when we first arrived, I found the entire “royal” business bordering on the absurd. This viewpoint I can now see as lacking the depth (dare I say ignorant) necessary for such a conclusion. Certainly the limited (tabloid) exposure most westerners have of some European royal families contributes to this viewpoint. But my time in Europe and particularly with the passing the UK Queen Elizabeth has deepened my appreciation for the role that they play in their respective countries. Given that the Danish royals may be spotted, on any given day, playing tennis at the courts frequented by the public, or running down the quay near the royal residence, adds to their familiarity and from my point of view, makes them far more valuable as an ambassador for their country. Perhaps in the countries where paparazzi are permitted to run amok and citizens lack the common decency to allow their public figures to live and socialize freely without constantly being harassed, the royals become, born of necessity, more veiled and covert and in need of giant yachts and expensive private aircraft just to conduct their business and family lives with any semblance of normalcy. All of this nattering is essentially to say that the Danes seem to be managing this very well. They give their public figures space to live and thrive and their royal family continue to serve as ambassadors in a way that doesnt disgrace their country. I have witnessed how royal families can bring a country together and become one source of national pride and character. Perhaps there is still a role to play for royal families in the 21st century, though I would have denied it vehemently if you would have asked me this 5 years ago.
I would be remiss if I failed to mention how much I love Alecs Danish cousins. This is our 3rd visit to Denmark and each time we have been treated to beautiful meals, and kind and thoughtful explanation of their shared heritage. We are Americans to be sure, but knowing from where one comes is an important part of appreciating who you are. It is a privilege to share this with Jack just as we share with him his relations on my side of the family. Many many thanks to Catharina, Peter, Emily, Erik, Diane, Pål, Dorthe, and Ida. Thank you for your kind and generous hospitality. We look forward with eager anticipation of our next visit!
PS. We left Copenhagen and planned our final night in Denmark to be Klintholm to see the famed fossils encased in the chalk like cliffs lining the shore. We awoke to pouring rain and giving in to one of the sweetest Danish pastimes – Hygge- we settled into a rainy day snuggle and left the fossils for another time.
This will likely be one of the shortest visits we will spend in a country this summer – it certainly has been thus far, but not due to lack of enjoyment or beauty. Sweden is topographically different from Norway and as we traveled East along the South coast of Norway, we began to notice the changes. Giant fjords plummeting as far below as above the sea, gave way to longer, flatter and shinier rock formations which are characteristic of the Swedish coastline.
Our first stop was in Strömstad where we enjoyed a few days of local seafood, Laurie had 2 days of the spa which were incredible, (a Swedish massage was, naturally, a must) and we all enjoyed our first days in Sweden immensely.
Alec the ferry captain
Traveling South and weaving our way around the rocks of the Swedish archipelago, we were charmed by the lovely towns and summer villages dotting the landscape. None of them busy as this is the end of the season, I had the feeling that even at the height of the summer, these quaint villages would be limited to the regular holiday makers who come yearly to the same place. Despite being a holiday town, each stop felt as though it remained a community and each retained its charm and hospitality.
The Koster Islands are part of the Kosterhavets National park and the North and South Koster islands are connected by an electric ferry on a cable. We first saw this system of connecting islands on Strömstad but the main difference between these is that anyone can operate the ferry in Strömstad but one must have a license to do so in the Koster Islands. This was unfortunate since we sat out some rain and did some hiking on the North side planning the South side for the day before our departure. It was only when we were reading the translated instructions did we understand that tourists such as us would have to wait for someone with a coveted license and card to happen by and transport us. We could have dropped Takk in the water and taken the RIB over but as it was the day before our departure and lots to get done, we opted to skip it. What we did love of the North side though were the gorgeous and groomed trails with so much flora and fauna I couldnt begin to list. With a permanent population of approximately 340 year round residents, that number swells to over 90,000 considering the tourists. There are no cars permitting on the North island and bikes are only allowed on the main roads, not the hiking trails. There were a couple of restaurants and a grocery store which was closing shop the following day, so very limited in supplies. Most people will arrive by one of 16 ferries arriving daily from Strömstad and we saw lots of day trippers in town to enjoy a hike.
On our last blog post I mentioned that there are 2 things we love about hiking in Europe. 1 of them is that there aren’t signs and barriers to nature to “childproof” it against hikers excercising bad judgement. The second thing we love (and I never said in our last post) is that trails often meander through the back gardens or fields on the property of people who live there. It is not unusual to find oneself in the field of a farmer or back yard of someone overlooking the sea or mountains. When we first arrived in Europe I felt really self conscious and nervous creeping through peoples back yards. It took a lot of encouragement to make me see that this is totally normal and nobody minds. In Norway one can set up a tent anywhere they wish provided it is not within 100 yards of a home. Imagine this in the US? Hikers throughout Europe are free to meander through anyones back yard on a hike – just close the gates behind you? Sure, in some neighborhoods in the US it would be fine. I remember a couple of times looking into our back yard to see a bunch of teen boys playing a game of jumping fences and occasionally diving momentarily into a pool. We also have fruit trees that some kids help themselves to on their way to-from school. Both of these things make me chuckle and remind me of my own youth. But I dont think it is the typical mindset in the US. Signs warning, “Forget the dog, beware the owner” with a shotgun in the mans hand come to mind. And the continued and loosening interpretation of our second ammendment make me think that we are getting further and further away from the mindset that our native Americans held which is that land can only be enjoyed, not owned. Im not on a soap box here, just pointing out differences between the Europeans and Americans. One of the great benefits of traveling the world is the ability to see ones own country without the myopic vision of standing too close. Im not judging one better than another, we just like observing differences and “feeling” our way to which resonates more.
Meandering our way from the Koster Islands to Smögen was certainly one of the best cruising days we have ever enjoyed. The enormous and shiny rocks emerging from the water as well as the quaint and brightly colored unique buildings dotting the landscapes made us feel part of the ancient history of this area. And the treasures we found in Smögen included lovely shops and restaurants dotting the quay where we were moored, as well as lovely walks along the huge rocks and giants kettles (giant potholes – remnants of the last ice age formed by retreating glaciers) dotting the landscape. Of course, we aren’t on vacation but rather living so we were delighted to find, a short dinghy ride away, a wonderful grocery store where we could re-provision and get the larder and pantry restored.
Of particular difference from a boating standpoint this summer, in the Med we typically anchored out most of the summer or occasionally went into marinas which had us barricaded behind a secure fence – there were only limited stops in which we were open to the larger community. This summer though, we havent done much anchoring and there are virtually no large marinas. First, regarding anchoring out, the water is too deep to set our anchor much less provide for the minimum 3X1 scope we typically put out. And second, the cost of dockage is so reasonable, it is nice to be tied up in the community and free to get off the boat and meander at will. In fact, while we have found food, restaurants and most other tourist things very expensive, the dockage is only about 1|3 of what we are used to paying. In terms of marinas, the mega-yacht marinas with yachts cloistered behind guard gates simply dont exist here. Far more typical is a tiny floating marina which appears to be open only in summer and typically houses smaller boats, or far more common, the public quay is used which is where all of the ferries, day tripper boats and any and all pleasure boats just find a spot and pay for the night. In this type of arrangement, we dont exactly “blend” in with our larger than typical boat and our giant US ensign waving off the stern. As a result, we have made lots of new friends and felt as though we didnt even have get of the boat to find our favorite aspect of travel – meeting the locals. And here it is easy to do with most Swedes speaking English, there is virtually no communication barrier.
Jack and Alec warming up after I cooked breakfastIt’s not too cold for ice cream though
It goes without saying that the weather is far cooler than we have ever experienced. Jack and I are loving it! Alec is happy but missing his weekly trips to the underside of Gratitude to give her a rubdown. It’s not summer for this Florida boy unless he is in the water, and this is way too cold for our comfort to swim. But we have been able to, and have fully loved, hiking all summer long with heat not even entering the equation.
We leave Saturday for Denmark so despite the numerous recommendations from friends and lovely Swedes who have come to say hello, we will have to save these stops for another visit. We have several events for the next few weeks which are “hard points” in the schedule.
Lego House Tickets for our on board Lego fanatic (Jack), we are so excited to visit Catharina, Erik, Peter, Ida, Päl, Christian – cousins of Alec in Copenhagen, Janie is coming to visit us in Copenhagen, and we must be in Stuttgart, Germany for Volksfest and Colins arrival. All of this is to say that once again, while it seems that we have all the time in the world, we must keep moving. So the next stop is Skagen, Denmark. Thanks for your generous and gracious hospitality Sweden! We have so enjoyed our time here and look forward to our return.
Continuing our trip along the South Norwegian coastline, we emerged from the Hardangerfjord in Haugesund. This town had a strong commercial feel to us and we were surprised to find that it is smaller in population and size to Bergen. We were fortunate to have a lovely spot on the public Quay near bars and restaurants playing music and lots of people passing by. The nice weather brought people out all over town and several stopped to say hello to us. Melanie, our BWA agent extraordinaire, recommended a trip to Avaldsness. We are so fortunate to have someone guiding us on this journey who is familiar with the area. We would have missed what turned into a lovely day. We dropped the bikes and went for a ride to the next island over and spent the entire day wandering around this old Viking town. Dating back 3500 years, Avaldsnes was a commercial trading port and center of power and remained so until the Middle Ages. Not unlike current times, the city had its strongest and wealthiest growth when the International contact was highest. Harold Fairhair put his royal seat in Avaldsnes in the 9th century AD. The descendants of Harold maintained the royal seat for 500 years. Burial grounds, a church from 1250, and artifacts which are being excavated today continue to tell the tale of this rich and storied Viking town. Avaldness has built a modern and informative museum on acres of lush farmland adjacent to the Olaf Cathdral. In the outdoor museum, employees demonstrate the Viking way of life in the Medeaval times. It was a delightful and unexpected way to spend the day. When we returned to Haugesund, we found a pedestrian only road with throngs of locals out enjoying the beautiful day. We planned to leave in the morning so we collected some fresh bread at the bakery and continued back to Gratitude.
When I began this blog in 2018, I was grossly unfamiliar with WordPress or pretty much any aspect of blogging. Opting to keep things as simple as possible while I learned some of the basics, I used one of the templates offered by WordPress. This particular template spoke to me as it was a woman standing at the precipice of what appeared to be a cliff thousands of feet in the air. I had no idea where the photo was taken, who was in the picture or anything about it, but it looked the way I felt before we began this trip. As though I was about to embark on a journey which would be at different times, life altering and terrifying. I felt the way that I imagined the woman standing on the cliff felt, – terrified but exhilarated. Well, my readers are more educated and well traveled than I – so I immediately got feedback asking when we were in Norway and did we love Preikestolen. Since it was not my intention to pretend to be the lovely woman doing a gorgeous yoga pose on what I now know is Preikestolen, I took the photo down, changed the template and now the photo which appears is the most recent blog post that we do. All of this is to say, that ever since I learned that the photo I originally had on the cover page of the blog was Preikestolen, I have wanted to go there. I wish I could have climbed it with Kelly when she was here but given the time contraint of her 8 day trip, we would have spent more time underway than actually sightseeing all that there is here. So leaving Haugesund on a day that would give us the best oppportunity to see Preikestolen, we made our passage and docked in Jorpeland.
Jorpeland itself is tiny town with 1 or 2 restaurants but lots of campers and hikers making the pilgrimage, as we were, to one of the most photographed wonders we have ever seen. Most people will probably come from Stavanger and we had considered it but Jorpeland worked better for us. A short 15 minutes from the trailhead or base camp, we were able to get a bus early in the morning and we finished the hike by 1300.
If I had it to do over again, I would have taken a taxi to base camp and started the climb earlier. We were warned that it would be crowded and we even opted to climb on Monday rather than Sunday to avoid some of the throngs of visitors but what can ya do? It is a place of exceptional beauty and naturally, this is the time to see it – so we cant be surprised that we aren’t the only ones there. One of the huge bonuses of our trip up is the weather we encountered. It was overcast and forecast to be foggy upon our summit but in fact, it was clear and gorgeous and we could see for miles. We must be the luckiest people alive because after we enjoyed our picnic lunch, a nice rest, and we took in the magnificence of our surroundings, the clouds rolled in so fast and the views disappeared as fast as the blink of an eye. We began our return trip down passing so many hikers who I couldnt help but feel sad for the view they might not see.
So, some history on the geology of this amazing site…. We learned from our glacier guide that the reason for so many flat mountain tops in Norway was due to the glacier activity here at the end of the most recent ice age (12 -13000 years ago). As a short refresher on glaciers, they are formed from snow being compressed snow fall after snow fall over thousands of years, not melting, and all of the air being squeezed out of them. When the snow began to melt away from the glacier, it forced its way through the mountain crevices and whole sides of the mountain were chiseled away – like a sculpture, what remained is what is known as Preikestolen, or “Pulpits rock. Named by a passing sailor in the 19th century, He thought that the cliff resembled a preachers pulpit. The Stavanger tourist guide liked the name and used it from then on. Plummeting down the side of the mountain roughly 2000 feet down to the Lysefjord which is nearly 1400 feet deep – the scope, the scale of it, is at once, staggering and breathtaking.
There are 2 things I love about hiking in Europe. The first is that nature is left unspoiled by fences and sign posts warning people to use caution. When I was researching this hike, I found this quote on the Norway travel guide website: “In order to not spoil the natural beauty of Preikestolen, authorities have up until now opted for not installing fences around the edges…. The general opinion in Norway is that nature is inherently dangerous and it should not be the authorities mission to baby prooof nature in a way that would make it unnatural”. I love this! And I agree wholdheartedly. We have found the same in most of the countries in which we have hiked. Alec or Jack getting anywhere close to the side of the mountains made my stomach lurch. Alec crawled nearly to the side to look over and I nearly did the same but even as I think of it now my stomach flips. The hike was approximately 5 miles round trip – uphill most of the way there obviously, but the terrain was very well groomed. There were no collection boxes for money, nobody selling tickets yet great care was taken to make the terrain conducive to an enjoyable and reasonably safe hike. I did hear that a German tourist had to be airlifted off by a man who was helping the poor soul who twisted his ankle. Care should obviously be taken when stepping on loose rocks and step stones, but we all found the hike incredibly enjoyable.
Huge item checked off the bucket list later, we left Jorpeland and the next stop was Egersund. So much of where we go and how long we stay depends on the weather and the moving plans on board. We typically have spots highlighted along the path which are mandatory stops, such as Preikestolen for example, while others, Egersund, is just the right distance for the weather and conditions. We sometimes do overnight passages and some of these for several days at a time. It’s a necessary requirement on a boat which travels a bit faster than a walking pace. But we prefer not to do overnight passages if its possible and wont interfere with other plans. This keeps the “pleasure” in pleasure boating.
Other stops are made because of recommendations from others – cruisers, bloggers, or in this case, Kristina and Atle, Alecs sister and brother in law. Atle is from Norway and they have lived here and cruised these waters more than anyone we know. We have been the lucky recipients of some of this knowledge and we loved this next stop recommended by them.
Flekkefjord is a town at the end of the Flekkefjord (clever right), and has a rough population of 10000 year round residents. We loved strolling the streets of this charming little village and upon meandering into a local art gallery, we learned a new favorite phrase to describe such a place – a “slow walking city”. Flekkefjord is a perfect example of a slow walking city and with a coffee shop that opened earlier than any we have seen in all of Norway at 9:30 we were thrilled. We found a fabulous pizza shop, an amazing dinner, well stocked grocery store, charming shops and memorable natural beauty we wont forget.
Some local firemen came to help us tie up – hero’s welcome to be sure – and they told us that they would be setting a boat alight on the coming Friday. This is a tradition dating back to the 18th century and a throw back to their Norse heritage. On the summer solstice (our good fortune that it was postponed due to risk of fire), a boat is set on fire in the harbour. This is a huge celebration all over town and boats of all sizes (occupants as well as float craft) head to the party. Those not fortunate enough to attend the event by boat assemble at the beach and I believe all 10,000 people were there that day to watch the flames climb to the heavens.
We have met the nicest people in Norway and 2 among them, Jeffrey and Kirsten in Flekkefjord. Jeffrey is a musician and artist and his lovely wife works as a chef on an oil platform. Such an interesting couple and this is a thanks to Jeffrey and Kirsten for showing us your lovely home. A traditional Scandinavian home there are candles everywhere and it was sweet and cozy and looked like a perfect place to snuggle up in the winters – with a lovely garden to appreciate the sunny summers.
Heading out of the Flekkefjord, the next stop was Kristiansand. Recommended to us by Frank and Iris (more about them when we make it to Stuttgart, Germany) we stayed at a fishing dock about a 30 minute walk outside of town. The town itself was charming and well designed with a typical Roman grid and an easy to navigate geography. We had rain for 2 days which gave us an opportunity to tackle some boat cleaning and projects and life admin tasks. When the weather cleared, we had a couple of lovely walks to town. On one such visit we tried a Norwegian treat of pancakes with jam and cream and jam and Norwegian cheese called Gjetost. Made from whey – the leftover liquid from cheese making, it is boiled until the liquid reduces and what remains is a carmelized sugary butterscotch like concoction that looks like a brown cheese.
It is sold as cheese as well but it tastes sweet and is delicious. Alec had memories of this from his childhood and this transported him back through the years.
I wish we could have stopped at every one of the darling towns that we had to pass to Port but we had to keep going and our next stop was Risor.
With a charming natural harbour and cute town, it was a terrific stop. We only had 3 days to enjoy here but the shops were quaint, and in terms of photographic beauty, I cant think of a place we liked more. I was able to find a salon to squeeze me in to get my hair cut and Alec and I had a rare “date night”. Jack has been encouraging us to take a couple of hours to have dinner by ourselves. I secretly think that he sometimes really enjoys being alone for a few hours – dont we all, but he is very sweet about how he encourages the romance in our lives and we decided to take him up on it. I enjoyed one of the freshest and most delicious crab dinners I have ever had, and all in full view of our boat. This somehow reassured me while we enjoyed an adult conversation that didnt include Lego, Minecraft, stop motion or Star Wars.
Continuing along the South Coast of Norway, our final stop was Tonsberg. Primarily intended as a jumping off point to visit Oslo, it was a nicer town than we had expected.
A short walk from the marina was the train station and a short 1 hour later, we were standing on Karl Johnas gate, the busiest and most famous street which runs from the train station to the Royal Palace. Along the way were lovely shops, restaurants and cafes as well as a park which ran in the center of the road. We strolled through the Palace sculpture gardens and meandered around town. I think Jack was missing the US when we ran into a Subway sandwich shop and he begged us to let him eat there. Clearly not what we had in mind for our “big city” linner (lunch and dinner combined), but unable to say no, we let him eat at Subway and we later enjoyed one of the nicest Asian fushion restaurants ever. We enjoyed a train ride back to Gratitude and several thousand steps later, settled into a popcorn and a movie night aboard for our final night in Norway.
Nearly a month after we arrived, we crossed the small black line on the chart that separates Norway from Sweden. This has been one of the most unspoiled, beautiful countries in which we have ever cruised. The natural beauty, soaring mountains and cavernous fjords have made this truly a summer to remember.
But not for the reason you might imagine. Usually when days just fly by and a month or 2 has passed, it’s because you’re in the zone and without even noticing, the time has gone. I feel that way with Jacks childhood. I have no idea where the past 13 years have gone and when I look at him sometimes, Im shocked to see a young man staring back at me. Every once in awhile, Ill just stare at him trying to find the baby features that I once gazed for hours to memorize. But that isn’t the disbelief I feel now, rather I feel wonder that with all we have seen, experienced and enjoyed, we have managed it in just 3 weeks rather than 3 months.
We arrived in Bergen a mere 2 days before Kelly arrived. Typically we like to arrive several days if not a week prior to ensure that groceries are stocked, there have been no last minute hiccups with our passage, and to tidy Gratitude and prepare everything for a stress free and relaxing vacation for everyone.
Still, even with reduced time to shop and prepare, all went to perfect plan and we were standing outside of the customs hall, signs and flowers in hand, to welcome our most loyal and dedicated guest.
It is not lost on us what is required to come visit us. We understand the sacrifice of time, money and travel hassle involved, and we try very hard to make it a fun time for everyone.
Of all of the people who come to visit, Kelly is the least likely to enjoy hanging on the anchor with a book in one hand, beer in the other. Knowing that will help you to appreciate that we were not the most miserable hosts in the world doing all of this with her!
The first thing we always do when Aunt Kelly comes to visit is dive into all of the candy that only an Auntie can provide. Several pounds of the allotted checked luggage is dedicated to sweets and treats that we can’t get over here so Jack watched patiently for the treats to emerge from the bag. Also in these early moments we celebrate Christmas, birthdays and every other event which we missed since we last enjoyed time together. One would think after 24 hours of travel that Kelly would be in the bunk, lights out but she always powers through. We try to keep the first day a gentle stroll and home baked treats which is exactly what we did.
Bergen, Norway enjoys approximately 260 days a year of rainfall – likely due to the 7 surrounding mountains, so it was no surprise that each our days in Bergen, it rained. Not deterred, we still enjoyed Norways 2nd largest city (Oslo is the largest) immensely. It has a small village feel, probably owing to the charming Byrggen quays which are now a Unesco heritage site. The remnants of the storied trade history – Bergen was once the exclusive trading authority with the rest of Europe in its Hanseatic days, are evident all along the waterfront. Highlights of our time in Bergen are the fish market which enticed Alec and Me to suspend temporarily our “no seafood” position ever since we watched SeaSpiracy. The lobster, the crab…. OMG. Incredible. So Jack, having zero interest left us to go on date night and we enjoyed the freshest and most delicious locally caught lobster and crab ever. Kelly, Alec and Jack all tasted reindeer and moose meat, Jack even tasted whale which I would never have allowed him to purchase but “when in Rome” and when offered as a free taste, I permitted it.
The town of Bergen boasts tons of delicious restaurants and fortunately also a way to turn that food into energy. The mountains surround the town and each has a hiking route down to the town center. We enjoyed one such hike down from Mount Floyen after a stroll through the troll forest. We saw waterfalls everywhere and the hike was over improved trails. Despite the drizzling rain, we had a great view of the town from the top and a fun walk back to the boat. Once we arrived back on board we enjoyed hot tea and freshly baked donuts purchased in town.
One can’t come to Norway and miss seeing the awe inspiring fjords. While fjords are present in many high latitude countries, Norway has the most with an impressive 1,190! Traveling by boat affords us the opportunity to duck in and meander when we see something we like and the fjords are a memorable highlight of our time here. With Kelly we traveled extensively down the Hardangerfjord, the 5th longest in the world and the 2nd longest fjord in Norway. Branching off in every direction are additional smaller fjords which we had the opportunity to cruise through on Gratitude, then again on Takk, our tender. Incidentally, Takk means thanks in Norwegian and though she has been named Takk since we bought Gratitude, this is the first time we have been able to use her name on a daily basis in our life.
Approximately 60% of the archipelago is covered in glaciers so we embraced the opportunity to hike on one! Arriving on Gratitude in Jondal, this was the perfect place to get to the Folgefonna Glacier. Arranged by Melanie, our yacht agent with BWA, this hike will remain very high on our highlight reel of amazing life experiences. We had 2 outstanding and qualified guides who took us out on the glacier, taught us how to remain safe, and showed us some of the most enchanting ice sculpted by nature we have ever seen. We were given gear to supplement what we brought with us and we hiked in a place few are privileged enough to see. Sometimes I marvel at how fortunate (blessed, lucky) we are and this is one example. I obliviously signed up for a hike with people I had done no research about and with a company I had never heard of, but only after the hike did I learn of the dozens of questions I should have taken the time to ask. I really didnt consider before we left that these glaciers melt unevenly and snow bridges can collapse without warning. I never considered that hiking on a glacier where we were out in the middle of nowhere by ourselves we could seriously never be heard from again if we had attempted such a thing by ourselves or with unqualified guides. There is no regulation for this type of thing here. People are expected to use their good judgement when it comes to nature. Lucky for us, our yacht agent did ask the right questions and booked us with an incredibly professional and kind couple of guides. Rasmussen Klock has the highest qualification one can achieve for glacier hiking. Maria Winther is also a very accomplished hiker and both of these professionals provided the safest, and most enjoyable experience we could ever ask for! If you are considering taking a trip such as this to the Folgefonna National Park Glacier, contact Folgefonni Breforarias AS at:
This is a wonderful opportunity to give yet another shout out to BWA Yacht Services. We have used yacht agents off and on and with mixed results as I have written about on the blog and even in published magazine articles. But Melanie, our yacht agent has been a dream!!! She has booked us into marinas, handled tour reservations, and even suggested a stop to make on our trip. She has worked on the weekends and after hours and just been an overall Godsend! I can not say enough about her and BWA for all that they have done to make our summer cruise so spectacular. I can not say this enough… If you are a cruiser, hiring a yacht agent is worth every penny. And honestly, it has probably saved us as much as we have spent. Certainly in terms of inconvenience and government non-compliance this has been a lifesaver!
Continuing with Kellys vacation, we had a day of hiking Jondal and enjoyed a spectacular hike to the top of the mountain where we found a public cabin and a pretty hardcore, though ranking intermediate, hike back down. As Americans we sometimes chuckle at how few warning signs and safety rails there are to prevent a person from plummeting to their death.
We departed Jondal and next cruised across the fjord to Norheimsund. A super charming village, we wanted to see the famed waterfalls here and do some hiking. Since this is on the side of the fjord closer to Bergen, this was also a perfect place from which to return Kelly to the airport.
The Steinsdalsfossen which is visible from miles around is one of the most popular and famous in Norway. Caused due to the redirection of water flowing from 2 lakes of which Myklavatnet (alt. 860 m) is the biggest. One of the coolest elements is that one can appreciate the falls from both the front and behind them.
Im partial to enjoying nature without the shops and concrete but I must confess to buying a coffee and a new jacket at the small gift shop at the falls. But equally enjoyable was the walk from the marina to the falls. 2 miles of gorgeous farmland was the perfect way to get there and once we arrived the first time, finding too many people to bother with the line to see the falls from behind, we decided to come back the following morning before the first busses arrived. That was a brilliant idea as the next day visit was the best as these photos will attest.
All good things….
It was with very heavy hearts that we said so long to Kelly. I joined Kelly on the bus ride back to Bergen trying to squeeze every last moment out of the time we had together. As always, we felt so happy to have had the opportunity to be together in a way that is unique and special. Knowing that we will be together soon when we travel back to the US for our niece Kellys wedding to Kyle made this parting easier to manage.
Ill leave it here for now but stay tuned for more of our Norway summer!
I left off at the beginning of the Caledonia canal because I didn’t want to rush through it while I was running too long on the last post.
Have you ever built up a place so much in your own mind that you were worried to ever go there? That was what I was thinking about the Caledonia Canal. We had seen photos of our boat in the canal when it was owned by Braun and Tina Jones and it struck us as one of the most enchanting places we had ever seen – if photos could be believed…
When we first planned the trip across the Atlantic and we were deciding where we would spend our first summer, the Caledonia canal was on that list. I have no idea in what world of fantasy I was living that I thought we would be able to make it all the way to the North Sea from Florida and still find our way to Portugal for the winter – as you can see, the deep chasm between reality and fantasy in my mind is just one of the challenges my poor husband has had to manage. But something shifted in my mind when we arrived in Kinsale, Ireland on that first summer of 2019. I had a deep sense that “we had arrived” and the impetus to keep going, going, going, just sort of dwindled and I began enjoying, enjoying, enjoying. I still find myself in the dichotomy between these two competing interests. Because we must keep moving or we will miss entire countries, the balance is harder to maintain than one might think.
One of the agenda items that has kept us moving in the right direction was my sisters planned arrival in Bergen (today as it happens). Because of this hard date on the calendar, we have been feeling pressured to make this date here, and not linger too long in any one place up until our arrival 3 days ago. That said, if we were to linger anywhere, we wanted the Caledonia canal to be that place.
I’m happy to report that it did not disappoint and in every respect, it lived up to our highest expectations.
Let’s be honest, weather can make or break a trip – and Scotland is not known for its clear skies. But for whatever reason, those rainy days and cloudy skies were exactly what we were expecting in Scotland, so we weren’t too upset when it delivered. When the sun did emerge and we were graced with the warmth and blue, it was a treat rather than expectation. It probably helped also that we were in Kas, Turkey all winter following a summer in Greece when we went MONTHS without seeing a single rain cloud. This just felt like the healthy and happy opposite.
We arrived near Fort William, on the west side of the canal the day before we intended to begin the transit. Due to some technical problems with their website, we had to take a taxi to the canal and attempt to work out the problem. They are lovely and friendly people but they execute British efficiency in operating the canal and they don’t like for people (especially 19.5 meters of boat) to rock up and expect to push into the que.
The canal was completed in 1822 and designed by Thomas Telford – a man widely immortalized on both sides of the canal in streets and plaques. Comprised of 29 locks and 11 swing bridges, the canal which is made up of both natural lochs and man-made canals, bisects Scotland through the gorgeous Highlands thus eliminating 300 miles of treacherous passage in the North of Scotland on the North Sea. The canal is an engineering wonder by any measure but that it was constructed 2 centuries ago is truly impressive.
Not only is this a treat for boaters – campers, hikers and cyclists enjoy it too. There are numerous campgrounds spanning the entire 100 km path and there is a wonderful and mostly flat trail used by locals and tourists alike. At each of the locks we found helpful, professional, and knowledgeable staff ready to help. Even tourists offered to pitch in with grabbing a line when necessary.
The permit whose cost is dependent on size, is valid for 1 week. While it probably would take a minimum of 3 days to transit the canal due to lengthy stops while waiting for the water to rise or fall depending on which way you are traveling, we took 5 days and honestly, we could have stayed much longer if time was of no consequence. There are shower, toilet, and laundry facilities the entire length of the canal as well as pontoons to which one can moor for the night. All of this is included in the cost of the weeklong permit. I found it to be well worth the expense.
The beginning of the canal at the Western most point is the very impressive Neptune Staircase, a series of 8 locks At the highest the canal reaches over 106 feet, and then begins the descent back to sea level on the Eastern side near Inverness.
Every moment of the journey was delightful, if busy. Jack manned the bow lines, me the stern. This was an “all hands on deck” trip for the entire week and I wouldn’t change a moment of it. The canal winded its way through the magnificent Scottish Highlands and, at time, felt as though we were drifting through a forest. The foliage all around us was spectacular and the towns we locked through we charming and quaint. It goes without saying that Gratitude was one of the larger vessels in the canal and she attracted her share of attention. Alec is the typical Gratitude Ambassador with Jack falling into a distant 3rd place most of the time. But on this transit, Jack became the primary Gratitude ambassador and spent time chatting with various tourists interested in how Gratitude, with her big American flag on the stern, came to be in this little-known area of the world.
We arrived in Inverness with 2 days to wait until the weather was nice enough to cross the North Sea for Bergen, Norway. Perfect timing really since we needed to re-provision, and I needed to prepare a few meals for the 50 hour passage.
And finally, a little shout out to James and his lovely wife who came to visit us in Inverness and brought us some lovely traditional shortbread cookies and a quaich. I had never heard of this traditional cup with 2 handles. It is sometimes used in weddings but also as a friendship greeting. It was lovely to meet you both and we wish you all the best on your journey!
“The coldest winter I ever felt was a summer in Scotland.”
Borrowing from the well-known line attributed to Mark Twain that the coldest winter he ever felt was a summer in San Francisco”, we have been feeling much the same, that is until today! Finally.
Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. I’ve been going through my own personal heat wave for a couple of years, and I don’t mind saying, the cooler temperatures this summer have been a welcome… ahem… change.
But too much of anything can become tiresome and I have been ready for a break in the clouds which came today.
First things first! After a 9 month drought in Lego, we hit the Lego shops as soon as we arrived in Hampshire, in addition to lots of bike and hiking trips along the River Hamble
But I digress… my last post was more than 6 weeks ago so I must back up a bit to bring all of you to Scotland.
Ferry Ride to Isle of WightShopping and sightseeing in Southampton, UK
We arrived in Hampshire, England (on the Southern Coast near Southampton but further down the Hamble river and with an early plan to be off the dock no later than the 1st of June, we had to re-adjust our expectations very quickly. There were several reasons for our delayed departure including planned maintenance that wasn’t yet complete, but sadly and most significantly, our kitty Pratt was not well. We took him to the local vet and discovered that he was dehydrated and having kidney issues in addition to being thin and not at all himself. The passage without us had taken a much greater toll on him than we expected and at his advanced years, he needed a lot of TLC to get back to himself.
Watching our beloved Pratty in such a state was hard on all of us. He was affectionate and happy to see us, he slept and cuddled with us and even purred, but he wasn’t eating.
Thank God, a ton of love and cuddles, some yummy food, and something to encourage him to eat more, and he is feeling so much better. He is playing, hunting, and purring nearly constantly – he has regained most of his appetite and we have all had the best month with our sweet kitty.
I think Pratt was on one of our laps 24-7 for the first monthJack and Pratt were inseparable for weeks…
The extra time in Hampshire was a reminder that even though the schedule largely had to be scrapped, we are already “here”. This is our life and taking more time in one place or another is the very reason why we are choosing it. Mostly we just need to remember that whatever we see or do not see, everything is exactly as it should be.
A fun trip to Winchester Unfortunately Alec had some scheduled and unscheduled (above Jacks head) maintenance. And above, Jack and I were in heaven when we spent the morning in a bookstore filled with books in English!
Once we managed to get underway, the first leg was a gentle one and we ended up in Weymouth. We first came here aboard a cruise ship but now here in our own boat, we preferred to just hang on the hook and get comfortable again with our floating home. The highlight of this stop was the visit by this charming dolphin. Usually we get dolphin visitors while underway as they like to swim and play in the bow wake, but this big boy came once we had the anchor down and stayed for about an hour. He just wanted to say hello to the humans! What a treat. Since we have heard that dolphins on a journey portend good luck, we took this to mean that we were going to have a blessed summer!
This dolphin came to check us out long after the anchor was in place
Next stop was Dartmouth, UK.
Dartmouth Harbour
We originally planned to stop here in 2019 but an unexpected weather window opened, and we passed it by. It is such fun to have another shot at a place and this time, we planned the whole week around it.
Enjoying a walk to the castles
In the South of the county Devon, Dartmouth is a charming town with the Royal Naval College here and 2 castles boasting a storied history. One of the most enjoyable days we spent here, we took our own dinghy down the river Dart to Dittisham, then grabbed the water taxi across to Greenway House, the summer home of Dame Agatha Christie. Donated to the National Trust, the house is still exactly as she left it, with writing paper in the typewriter and lovely bone china in the cabinets. She and her husband were avid collectors and evidence of this hobby is all around the still furnished home. The entire property left an impression with the woods leading down to the charming boat house which was the set of one of her more famous books, Dead Man’s Folly. Also significant of this property is the filming of some of the Poirot episodes, one of her most beloved characters. We all loved Dartmouth and we wish we could have stayed even longer. The harbor is small but still hosts yachts of every size and color. One morning we woke to discover a Hartigruten expedition ship with 500 passengers aboard. As often happens, Alec and I, enjoying our morning coffee got curious. Before long, we were booked on an expedition heading to the Arctic Circle for Christmas and New Years 2023/2024. We are already planning to be freezing cold in London, so what better time to try to see the Northern Lights? This is something both of us have been dreaming of and we now we have a plan to experience it!
Arctic Circle or Bust for New years 2024 On This Expedition Ship!The Dartmouth CastleThe Greenway Boat HouseDame Agatha Christie’s Summer Home – The Greenway Hou
Next stop… Plymouth. We visited Plymouth via rental car last time we were in the area, because of it’s significance as the launch place of the Mayflower in 1620. But it was a totally different experience being here on Gratitude. We may have passed it up all together given that we love Falmouth- and we would probably have preferred to keep going. 2 purposes dictated this stop. The first is our tickets in hand to the Harry Styles concert. We had planned to be further along at this point and even considered bringing Gratitude to Cardiff, Wales or at a minimum, Bristol. We obviously fell behind our schedule before even leaving on leg one, so we opted instead for Jack and me to take the train and Plymouth was the best place from which to depart. Unfortunately, Alec stayed behind with Pratt. Given Pratt’s recent trials, none of us felt good about leaving him alone again. While we missed Alec, I think he enjoyed the peace and quiet for a night and Jack and I enjoyed a “Mother-Son” trip which was fun. The concert was wonderful – Harry brought it! and we had a fun time traveling there and back on the train.
Getting excited for the show!The best photo we got! Mr Harry Styles!
The second reason Plymouth was the stop is that our dear friends from Sicily on the SV Bella were finishing their Europe – Caribbean – England circuit and we were eager to meet them. Jack, Stan, and Ted played together like they only parted company yesterday. I’m so grateful to live in a time when we can all stay in touch with loved ones via Facetime and texting, which the boys have been doing since they met. It was as though no time has passed and we can look forward to a winter of getting together for museum trips and perhaps West End theatre. But the moment that Jack and I got aboard, we were off on a 2-day passage to Belfast, Ireland.
Phil and I so happy to see each other!
For those who don’t know, Northern Ireland (of which Belfast is apiece), is part of the United Kingdom and as such, there are no customs/immigration formalities when traveling within the UK boundaries. Because we are saving up our EU/Schengen time for the Scandinavian countries, we would have skipped Ireland if not for this factor. But since we could visit Belfast with none of the penalties to our 90/180 – and since we missed the whole East coast of Ireland on our last visit, it was worth a stop. Of course, every decision is made at the expense of other stops not made but we hope to make up some of these next year as we head back across to the US. More on that later…
Belfast was an interesting stop – not the least of which because of its most recent “troubles”- to which they euphemistically refer- when talking of the terrible conflict lasting approximately 30 years and ending in 1998. This was a conflict that was all over the news for most of our lives as children, yet we still didn’t seem to know very much about it. Essentially the conflict was between the Northern Irish Protestants who wished to remain loyalists to England and the Catholic Irish Republic of Ireland (most of the rest of the country) who wanted to remain autonomous. More than 3500 people were killed, leaving scars on both sides of the divide. Our guide talked of hearing bombs landing continuously as a young father with children in their beds. We did see some buildings with damage and our guide showed pictures of streets which were completely leveled during the conflict. I wish we could travel in time and show these poor people photos which we took during our time in Belfast. It seems to be a place where the party never stops and lots of guys hanging out on their bachelor parties. I’m sure the streets experience their share of dustups given that even pubs with restaurants had a bouncer at every door, but during the early day light hours when we visited, everyone was still happy. There is a heavy drinking culture here with alcohol permitted while walking down the streets and evidence of alcohol use and abuse was everywhere. A near shocking difference from the very limited drinking in Turkiye. Certainlypeople wouldn’t walk down the streets with a drink and clearly intoxicated.
The Titanic Museum was very cool! We went to a Titanic Museum in Halifax also but this one was completely different. Given that the Titanic was built in Belfast and was truly the pride of the men and women who lived and worked on her here, she was as much a part of the community as any passenger aboard. The design of the building was stunning and demonstrated how she would look if she was standing on land – MASSIVE. Most of the exhibit focused on life of creating her and what life would have been like to work in the shipyard where she was built. Of course, one was lead through the launch and the subsequent sad ending that was Titanic’s.
We were sad to be leaving a short 4 days after our arrival, but we are still trying to get back on schedule with the first vital date we have in Bergen, Norway when my sister Kelly arrives. Until we meet that deadline, it’s going to be GO! GO! GO!
Gannets, Puffins and Shearwaters were sighted on this passage
Originally planned to be the launching point for train trips to Glasgow, and Edinburgh, Largs on the West Coast of Scotland in North Ayrshire was recommended by friends and would have worked out better had the weather cooperated. The rain was pouring from the time we arrived and that alone would not have been a problem, but the weather forecast for the next 2 days was to be more of the same with very high winds forecast on day 3-6. Such is the life of a cruiser – all plans for Glasgow and Edinburgh scrapped, we needed to take advantage of the weather window and leave the next morning, otherwise risk not being able to get around the Mull of Kintyre – a peninsula which is known to be treacherous in unsettled weather and with stiff currents forecast to run counter to wind, we needed to get moving. It was a painful decision to make and one we hope to remedy sometime this winter with a train trip. Still, we did see the Largs Pencil Monument, we learned a bit of the history dating back to the 13th century with a battle between Scotland and Norway. And finally, I must write this here because someday Jack will read this and learn where the lovely bone china tea set came from. I have a love affair with bone china teacups. I have looked for them in antique shops all over and I remember spending the better part of a day in London searching 1 after another secondhand shops for these lovely cups with such a dignified purpose. I know that sometimes my poor husband thinks I am crazy but when I saw this lovely set of teacups with creamer and sugar bowls and even a teacake plate, I had to scoop them up. We carried them and the groceries the 2 miles back to Gratitude in the rain and someday, I’ll be enjoying tea in our home in Florida and I’ll have a chuckle remembering this day.
We spent 12 hours on passage to our next stop, an anchorage at CarsaigBay where we spent the night after several unsuccessful attempts to set the anchor, then got another early start for Tobermory, on the Island of Mull, Scotland.
While doing the newly revised calculus for our schedule we decided to skip Oban as well. Missing all these spots on our planned trip is both heartbreaking and a tremendous relief. Sometimes it is more important to miss several stops than to try to squeeze one more stop in at the expense of the sanity of everyone on board. I feel like I have written about this 100 times already and yet, here we are entering our 6thsummer of cruising on Gratitude and STILL, I haven’t gotten the lesson! But this time, I didn’t hold quite so tightly to the plan so I must be getting better. I was far more comfortable with taking a black marker to cities and islands, preferring a longer and more relaxed stop in the days leading up to Jacks Birthday. So, skipping Oban and the south of Mull, we decided to head to Tobermory which was higher up on the dream list. By heading there directly, we would be able to stay there for 4 full days, and we could do some hiking and get provisions for the special 4th of July birthday on board.
Tobermory was a perfect spot. We were able to make all of Jacks favorites for his birthday, we went hiking and relaxing, and it was the perfect stop to enjoy some down time. An incredibly busy harbors on the Isle of Mull, this must be a sailors dream because the marina was full every night and empty most days. When we moved from the mooring field to the marina, we did so right in the middle of a regatta, and though it was raining, I have never seen people have more fun!
Tobermory on The Isle of MullHappy 13th Birthday Jack! You are the best thing we have ever done and we are more and more proud of you every
Im going to leave the post here as the Caledonia Canal deserves much more room than I have left here. But the next leg is going to bring us to the Western side of the canal and Ill take it from there.
The crew of the Gratitude just returned from what could be called the greatest “vacation” of our lives!
Sometimes in the context of questions and conversations we enjoy with family and friends, we get the strong sense that everyone imagines us sitting on the aft deck with umbrella drinks in our hands. While it is true, we typically post the pictures of us relaxing rather than cleaning heads, a vacation this is NOT.
Just to recap, Gratitude was moved for us from Türkiye to Hampshire, UK. It is the first time since we have owned her that we have handed her off to be moved without us on board. This decision was necessary because of our immigration status and our plans for the summer. When we were considering our time off of Gratitude, we wanted it to encompass a nice mix of sites we had yet to see in Türkiye, thus taking advantage of our residency there, and not using any of the precious Schengen-EU time that we need for our summer cruise. But we also had hoped to avoid arriving exhausted (as you know, land travel without your home is TOUGH).
I decided to mitigate some land travel fatigue by taking a river cruise down the Rhine, beginning in Switzerland. Switzerland is one of the countries we have not yet visited and given our summer plans of Scandinavia, we aren’t likely to return. Arriving in Amsterdam, the cruise would finish with a simple 1-hour flight back to Gratitude moored in Hampshire, UK.
Our Rhine River cruise left from Basel, so we flew from Istanbul to Zurich and spent our first 4 days falling in love with Switzerland. Similar to an Italian chef trying to cook Japanese food, good ethnic food other than Turkish was hard to find in the previous 9 months. So, when we landed in Zurich we started eating and we haven’t stopped! I marveled at lunch yesterday how even simple salads and unusual risottos were a rare find in Türkiye, so, in every restaurant we find ourselves, we fall in love with the menu. The gastronomic orgy began in an amazing German restaurant in Zurich and reached a climax on the cruise on the AmaMora ship, (surprisingly, the apple strudel was better on board!).
Zurich is a gorgeous, charming city, despite my expectation of finding a busy metropolis. A quaint town on the banks of a river, framed against the backdrop of the Alps in the distance, the abundance and variety of restaurants is amazing. Most of the shops are upscale, not surprising given its strong financial institution economy. In fact, of all the European travel we have done thus far, Switzerland is by far the most expensive.
LuzernThe famed Chapel Bridge LuzernThis photo was taken from our Airbnb – the view so lovely we didnt mind sitting inside and watching the rain fall
Given that we are traveling with our 12-year-old son, Jack, I prefer to book into an apartment type airbnb so that we can be in the same dwelling and walk back and forth to each other with no locked doors or public hallway separating us as in a hotel room. The airbnb in Zurich and later Luzern, were the 2 most expensive airbnbs we have booked anywhere. The hotels which I searched, just to have a frame of reference, were equally expensive. Given the high standard of living, low unemployment and high GDP per capita, this was no surprise. The restaurants also were roughly 3-4X what we paid for a meal in Türkiye but surprisingly the groceries in supermarkets weren’t commensurate with this ratio. Pricey, but not prohibitively so.
The public transportation in Switzerland is a dream! We took the train everywhere from our arrival in Zurich to Luzern, Interlaken, and Basel where we boarded the ship. Luzern was offered as an included tour provided by Amawaterways but we opted to sign up for the 3 countries bike tour instead and spend a few days in Luzern on our own. Unfortunately, it rained the entire 1st week, but the rain didn’t detract from the beauty. The mountains, when the clouds parted briefly, were just as majestic and the towns just as charming as when the sun was shining. One afternoon we preferred to just relax inside and watch the rain fall in Luzern in the airbnb and we loved it. Interlaken is a typical and charming mountain type village with shops and restaurants and a funicular to Harder Kulm. From this vantage point (on a clear day) one can enjoy views of Interlaken, Eiger, Monch, and Jungfrau. We did enjoy a ride to the top and thankfully decided to get the round-trip ticket after some debate. The weather was wet and rainy but even more so on top, so we instead had a fun lunch and hot chocolate rather than hiking back down on our own. Given that it was Mother’s Day we stopped for an ice cream and chocolates and had a lovely afternoon taking in the sites of this lovely village.
Above the clouds in Harder Klum
Unpacking for the final time aboard our AmaWaterways river cruise ship, we settled in for what we hoped would be a relaxing trip. Little did we know that despite our desperation to return to Gratitude and Pratt our kitty, this trip would be so enjoyable, I wouldn’t have minded remaining aboard for the return trip had there been space available to do so.
We have taken ocean cruises including a couple of Atlantic crossings, numerous Caribbean trips, and an Alaskan trip among others on various Disney ships, NCL, Oceania, and RCL but this trip was our first cruise aboard a river boat.
I learned about the Amawaterways cruise lines from Jennifer and James Hamilton (Dirona) who blogged about it. In their blog they mentioned that what they liked about the river cruise were the very things that I have not liked about the ocean cruises. I decided to take a look at Amawaterways since the places promised on a river cruise are destinations we can’t possibly see on Gratitude.
With only 140 max passengers, the ship never felt crowded, there were no lines for embarkation or disembarkation, and we never felt like we were one of the masses. But what I loved the most was when we landed in a tiny town, we left very little footprint. Traveling on Gratitude, we have been in various ports when cruise ships arrive and the difference in the town from before to after the ship departs is palpable. The energy of the 3-6000 people per ship is shocking! The clamor to attract foreign dollars in the shops is overwhelming. In Montenegro a tour guide told me she avoids the old town for 2 days after the cruise ships have been there because she can feel the bruises left behind in the energy of the town. We visited Venice and Mallorca where efforts have been underway to eliminate large cruise ships. When we were in Santorini, we chose which days we would visit town based on which ships were in port. There is simply no way to really absorb a foreign country or grasp the charm of an old town when 4000-8000 other Americans are jostling and jockeying for burgers and fries.
Jack loves pretzels but these… wowDespite the scant population of 150K people, it had no trouble absorbing our tiny groupThe charming University town of Heidelberg where 1\4 of the residents are students
Another thing I loved about Amawaterways was the food. Im a foodie. I would gladly pay more to experience a smaller, more intimate dining experience and one where the chef is thoughtfully preparing food nearly at the moment that it is going to be served. Large buffets are not for me. While Amawaterways offered a lovely 7 course meal at The Chefs Table onboard the ship, I actually preferred the nightly meal in the dining room. The food and presentation were so amazing, I wanted to taste everything. When we were in France, we ate French food, in Germany, German food – and it tasted authentic and amazing with layered flavors and textures as though it was prepared by a local chef.
I have been trying to become a vegetarian for the past year and I had been successful right up until I got aboard this ship!
Ivan saw Jack coming and prepared special drinks for himSue and Frank provided nightly laughs and entertainment hahaThis tasted BETTER than it looks
While this ship is not really set up to cater to children, all of the staff went out of their way to make Jack feel welcome. He was invited on the bridge, given brownies nightly, and the Fitness expert on board made sure that he was kitted out properly for the multiple bike rides we took in the towns. There is a heated pool, but it is more the “swim up have a drink variety”. I have heard that there is a Amawaterways ship which caters more to Jacks age group – who knows… It wouldn’t be so important that amenities catered to children as the children themselves – but it’s the chicken and egg thing. If there were a few amenities that invited kids, the kids would come and entertain each other.
Several years ago, a cruise employee once quipped “you don’t look like cruise ship passengers” to which I replied “What does a cruise ship passenger look like? While his response shocked me, I have chuckled about it over the years. He said, “Newlywed, overfed and nearly dead”. There is always an element of truth to cliches such as this but the demographic aboard the AMAMora was decidedly not any of the above. I previously associated river cruises with an older population, but I couldn’t have been more wrong! We were absolutely the median age on board with a few outliers such as Jack and a couple of 20 something’s and a few 80 something’s.
This was the absolutely the best way to spend the final week before returning “home”. The travel that we do aboard Gratitude is living – not vacation. The only element of our life that resembles a vacation is the changing scenery – we cook, clean, plan, and transport ourselves literally from place to place. But the week we enjoyed aboard the AmaMora was a vacation in every sense of the word. All worries left behind, every detail was managed for us including shore excursions, meals and snacks, all transport, cleaning and entertainment. There truly was something for everyone on board.
I have just a few words I want to share regarding the lovely Zimmerman family. Ill be honest, we have been feeling a little homesick lately. We aren’t sure if it’s the planning for the trip back to the US or the feeling that a final chapter is looming. We have been desperate to hear English and laugh at American jokes. Sue, Frank, Denise and Bill – you were exactly what the doctor ordered. Thank you so very much for the laughs and friendship. You made our week aboard so very special!
And to the AMAwaterways crew – Thanks for an amazing week. You are the very definition of
consummate professionals in the service industry. We look forward to another vacation with you!
We are now safely back on-board Gratitude in Hampshire, UK. The work that we had hoped would be finished by our return is running behind schedule so once again, my fantasy dreams and reality world have collided to result in a bit more time here than planned. Pratt has lost weight so we are also hoping to get him on firmer footing before heading on our way. We are feeling so grateful to love where we are. This gorgeous part of the UK along the South Coast is stunning. We have had some land trips which Ill blog about on my next post. We have heard that England is typically overcast and rainy, but we have had NONE of it since our arrival. Each day, more lovely than the last, has allowed us to exercise, explore and “land” where we are.
Finding the delicate balance between seeing the places that we missed in our time in Türkiye and not exhausting ourselves while Gratitude is moving is tricky. We have been doing this long enough to know that there is a point of diminishing returns when we try (read I try) to cram too much into a trip. This is especially true when we are living out of a suitcase, missing our Pratt and Gratitude, and the trip is 7 weeks long. For many, it will sound like a trip of a lifetime – and for me as well at another point in my life, I too would look at this as a dream vacation. So, as I write this Im keenly aware that this is a life of privilege. But just because our life lessons are learned in the backdrop of exotic and beautiful locations, we are learning them, nonetheless. One of the great things about taking off on a journey of this magnitude is that you can be assured that whatever lessons life had in store for you at home, you are going to get them in spades on this journey.
That said, this winter we chose to take a few trips further afield knowing that the internal Türkiye travel was going to happen while Gratitude was making her way to Southhampton, and we were “killing time” out of the Schengen and EU areas.
Side Old TownStopping for a treat
First stop, Side. Pronounced See-Day, when I was doing research, this town looked on paper to be the stuff of my dreams. Ancient Roman ruins being preserved under a town of cute shops and restaurants. I would have been terribly disappointed had I traveled from the US for 1 week and we came here. I know I have mentioned before that my experience of a place has as much to do with my own frame of mind as anything else and I usually try to temper my criticism with that piece of self-knowledge. So, Im going to completely disclose that this particular week was really hard on me. Watching our home and kitty leave the dock without us aboard was tough. Packing belongings for a 7-week trip away from our home and kitty was tough. Getting Jack ready to finish up his school year while traveling from town to town was tough. But nothing could have prepared me for the wallop of emotions that I felt as we moved into Holy Week in the Christian calendar in a Muslim country away from all of the homey items that I use to bring these significant holidays to life as we travel around the world. We survived Christmas in Türkiye with little trouble because, even though there was nothing outside of our boat that reminded us of the holiday, everything on board did – and all of our traditions were mostly intact, including watching Christmas mass via Skype. Holy Week was different though because in addition to having none of the outward signs of this sacred week, having no family or friends with whom to celebrate, we weren’t even sure we would find a meal on Easter Sunday prior to sunset given that the Muslim holy month of Ramadan was happening simultaneously. Muslims fast all day even forsaking water during Ramadan and many restaurants closed for this reason opening only after sunset. This was clearly not the Easter Sunday to which we are accustomed. And it hit me hard!
So driving en route to Side, uncertain that we would find dinner, we took Jack to the mall to find some new tennis shoes (very little in the way of shopping in Kas, so he needed them), and we ate Easter Sunday brunch at McDonalds. If you know me, you know what a blow this was. For Jack, McDonalds is a huge treat. He has probably eaten there 5 times in his life. For me it was a very low point. Mercifully I had the love and support of a group of friends who lifted me up and a niece who texted and checked on us. Thanks Jen, Tracy, Anne, Janie, and Sarah for your help during a very difficult time. Your friendship and love have been a tremendous gift to us more than you could ever know.
We took Jack for his first hamam and massage
That said, we arrived in Side and I was very underwhelmed. Very. It reminded me of a rundown version of Atlantic City or Vegas. There weren’t casinos but the giant box hotels with over-the-top lights and adornment with cheap t-shirt shops and souvenirs sprinkled along the coast. We stayed in an Airbnb which was too far from the “old town” to be walked easily and the airbnb was also a disappointment. No matter how carefully I choose, there is just something that cannot be conveyed in photos and this place was a disappointment. I didnt take any photos of the unpleasant part but all of the photos here are of the old town.
The Old Town in Side was really wonderful, however. In antiquity, this city occupied most of the land on a small peninsula and while excavations are ongoing, efforts are diligent to maintain and protect the stories which lie beneath. Walking through this town, nearly all of my worries were forgotten. Alec took me for a very long walk, and we meandered through and before long, I was restored to equilibrium, a day after our arrival. Jack who is less enthused, stayed behind to complete his schoolwork, and I had the pleasure of some exercise, fresh air and “old stuff” dating back to before the 7th century BC. Even Alexander the Great occupied Side in 333 BC. From then on, as in much of Türkiye, the past is layered one ruler, or empire upon the next. These remnants of the past are preserved and evident here and a true treasure if you can get past the miles of big box resorts and hotels.
Alanya
The best part of Türkiye is the people. One day whilst having dinner with Kim and Steve, we overhead some locals chatting in mixed English and Turkish. I asked them if they knew if we would find open restaurants along our land travel path during Ramadan and they helped me to refine our land trip. They didn’t discourage Side, but they added Alanya, and they recommended less time in Konya. They also recommended some hotels along the way. Our next stop, which was not planned at all but Im so glad we heard about it, was Alanya.
Thanks MustafaEvery city has a version of this memorial to Ataturk with his famous quote”Peace at home, Peace in the world”Not a tourist town, Alanya is a town where people live and work
Alanya is a resort style town but unlike Side, it maintains the feeling of being a lived in and thriving town for local Turks, not British or German tourists on holiday. I have nothing against the tourist, but when Im a tourist, as we most certainly are, we are here to visit Türkiye, not hotels, restaurants and shops built solely to accommodate the tastes of tourists.
In addition to the local feeling of the town, there are long wide beaches and one purportedly where Cleopatra regularly visited. The Alanya Castle provided a wonderful day of entertainment while the 3 of us climbed all over the Seljuk-era fort. Wanting to see more of the town, we even availed ourselves of the cable car to the top. Remember the guys who we met in Kas who told us about Alanya? They sent text messages and arranged a rendezvous. We would have had dinner together but I know our dinner hour is more like their late lunch hour, but all good, we appreciated the opportunity to meet and visit them and enjoy their lovely city. If we were to be here another winter I would consider this for a winter spot. It had more city amenities than Kas but retained a lot of the charm.
Originally planned for 4 days, our new Türikish friends suggested that 3 hours would be plenty of time to spend here in our next stop, Konya. The midpoint between Alanya and Cappadocia it was a perfect place to stop for refreshment. Due to Ramadan and its reputation as the most conservative city in Türkiye, we expected to find no food whatsoever, but we were pleasantly surprised to find 1 place open and serving in a room upstairs, though most of the restaurants were closed. The primary reason for the stop was to see Rumis grave. A pilgrimage site for Sufis, the remains of Rumi are entombed in a Mausoleum here. We were surprised to see a very busy city and only later realized that Konya is the largest province of Türkiye.
Other notable graves Rumi is behind us
Rumi was a 13th century poet, scholar, mystic, religious leader and philosopher. He practiced Islam but founded the Sufi order and discovered that when one whirls in a circle (Whirling Dirvish) one can be in unison with the earth as it rotates and see the face of God or achieve an enlightened state. Rumi was a revered poet and his work is still being read and translated around the world. His poetry is absolutely beautiful and he talks of love so brilliantly. I don’t ordinarily love poetry, but I could read his work for hours. The meaning doesn’t get lost in the rhythm and it is reasonably easily understood. In terms of the Whirling Dirvish, we watched a religious ceremony of Whirling Dirvish and I found it mesmerizing. The photos below were taken only after the ceremony when they did a few twirls for the benefit of our cameras but watching them perform was extraordinary. The music was enchanting and for the life of me I cannot imagine how they can achieve this without ending up in a heap in the center of the floor, legs and arms akimbo.
The whirling Deravishing
Cappadocia had long been on a must see list of Türkish destinations. The hotel recommended by Mustafa turned out to be both good and not so good. Good in that it was by far the nicest and most unique property we have ever stayed in, which is saying something since Im a lover of hotel rooms. Not so good because it was so lovely, none of us wanted to leave. Given that we were all feeling a bit worn out from the previous several weeks, we decided to treat ourselves to another couple of days here. The Kayakapi Premium Cave hotel was rated the 3rd best luxury hotels in the World in 2022 and then rated by Travelers Choice 2022 Best of the Best. All of this is well and good, but for me – the transformed caves, a unique and special aspect of Cappadocia, and preserved history and character were the best part. The luxury and comfort were what put it over the top though. The caves were unmistakable, but the newly tiled floors matched nearly perfectly but were heated. Living in a cave could be dark but they opened the front to bright outdoor light. We had 2-bedroom suites, so Jack was nearby and both sides were equally impressive. The bathrooms were actually full hamams and we loved it so much we are trying to figure out how to work this into a bathroom remodel once we return home. The breakfast buffet was outstanding – the service was impeccable. The pool was heated and gorgeous and the spa made a couples massage for Alec and me very special.
It is even more enchanting
Alec and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary on March 22nd and we opted to make our celebration special on our trip rather than try to find something in Kas. The hot air balloon ride and the amazing hotel in Cappadocia provided the perfect backdrop from which to celebrate.
We booked for a hot air balloon but it got cancelled for wind. Lucky for us, the second day was the charm and we made it up. We also had a very fun ATV trip through the amazing rock formations which make Cappadocia so captivating. And finally we managed to get in a hike.
We didnt see Jack until we looked at the photos later
Leaving Cappadocia we headed to Ankara, the capital city of Türkiye. Running out of time after extending our Cappadocia leg, we opted to take a cultural tour so we could capture most of the highlights. Our guide took us on a 3 hour walking tour of the capital city, including a trip up to the castle, and around the bazaar. No stranger to Gozleme, which we have eaten it nearly every Friday from the time we arrived in Türkiye, I can say with confidence this stop had the best gozleme we have eaten. Rolled out into a paper thin piece of dough similar to filo, the dough is typically filled with cheese and either potatoes or spinach or a mix of meat. The pasty is then cooked on a special dome shaped cooktop until slightly browned on each side and served piping hot. We loved it! All the bazaars have a variety of women cooking gozleme and serving it along with chai and fresh squeezed orange and pomegranate juice. Every Friday Kim and Steve (sailing mimpi) and Alec and I would go to the market or bazaar for our fruit and veggies shopping and a delicious gozleme. But I digress….
Ankara is a typically busy capital city. We only spent a few days here and I was disappointed when we went to the train station that we would miss seeing the mausoleum of Kemal Mustafa Ataturk (Anitkabir). There is no US equivalent national hero to Türkiyes Ataturk. He truly is in a class alone. Born in 1881, he saw the end of the Ottoman Empire at the end of WW1 in 1918, then fought and organized a rebellion which lead to the rise of the first Turkish Republic. Now in its 100th year, the national pride and love of this hero is palpable at every national holiday or gathering. Once a year, the entire country stops what they are doing to pay respect for this fallen hero on the anniversary of his death. Even in my yoga class, when we heard the siren, the teacher stopped for the full 3 minutes as did the traffic on busy motorways, shops and restaurants – everything comes to a halt. But when we arrived at the train station, we discovered that despite hourly service to Istanbul, there were no seats available for the entire day. Leaving for a hotel for the night, I looked out of the window and in the distance, there stood the Anitkabir. Jack opted to stay behind to do some school work and Alec and I took off to see the mausoleum. It was a very fortuitous stop and we enjoyed our day meandering around the lovely grounds and witnessing a few graduations.
The next day we did get a train to Istanbul and we stayed there for our final 2 weeks in Türkiye. The highlight of our time here is the time we spent with Kim and Steve (sailingmimpi) and their daughter, Angela. We took a Segway tour, we toured Galata tower, walked, ate, shopped, ate some more, and just thoroughly enjoyed our time together. The last time we were in Istanbul, we managed to see most of the primary spots such as the Hagia Sofie, the Blue Mosque known locally as the Sultanahmet Mosque, we took a Segway tour and we saw the cisterns. But we didn’t have a chance to see the Whirling Dirvish and we never ate dinner on one of the amazing roof top terraces so common and popular in Istanbul. Well, we have gotten both of these done before leaving and additionally we saw Galata tower, got a ride down the Bosporus, took a ferry for breakfast in Besiktas, and per Jacks request, we went to the newly opened Istanbul Modern Art Museum. But for us the best part was the memorable week with our dear friends.
Angela and Kim
A few words here and tribute to our dear friends Kim and Steve. We met in the beginning of the summer 2021 in Montenegro and cruised with them in Croatia that year. Our friendship really blossomed over the following winter in Montenegro and we buddy cruised last summer in Greece and Türkiye. Each time we have gone our separate ways, we knew that we would be seeing each other again. Such is the relationship that one develops with a kindred spirit. Living aboard a boat and traveling to different countries can sometimes make one feel unhinged. But the grace and joy of finding 2 souls with whom we share so many values and passions is the rarest of treasures. Having these spirits also contribute as valued sounding boards and parental role models for a growing nearly teenaged young man is even more rare and we are grateful. They say it takes a village to raise a child and finding that village when ones geography is constantly changing makes that rarest of finds even more precious. Kim and Steve, we can’t thank you enough for your friendship, kindness, counsel and love. It is so hard to head off in such different directions but I remain steadfastly committed to maintaining this precious relationship wherever our roads may lead. We love you!
Kim and Steve in their natural habitat on MIMPI
So this is it for Türkiye! It has been a terrific 10 months but it is time to move on! We have 2 weeks of land travel left before we are reunited with our precious Gratitude and Pratt (already they have arrived safely in Southampton, UK thanks to SD Captains – thank you Gentlemen for your hard work). Once we are back on board, we will begin our summer cruise. Hoping for Scotland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, Brussels, Netherlands and finally back into St. Katharines at Tower Bridge in London.
Yoga offered daily at the amphitheater- Thank you YOGI!!
I can hardly believe that this is our final day in Kas, Türkiye. We have called this lovely village “home” for nearly 6 months. Im sitting in our airbnb, staring out into the beautiful Mediterranean Sea, recalling the memories of our time spent here and I feel nothing but gratitude. Gratitude for the beautiful people we have been privileged to know. Gratitude for the amazing weather that has allowed us to thrive and exercise all winter long. Gratitude for the market and the people who spend their lives planting and nurturing the food that we have eaten. And Gratitude for the yoga classes held daily at this stunning amphitheater. I can think of no place on the planet more conducive to the peace and health to which yogi aspire.
This precious kitty was my Yoga cat. He showed up everyday for food and hung with me while I practiced. Sadly he was hit by a car shortly before we left.
We are Florida people and while there are many things we loved about Kas, the weather would have to be among the first mentions. Nearly as far as one can travel South before hitting Africa, it is comfortable and mild with most days in the winter, clear and sunny. We were able to be outside for most of the winter, though jackets and sweaters were a staple in our winter wardrobe. The hiking here is legendary with the Lycian Way trail extending for 760 km along the south Türkiye coast between the mountains and the Mediterranean Sea. The footpath is rocky and the gradients steep but Kas sits nestled at the near ½ way point between the beginning and end of the trail. From Kas you can join the trail or, as we did, just enjoy some day trips noting the plentiful ruins and tombs from a civilization that existed around 400 BC.
New Year’s Day hike with like minded marinersJack overlooking our winter home
Still a village, there are no cinema, theaters or malls. The shops and grocery stores are compact and hold locally made handicrafts and souvenirs primarily. The restaurants are family owned and operated and the food incredibly fresh though simple. Mezze are my favorite, tapas style meals which include a small taste of several tiny dishes. We found a wonderful Vet who made “boat calls” which was handy because we don’t have a car here and Pratt is a homebody who stresses anytime we force him to leave the boat. If in Kas and in need of a Vet, we highly recommend: Destina Veteriner Klinigi +90 543 683 19 87 on WhatsApp Andifli Mah. Eski Ant. Cad. No 150 Kas. We also found an amazing English speaking Dentist. We 3 all had cleanings and she came to the rescue on 2 occasions, once with Alec and once with me. On both occasions (as is typical in Europe but less typical in the US) she came up with the least intrusive and expensive option, repairing a crown which had fallen out for me and essentially rebuilding a tooth for Alec. I was certain it would involve a lengthy crown process when an old filling broke a tooth. This dentist, in one appointment, made him a new tooth essentially for the paltry sum of 50. US dollars. If you find yourself in need of a dentist in Kas, WhatsApp Nese Fettahligil +90 505 675 53 01.
Thanks Dr. Nose
In terms of medical procedures, we did not have any need for one though we had planned to get a complete physical while here, we never managed to get around to it. We have friends who have taken advantage of the very good and economical medical system in Türkiye and have had nothing but great things to say.
Pratt getting his shots and examination
From a boater and ex-pat prospective I would have to give Türkiye very high marks all around. While prices are on the constant rise due to 65-80% inflation and the huge influx of Russians (particularly those wealthy and well connected enough to run from the current situation there) has resulted in costs rising exponentially. We found the costs of berthing still affordable but very quickly the prices will outpace the most expensive marina accommodations in the med. Getting a yearly contract remains the best defense against the extortionist prices of the short term or daily marina rates. The marina contract should allow the foreigner to secure temporary residency for the duration of the contract. This is not a guarantee but I have heard of nobody getting denied (although we had a heck of a problem with our sons residency and if you are considering this, reach out to me personally and Ill talk you through it if necessary). The Setur marina in Kas is beautiful and the grounds and maintenance staff do an amazing job of keeping it in pristine condition. The office staff is not the most friendly we have ever met, but the facilities themselves are in impeccable shape. The cost of utilities- water and electric is very high compared to other marinas in the Med.
Christmas dinner with Turks, Aussies, Brits, Scots, and Americans. Thanks for the friendship fellow cruisers!
The Schengen and EU restrictions on foreigners (Americans, Aussies and UK in particular) remain a real challenge for cruising in Europe. Türkiye remains one of the few places where one can stop and remain for greater than 90 days. We are grateful for the respite from the struggle of immigration challenges. Incidentally, there will be a presidential election in May 2023, and we will be gone before then – there may be significant changes after that point.
Kim, Steve and Missy…The best buddy boaters EVER. Thanks for the memories! We love you
So, circling back to the comment in the first sentence about being in an Airbnb instead of aboard Gratitude and referencing the Schengen and EU restrictions on foreigners, the distance between Kas Türkiye and Southhampton England is roughly 3100 miles. Traveling at 8 knots as Gratitude does, is a nearly nonstop journey of roughly a month. Of course, we don’t travel for a month non-stop and we are far more restrictive in terms of weather comfort than are our delivery crew. If we tried to do this, it would probably take us all summer. Which is to say that the only way we could see Scandinavia this summer is if we had crew, who have no immigration worries, to move the boat for us. This is the first time since we have owned Gratitude that she has been taken off the dock without us and we hated to see her (and our cat, Pratt) leave, but it had to be. SD Captains is a company that has a solid reputation for handling this type of work and agreed to take our cat with them.
The cutes and sweetest communities kittys ever. How we managed to leave without adopting any Ill never know… Just one of the many kitties who climbing onto our laps and into our hearts!
So, what is next for the 3 of us while Gratitude is making her way to Southhampton England? Well, primarily we need to stay out of Europe for as long as possible meaning we have a month long trip though the interior sections of Türkiye planned. Next stop for us is to continue our way East to Side tomorrow morning. Then Alanya, Cappadocia, Ankara (the capital), and finishing in Istanbul where we will meet back up with Kim and Steve, friends from Mimpi with whom we have been buddy boating for the past 2 years.
Be safe Assen, John, John and Craig. Take care of our Pratty and Gratitude! See you in Southhampton.
Ill detail our month long adventure into the interior of Türkiye in a future post for but now, this is the end of the winter portion of 2023.
When I left off on my last post, I was boarding my flight from New Delhi to Varanasi. Clique Holidays driver was standing just outside the doors of the airport with the sign bearing my name and off we traveled to my hotel for the night. It was 10:30 pm when I checked into the hotel and the driver told me that my guide would collect me at 5:30 the following morning.
Sunrise on the Ganges River
Since I only had 1 day in Varanasi and it was THE PLACE that I was most excited to see when I began planning the trip, I knew the day was going to be full. If you are contemplating a trip to India, please allow more than one day in this spiritual mecca, but don’t miss it! It was an extraordinary experience, and I can only hope that my deep appreciation for this encounter comes through in writing.
A temple (background) preparing meal for the needy foreground
Varanasi is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh. I read in several places that it is one of the oldest cities in the world dating back to the 11th century BC. Largely considered the spiritual center of India, Shiva, one of the 3 principal deities in Hindu mythology, founded it. It is the greatest desire for all Hindus to come here on pilgrimage during the final of the four stages of their life. In fact, dying in Varanasi or being cremated in one of the 84 ghats, is considered the greatest blessing of all, since doing so, would result in a release from the cycle of birth-death-birth, or reincarnation. The Ghats are a series of wide steps leading down to the Ganges River. Many sacred rituals are performed on these ghats and 2 of them are used exclusively for cremation.
Manikarnika Ghat. One of the holiest cremation grounds
In Hinduism, the body must be cremated before sundown on the day of death, as a result, many Hindus live out their final years in Varanasi, hoping to die here and thus, be released from the cycle of re-birth. In India there are 121 separate languages, 22 of which are official. Each area, or state, built their own temple with their own Pandit or Pujari (priest) so that pilgrims from the state could understand the priest and have rituals performed when they arrive in Varanasi. As a result, there are more than 23,000 temples and shrines (according to NNVNS.org) dotting the landscape both along the Ganges and up and down the streets. Each of these temples hold the records of death for each area dating back centuries.
Toothbrushes for salePilgrims waking to the Ganges with their belongings
Walking down the road in the pre-dawn hours as my guide led me to the Ganges River, we walked in the wake of several pilgrims carrying all their worldly possessions on their heads. Venders on the sides of the road sold those things which a pilgrim may need, including what appear to be sticks, used as natural teeth brushes.
My all time favorite photo, there is so much happening in this.
We enjoyed the ritualistic bathing along various ghats in the pre-dawn hours and watched as the river and the temples came to life. Pyres were prepared for the day’s cremations and priests and faithful bathed and performed rituals in the precious Ganges River. We returned to the same place at night to watch the Ganges Artii. For me, this was one of the most surreal experiences. A nightly celebration, 8 Hindu pandits perform several sacred rituals to put “Mother Ganges” to sleep, including feeding her, reading, and singing to her, and fanning her with peacock feathers and giving her flowers. The ceremony culminates in fire whereby the faithful scoop the heat from the flames and bathe themselves in it. There were several thousand people participating in this daily ritual and for me, mercifully tucked into a small balcony overlooking the event, I was able to witness the final fires of cremation happening further in the distance. This was the culmination of an extraordinary day of witnessing people mourning and giving to their loved ones the greatest gift they could. The simple sacredness of birth and death and everything played out in between on this river of life.
The cow, the grieving family, the fires – such a complicated story playing out. The deceased carried by the male family members to the Ganges to be purified before cremation
When looking at the photos above, note that the body is carried, by the male family members only, to the river and bathed. The body is then placed on the pyre to burn. The eldest male family member lights the fire and performs some ritual. Female family members are “discouraged” since any display of grief or emotion can make it more difficult for the soul to leave the body. It takes about 3 hours for the body to cremate entirely, and when the head “explodes” is believed to be the moment that the soul leaves the body. The ashes are then taken by the family and put in the river.
I have written before about how journeys are really 3 different trips. The one you imagine before you leave home, the one you experience while you are there, and the one you remember the rest of your life. What amazed me about how I envisioned this day, is that while I was really looking forward to “having” the experience of this place, I was not at all looking forward to going. The night before I arrived in Varanasi, I was stressed about what it might smell like with all these burning bodies, I worried about the sanitation, I worried about the Ganges being dirty, I worried about silly nonsense to be honest. And what I discovered was one of the most sacred and memorable places I have ever been. I was calm and utterly enthralled with what was happening around me. I felt separate from, but in communion with, the faithful throughout the world. I felt joyful sharing the celebration of those who were giving their loved ones such a profound and meaningful “sendoff”, and I felt humbled to have been able to witness such an awe-inspiring and mystifying event.
My amazing guide to Varanasi
Choosing which photos to include was the most difficult task yet! There is so much happening in each of them, try to notice the individual expressions on the faces in these photos for a real sense of what is being experienced.
Closely related to Hinduism but different, Buddhism is also an important religion, if not way of life here in Varanasi. It is said that Buddha was the last incarnation of Vishnu, (one of the 3 phases of existence of the Brahman). Buddha gave his first sermon in nearby Sarnath after he achieved enlightenment in the 5th century BC. Since Hinduism is more mythology than the life of an individual teacher as in the Abrahamic faiths, when Buddhism began, Hinduism in many ways melded with Buddhism and Hindu priests incorporated parts of Buddhism into Hinduism.
In a country of so much poverty, seeing the Kashi Vishwanath Temple glitter with 60kg. (132.28 pounds) of gold was a surprise
I think that born from the Hindu believe in rebirth, there is a shocking lack of stress or urgency. I believe that on a cellular level there is just a “knowing” that “I can do it in my next life, so no hurry”. I noticed it first while in line on arrival in Immigration. The official examining the papers of each visitor did so at a very leisurely pace, and the people around waiting were equally non – rushed. There was a good-natured laughing and a “we are all in this together” kind of feel and nobody was worked up over it. The drivers are the same, everyone just kind of flows in and out, passing and allowing others to overtake as well. On the other side of the coin, there is a complete lack of personal space. While standing in line, though people aren’t stressed, they also won’t let more than an inch or two separate them from the person in front or behind. I’m an American and crave personal space so wherever I went, I put one bag down in front of me, and another behind me to cordon off an area of space. While standing in line at the Lotus temple, I had no bags and people pushed up against me, literally. I had to step out of line to find some relief. Mercifully my guide held our spot in line.
Far too soon, I had to bid farewell to Varanasi and return to the airport for my flight to Cochin.
A beautiful Kingfisher bird just one of the amazing creatures who call this home
Also known as Kochi, it is a port city in the state of Kerala since 1341 and has been used as a trading center with Arabs, Chinese and Europeans ever since. For this reason, we saw more churches, synagogues, and mosques than I have seen since my arrival in India.
If you read my first post, you will remember that the idea for the trip began to reunite with my friend Janie from the US, and her husband’s aunt and cousin from Dallas and Bombay respectively. Well, Janie was denied a visa so she couldn’t come, but I came as her proxy and had the pleasure of meeting up in Cochin with Khala (means Aunt) and Iffat.
We had never met each other but you would never know that we weren’t long lost relatives ourselves (except to look at us). We enjoyed getting to know one other and sharing stories about our mutual friend (Janie) and cooking, growing herbs and plants, and families.
Day one in Cochin we went to Jew Town (I’m not making it up, it’s what the town is called) and enjoyed the colonial buildings and streets but my favorite was the perfume shop where essential oils were customized for your preference. I wish I had purchased more than I did. I loved it. We had a 4-hour drive to our first hill station, Munnar.
A Christian festival with hundreds of people in the procession. Unusual as thus far I had only seen evidence of Muslim and Hindu religiou
If there are two cities more different from each other, I haven’t found them. The hill station of Munnar is deep in the mountain forest with tea plantations all around. There was a gentle mist hanging in the air and the temperature was several degrees cooler than down at the beach. Even though we didn’t see wild elephants, looking out over the dense trees I felt as though one was just beyond the site line.
From Munnar we traveled to Thekaddy where we learned about the ancient practice of using plants for medicine (Ayurvedic medicine) and we even purchased some to take home. Unlike Western medication, the potions are all natural and thus have no side effects. But the downside is that they must be taken sometimes for months for any benefit. Ill report back in a few months as to whether these work for me.
The backwater Delta was very lovely though and I loved the Periyar Lake in Thekkady. Brimming with wildlife, it is called a Tiger Preserve. We saw no tigers, but we did see a wild elephant roaming around and countless birds and water buffalo. Wild monkeys of several varieties call this area home, which was also a treat for this Florida girl.
The tea co-ops and spice plantations were beautiful, and we filled our bags with both to bring home.
Since I’m from Florida, it is difficult to entice me with a beach, but show me a mountain stream, and I’m duly impressed. For this reason, I didn’t love the final stop on our tour, Alleppey beach. I know many people travel to India for the sea and beach in the South and I don’t doubt that it’s a wonderful vacation for many, but for my taste, I’d prefer more time in the mountains.
In a country of nearly 1.4 billion people, pollution and litter are real problems, and the beach showed some of the evidence of this struggle. There are some real efforts underway to improve the situation which surprised me. I was not given plastic disposable bags for any of my purchases in any of the places I visited. There are no plastic straws, and I was given biodegradable utensils with which to eat. In Varanasi I was given Chai in a disposable clay cup – and the guide tossed it to the curb when finished and said – back to the earth as the clay was. There are emissions tests required for vehicles, and inspection points along the way. We were stopped to check our papers while enroute. There are many electric cars and tuk-tuks as well. We can only pray that we are all not too late to fix some of these environmental problems that plague us all.
I have been home for a few weeks now and I would like to add that few places have infused me with more wonder than India. I had nightly dreams of India for the first 2 weeks since my return and it will always be high on the list in the “highlight reel” of my travels. I found it utterly enchanting and memorable and special beyond belief.
I think there are several reasons why my experience was so positive, after hearing the first-hand accounts of experienced travelers who never wish to return. I went with a completely open mind, looking forward to whatever experience came my way. I went having done tons of research on how to avoid the infamous “Delhi Belly” and I was careful. I drank only bottled water; I skipped all raw fruits and veggies (my favorite) unless they were cooked to steaming or I peeled them myself. I tried to see the human and humanity in every experience I had, and I fully embraced the amazing culture that surrounded me. I didn’t try to save a dollar here or there. I went expecting to pay for creature comfort, and even then, it was shockingly inexpensive. I expected that people would charge me more as a tourist and I accepted this in advance and came ready to pay it. Put simply, I let go…. And this trip truly was the adventure of a lifetime. Add it to the bucket list for sure!!!
So, this wraps up my trip to India. I returned to Kas, Turkiye where we are spending the next 6 weeks preparing ourselves and Gratitude for her trip to Southampton, England.
The first part of my trip to India involved a sequence of cities commonly referred to “The Golden Triangle”, with a couple of additional stops thrown in.
I arrived at New Delhi in the early hours of day 1 and due to the “all night” nature of the flight from Istanbul, I didn’t get much sleep. Janie had warned me that New Delhi was a chaotic, noisy, and polluted city so I wasn’t heartbroken to spend the “lost” day 1 continuing the journey to Jaipur. I can’t describe my relief seeing my Clique Holidays representative holding the sign with my name on it given the more than 2-hour delay while clearing immigration and customs.
The most amazing masala chaiObligatory first meal… SamosaMile after mile of mustard fields
A 5-hour drive from New Delhi was, surprisingly, a delightful way to become acclimated to the new sites, sounds and smells of this exotic country. While sleep was a near impossibility due to the sharp stops, starts, turns, and horns on this trip, the miles after miles of beautiful mustard plants in bloom and the surprising sights of the drive including monkeys dancing from trees and fences, camels shuttling cargo and even an elephant walking down the road. Traveling from the west, nearly everything was new and elicited a chuckle. Cows meandered wherever they liked, sometimes just lying prone in the middle of the road. Carts full to overflowing with produce, tuk-tuks carrying passengers and all of them competing for space on the 2-lane highway as though there were 4 lanes -sometimes driving on the left, sometimes the right and occasionally right down the middle. There seemed to me an elegant, if chaotic dance to this rhythm and had I considered driving the trip myself, the results would have been the same if I had joined the Miami City Ballet company performing Swan Lake with no training – disastrous.
But several hours after meeting my driver at the New Delhi airport, we arrived in Jaipur. Also referred to as the “pink city” due to the dominant color scheme of the walled city, painted this way in 1876 to welcome Prince Albert, it has been maintained in this soft rose pink ever since.
Palace of the wind
The Capital of the Indian state, Rajasthan, Jaipur still has palaces with royalty among the occupants. Declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 2019, Jaipur is a fortress city surrounded by defensive walls.
The first day I essentially rested and re-set my internal clock, ready to hit the ground running on day 2, leaving me only 1 full day here to get my fill.
Elephants carry visitors up to the City PalaceThe Hawa Mahal – really only window and a facade to allow the royal woman to watch the festivities without being seen
The Hawa Mahal was the first stop – the palace of the wind, it is striking in its beauty but, it is just a façade, built to allow the royal women a way to observe special parades or functions without appearing in public. The Hawa Mahal got its name (the palace of the wind) for the venturi effect of concentrating the breezes during the warmer months. Constructed of hundreds of windows, and painted the obligatory pink, it was built by Pratap Singh, the grandson of the founder of Jaipur in 1799.
The 3rd longest wall in the worldHindu Temple with the priest offering Tilaks – a symbolic opening of the 3rd eye of inner intelligence
My guide and I crossed the street for a better view, and there we saw a snake charmer sitting with a black cobra in a basket. I hate to admit that I was totally caught up in the event and sat to have my photo taken while appreciating this enchanting tradition. I learned a week later that it is illegal in India for anyone to use any animal or creature for entertainment purposes. Further, regrettably, I learned that this poor animal certainly had his venom or teeth removed, thereby shortening his life. A classic case of just being swept up in the moment, I regret having the photo taken and later posting it on social media. For this reason, I’m only telling the tale here in the hopes that it may give future travelers a heads up on this illegal practice.
If we are talking about animals here, there are also elephants who are available to carry tourists to the top of the palace. I opted out of this as I was told it is difficult for the elephants to go up and down. And certainly, this qualifies as entertainment, but my guide suggested an activity which I preferred greatly. At the end of the day, we visited the elephants in their small sanctuary. There I paid a small fee to feed them and interact with them in a way that was more to my liking. I had the opportunity to really feel their energy and to offer her mine. All females due to their consistently docile nature, they were sweet and offered my first chance to touch and interact with an animal that I have always called my favorite. Staring into the eyes of this lovely gentle giant was an experience I will never forget.
Feeding these lovely ladies their “chocolate” of bananas and sugar cane.
I visited the city wall of Jaipur, the 3rd longest in the world, the Jal Mahal, and the Amer Palace. The Amer Palace once housed the Rajput Maharajas and their wives. The palace is connected to the Amer Fort and was declared a UNESCO world heritage site.
And finally, I visited the Jantar Mantar, a collection of 19 astronomical instruments built in the 18th century. Yet another UNESCO world heritage site, this site contains the world’s largest sundial and several working instruments.
I loved the 18th century Astronomy instruments. I also learned that there is a huge astrological component to the tradition of arranged marriages, still the primary means of marrying.
Exhausted from the day I arrived back in my lovely hotel in time for a fantastic dinner and straight to bed. The next day we got an early start of 0800.
Jaipur – Agra
One of the places on my special requests list was the Galtaji Temple. Off the tourist track, I’m so glad we made the trip. This felt to me like a truly authentic temple with worshippers and visitors who were local. Clearly the monkeys called this home and though the site was generally run down and in poor condition, the temple and my experience with the priest here was as true an experience as I had anywhere in India. We were just in time to witness the ceremony and my driver, a Hindu worshipper who has a small temple in his car (not uncommon for many Hindi), began running up the stairs as he announced “quickly, we are just in time”. We watched the priest perform his rituals and I followed along mimicking the actions of my driver while praying my rosary to my God. It is a fine line showing respect and reverence to other cultures in their worship while staying true to one’s own faith but observing others in their beliefs is for me, one of the greatest aspects of travel. There was a large basin of water where women were performing their morning bath which somehow just added to the enjoyable and authentic nature of this visit.
I believe these cheeky monkeys ran off with some saris
A couple of hours closer to Agra, we stopped at the Chand Baori. One of the largest stepwells in the world, this well provided water to the women who lived in the village of Abhaneri. Constructed in 800-900 AD, it descends 100 feet down into the water and consists of 3500 steps over 13 stories. While, at first glance, walking down 13 flights of steps to get water to drink, then making the return journey with water weighing nearly 8.5 pounds per gallon might seem like a miserable job but in fact, according to my guides, this was a pleasurable activity enjoyed by the women in the village. An opportunity to gossip and catch up on news, women were the only ones permitted. Men never came here. Further, at the bottom of the well the temperature was nearly 20 degrees F cooler. It is moments such as this when I wonder who had it better? Western Women today heading to the gym to workout but opening a tap and water flows? Funny just considering how simple, if difficult, life must have been. And proving also how some things never change, on one side of the well sits a pavilion where the wealthy and royals could sit and rest.
13 stories down and 99 steps to collect your water…
Arriving in Agra, our final tourist stop for the day was Fatehpur Sikri. Coordinating all of this behind the scenes for my benefit, the tour guide met us as we drove into the lot.
Another shout out to my tour agency, Clique Holidays. I have said it before and I’ll say it again, I receive NO compensation whatsoever for referrals or for mentioning someone in my blog. So, this is an honest testimonial for which I have received NO compensation. But having never experienced this level of care while traveling, I cannot say enough about it. At each stop I was dropped off and picked up with my guide, not looking for buses, or parking or managing traffic, I never waited for the driver or guide, they just “magically” appeared ready to take me on a new adventure. I was able to leave behind valuables in the car with full confidence they would be there when I returned. And with no running to busses or waiting for errant lost people, we moved at my schedule, staying longer when I wanted, or leaving early when that suited. So, I was nearly surprised when we arrived at the Fatehpur Sikri and my guide opened the door, introduced himself and whisked me off for another experience.
Note my “talik” from my visit earlier in the day to the “monkey temple” (Galtaji temple)
Once the capital of the Mughal Empire in 1571 by Emperor Akbar, the palace was completely abandoned in 1610 due to, I think, problems with obtaining water. Yet another UNESCO world heritage site, the building was constructed in the Hindu and Muslim architecture popular at the time in India. The structure itself contains a mixture of religious (Jama Masjid) and secular (a winter and summer palace for Miriam), buildings. Miriam was Akbar’s favorite wife and the mother of his son Jahangir.
I must confess to a bit of lethargy on this visit. It could have been the long car ride from Jaipur, but I wasn’t excited about this visit. It is a classic case of another time, and I may have loved it. But my guide, an amateur photographer enthusiastically snapped photos for me and I didn’t have the energy to refute. Knowing that I would have the same guide for my visit to the Taj Mahal the next day, I knew his skills at photography would not go to waste.
The Taj Mahal
Full disclosure, my guide took nearly all of the photos you see here
Clique holidays arranged all the stops on this tour, with the only input from me being the sites that I wanted to see. They could have arranged it in any order, and I would not have known any better – meaning had I done this myself, I would have had a vastly different experience. I know that it is not unusual for tour guides to suggest an early morning arrival at the Taj, and this is for good reason. Watching the sun rise and the warm color spread across the gleaming white marble façade that is the Taj Mahal was breathtaking. Viewing this masterpiece of Muslim art, I was exceptionally lucky in that there was no fog, no precipitation and very few (relatively) tourists. It was high season, and yet we were nearly alone. Seeing this “Wonder of the World” which I had seen in photos since I was 12, live and in person, was just something I can’t explain. It was far more beautiful up close than even my wonderful tour guide was able to capture in his photos. And since I was alone on this tour, I was able to just meander freely around and take it all in. My guide shared with me the important details, but he allowed me to just walk alone and really feel the place and appreciate the intricate detail and symmetry of the building, the minarets and landscaping.
This is the only photo that correctly depicts the minarets leaning slightly AWAY from the primary mausoleum
The Taj Mahal was commissioned by Shah Jahan in 1631 upon the death of his wife Mumtaz Mahal who died while giving birth to their 14th child. In her final moments, she asked her husband to promise her that he would not father any more children with another woman, and that he would build a mausoleum for her. Reportedly thoroughly devoted to her, and devastated at her passing, he kept both of those promises.
The only unsymmetrical aspect of the entire project is the tomb of Shah Jahan himself which was added later and not planned for originally. But looking at this masterpiece from every angle and side, there is nothing out of proportion or unmatched on both sides. Even the buildings which flank the mausoleum itself were only added for the benefit of symmetry. The minarets are ever so slightly bowed out so that in the event of an earthquake, they would fall away from the primary structure. The marble is of the highest translucent quality, the black onyx and jewels are inlayed so flawlessly as to appear to be painted. The writing is verses of the Koran which are bigger in size as your eye travels up to appear the same. More than 20,000 artisans are said to have been employed on this project, many of the descendants of these artists are still creating equally beautiful if not much smaller works of art in the local area. All these years later, this unequalled structure stands as a beautiful symbol of love the world over.
The artist is shaping the stones with the manual wheelNotice how tiny this work isBut the resultant effect is mesmerizing..
New Delhi
I’m glad that I “arrived” at New Delhi after I had a few days to “come into” India. I do not know if Clique Holidays knew the effect that arriving in New Delhi has on the average traveler and “saved” it for me (or more likely saved me from it). I don’t usually have too much unpleasant stuff to say about the cities I visit. Even in places where I may never return or wish to live – there is usually enough good, I hardly have space to write the stuff that isn’t so good. But I don’t want to leave you with the wrong impression either. New Delhi is – wow – just LOUD – BOLD – heavy – and unquestionably it pulses at a vibration which might challenge the average visitor. While efforts to minimize pollution are real here – emissions tests on cars, electric vehicles and tuk-tuks common etc., the pollution is unmistakable. I felt my throat irritation while sitting in the line at immigration and I felt it again nearly immediately after the second time.
The chaotic traffic, which was otherworldly, and again, the cacophony of noise while animal, beast and human attempted to make way in any direction possible – was really something to behold. All of this is to say, had I experienced this after a flight with no sleep and a 3 hour wait in immigration, my humor may have been suffering.
I checked into the hotel and my guide arrived early the following day to whisk me off on my New Delhi tour.
New Delhi is the capital of India and all 3 branches of government call it home. There are 2 sections, the Old Delhi and New Delhi. The “New” section is characterized by gorgeous old colonial mansions, government buildings. But my favorite part of the day was the Rickshaw ride in Chandni Chowk and the spice market. My guide took me to a favorite place for a delightful snack. To say that a person could get lost doesn’t do it justice. The turns and snakes of the walkways felt like a maze I may never find my way out of again. But the energy, like most of the cities I had visited, was palpable and enjoyable.
Raj Ghat, a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi was high on my list of places to visit. So, here I’m going off on a tiny tangent which I get to do because this is my blog ha-ha. My guide asked me, as a Westerner what I thought of Mahatma Gandhi. Like most Westerners, I have an idea of who I think he is. Based on the facts of his life, Gandhi was born to a wealthy Hindu family, schooled in law, and spent most of his life advocating for civil rights. He employed nonviolent resistance in a campaign to end British rule. He ushered in a new era of independence in India and advocated for the end of the “untouchables’ caste. He was imprisoned, he went on hunger strikes and he was nominated several times, though never won, the Nobel Peace Prize. My guide then went on to say that many Indians are not fans of Gandhi and that there is a social media drive in effect sharing all the reasons that Gandhi was no friend to the Indian population. While my guide did not dispute any of the facts of Gandhi’s life, he found Gandhi’s position too Muslim friendly resulting in the Pakistani/Indian partition and the resultant wars between the two countries. My guide opted to allow me to visit the memorial alone. Possibly he had a phone call to make, but given the context of our conversation, I feel he had another reason.
This is exactly why I love travel. I love having honest discussions with people in their country and learning their point of view. To be clear, there was nothing that this guide was going to say which would change my view of this peace-loving advocate for the poor and for the people of India. But I appreciated hearing his viewpoint. I then suggested to my guide that perhaps any life, when viewed through a microscope, would show cracks but taken as a whole, as any life should be, was the world left better because he was there? And clearly few could argue that his life left the world and his community better than he found it.
We next visited the Lotus Temple, or the Bahai’I House of worship. Most noted for its construction, it is a non-denominational place of worship open to all faiths. And our last stop on the way to the airport was the Qutb Minar founded by the Rajputs built roughly in 1200. A beautiful example of Hindu-Muslim art and architecture, it is a UNESCO heritage site and one of the most visited sites in New Delhi.
Leaving this site, I bid farewell to my tour guide and my beloved driver who protected me all week. I boarded my flight to Varanasi which is where I will begin the next blog update.
If you are considering a tour to India – I highly recommend clique holidays. Their details follow:
I once heard that the more money you spend on a trip to a foreign country, the more distance you put between yourself and the culture you are trying to enjoy. I always believed this to be true and certainly, it makes sense. Riding in a bus or train like a local, living in a homestay, shopping at the market, all these things really tie you to a culture in a way that is more challenging when staying in an American brand hotel serving up American food with American television and entertainment.
Just a guy and his elephant…Palace of the WindMy delightful guide leading me through my delicious Thali lunch
So, when I was initially planning my trip to India, I did so with my normal routine – looking at an overview of the country and prioritizing the must-see cities of interest to me, then figuring out transportation between the cities and finding appropriate Airbnb’s in each locale. But while researching transportation between Agra and Varanasi, I only found a night train. Since I would be a solo woman traveler, this wasn’t ideal. Needing to do more research, I put out requests to other travelers on message boards, asking if women travel alone on the night train. I had very varied responses including “make sure you lock your suitcase and belongings IN CASE you fall asleep” (of course falling asleep is the goal on a night train, otherwise, you have completely lost a day when you arrive), and “try not to travel to unfamiliar areas alone if you are a woman”. Both the destination and the origination are certainly going to be unfamiliar…
This got me thinking….
Alec told me that he would be far more comfortable if I was part of some organized tour. Jack though, looked at me dead seriously and said “Mom, I think you are trying to relive your glory days”.
Out of the mouths of babes…
So, approaching this from another angle, I went back to my computer and tried to find an organized tour from an agency. But here it got tricky… Mostly the tours offered were from companies that have been around for dozens of years and offered tours with busses filled with travelers. This is NOT what I wanted at all. First, I didn’t want a cattle car tour where I would be shuttled on and off busses full of tourists taken from one shop to another to peddle local goods. While there was little chance of me getting out of India without filling up a suitcase with treasures from this magical place, I wanted it to be on my own terms.
Obligatory first meal – samosa New Delhi AirportYou can’t imagine the noice when the cars and trucks actually ASK you to honk!
And then, I found Clique Holidays. I decided to send a Whatsapp +91 88006 55713 message and see if they could arrange what I was looking for without breaking the bank. After a VERY short wait, they got back to me and quoted me a price for a 5–6-day tour including all the places I wanted to see. After a bit more research I realized that I was missing a place that was on my “want” list and I asked if they could incorporate it. The schedule was very aggressive but yes, they managed to make it all work. And the best part, I would be traveling solo with just me and a driver and tour guides would meet me at each destination. The tour included 6 hotels, 3 airplane tickets a driver in each city, and a tour guide everywhere and the price absolutely did NOT break the bank. So reasonable in fact, I worried that the entire operation might be a scam. Back to the computer to do more research, I learned that this company was only in business from June which explained why there were only 4 or 5 reviews. This was good news and bad news. Good in that I wanted a new company trying to make their way in the world. And bad because I had no idea if they would be in business when I showed up. I slept on it, and the following day I decided to pull the trigger and book it. I just had a feeling that this was the way to go.
Now, some of you are wondering why I would want to be alone instead of part of a large group. A little bit of self-confession here, I’m an introvert if I’m totally honest. One of the great gifts of age is the ability to look honestly as oneself and know where you are likely to thrive and where you are going to have challenges. I have a core group of friends whom I adore. I adore my family. I welcome true and honest communication with people, but “cocktail party” chit chat doesn’t appeal to me. And when I travel in a large group, I usually get annoyed in the company of people adjusting to the vagaries and sacrifices of travel. All adventures involve discomfort to varying degrees and travelers having dietary, sleep, communication, or culture shock issues just stress me out. In any bus load of travelers, someone is going to lose a passport, wallet, cell phone or some treasure along the way. Someone is going to be unable to eat spicy food in India or live without their daily meat requirements. People will be acting out due to lack of sleep etc… and given that the likelihood of me making any lasting friendships on such a trip are incredibly low, I’d rather just avoid the downside of small talk with a busload of people wondering why I’m traveling alone in India, or worse, having any of the unfortunate aforementioned conditions happen to me, thus suffering the resultant embarrassment and guilt over having affected anyone else’s journey.
Additionally, all these bodies truly disrupt the energy of a place. Landing in Varanasi on a busload of foreigners would absolutely detract from the unbelievably spiritual nature of this special place. Alternatively, I was able to feel and enjoy Varanasi in the company of just one local guide taking me to all the quaint and special street food places to which he could never take a bus load.
Clearly you can see the benefits of going the way that I did, but many people reading this will choose the busload all day long. The joy of experiencing travel with others is certainly worthy of consideration. But self-knowledge is the crucial element. Knowing in what conditions you are likely to thrive, and where you will struggle is key to planning a holiday that will be unforgettable for all the RIGHT reasons.
As long as I’m climbing down from my high horse here regarding travel via bus and backpack vs. a hired car and driver with a sign bearing one’s name everywhere they go, I’m going to dive right in on the benefits of the car and driver which were previously unknown to me.
On any given trip, cell phone and google maps in hand, I’m navigating my family from one bus or train to the next. Whole cities disappear, swallowed up as they are lost to all but the route I’m navigating. Further, in India, the buses and trains would have seriously impacted the joy I felt observing this amazing place from the (relative) safety of the back of a car, rather than clutching all personal belongings that I felt the need to keep safe. Personal space (or lack thereof) in India, a country roughly 1/3 the area of the US but with nearly 5 X the occupants, is nearly non-existent. Nearly every time we passed an overcrowded bus careening around a bend on what appeared to be 2 wheels, I thanked Clique Holidays and my lucky stars that I was in a private car.
WHY INDIA? And where were Alec and Jack?? Some background…
The convo about India happened several months ago with my friend Janie. Janie shared that she was planning a trip to India to escort her husband Azam’s Aunt to see family members. Azam is an American citizen, born in Pakistan where much of his family still lives. Azam’s aunt is an American citizen born in India. She moved to the US shortly after marriage when her Indian husband was accepted to Case Western Reserve University to study. She has lived in the US ever since, currently residing in Dallas, TX. Her family (nieces, nephews etc) still live in India. Here is where it gets a bit complicated. For those who are not well versed in India/Pakistan politics… I’ll do my best to share my understanding with you. Please don’t take this as the gospel truth but rather, if this is of interest, do more research since I’ll be largely sharing what I learned from tour guides and is an overview at best with sweeping broad strokes.
In 1947, the British, as part of their departure from India, partitioned the country with the West (Pakistan) being primarily Muslim and the East (India) being primarily Hindu. One of my guides said this was because at the time of the partition, both Hindu and Muslim followers wanted a Prime Minister from their religion. It was so big a point of contention that the partition was created, and the 2 countries borders were created. After the partition, Azam’s parents opted to move to Pakistan, while Azam’s aunts’ family opted to remain in India. The entirety of both countries is filled with families who have been separated by this partition.
So, Janie and I talked about how we could parlay this trip into an opportunity to see one another. I have always wanted to visit India and knowing that Alec was less enthused, this was a perfect chance to go. Janie, always happy to help a family member and always up for an adventure, offered to bring Lilli Khala to India. She also mentioned that she enjoyed visiting India and since Azam was Pakistani, he would no longer be given a visitor’s visa, so it was the perfect chance for Janie to see his family. As an American born citizen, she was expecting to have no trouble getting a visa. As the conversation evolved, I learned that Janie absolutely didn’t want to see the places in the North of India that I wanted to visit and further, she would be spending time in Bombay with family, so we decided that I would travel for a week alone in the north, then fly to Cochin to meet up with her and her husband’s Aunt Lilli and his cousin Ifaat. We were going to have a “girls’ trip” to Kerala in Southern India.
I got busy making plans, purchasing my visa for India and arranging travel documents, and Janie did the same. Jack, thrilled to have located a “mule” to get his prized Legos from the US to us in Türkiye asked Janie if he could mail some minifigs to her to carry. I sent a few things that I can’t get in Türkiye and all that remained was a few details.
Then I got the call,
Wah!!! Janie’s application for a visa was denied!! She was not permitted to go to India. The only possible explanation is her marriage to a Pakistani born man. I was heartbroken! I felt horrible for her, she had arranged this trip for Azam’s aunt, she had planned the time off. We had all purchased tickets and now the lynchpin of the whole trip fell out.
Breath…. Just breath….
I spent a night thinking about how I felt about the trip if Janie wasn’t going and the bottom line was that, while it was an unfortunate turn of events, I wanted to go to India. I was uncomfortable as heck planning a 2-week trip in India alone, but I was going. Plus, the second part of the trip I would rendezvous with Azam’s Aunt and cousin whom I have never met but whose names I had heard many times over the years. All would be ok.
But here is the broader point here. Can you imagine one of your aunts moving to another state after marriage and suddenly, because the Governors of the 2 states were squabbling, none of the residents of the two states are allowed to travel to see one another??? Because the politicians can’t figure it out, family members are forced to fight with family members?
Anyone else thinking about Ukraine and Russia about now?
It reminded me of a sweet Iranian couple we met in Istanbul who said “We Iranians LOVE Americans! It’s our politicians who can’t get along!”
It reminded me of the heart wrenching moment in the village square in Kas last November when chatting with an adorable couple with 2 very small children (one a newborn). Upon learning that we are American she said she Loved America (though she had never been). I asked where she was from. Her shoulders slumped and I saw unmistakable shame on her face as she said “Russia”. My heart broke as I walked up to her, and we embraced. We both cried in this intense moment of shared humanity as our husbands and friends looked on as we held the embrace for what seemed like minutes. It is always the citizens who suffer when our politicians can’t put humanity first. This poor family has had to uproot and move to Türkiye, leaving behind family members. They are just one family of the roughly 700,000 Russians who have fled to avoid conscription according to one source. She shared with me her pain that her parents either wouldn’t or couldn’t choose more than one source of news long enough to see another side to the story. Rather than be pressed into military service and risking his life to fight his Ukranian “brothers”, he chose to leave and move his family to Türkiye. What a painful decision that would have been.
This lovely lady asked me to have my photo taken with her -little did I know it would only be the first of dozens of times I would be asked this. turns out I was a but of an oddity in In
That is why we travel. For the shared humanity of our experiences. So, while I may not choose to travel and make small talk with a bus full of strangers, I look for these opportunities at finding our shared humanity. Of making meaningful connections with people. And that I did in spades in India. I found so much shared humanity in this beautiful rich country.
So standby for the travel part of the journey in the next blog update. Places I visited in the 2-week trip were:
Jaipur, Agra, New Delhi, Varanasi, Cochin, Munnar, Thekaddy, and Alappuzha.
Built before 31BC, the Masada, built by Herod the Great, was home to Israelites who lived there until the invasion by Roman troops in 74 CE at the end of the First Jewish Roman War. The archaeological evidence contradicts some claims that during a siege by the Romans, 960 Jewish rebellion occupants were locked in the palace fortification on the top of an isolated rock and when their capture was imminent, they committed suicide. Regardless of that part of the history, the fortification is remarkable in the relics left behind of the way the occupants lived. Roman baths, a hot room, storerooms for food and munitions all sit atop a massive hill with cavernous craters reminiscent of the Grand Canyon. The vistas in all directions are shocking in their stark relief and though we had an overcast day, we had the distinct sense of being on another planet. In one direction lies the Dead Sea but in all other directions, stark rock formations in muted brown and sand rise in canyons and jagged cliffs. Jack took advantage of the stark surroundings and filmed his mini-figs.
I would have typically preferred to hike to the top but since we were on a tight schedule, we had to take the cable car where we were whisked above those hiking laboriously. We spent about an hour meandering the site, then ran to catch our bus to the Dead Sea.
Public transportation is efficient and an economical way to travel in Israel but 2 caveats to keep in mind… They often come early – So make sure you are 15 minutes or more early to your bus our you may miss it. And getting signed up is not simple so better to buy a card at the airport station that you can then add money to as needed. One card is sufficient for multiple riders on the bus, the train, and the rail.
Salt extracted for beauty productsWalking back to the bus stop
We made it to the Dead Sea stop and though it was chilly and overcast, nothing was going to keep us from the dead sea soak…
The lowest point on the planet Earth, The Dead Sea is 431 meters or 1,414 feet BELOW SEA LEVEL. As we traveled from Jerusalem, we could see markings on the sides of the hill indicating our travel below sea level and feel the accompanying ear pops.
Arriving at the entry point to the Dead Sea, we learned that at more than 34% salinity it is one of the saltiest bodies of water. This density made it possible to nearly sit straight up and float above the water. While it left our skin feeling smooth and silky (surprising), plants and animals cannot live there. Sadly, the Sea is receding quickly, and multiple efforts are underway to mitigate its recession. We all giggled like children as we enjoyed the hyper buoyancy and salt filled mud. Alec and I were freezing though and didn’t wait too long before heading to the showers and getting dressed again.
We ran the 4 km back to the bus stop in the middle of nowhere hopeful to not miss it – and we made it! Enjoying the relaxing 45-minute drive back to Jerusalem we all sat back to enjoy the ride.
JORDAN
The tour bus and the Taco Cats
The next day – we took a tour on Abraham Tours to Jordan. While there is certainly enough to see in Israel to more than fill a week, I have had Petra on my bucket list for as long as I can remember. I could not be this close and not see it. So, we booked the Abraham Tour for 2 days to Petra. They did a fantastic job or organizing a very full 2 days with an early morning departure from their own hostel in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv and transporting us to the border with Jordan. Once we cleared ourselves and belongings across the border, there was a Jordanian representative and tour guide who drove us the rest of the way.
We stopped at Mt. Nebo which is where Moses led the Jews from Egypt to the Promised Land, and from this site, on a clear day, one can see nearly the entire Holy Land. It was not a clear day for us, but we were able to see in the distance, Amman.
Mt Nebo, which is managed by the Franciscan Order, has a basilica with some of the most impressive mosaics we have ever seen. Also, there is a monument to Moses.
Continuing our bus trip, we managed to make it to our Bedouin Campsite just before dinner and with barely enough time to eat, check in and off we went to see Petra at night.
We had on our bus, tourists from the USA, France, Germany, Columbia, England, and others. We all laughed and enjoyed each other’s company, and I was so impressed at how we all communicated (thank God most people speak English) and got along. We looked after each other and everyone engaged with Jack and Travis as though they were their own. I’m not sure who on our bus asked the guide if he could arrange to take us to Petra at night, but only once or twice a week this is available. Someone who did more research than I had discovered that on this day we could make it. If you are planning a trip to Petra, I can’t urge you enough to make sure you visit, if possible, on the day when you can see Petra by Night. It was a surprise and unplanned but having seen it at night, we enjoyed seeing it during the day even more. And the experience of exploring and seeing the rocks bathed in candlelight under a moonlit and star filled sky, then arriving at the treasury to beautiful flute music and more candles was a chilling and inspired experience that we will never forget. We began our day at 600 in the morning and ended falling into bed at the campsite at 12 but it was truly an unforgettable day and worth every moment.
photos can not do justice…to the magnificence of the Treasury
The following day, we awoke before dawn and as we meandered to the breakfast room, I saw the most magnificent shooting star I have ever seen. The sky was the darkest black with more stars than I have seen in my life combined.
Hopping aboard the bus, we made a few stops to see the gorges in the daytime, then arrived just after sunrise to Petra. We only had about 6 hours before we needed to meet back to board the bus back to Jerusalem. We 6 are all fit and wanted to see as much as possible, so we broke with the group and took off first to the Monastery, then to the Royal Tombs.
A few words about this site. Petra, the Capital of the Nabatean Empire, grew rich from the spice and incense trade in the 1st Century BC. It is not known when Petra was built but it thrived even after the Romans came and annexed them to the Roman Empire. Petra continued to thrive up until an earthquake destroyed much of the city in the 4th century AD. Like so many cities in this region, Petra was abandoned. Petra was not only significant from a building and trade prospective, but the Nabateans were brilliant at controlling the water in this desert region. They found ways to store water during drought and direct water during floods. Deserted by all but a few Bedouin from the area, this was all but lost and forgotten until a Swiss explorer set out to re-discover Petra and in 1812, Petra was officially on the map. The Jordanian government promised the Bedouin occupants exclusive rights to all of the vender and tourist trade in the area if they would move out of their campsites here and allow the government to make it a tourist destination. That information made me WANT to buy something from the people selling along the footpaths. Unfortunately, most of the stuff is junk imported from China but if you look carefully, you can find incense, and handcrafted items which we did buy.
Hardly a week passes that Alec, and I don’t thank God that we are doing this now while we are still young and fit enough to appreciate it. But never more so than when visiting Petra has our fitness really paid off. From the entry gate to the treasury (the tip of the iceburg) is about 6 miles. More than 25 miles of trails which wind through the deepest caverns and climb up the mountains cover this area and we saw as much as was humanly possible. We made it to the Monastery, Treasury, the Theatre, the Royal Tombs, the Nymphaeum, the Street of Facades, and the Siq, the Church, as well as others. Jack and Travis played as only kids with limitless energy could and I was filled with Gratitude that Jack has the privilege of exploring these magnificent places as his childhood playground. This is absolutely a magnificent example of human ingenuity and as happens when I’m in a highly inspiring place, I wonder what people will discover of our accomplishments in 2000 years from now. I pray that we use our brilliant minds to solve some of the bigger issues of pollution and global warming and we can leave behind something that the occupants of our planet in 2000 years’ time can appreciate and marvel at and gain inspiration from.
Petra is not only a UNESCO world Heritage site, but it was added to the new list of the Seven Wonders of the World.
I would love to leave it there but there is 1 more highlight from our trip that I’d like to cover: First, the Israel Museum in Jerusalem includes a very impressive 500,000 artifacts dating back thousands of years. But for me the most impressive item in the collection was the Dead Sea Scrolls. Jack is at that time in young man’s life when he is questioning some of the more existential aspects of life and its meaning. He is curious about God and Jesus, and he is honestly questioning every single thing that emerges from our mouths. Most of the time we inwardly laugh, and I’m pleased that he doesn’t just take what we offer as the gospel truth. I want him to ask questions from everyone and everything he learns and reads.
I’m keenly aware that the greatest gifts in my life are gifts I can’t give to Jack, he must discover them for himself. One of those gifts is my happy marriage. And the other greatest gift, is my relationship with God. Sometimes when Jack questions his own belief in God it hurts my heart, but I’m often reminded that that IS THE VERY PATH to God. It doesn’t come from blindly walking someone else’s journey, but from asking and wrestling with your own questions and allowing God to come in. I pray daily that this wrestling will bring God into Jacks life, but The Dead Sea Scrolls are one of the proofs that the words we read in our bible are the words that were written so many hundreds of years ago. Believed to have been written in 1-3 century CE, the religious manuscripts were only discovered between 1946-1956. These precious pieces of papyrus and parchment are housed in the Israel Museum’s Shrine of the Book are the most complete and extensive collection of the scrolls on Earth. On our last day in Israel, we wandered through this incredible collection.
The stunning Temple Mount with the oldest Mosque in the world Due to strict laws, we were not permitted access during many hours and absolutely no contact with persons of the opposite gender
Jerusalem and Jordan Part 1
Ever since we set off across the Atlantic, I have had visions of travel dancing in my head. I knew that we would be primarily cruising only in the summer – and that has worked out perfectly allowing us to catch up on boat projects, chores, and Jacks school. But I had always imagined that we would be doing more land travel in the winter. I had hoped that we could take advantage of the near flight travel so close to some of the interior locales that I had always dreamed we would see.
Well, honestly, our winter travel has happened -but only to a much more limited extent than we had hoped. The primary reason is that we just get busy settling into our routine and, just as at home, the inertia of the day to day gets in the way of breaking the seal and just leaving.
This year is going to be different though. For one thing, the reality that we are in the final 1.5 years has really sunk in. We can’t believe that we are looking to the end (or the break) instead of working out plans to travel to another continent, country, or adventure. So, to be this close to countries that are so far from home and not take the quick flight to check them out is simply unacceptable. So, we did it! We bought tickets and took the trip to Israel and Jordan.
Alec gave me a very strict budget of 1 week. We were not allowed to spend any more time there than that. If you have been to the holy land, you know that there is far more to see than can be easily covered in a week. But we did it. We saw as much as we could, and we left feeling like we have a much better sense of this area of the world than when we arrived.
Seeing a napping soldier carrying a weapon on the train was strange to us but the public transport was great
I know that there are times when my family wishes they could tie me up and send me away and this week was one of them. Given that we only had 6 days, I crammed alot in. It is not the way that Alec likes to travel – well, to be honest, none of us likes to spend the day going from one to another thing. We like the laid-back relaxed way of “living” in a foreign land and absorbing as much through the monuments and buildings as we do from sipping a chai at the local café. But I just couldn’t bear to leave any of the bigger stones unturned. So, we hit the ground running and this is what we learned, saw, and experienced.
From where we are living in Turkey, the flight was a very short 1.5 hours to Israel. In fact, we spent far more time getting to the airport and in the airport than we did on the plane. But given that the flight from our home in the US would have been excruciatingly long and the time change profound, this was a must see while we are so close.
We landed in Israel and the public transportation was fantastic. We easily navigated through the airport to the train and the ride to Jerusalem was a simple 35 minutes. Easy peasy. We had planned to take a bus to our Airbnb, but the day was gorgeous, and we had been cooped up in the airport and plane, so we decided to have a nice hour long walk. This was serendipitous because it took us through one of the most enjoyable places to see, the Yehuda market. We found a delicious spot to enjoy 2 of our favorite things, Halvah and Hummus. Yum! And we enjoyed our first introduction to the spirit of Israel. There is nothing like a lively local market to infuse you with the culture, food and sounds of a country. Once we arrived at the Airbnb, we spent the night resting up for our day ahead.
Julian pointing out where the Jewish/Palestinian border used to beSome rocks such as these were from the second temple 1st century BCOne of the many bar mitzvah celebrations we witnessed
The first full day in Jerusalem we met up with our friends Francois, Colleen, and Travis. They are just beginning their great explore having just moved aboard a catamaran, and we were thrilled to be able to meet up with them for a short time in our early days in Kas, Türkiye. Unfortunately, we are not in the same marina all winter, and they are doing more land travel anyway, but we had an amazing time with them in Israel. Colleen had arranged a tour with a fantastic guide. If you find yourself in Jerusalem and looking for a good guide, this is your guy. His name is Julian Resnick, and his WhatsApp number is +972 50 767 4260. Julian is Jewish and lives in a kubutz, but he travels extensively and is well educated about not only his region, but most of Europe. I have received a lot of advice from travelers about who one should hire and not hire. What I can say is that to have any sense whatsoever of the complexity of the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, one should try to get a guide who can share both sides of the issues. If I’m honest, I would say that I can appreciate the conflict and the history of the region far better having visited, but I cannot nearly “know” the conflict. I don’t believe anyone not living in the thick emotional air that is Israel can possibly understand it fully. I think that all conflict of this magnitude is a bruise on the soul of the planet, and I believe that we are all affected by it. But there is simply no way to “know” it without being born to and living in it day in and day out. And we can’t judge the ability to resolve these conflicts as being one or another’s fault. I think that all we can do is what we would do for a loved one in a serious dispute with a family member. Hold the space for honest conversations on both sides, brace yourself for the inevitable tears and pray like crazy that cooler heads will prevail. Since politics is way beyond the scope of this travel blog of our family’s experiences, I’ll leave it there. On to the travel…
Julian wisely gave the boys a chance to let off energy and included a lesson in intention at the same time. In the Christian Quarter Christmas decorations are up!
Jerusalem is one of the oldest cities in the world and all 3 Abrahamic religions (descendants of Abraham) claim it as their holy land. Both Israelis and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital but because this is an ongoing dispute, very few nations recognize either claim. The possible exception to this is that the US moved their embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. This was a move which upset most of the Islamic world and was done in 2019.
This plaque is up outside the newly erected US Embassy 2019
The tour we had took us through the Old (walled)City. Some of the city walls are from 200 CE but others are more recent as most of the city was rebuilt under Suleiman the Magnificent of the Ottoman Empire. Currently the city is divided into 4 quarters known as the Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and Armenian. According to Wikipedia, the population is comprised of roughly 60% Jewish, and 38% Palestinian with Christian accounting for a mere 1.7% but these numbers fluctuate depending on the site. Our tour guide told us that in each quarter you could sell your property to someone of a different faith but doing so would not only excommunicate you from your neighbors, but your life would also be in peril. So, it is simply not done. Property in the quarters changes hands only to people of the same faith and background.
Overlooking the Mt. of OlivesWalking the remparts of the retaining wall was fun and interestingI continue to enjoy finding pieces of history in walls – this roman column was repurposed
We are Christians by faith, so our experience was felt through the prism of the many bible stories that we were brought up with. Standing in a place that you had heard about every Sunday of your childhood couldn’t help but be powerful. Standing in the church of the Holy Sepulchre, built by Constantine I in the 4th century, and believed to be the place of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial site, was for me, the most profound experience of the day but I had goosebumps when, while standing at one of the most sacred sites in the Islamic faith Julian pointed to the place where Jesus was sentenced to death.
Beautiful art work poignantly telling the story of the Abraham offering Isaac during the binding Gen 22And the ultimate and final sacrifice of Jesus on the crossJack and Travis in line to touch the place of the crucifixion beneath the alter
There are 6 denominations of Christians who pray at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and they are all given their own section and hours to worship. It is fascinating to me that in a city rife with conflict, even people of the same essential faith can’t manage to get along. They all share the same church, but no changes can be made without all 6 of them agreeing. Our guide told us that for this reason, a ladder that goes nowhere has been standing in the place for years because nobody can move it since they don’t all agree to it. I pray that it is not true because if holy people living in a holy land can’t even agree on the placement of a ladder, what hope is there for humanity or any of us. But I digress…
According to Julian this ladder has been there for years…Since the 6 denominations who share the Holy Sepulchre church can’t agree on removing it
The walls of the old city are themselves a history lesson spanning millennia rather than centuries. One of the funniest anecdotes we were told is how the Jaffa Gate was re-bult to accommodate Kaiser Wilhelm I during his visit insisting that he enter by carriage. So clearly egoic leaders are nothing new…
And the Western wall which we saw both at night and again the following day, is all that remains of a retaining wall that surrounded the second Jewish Temple which was destroyed in 70AD. This is such a holy place for Jews that there is a separation between the male and females. Watching the faithful pray before this wall after leaving the church of the Holy Sepulchre allowed me to understand exactly how the faithful praying before the wall of their second temple must feel. Julian shared that Jews the world over pray facing Jerusalem, but Jews in Jerusalem pray facing the wall. The Western Wall, sometimes called the Wailing Wall, is a holy pilgrimage site for Jews all around the world. Having only regained the right to worship here following the 6-day war in 1967, there is a site paying tribute to those who gave their life in this war.
We were treated to several 13-year-old children coming of age in the Old Town. Their Bar Mitzvah was celebratory and joyful with music and dancing and (unfortunately) balloons released in the air. Regular readers remember that we have had a family embargo on balloons since the summer of 2018 when we saw dozens if not hundreds of balloons floating in the Atlantic Ocean on the US East coast – a terrible hazard to marine life and pollution.
The Temple Mount in Jerusalem is a site that has been venerated as holy by all 3 religions. According to Wikipedia, the site surrounded by retaining walls were built by King Herod in the 1st century BC with plans to expand the Second Jewish Temple. During the city’s capture in 661, the al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock were completed in 692. The oldest existing work of Islamic Architecture and more significantly, according to our guide (though I didn’t find any information to confirm this,) Muhammad ascended into heaven from the Temple Mount. There are 11 gates through which Muslims may access the Temple mount. One of the 11 is where non-believers must pass. Guarded by Israeli guards with machine guns and metal detectors, one can sense immediately the tension between the 2 groups who regularly interact in this holy place. We were advised by our guide that we must be respectful and reverent. Non-Muslims are only permitted access to the mount during certain hours on certain days. While we were there, we were told no touching each other at all – no arms around each other during photos. Which explains why we are all standing as work colleagues rather than beloved friends in the photos. Considered the holiest site in Judaism, this was the site of the First Temple built by King Solomon. So sacred is this site that some Orthodox Jews will not even enter it since according to rabbinical law, only the Holiest were permitted inside the temple. Other jews however, enter regularly so that their presence is noted and presumably they maintain a type of occupancy in this place that they consider their own since the 6-day war. The agreement which they have with the Palestinians (referred to as status quo) is that they will maintain the security of the Temple Mount and are permitted access to it during certain hours, but they will not pray there, so the Jewish people who go there are not allowed to open prayer books or appear to be in prayer.
The place where Jesus was sentenced to death
Our day spent with Julian was priceless and afforded us a closer understanding of these amazing holy places revered by all 3 religions who call this home. We could never have come close to grasping the significance without this guide and I thank Julian for spending his time with our two families. To Colleen, Francois, and Travis, thank you so much for sharing this visit with us. We loved traveling with you 3 and our memories of this special place will forever be infused with our affinity for the 3 of you.
The market infused with energyThe faithful performing the real stations of the cross on the Via delRosaJack and Travis pretending to live in 100 AD
Since this post has already well exceeded the usual number of words, I give to a post I will stop there. Part 2 will include the rest of our stay in Jerusalem as well as Petra in Jordan.
A final note – with this olive tree and symbol of peace between the mosque and temple I pray that we can all find ways to live in peace together with our neighbors wherever we live.
We are now a full month into our winter contract, and I still haven’t shared how much we love this place.
You may have read that we had a bit if trepidation since this is one place that I had very little knowledge of before we committed – indeed had to commit, to our winter home.
But I’m pleased to report that not only has Türkiye surpassed my wildest dreams in terms of hospitality and sheer enjoyment, but Kas is also the perfect place to spend the winter.
Kim and Steve – the welcoming committeeAnd dinner at the burger restaurant as soon as we tied up
I’ll be honest, it was a slow building love affair. I didn’t (as I sometimes do) fall head over heels in love the moment I arrived. Perhaps it was the sheer fatigue of a long (but glorious) summer. But more likely it was how “foreign” everything felt. A funny aside here is that the very thing that made me nervous is the thing that I have been most craving. We have loved cruising in Europe and while every country has been incredible, it has felt a bit – well, Western. I have been searching for something that feels totally unique and with nary a hint of home. Well, my dear reader, we have found it. Türkiye is exotic and as spicy as the donor at the local market.
We love our new ebikes!View of the marina way off in the distanceThese Lycian graves are so cool
Having cruised Turkey for a full 3 months before arriving in Kas, we had a real feel for the country and had (mercifully) learned a few basic words in Turkish. Another aside here, the language and many other elements of the Turkish culture are a bit Westernized. This is thanks to President Kemal Ataturk who brought Turkey to independence 99 years ago. After the 1st world war and the fall of the Ottoman empire, Ataturk fought for independence and the country won. A few of the changes that were ushered in this new era, a change from the Arabic alphabet to the Roman which is the only reason that I have a prayer of understanding or communicating in this language. Ataturk also brought about a commitment to a more moderate approach to religion and dress which is why women in Türkiye are free to dress and worship and shop in any way they wish. The current administration is slightly less liberal, but I won’t get into local politics except to say that the reason we love Turkey as much as we do can be traced back to Ataturk who won this country’s liberation 99 years ago.
We have had the distinct pleasure to witness, in our short time here, the respect that this nation has for the flag, their country, and their country’s founder.
First, the flag. I’m not sure how many countries we have visited up until now, but we can categorically state that without a doubt this country has more national pride than any other. Flags, and not just little wimpy ones, but giant car dealership types are everywhere.
We were privileged enough to witness the country celebrating their independence day on Oct 29th. And when I say privileged, I really mean it. This tiny town in which we are residing has a scant population of just 7,000 residents according to http://www.propertyturkey.com. But there must have been bus loads arriving in droves because the roadways were utterly clogged with the thousands who turned out to celebrate this special day. There were boats of all sizes in the harbor, parades with thousands walking in the closed roads and streets, and a large closed off square where carnival food was offered with bands playing Turkish music. But what made us so grateful to have braved the crowds at this hour of the day (it was late) was to watch how these lovely and gentle people celebrated. Old, young, and teens in between showed respect, reverence, and joy. There was no drunkenness, no excuse to behave poorly, just proud citizens showing their solidarity. During the national anthem, you could have heard a pin drop. Not one person failed to show respect for the flag and their country’s anthem. It was heart rending and we all left with tears in our eyes even though we didn’t know a word that was uttered. It would have been impossible not to feel the emotion that was emanating from the crowd.
And finally, Ataturk himself. Each year, on 10th of November, the entire country of nearly 85 million people, stop what they are doing to show their respect for and commemorate their deceased hero. Cars stop on the roadway; grocers take a moment of silence to show respect. And even where I was, doing yoga at the amphitheater, the teacher stopped class and we all resumed whatever asana we preferred for the 3 minutes of respect paid to the founding father Ataturk. Incidentally, the name Ataturk was given to him in 1934 and means “Father of the Turks”. I wonder in moments like these if we have any such respect in our country. I’m certain in the UK there was this moment of reverence for the Queen when she passed and was buried. But I’m not sure we have this level of “one voice” necessary for such a moment of solidarity. Regardless, we certainly enjoyed being a part of both of these celebrations.
So now, a short recap on the things that I ADORE about Kas and Türkiye in general.
-Yoga classes daily at the ampitheatre -Medical care that is affordable for us and Pratt -The market on Friday with the most abundant and delicious food in the world.
The orange and pomegranate juice is amazing and behind are the ladies preparing gozlemeLycian tombs from 300 BC sit among the produce
-The gozleme and fresh squeezed juice at the market on Friday -The pide delivered to the boat when I don’t feel like cooking OR eating out. -The abundance of vegetarian restaurants all over town. -The care and love people here show for the stray animal population (of course here they just “belong” to the community – they aren’t really strays) -The blessed Hammam. If you know, you know! And if this list was in order of love, it would be much higher up!
-The weather here is currently glorious with temperatures in the 60s during the day and 50s at night with sunny skies. -And the friends who are here with us this winter, both new and ones from Montenegro. We are so very grateful.
And the things I don’t like about Türkiye (although this is true of most of Europe)
-The prevalence of smoking.
Ok – so, here is a little re-cap on our summer for those of you who like the data….
From the time we left Tivat, Montenegro to our arrival in Kas, Türkiye, we were traveling for 172 days, and we were underway for 2,354 miles. We spent 107 of those days at anchor and 65 tied to a marina dock. We had a couple of big milestones for us… we reached 15,000 miles while Sarah and Ryan were aboard in Greece and I posted my 100th blog piece, 15 of which were made this summer. Our combined and total generator usage was 370 hours which, compared to last year, before we got the solar and Victron upgrade, was a MASSIVE improvement. We will do even better next year after we manage to get the water maker on the house battery rather than the generator. We made 36 stops in 2 countries, and we hosted 7 people for what we hope was a vacation they won’t soon forget. We know we will treasure the memories of their visits for a lifetime. As a family, we continued to work through challenges that only this type of life can deliver, and we managed it in the space of a scant 64 feet. We grew closer, as we always do, and we learned and loved and thrived.
The questions we get most frequently are: “What was your favorite destination/country/city/island?” and I’m pleased that I finally have an answer. I have struggled with this question trying to think of some profound or deep sentiment that conveys the spirit of our adventure and I finally know that the place that is my favorite is the one in which I currently reside. I have loved every place we have been and there have been a few that I thought would make the top 3 (I couldn’t ever choose just one). But the more we travel, the more I can see that my favorite is and will always be the place where I stand.
And the second question we get all the time is “When are you coming home? This is the first time that we have a plan in place for coming back to the US so I thought I would share it with you.
I have already written that we want to get Jack back for high school, but we were advised by the High School administer that regardless of what school he ends up in, we should get him back by 8th grade. The reason for this is because the grind” (his word, not mine) is so tough in 9th grade, getting him back in 8th will give him the time to transition to the daily load and expectations of a brick-and-mortar school.
So, when we talked about this, and considered our existing plan to head to the South Pacific, we realized that we wouldn’t have the time to get back if we stuck to our original plan. And since Jack really wants to go back for High school and we believe he needs to be “all in” if we decide not to, we needed to do some re-vamping of the original plan.
So, we now plan to have SD Captains move Gratitude from Turkey to Southampton, England, while we do some land travel (mostly) out of the Schengen area. You may remember, we only have 90 days to enjoy most of Europe due to immigration restrictions and if we don’t allow someone else to move our precious Gratitude, we will be out of time before we get where we had hoped to cruise. We hope to be back on-board Gratitude by June 1 to head up the West coast of Scotland, through the Caledonia Canal, across the North Sea to Norway, down the South coast of Norway to Sweden, cruise the Western archipelago down to Denmark, then Germany, Netherlands, Brussels and finally into the Thames to return to the amazing St. Katharine’s dock at the Tower Bridge, London for winter. We may do some land travel during the winter, but it is our fervent hope to leave England in April 2024 and slowly make our way across the Atlantic via the Northern route, stopping in the outer islands of Scotland, Iceland, and Nova Scotia. All of this is, as they say, written in sand at low tide but we now have a firm idea and plan for our return. Which means we have only 1.5 years remaining of our “Great Explore” – but we have added “Part 1” since we both feel strongly that this isn’t the end for us – not by a long shot.
Reverse Halloween – Jack and Travis passed out candy to the children in the square rather than collecting it.
But that is all for now. The next post I write will include some of the incredible sites from around Kas and our most recent land travel trip to Israel and Petra, Jordan.
This was the final week of our amazing summer cruise. Knowing that soon we would be tied to the dock for months, we wanted our final week to be swinging at anchor and untethered to land except by our hook. We specifically wanted to relax and have completely chilled family time with no plans, no expectations. Jack and I did some building legos, Alec and I had some date coffees, and mostly the week involved doing very little.
We were warned before arriving that it was incredibly crowded and finding a place to anchor very difficult. It is true that the roughly 7-mile stretch of protected bay was very deep which limits the number of places we could safely anchor and there were tons of boats – I know, “tons” is not a specific number, but it was busy even at the end of the season.
Eclipse – Abromovitch yachtBig and bigger yachts
Unless you have been living under a rock or away from all media, you know about the Russian/Ukraine “situation”. For various reasons, Türkiye is the only country currently allowing Russian boats in. Some of the massive Russian pleasure boats are subject to EU sanctions meaning they cannot go anywhere in the EU without being impounded except here in Türkiye. Currently a non-EU member and with friendly relations toward both the US and Russia, Türkiye is in the unique position of being the ONLY game in town for Russians, and given that they are non-Schengen, they are one of the 3 only games in town for Americans, Aussies and UK citizens among others for stays of longer than 180 days. So, obtaining winter berthing in Tükiye has been a challenge. And Gocek seems to be a favorite spot for Russian boats large and well, larger.
Kitty for sale – cats make themselves home in Turkiye
Our timing could not have been better however, and we arrived to find the town very relaxed, yet the shops were open and anxious to serve. We found some specialty foods only available in the US and several amazing restaurants. We had a rainy day, something that we have been sorely missing in month after month of gorgeous sunshine (really, not kidding, even sunshine can get old without the occasional rainy day to help you appreciate it. But overwhelmingly, the only thing we did was total relax and recharge.
Türkiye has some of the strictest regulations we have encountered regarding treatment of black and grey water (euphemisms for poop and shower water respectively). Believe me when I tell you, we support it, and we thoroughly appreciate it. It is one thing to have the regulation, but it is something else altogether different when the country puts services in place which support the regulations. Not to point fingers but Italy was the worst country in terms of regulating and handling the black and grey water of boaters. The only cita we even encountered a regulation was in the island city of Venice. In a place where traveling by boat is not only ideal but mandatory, there was a regulation of no discharge whatsoever but there was no facility to pump out. We ended up hiring a barge which services cruise ships to handle our pump out at an ungodly price, but we were clearly THE ONLY BOAT to do so. After a month in the marina, we never saw anyone pump out and we saw plenty of evidence of people resorting to their own devices…. So, this was a classic case of making a regulation but then having nothing in place to support or encourage the following of it.
And this one will come to you!A pump out station in the middle of the anchorage
But not in Türkiye. The regulations regarding the discharge of Black and Grey water are strict. Once a vessel is cleared into the country, the owner/operator are issued a QR code unique to their vessel. Every time the vessel pumps out, the QR code is scanned as proof of compliance. It’s rumored that the coast guard checks compliance regularly though we haven’t been checked yet ourselves. But there is no reason NOT to comply. There are pump out stations at every marina we have visited and in Gocek, there is a mobile pump out facility in the bay as well as mobile pump out boats offering the service to all the yachts in the anchorage. This was truly amazing to us. You could get pumped out, while at anchor, without even moving. One would expect this service to be pricey, but it is only about 10.00 to pump out what amounts to 3 weeks of use for us on Gratitude. This is a BARGAIN! And we are delighted to comply and pay. And it shows! This is the first time we have stayed in a marina that we would be comfortable paddle boarding or swimming in. The water is crystal clear.
Migros and Carrefour SA delivery boats
This was also the first place we found grocery stores on boats traveling around the anchorage. 2 of the biggest stores operate boats to deliver groceries and they carry most basic goods you might find in a convenience store. One could hang at anchor without taking the dinghy to shore for weeks!
Ok so not to pick on Italy but if I was excited about the pump out facilities, I was over the moon, not only in Gocek but everywhere in Turkiye, with the availability of trash/garbage/recycling disposal. In every place we went to town, we found clearly marked and convenient trash disposal. The ONLY exception was in Bodrum where we found it difficult to offload trash. In Gocek there were clearly marked, clean and large receptacles to take the trash. It is no wonder that this country is the cleanest we have visited. They should be very proud. Again, not to pick on Italy but I’m reminded of the beach cleanup we did with several families on Earth Day in which we filled 15 huge yard size trash bags in a short 100 meters of beach and then had no place to dispose the bags of trash we collected because nobody would take the trash! It is easy to see the values of a country when one lives there for more than a few weeks. And Türkiye is very quickly becoming a favorite. The parks, beaches, cities, and marinas are all pristine.
This we have never seen before… an island with nothing on it but trash receptacles to collect trash. Brilliant!
I have no doubt that Gocek has far more to offer than we experienced while lazing around at anchor but for us, it was the most idealic and pleasant week we could ever have imagined.
After a week here, we traveled the final 52 miles to our winter home, Kas, Türkiye. We were met by friends Kim and Steve aboard Mimpi and we had a delightful welcome meal right at the marina. In our next post we will do a breakdown of the miles, fuel and basic wrap up of our summer cruise, but I can hardly begin writing about Kas. It is an amazing place, and we are the most fortunate people to have found it! A complete accident of fate, we couldn’t be happier for where we landed. Stay tuned!!!
Our first trip to Marmaris was a week prior via bus from Selimye to purchase a sim card for internet and it was a good reminder that experiences of a place change largely depending on the circumstances of your visit.
Jack and Alec Celebrating a Successful School Event
We were harried and we had specific tasks on what would be a short visit on our first Marmaris trip, since we came by 40-minute dolmus (bus) ride. Now is a good time to share with you that the bus in Tükiye is called dolmus which translated means “stuffed”. All the dolmus in Türkiye involve being stuffed at least part of the way. But they are efficient and ridiculously inexpensive. I believe we spent 5 euro for 3 people to travel 60 miles. People are courteous and there is a sense of “we are all in this together” rather than “every man for himself”.
So, with little time to waste, we first went to the Turcell shop to get the sim card but as luck would have it, the shop system was “down” for the next few hours. Long story short, we managed to get it just in the nick of time before leaving on the dolmus back to Selimye. But other goals for the trip included visiting a mechanic to see if we could get Jacks AC fixed and visiting another shop to inquire about obtaining a part we need for further changes to the Victron Battery installation.
Bringing the blog up to date on Jacks AC/Heat, it broke early in the summer. To make matters worse, his ports don’t open since his stateroom is near the water line. Essentially, we needed to move him into a guest room for most of the summer. And even though the AC is now fixed, he is still in the guest stateroom because the breezes are so cool, and we prefer not to use electricity that we don’t absolutely require. That said, winter is on the way, and we would like for him to return to his stateroom, with the heat working.
We tried everything to find a repair solution in Greece and again in Istanbul. For the most part, the only solutions offered us were an unacceptably long wait (9 months or more) or changing the entire unit and replacing with different vender. If this was the ONLY solution, we would have had no choice, but it isn’t optimal. We have 6 AC units on board and Alec carries spares for them which can be interchanged one for another. Having a different AC unit would involve us having to carry spares for just that 1 unit – among other problems.
BeforeAfter – beautifully rebuilt
Alec discussed the issue with Buz Ali Abi (WhatsApp +90 5322722704) in Marmaris and we made an appointment for them to see us in Marmaris when we arrived a few days later.
Arriving in Marmaris by boat, everything felt completely different than our earlier trip via dolmus. We were able to get Gratitude’s black water tank pumped out simply and efficiently, and marineros offered to come aboard and handle lines for us. I’ll be honest, I did think about it for a few seconds… no dirty slime lines, no stress, no throwing heavy lines to shore and (if you will recall Gibraltar) no chance of swimming unexpectedly. I’m pleased to say that I still have my pride and declined the invitation of extra hands aboard, but it was a nice offer.
This marina even has a pool!
We made appointments for a boat cleaning inside and out, the carpets cleaned, and the 2 outboard motors for our dinghy’s were both serviced. The people who did the work were a sailboat charter company called Miknatis Yachting – Whatsapp number +90 532 673 3171 – cagla@miknatisyachting.com . The work they performed was fantastic, and very reasonably priced. We would give them our highest recommendation.
The people who fixed our air conditioner were also fantastic offering to rebuild and repair the old one. For us, this is always preferable as it obviously costs less, but equally important, it isn’t going into a junk yard when there is still life left in it. How much better is it to re-use or repair what we already have on board? They cleaned, sandblasted, repaired, painted, and delivered it to us working perfectly (and looking brand new) and at about ¼ the cost of purchasing a new one. Alec decided to secure parts for the additional Victron work we are doing later, and we enjoyed our time exploring Marmaris.
The Marmaris Fort which dates from the Ottoman Period sits atop a hill which feels to me like California. Inside is a museum with relics dating back to before the Hellenistic (330-30 BC) era but included the incredibly rich history leading up to the Ottoman Period (15th century). Walking up to the fort one meanders on the loveliest stone paths winding and curving and impossible to traverse in anything with wheels. Tiny shops and inviting restaurants beckon one to appreciate the stunning views offered from the top and Alec and I stopped to enjoy a new favorite treat, fresh squeezed orange juice.
The city planners have done a wonderful job of limiting the “big box” hotels and instead there are smaller boutique hotels or pensions in the city. As one might expect in a city so popular with tourists in the summer, there are tons of wonderful restaurants and shops to support them, but all the locals treated us kindly and restaurants, even at the end of the summer certainly worn out from the season, were gracious and hospitable.
She was huge!! and wanted Jacks burgerAmazing Indian Food
Accomplishing all of this in only 1 week was nothing short of miraculous. We also visited a few chandleries for items for our list and for friends in Kas who had discovered that the inventory there is somewhat lacking.
Dalyan
Leaving Marmaris, we traveled a short 2 hours to an anchorage called Dalyan. Dalyan means fisheries and the river is full of life as mullet swim upstream to spawn in the fresh water. Every stop we make involves a new discovery or history lesson and this next stop involved a family fun day that we all loved.
Türikish archaeologists are continuing the work of excavations nearly throughout the country and the Western coastline is FULL of sites revealing their histories and treasures. History books are being re-written and new discoveries of ancient wrecks and sites are being added daily to the treasure trove of knowledge of the past.
Our early research indicated that while we were not permitted to take our tender up the river, there are guides who will solicit the trip on their small boats for either ½ or a full day tour. The guide we had was very nice and spoke passable English but I’m not going to include his information here because I don’t think he offered us anything that you couldn’t easily find on your own or with even the most basic guide.
We took a full day trip, so we were collected on our boat at 0800. We enjoyed a lovely day of meandering past and up to the truly unique formations of the caves, then we entered the river. Along the way we passed Iztuzu Plaji which is a beach where a very large population of the endangered Loggerhead turtle; known locally throughout Greece and Turkiye as the Caretta Caretta, nest every year. It is already well past the time of turtles nesting but we did see a few in the water on the way up the river.
Continuing our trip we stopped at a blue crab farm, and ordered some for dinner which we collected on our way back home. The only place in the world we have seen stone crab is in Florida and the only place we have seen blue crab is in the Chesapeake, so it was fun to enjoy crab that we only associate with one place, in Türkiye. This should come as no surprise as the conditions in the Dalyan river are very similar to the Chesapeake, both being brackish (salt and fresh water mixed) and very similar lines of latitude.
The first archaeological site we visited in this area was the ancient city of Caunos, which dates to the Hellenic period although relics have been found here from the 9th century BC. The fortifications present in the excavations are from Mausolus’ time (377 – 353 BC). Caunos thrived until the 3rd century AD when due to invasions by the Goths as well as disease, the city fell into ruin.
Lycian tombs from 4th Century BC
Lycian rock tombs were the other main attraction for me on this amazing day with my family. I cannot imagine how these tombs might be carved today with all the modern equipment at our disposal, but how could these tombs possibly have been carved in the 4th century BC?! They are truly a tribute to the craftsmen of the area. The largest and most prominent would have been for wealthy noblemen but there were others in a place of honor which was for soldiers. Stay tuned for more tombs from the Lycian era. We are now safely tucked into our winter home in Kas and there are tombs all over the town!
The final stop on our trip up the Dalyan river was to the mud bath and sulphur springs. Promised to improve aging skin and work miracles on one’s health, I first went to mud baths in Calistoga in California. This was decidedly not a spa experience and with our guide waiting patiently in the boat, we didn’t feel as though we should linger too long, but it was a great fun experience, and we were all good sports and covered ourselves in the mud, then trekked over rocks to the showers for our second freezing cold shower and returned with the promise of a nice hot Sulphur spring bath. The attendant sprayed us once more with the force of a firefighting hose in COLD water, then we plunged into the warm Sulphur natural spring. I don’t have to tell you what Sulphur smells like, but I will anyway, it felt divine but it smelled like we were wading in rotten eggs. We all laughed and enjoyed ourselves nonetheless and hurriedly dressed for our final stop, an amazing lunch and delightful walk around the sweet village of Dalyan.
Incredible meal with an incredible viewJacks favorite – toasted marshmallow
Having eaten one of the most amazing meals we have ever had, there was no chance we could eat crab for dinner, so we instead saved them for our lunch the following day.
Even Pratt enjoyed the crab!
With the number of “summer cruise” days dwindling, we are squeezing enjoyment out of each and every moment knowing that the winter is on the horizon. Next and final stop before Kas for the winter – Gocek!
Two of my favorite aspects of living aboard our boat while traveling the world is: 1. Taking all my favorite things – (pillows, boots, blankets, and outerwear for any weather) with me, and 2. Living wherever I feel like living. I’m not someone who loves the city or loves the country but rather, I love them both. Living on a boat allows us to find the best of both worlds and it’s our time in the city that allows us to appreciate the anchorages and the quiet peaceful anchorages that help us to enjoy the cities.
Gratitude viewed from the castle of Peter
We enjoyed the city life in Istanbul and Kusadasi, but we were all looking forward to some time at anchor by the time we arrived in Bodrum. To be fair, Bodrum is a big-ish city, and it has shops, restaurants, a killer bazaar, and some fun tourist stuff. So, we hadn’t really found peace and quiet, but we were only there for a couple of nights. The marina, too full to accommodate us, was massive, but I was secretly a little pleased that we would be at anchor in the harbor. And the anchorage was also large and full of boats, but we had a nice place to drop and swing freely without a problem – allowing us to be our own island in the midst of “busy”.
The fishmonger shares…This Mama fed her kitty at a crowded cafeWe found Asian takeaway! I think Im sitting in the Italian tower but not fully certain.
Under a different circumstance, we may have passed Bodrum completely since we were all looking forward to the quiet anchorage, but I’m so pleased that we stopped. One of the few regrets we had with going to Istanbul is that we were missing some of the best known and epic “cruising” that Türkiye has to offer and Bodrum is right in the heart of it. For us to have passed it by while we still had time to explore, would have made the regret permanent. Since we stopped, we had a chance to see and appreciate it – no regrets!
Likely the best-known thing in Bodrum is the castle. Built partly from stones from the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the castle has been reconstructed and is now one of the most well-known underwater archeological museums and sits prominently on the peninsula.
A small model of the famous Türkish Gulet
Jack has had more than his fill of sightseeing and Alec and I wanted to take our time in the museum, so we gave Jack the “day off” (it was Saturday and he had been working hard in school all week). When we got home, we showed Jack photos of our adventure, but he truly enjoyed his day of hanging out and resting. Win-Win and everyone is happy.
The archeological finds are amazing! Thousands of Amphorae have been recovered and are displayed all over the museum. Sometimes, when we stroll through a museum, I play a game with myself. If I could, which of these treasures would be the one that I took home? Well, I found my favorite! It is pictured below. Mentioned in Homers Iliad as the only type of writing tool of the time, it is made of wood with ivory hinges. The middle is filled with wax, and one may write on it with a stylus. SO COOL! What a discovery.
Old writing “tablet” only about 2 inches in lengthhundreds of amphorae displayed as they may have been stored
The medieval Castle of St. Peter was built by the Knights of St. John in 1402 – a transnational effort by the Spanish, English, French, German and Italians and each country is represented by a tower with the crests of the builders carved into the entrance. It served as a hospital for Christian crusaders who were fighting in Jerusalem. The castle was taken over in 1523 with the Ottoman Empire defeat. I love how the Ottomans didn’t destroy what was here but rather converted it for their purposes. In this respect, the chapel was converted to a mosque and a minaret was added.
Once one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world, The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus was built in 350 BC. Unfortunately, through successive earthquakes, it was destroyed but remnants from it exist today (though we didn’t visit) and some others were taken and are evident in the Castle of St. Peter.
Bodrum was a fantastic stop but for a couple reasons, 3 days was enough in the anchorage. The nightclubs are very loud and with the ports open, music blared until 2AM. Add to that the many mosques begin the first of 5 calls to prayer at 0550 am. Once that begins, I’m up. And in Bodrum there were a few mosques with speakers pointed in our direction. I would hate for anyone reading to get the wrong idea about my morning aversion to the call to prayer. I love it all day long and appreciate the sweet reminder to have a few words with God. I even enjoy (though I obviously can’t understand a word of it) the sound and cadence. It reminds me of the catholic ringing the church bells which happened all hours of the day when we were in the Venice at the Santa Elena Marina just adjacent to the Sant Elena church and convent.
A very fun aspect of cruising is running into “friends” that we meet along the way, and Gratitude tends to stand out in a crowd, so it is not unusual for someone we have met to drop anchor next door and re-connect which happened in Bodrum. We met Jonathon, aboard Aphrodite in Bozcaada and while we were only in the same place for 1 night, we shared a mutual admiration for each other’s boat. I am such a firm believer that the right people come to you in exactly the right moment and Jonathon was that for us. We have had an administrative challenge that we have been grappling with and without getting into it here, Jonathon was the absolute perfect person we needed to meet at the perfect time. When we met again in Bodrum, we owed him a drink for his earlier help, and he generously shared more knowledge with us. Following his suggestion resulted in a most delightful week at anchor in one of the sweetest harbors we have ever been. Selimiye, Türkiye is a place unlike any other and we fell in love.
Selimiye, Türkiye
An amazing “Mezze” Dinner with a View
The restaurants, the hotels, the shops and beaches, the harbor are all lovely. It is a tiny little place but just what we were looking for to get off the beaten path and find a place few know about, and this is it. The challenge from a boating perspective is that the water is all very deep and except for a few tiny spits of land shallow enough to anchor, the entire harbor is surrounded by 150’-250’ depth. We have been reluctant to anchor, then back to shore to tie lines as we did in a few places in Croatia -basically because- well, we haven’t felt like it. But here we really had no choice, so we dug out the bags of lines and chain and Jack and I transported them to the rocks on shore. Here are some photos of this idyllic spot. What is particularly fun when we do this is I feel like we have our own private beach club. We can drop the SUP’s in the water to explore and Jack just spends the day snorkeling. This feels to me like the perfect vacation and just the right counterpoint to all the city stops we have made lately. We were fully stocked up on groceries from the fabulous market in Bodrum, so I was perfectly happy to stay for a week or more.
Our Private Beach ClubPratts Favorite Anchorage
Approaching the end of our monthly contract for internet, we needed to find a Turkcel telecom shop to top up our card. This is a challenge here because it can’t be done remotely (as we were able to do in MNE) and it can’t be done for several months at a time (as we did in Italy) so we must make a monthly pilgrimage to a shop for them to top up the wifi. Alec and I may have just embraced the lack of connectivity but since Jack is back in school, we needed to get this taken care of.
Remember I said that this was a tiny place that nobody has ever heard of? Turkcell isn’t here either, so we had to take a 40-minute bus ride to Marmaris to get the internet card topped up. This turned out to be a good thing since it allowed us to see if we should come here next on Gratitude.
Jack making friends while waiting for the bus
After a week of mostly boat cooked meals and relaxing – it was time to move on. Next stop…
Apple Pie for DessertPizza night aboard GratitudeHappy Accident…Resulting in the Best Pancakes EVER
The library of Celsus with our guide Ilker to the left
Kušadasi/Ephesus
Leaving Istanbul, we had a 40-hour non-stop passage to Kušadasi. A port town, but clearly an inexpensive stop for holidaymakers from the UK as well, Kušadasi is busy town with the usual shops and cafes that cater to cruise chip customers. Our primary reason for coming is that it is the closest marina town to Ephesus.
Once the former capital of Asia Minor and the second largest city in the Roman Empire, Ephesus is an archeologist dream come true and is still revealing her treasures and secrets today.
Empty when we arrived…The ancient agora EphesusThe first tour showing upThis kitty found a nice place to watch the crowds go byRuins being excavated daily
I first came to Ephesus on a cruise ship whose itinerary included Kusadasi. It was probably 3 decades since I was here, and a lot has changed since then. I remembered the amphitheater large enough to hold over 20,000 spectators. But I didn’t remember the Library of Celsus, built in 110AD as a tribute to a wealthy senator. Currently residing in a sarcophagus beneath the library, Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaeanus, was a well-loved senator and benefactor of ancient Ephesus.
Jack getting a photo of the sarcophagus of Celsus
2 other important monuments remaining are the Temple of Artemis completed in the 6th century BC and was designated as one of the 7 wonders of the Ancient World.
While there is evidence of some reconstruction, the original work is evident and remarkable. Directly adjacent to the Library of Celsus, once the 3rd largest library of the Roman world, sits the agora. It takes no imagination whatsoever to picture the traders from all over Asia and Europe meeting here to conduct their business. If ever there was a reason to visit foreign countries and archeological discoveries – Ephesus, is it. Reading books and watching documentaries on television simply cannot convey the spirit or energy of a place that walking in the footsteps, on the same pavement, and in their homes can convey. It was remarkable seeing the graffiti on the walls and artifacts left behind revealing the interests, and the politics of the people who lived in that time. Imagine the conversations that must have taken place whilst sitting in the communal toilets or bath houses. Walking in the agora it was easy to picture the merchants and customers conducting business. There is just nothing like it.
We were collected from our boat in the Setur Marina in Kusadasi by our guilde Ilker Avci (Port of Call Kusadasi Travel Agency. Whatsapp +90 535 559 00 57. I found Ilker on Airbnb. I find many of our guides there because unlike Travelocity and other large booking sites, Airbnb seems to handle more small and personal guides. Frequently when I book a guide from Airbnb, we get someone who is working for themselves rather than a large tour agency. With few exceptions, they are usually local, impart the spirit -as much as the information – of a place, and they have relationships with the smaller shops which I love. When possible, we try to leave whatever dollars we spend, in the local places and with the local people.
The problems of the ancient world were likely solved here…
Before Ilker collected us, we gave him a rough idea of how we wanted to spend our time. I didn’t really expect or want to go to a carpet shop or leather shop since we were more interested in the archeological parts of the city but I did tell him that I would be very interested in learning about the silk process, the silk worms, the natural way of dying the yarn and I had also heard that there is a unique ceramic that comes only from this area and I would be open to that as well. Ilker suggested that we get an early start (8:00) which would give us some time in the ruins by ourselves before the tour busses showed up. Also, September is still warm here, so it gave us some cooler weather. We did enjoy probably an hour of peace and quiet before the busses unloaded and the masses descended on us. What a huge difference it made to be able to appreciate the sanctity of the place without the energy present with the arrival of thousands. I could feel the people from thousands of years ago and imagine what their life was like. The terrace houses were spectacular! Constantly being excavated, they are revealing their secrets every day. I would love to ask the archeologists who spend their days with the artifacts of these families if they feel a connection to them.
the search continues…archeologists workingStunning mosaics and frescos are everywhereChildlike graffiti outlining the cost of goods and services
Have they given them names, do they feel their energy or presence, or ghosts left behind. It was for me surreal to look at the almost childlike graffiti on the walls and wonder about the person who left these behind. Could you imagine knowing that your etchings on the wall, the marks we pencil in Jacks bedroom marking his passage through life in terms of his growth, being discovered even 300 years, never mind 3000 years from now.
Having crawled all over the ruins we had hoped to see, and given that the crowds were now arriving en masse, we were ready to move on.
The next stop was the carpet shop. Even though this was not something I had planned on, I trust that when something comes up on a tour or doesn’t come up on a tour, it is all as it should be and I try to lean into it. As it turns out, ALL of us loved this stop. Even Jack who was clearly not going to be buying any carpets. I suppose part of my reticence in the carpet shops is the overwhelming sense that I don’t know enough about any of it to feel confident in buying them. Also, I didn’t imagine that the carpets would really “feel” at home in our Florida home.
But this was not about “selling” us something as much as it was about us learning and appreciating the cultural impact and significance of carpet weaving in the heritage of this region. And that is exactly what we ARE doing here. In addition, and a big highlight of the stop, we learned not only how the carpets are made, but how the silk is woven from the silkworms. We witnessed the silk being extracted in one long thread, from the cocoon, then weaved. I hated to learn that the worm must be killed to get the silk but that mercifully the worm dies only 2 days before they would have died naturally. Small consolation …. The dyes are natural and watching the woman weaving was at once therapeutic and mesmerizing. I’m sure sitting still to do this for hours at a time would be a real challenge, just as knitting is, which is why these women only actually weave for 4 hours total per day, but there is also something meditative about it. We truly appreciated the work and the workmanship that went into the creation of these special treasures. Of course, choosing a carpet is another matter entirely!
Silk worms The old ways are best, a broom “grabs” a scoop of thread to feed the loomThe cacoons of silk woven by the worm, turned into silk threadThe deceased worm
Have you ever gone into a car dealer or a repair shop and just known to the core of your being that you were about to be “ripped off”? I have had this unshakeable feeling too many times to count, and the less I know about the subject at hand, the greater the feeling that there is no chance that I won’t be swindled. Well, that is how I felt in the grand Bazaar in Istanbul. I feel this even more so when it is incumbent on the buyer to negotiate (something with which most Americans are very uncomfortable), there is little chance that I’m going to feel ok negotiating a price involving such a capital expenditure. We aren’t talking about peaches in the market where I am sure we are paying way more per kilo than any other shopper there. Don’t get me wrong, when I’m buying amazing fruit from the farmer with dirt under his nails, I’m delighted to pay more – and will often leave behind more money than it cost.
Stunning works of artOnly fit for the walls…but our Carpets…
But I didn’t feel swindled. I felt educated well enough and the price calculated methodically enough that I didn’t think the salesman was picking numbers from the air and changing the decimal based on the person standing in front of him. Now granted, he may have been, but I just didn’t feel that the price that we paid was in any way unfair or unwarranted. Is it possible that we paid more than someone else walking in the door the following day? Of course, it is. But we were well satisfied with the price that we paid for the carpets we bought.
There were hundreds if not thousands in every shape, color, and material and only the most experienced vendor could have helped us choose but choose we did. There are a couple of long hallways in our home which need rugs so we were able to support the local economy, the local artists and we will have a treasure waiting for us at home when we rejoin them in a couple of years from now.
I can’t recommend this carpet shop enough and if you find yourself in Kusadasi, pay Can Karaer a vist. Nakkas Carpets +90 (537) 75 95
Our next stop involved one of the very best meals we have ever eaten! We love discovering new ways of eating old ingredients or discovering new ingredients we have never heard of before. Mezzes are a common way of eating the salad or appetizers in Turkey. Like the tapas in Spain, mezzes may be a cold or hot salad, or dip and served at the outset of your meal. It is common to choose from the display case which mezzes you would like. Muammara, a dip made of roasted sweet red pepper with nuts and spices, is a new favorite mezze we have found and here is where we had it first. I have all the ingredients and I can’t wait to make it on board.
We filled out water with the spring water from under Mary’s HousePrayers left behind at Mary’s house
Fortified and replete, we next went the house of the Virgin Mary. Dying on the cross, Jesus instructs John to take Mary as his mother and Mary to take John as her son. John’s grave is nearby (though we ran out of time and energy and never made it there) and I have only just discovered that John is believed to have ascended into heaven as his remains are unclaimed by any church. But we did see Mary’s house. There is a saint who has had apparitions instructing her that this is Mary’s house. It is now the sight of holy pilgrimages for Christians and Muslims as well.
Several hours past our agreed upon 6-hour tour, Ilker made one more pass by the town of Selçuk. Alec and I had planned to grab a cab or bus and have a walk around. It is certainly cute enough to have made the list but having seen it from the windows of Ilkers car, we were satisfied to cross it off the list. But if you are here for any time, it may be worth a closer look. We were needing to move along so we began preparations for the next leg of our trip, Bodrum. Below are a few more photos from our walks around town included Pigeon Island.
If you find yourself in Kusadasi and in need of a tour guide, give Ilker a call Whatsapp +90 535 559 00 57
A photo of our chart plotter. Each of the blue triangles is a massive ship – some 600′ long
Approaching the city of more than 16 million inhabitants, it looks as one might expect. Container ships abound awaiting their turn to offload or upload or transit the Bosporus canal. These ships were EVERYWHERE. Buildings and the beautiful minarets with the domes of the mosques are the most prominent land feature. But surprisingly upon closer inspection, there is an abundance of green space uncommon for a cosmopolitan city of this size.
The food, spice, tea – everything amazing!
Istanbul – Constantinople… just the names conjure images of spices and tea and exotic people and food. And with such a rich tapestry weaving its place in history, I couldn’t possibly convey the experience of this visit without a few words of the history and the geography which makes Istanbul what it is today.
A word about the geography… Few if any, countries in the world can boast a presence on 2 continents. Divided by the Bosporus canal into Europe and Asia, each side, in fact each district feels special. The other notable geographical feature is its position between the Mediterranean (Aegean) Sea and the Sea of Marmara – a totally landlocked sea bordering all sides by Türkiye, and the Black Sea. Approaching from the Sea of Marmara as we did, the most obvious feature on the European side is the former largest mosque in Istanbul, the Süleymaniye Mosque. Built in the mid- 16th century for its namesake, Süleiman the Magnificent, it boasts 4 minarets and contains the remains of both Süleyman and his wife in the mausoleum. Until 2019, it was the largest mosque in Istanbul but was replaced by the most prominent feature on the Asian side, the Grand Çamlica Mosque.
According to Wikipedia, starting with the Greeks who colonized the area and established Byzantium in 660 BC, it fell to the Roman Republic in 196 BC and was known as Byzantium until 330 CE when the city was renamed Constantinople after emperor Constantine and became the new capital of the Roman Empire. During the reign of Justinian the first, Constantinople was the largest city in the Roman Empire until the fall of Constantinople as the head and the cradle of the Orthodox Christian Church. Undefeated and impenetrable for nearly 900 years, Constantinople suffered defeat by the Ottoman Empire in 1453 and remained under its control until after WW1 and the Turkish war for independence 1923. This is truly a simple distillation, rather than a full and complete history which is so storied as to be impossible to cover here. But this snapshot will help in the appreciation of some of the places and photos which follow.
The Hagia Sophia
We have been wandering in and out of Christian churches all over Europe for the past 3.5 years. I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that the number is easily in the hundreds of churches that we have walked into to say a prayer and have a look around. What continues to inspire and astound us is how, in every city we visit, the churches are the finest example of architecture and commitment to aesthetic beauty the city can offer. The finest workmanship, artistry and love is evident in each church we visit. The finest Renaissance art is not necessarily housed in museums but rather, breathtaking examples abound in churches all over Italy. The finest craftsmen weren’t employed to build houses but rather churches. Innovations in design and architecture were first poured out in love to God in Cathedrals. Since churches are such amazing repositories of architectural information, we love to meander in and out as well as stop to say a prayer while there. So, it has troubled me that we haven’t had the same freedom to stroll into Mosques. I was so pleased to experience our first visit to mosques in Istanbul. I may get some details wrong, but it is my understanding that the Imam, or Sheik has the authority to grant admission to non-believers in a mosque. Given that the mosques in Istanbul are such architectural wonders and given that Istanbul is such a contemporary and cosmopolitan city, non-believers are granted access to many of the mosques here. We were even permitted to take photos, though obviously not of individual people while praying. The only requirement is that all visitors dress modestly, men and women both need to cover their bodies, knees, shoulders etc, and women must cover their hair with a scarf. Additionally, no shoes may be worn inside the mosque. Americans may be surprised that the same – or similar requirements exist in monastery’s, convents, and churches in Europe. While slightly more relaxed, or probably more accurately, less enforced, most of the monasteries we visited offer a selection of fabrics to cover oneself while visiting a church. It is expected that skirts/shorts cover the knees and shoulders are covered while visiting a church. Though notoriously casual Americans wander in and out surprised such a requirement exist, I too frequently forget to bring my scarf to cover up if we find a church unexpectedly along the way.
The Hagia Sophia was originally opened in 537 CE as a Greek Orthodox church, but it was redesigned as a mosque after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 by Sultan Mehmet II. We made our debut into our first mosque in grand style! Declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1985, I loved the integration of the storied history on the walls of the building. Since Islam doesn’t permit any face, statue or person depicted in a mosque, the original biblical frescoes of Mary or Jesus were covered by cloth but not damaged permanently. One can make out some of these images still and just outside the walls of the mosque, in the vestibule area are images of Mary and Jesus as well as crosses. There are several mentions of Mary, Jesus’ mother in the Quran so the Muslim people have a very high regard for Mary, though they do not believe that Jesus is the son of God. (This is based on my understanding, but I do not claim an education in Islam so please, if someone reading this has more knowledge, feel free to comment). Currently a museum but still open and serving as a mosque, it is so unusual to see people praying whilst tourists jostle for photos. Our tour guide did not love that it was still a working mosque and felt that it should be converted permanently into a museum. We had a different tour guide talking about the Suleyman mosque and the new Camlica mosque and it was interesting to hear the perspectives of the younger and more progressive tour guides against the backdrop of the current and more conservative political leaders. Both of our guides felt that the newer largest mosque was not necessary (built by President Erdogan) as there are more than enough mosques for the need. Also mentioned was that during prayer times and on Friday, the equivalent of our Sunday mass, there is little more than 20 percent occupancy. Our guide said, and I quote “We are faithful, not show-ers” We don’t go to mosque, but we are followers and faithful.
The Hagia Sophia (white drapes at the top of the photo cover the images of the Virgin and Jesus)
Nearly as famous as the Hagia Sophia, we visited the Blue Mosque but were surprised at how small it seemed comparatively speaking. It was currently undergoing renovations so much of it was covered.
The most impressive relic of the Byzantine times was the cisterns. Built by Emperor Justinian I by 7000 slaves in the 6th century AD, this enlarged system of holding water continued to provide water to the Topkapi palace after the Ottoman conquest and into modern times.
Speaking of the Topkapi Palace…
The Topkapi palace was the main residence of the Sultans into the 17th century. Constructed 6 years after the fall of Constantinople by Mehmed the Conqueror, the rooms, the opulence, the history – wow. Our guide was fantastic and enthusiastic as he shared the history of the Ottoman Harems with us. We laughed as we all shared our impressions of what we thought the harem was, and our guide laughed as he shared what the harem was not. To be fair, as he explained, nobody knows for certain what happened in the harems. But for the most part, the Western depictions were not accurate and were wildly exaggerated in Hollywood films. It is true, the Eunuchs guarded the harems meticulously and the mother of the Sultan was the only person who had access to the harems. Essentially the harems housed slaves and young girls who would be brought here to be educated. The girls in the harem (together with their virginity) were closely guarded and from this population, the mother of the Sultan could choose a selection of women from which the Sultan could choose his wives. Or Concubines. Further, those women not married or taken by the Sultan to be the mother of his children (and there could be dozens if not hundreds of children born to a Sultan), these women would marry important people in the government.
Many important treasures are on display here including weapons clothing, manuscripts but perhaps the most amazing treasures housed here are the Spoonmakers Diamond and the Topkapi Dagger. The Diamond has many stories associated with it but essentially it is a stunning 86 carat pear shaped diamond and believed to be the 4th largest in the world. The dagger was to be a gift for the Sheik of Iran but while being transported by horse, the Sheik died so the dagger was returned to the palace. It is stunning and pictured below.
86 carat Spoonmakers diamondTopkapi Dagger
During certain times of the year, many Catholic churches will display the body of Jesus continuously around the clock with faithful witnesses signing up so as not to leave the body of Jesus (in the form of the wine and bread) unattended. The final incredible item worth mentioning is the continuous singing of the Quran in Topkapi palace. It has been continuously read 24 hours a day/7 days a week for 400 years and continues today. What a scheduling nightmare- but what a labor of love!
No trip to Istanbul would be complete without a stroll through the Grand Bazaar. The oldest undercover marketplace, the Grand Bazaar houses over 4000 shops accessed through 27 different gates. Because it continues to expand, the entire area is an enormous shopping trip with everything from the most precious and rare gems to knock off underwear available. Also, clearly no copyright laws here – one can find anything from a fake Louis Vuitton (remarkable imitations) to a fake Rolexes, or you name it designer clothes and shoes.
But for my money, the real gems were the tapestries, silks and yep you guessed it, carpets. We did see 1 shop outside of the grand bazaar which housed the most stunning collection of hand-woven silk pillow covers and fabrics I have ever seen. Here are a few samples below.
I was so proud of us for making it through the grand bazaar without buying a Turkish rug!! So much has been said about the stunning art of these incredible designs that I worried that there would be little chance that we would escape without a major purchase. Well, we did escape but our victory would be short lived – stay tuned for our memories of Kusadasi….
And finally, a word about the people. Because for us it is always about the people. I love the Turks. Evidence of their kindness, generosity and hospitality are everywhere:
This man, noticing Jack watch him make cookies, brought one out to him. Look at that lovely face!
Exhibit 1 – There is virtually NO homelessness. This is incredible to me during a time with run-away inflation and a city of nearly 16 million people. No homeless at all. I asked a guide about this and talked to the friend of a friend (Hi Birsen). There is such a strong social structure that it is inconceivable that someone would end up homeless. They would first be taken in by family members – no matter what! And next, the mosque would see to the person. But a person would never fall so far as to be homeless. There is a saying in Turkish that one buys 3 loafs of bread – 1 to take with them and 2 for the basket meaning that 2 loaves are given for a person in need. One can also leave money in a restaurant for a person in need to eat. And nearby the mosque – like our soup kitchens at home, is a place where anyone can get a free and hot meal.
Exhibit 2 – There are also no “old folks homes”. The families take in their elders – They aren’t sent to homes to live.
Exhibit 3 – There are no homeless cats! They all belong to the community! There are cats EVERYWHERE in Istanbul. They wander into and out of restaurants, homes, shops, and grocery stores. They jump up on counters, they snuggle up to people standing at the bus stop and they visit tables in restaurants looking for dinner. But they aren’t strays in the meaning that we associate with strays. They appear reasonably well cared for, there is cat housing and shelters in parks, and wherever one finds cats, one finds a community feeding them. There are containers for water and food stations dotting the walkways and parkways throughout Istanbul (and in fact, all over Türkiye. The estimates of the numbers range from a New York Times estimate of 125,000 but Wikipedia has the number at between 100,000 and over a million. But these cats are truly a part of the community in which they live. On our pontoon where we stayed at the Setur Marina, the crew (captain and mates) of the 2 boats adjacent to Gratitude collected fish by using old bread. They would then take fish from the traps 2X a day and feed the local cats on our pontoon. These cats were the sweetest and most loving “strays” and certainly not feral. They seemed shocked when we wouldn’t let them board (Pratt would have a fit)! And 1 cat seemed to be auditioning for the job of “Watch Cat” seeing that Pratt isn’t doing such a good job.
In the restaurants…On our Pontooncats are welcome…In the wine shop…
Exhibit 4 – The crew that we spoke of earlier – kinder more caring neighbors one will never meet! They didn’t speak English and we obviously don’t speak Turkish, but it didn’t keep us from communicating. They brought us presents of fresh fruit and eggs from the captain’s farm, and we baked them scones and sent them cookies. But they were always ready with a helping hand and kind gesture. Thank you, Babushka, for your kind hospitality during our stay in Istanbul!
The crew of Babushka seeing us off the dock
Exhibit 5 – The greenspaces in Istanbul are common and well used. We explored the city by bike and wherever we found a park, we found people lounging on the grass, picnicking, having wine or beer or lunch or dinner. It didn’t matter what time or which day it was, people in Istanbul enjoy their parks. And there are parks everywhere.
1 final note about Istanbul – the transportation system.
Modern, safe, and clean public transportation
We love our new Ebikes and we road them everywhere. To be sure, driving, walking, or riding a bike is a death-defying venture – seriously. But that is owing more to the sheer volume of cars, motorbikes, and buses on the roadways than to the attitudes of the drivers. I think. The buildings are modern and in very good repair, the transportation system was clean, modern, comfortable, and well used. We were able to ride our bikes the 2-3 km to the train station, then ride the train all over the city – for a couple of dollars. The taxis are very complicated, and they have limits on their territory so I would strongly recommend becoming familiar with the buses and trains.
We wish we could have stayed longer and seen more. We were in Istanbul for 2 weeks but unfortunately, we all got the flu – spaced out from one another so that for a week we were pretty much down for the count. But what we did see, and experience was amazing. If you ever have the chance to visit, don’t pass it up!!
One of the most difficult challenges we face is deciding which towns/islands/countries to visit and which to bypass. The sad unavoidable truth that we continue to reconcile is that no matter for how long we plan to visit, we will not see everything we hoped, planned, or dreamed of seeing.
Sunrise underway
That said, it is our most fervent hope and belief that, as with all things in life, we are seeing and experiencing what WE are supposed to be seeing.
These are the best mornings! Lazy days at anchor
Which is why, after seeking to re-connect with Kim and Steve after a long summer of playing leapfrog with them, we turned our boat North while they turned theirs South.
There is something very real about the pull of the winter home after a summer of managing Meltemi winds, guests, long warm lazy days, and a busy itinerary. The call of the routine, the steady of the Monday-Friday school week and the scheduled work outs replacing the gelato all feel like a warm welcome. I remember last year, begging Alec and Jack to let us make one more stop for my birthday in Slovenia before heading to the “barn” and being so rewarded by that effort, It was a resounding reminder that we still have a few months before we need to be anywhere, and the winter will come soon enough.
So, we decided to tick off a very important stop on the “goals for Turkey” list. Istanbul.
Istanbul was a bit of a hard sell – for a few reasons. Firstly, the common and most widely appreciated cruising grounds in Turkey are South. Very little is written about the cruising North of Didim. And even less was talked about amongst our small group of cruisers. Nobody had planned to make the trip North to Istanbul and there was very little input from others who had been.
Secondly, Kas, the winter home, is WAY down South at the other end of a very large country. So essentially, we will need to come this way again, after making a several days passage North.
Finally, and this was of far less of a concern but something to be aware of, Istanbul and the famed Bosporus canal into the Black Sea is very close to the current hotbed political area of Ukraine and Russia. I was not very concerned since there were no alerts whatsoever on the Americans in Turkey section of the State Department website. But to say that we hadn’t considered it would be incorrect. We even planned on bringing Gratitude through the Bosphorus and turning around in the Black Sea and heading back but changed our minds. It just seemed too far to travel for the benefit of having just done it.
Other considerations regarding heading North to eventually travel all the distance South, is that we have 90 days in Turkey in which to travel on a tourist visa. Before the expiry of our 90 days, we must be in Kas, together with our boat, to begin our long stay visa paperwork. Now 90 days may seem like plenty of time, but when one travels at 8 knots and can only travel when the machine and the weather permit it, let’s just say we hate painting ourselves into a corner.
But missing out on ISTANBUL!! With Gratitude. It’s ISTANBUL people!!! And I would forever regret not having our home in Istanbul.
Bozcaada Castle
So, before we get to that…. There are a couple of stops we made which are worth noting. The first, a small anchorage near Cesme, was a perfect place to hit the big “reset” button after being in the marina in Didim for 2 weeks. We had a chance to try out the davit but primarily, we swam, SUP’d, rested, cleaned, cooked, watched movies and otherwise just totally chilled. This was what we had hoped to be doing for the whole of August. Just taking advantage of the cool waters, and the open schedule with no plans, no responsibilities. I did some writing and Alec did some maintenance but mostly we just chilled.
Bozcaada
As weather permitted, we traveled North to Ayvalik. A very local town with no tourist splashes, we enjoyed a meander through the streets soaking up the Turkish Vibe. No English spoken or on the menus, we discovered that we must be more proactive on our Turkish language pursuits. Alec and I enjoyed a day trip to Cunda and we also had a fun hike. This was another wonderful place to drop the anchor and have an explore. One item of mention is the Clock Mosque. Visible from the seaside, the clock tower had the distinct vibe of a Christian church, so we went to explore. Upon closer examination, we could see a minaret indicating a mosque. Truly a building having an identity crisis, we discovered that it was a converted Orthodox Christian church which was built in 1850. The first time we witnessed this fusion of Islam and Christianity was in the cathedrals in the South of Spain, most notably, in Sevilla. We so appreciated the lovely clock tower which was once a minaret in its previous heyday as a mosque. I loved that the consecrated building served the same purpose, though with a few different flourishes. In fact, it is that conversion which has preserved so many of the buildings from ancient Rome and Greece. The greatest examples of Roman and Greek history are those which were converted to churches, but with evidence of the previous function apparent.
The next stop North was a very cool island called Bozcaada. Mentioned in Homers Iliad, Bozcaada was known as Tenedos in Greek mythology. The island has a storied past as it was tossed around like a hot potato, belonging to Byzantium, Venice, it was fought over in the Venetian/Genoese war and was evacuated by the Republic of Venice. In the 15th century it was annexed by the Ottoman Empire during the reign of Mehmet II. It finally came under Turkish Rule when the Turks declared their independence in 1923. I’m not sure what the meaning of “It feels so Greek” is intended to imply as these were the words that everyone we spoke of the island before we went said. The guess here is that there is something more appealing to the Greek islands, but I couldn’t disagree more. It’s true, the Greek islands have a totally different vibe than the Turkish towns, and Bozcaada has another vibe altogether different, neither feeling Greek nor Turkish to me. However, one describes it, it really is its own thing. We loved it and decided to stay for a few more days. Alec and I took a walk around the Castle which has been reconstructed several times. It feels enchanting and since it hosts the market on Wednesday and Saturdays, it serves a purpose as well.
View of Gratitude from the Castle
Deciding to break up the trip further so we needn’t travel at night, we stopped at a few additional anchorages between Bozcaada and Istanbul. One stop involved the largest and most fierce jelly fish we have ever seen – no swimming here. Here are some photos of the Rhizostoma Pulmo jellyfish. According to Jacks internet research, contact with this jelly should immediately follow seeking medical treatment. These things were everywhere around the boat, and they looked beautiful! But we didn’t check the anchor for holding…
Photo taken by Jack Photo taken by Jack
While no stops looked appetizing enough to spend a few days, we pressed on and arrived in Istanbul a few days ahead of schedule. The Setur Marina Istanbul did an amazing job of accepting us, after hours and several days early for our reservation. Truth be told, the closer we get to a destination, sometimes the more excited we are about arriving.
I can’t say for certain what I was expecting. But this was not it.
No photo exists that can describe the magnitude of acropolis hill…
Athens (a little late)
While I, (Laurie), visited Athens on 3 separate occasions during our time in Greece this summer, I have not felt like writing about it.
Sometimes this happens.
Sometimes it is the place itself which fails to inspire – not the case here. Sometimes it is that the experience feels too personal to share – again, not the case here.
I have no idea why this post is coming so late after our visit and I’m sure as a result I’ll miss major points and special things about it but I’m going to do my best to share what I can from our time there.
Two trips to the Acropolis and both so different from each other but both HOT!
I first traveled to Athens probably 35 years ago and it was a total blur. I can’t honestly recall a single significant event from the trip, which is to say, it may as well not have happened. We were traveling aboard a cruise ship and I have found, based on our fair share of cruise ship cruising, that sometimes when we are unfamiliar with a region, details get lost in overall impressions. While experiencing so many new inputs over a short space of time, the impressions aren’t very deep – unless they are over the top bad or good.
It could be that my total lack of recall is related to something else entirely which may explain challenges I’m having with Jack right now. I think my newfound love of history may well be a function of age and perhaps bandwidth to be able to take the time to absorb all or most of what I’m learning. Perhaps in my earlier visit, I didn’t have the mental space or emotional energy. Perhaps I was simply not interested in the remarkable ruins which have been here for 2600 years, though I can hardly imagine ever being such a human. But we change and we grow, and our interests evolve. Perhaps Jack being 12 and this being his life, means that he has no concept of how special standing in this place is. Maybe he will come to appreciate it later – maybe not. I hope at a minimum our exposing him to it won’t make him hate it. Which is why we have decided to stop forcing him on tours and experiences. He has reached an age where he can remain behind alone. I’m praying that this decision will allow him to come to these amazing places in his own time and his own way. I’ll let you know how this goes.
But I’m off track – again. Athens…
Kelly flew to visit us in Santorini, then traveled with us to Paros where she needed to leave us to fly out of Athens. Since her flight was early in the morning, she would need to spend the night in a hotel. Not wanting her to a) miss Athens or b) spend the night alone in a hotel, I took the opportunity to travel with her and we saw the sights together.
Not only one of the oldest cities in Europe (the 3rd oldest), but Athens is also the hottest city in Europe. I knew this going in and it is one of the reasons that, despite our visitors coming and going from Athens, we were not going to spend much time there. Even before I began menopause, I preferred to be in cooler climbs for summers but now in the throes of my own person heat wave, being in the continent’s warmest city wouldn’t be my first choice. That said, who can miss Athens!?
So, dressed in my loosest, coolest linen dress and most comfortable waking sandals and we hit the ground running. I’m pretty sure that we hit 25,000 steps that day as we raced from monument to monument. But Kelly is the single most motivated and active person I have ever met, and I was not about to let her down, so off we went.
Athens, continuously inhabited since at least 3000 BC holds so much history in terms of Mycenaean, Roman and many more civilizations. Most fascinating for me is that Athens holds treasures from the birthplace of Democracy in the early 6th century BC, and much of the Western contributions in art, philosophy, theatre, and government are the direct result of the work done in this era. We were in awe of the sculptures and stonework accomplished by hand in the Parthenon and later when we visited the museum with Jenn and Tracy, we experienced an entirely different perspective. Displayed in the Acropolis Museum are the actual Caryatids though there are reproductions on the actual porch of the Erechtheion (The temple of Athena) on Acropolis hill. A Caryatid is a female support taking the place of a column. A male support would be called an atlas or a telamon. We saw telamons in many of the ancient ruins in Sicily in Agrigento. But I believe these are the first Caryatids we have seen. Remarkable in their beauty and grace, they have completely changed the way that I think of sculpture. In my mind, this fluid and sensual technique didn’t begin until the 15th or 16th century, and I always gave Italy the credit. These Caryatids prove me wrong.
The authentic Caryatids missing their 6th sisterReproductions of the 6 Caryatids
And if you read my post in Milos about the Venus di Milo, you may not be surprised to hear that I’m more than a little dismayed that 1 of the precious 6 of these “Maidens” is housed in the British Museum. Rumored to have been stolen by Lord Elgin, how this precious artifact landed in the UK should be of little consequence, but that she belongs in Athens with her 5 sisters should not be in dispute, in my humble opinion. But I suppose this is a matter for the courts to settle. Though it has been a source of long debates on board with Jack exercising his vast skills of debate and logic.
A gift from Sydney Australia’s Nicholson MuseumThis lego recreation of the Acropolis complete with Lord Elgin absconding with the Caryatid!
In Ancient times, the “Agora” was the main shopping district. There is still an Agora in the Plaka district. Closed to all but foot traffic, the area is full of cool shops and restaurants. But in the Ancient Agora is the Tower of the Winds. Perhaps my favorite of all the ancient artifacts, this was believed to have been designed by Andronicus of Cyrrhus around 50BC- but according to Wikipedia, may have been built prior to the rest of the Forum in the second century BC. The tower, standing 39 feet tall, is topped by a Triton which indicated the wind direction. Each of the “cardinal” directions (carved long before the first compass) is a carving of the 8 wind deities as well as 8 sundials. Inside the tower is a water clock which is driven by water coming from the Acropolis. This efficient and beautiful monument would be the world’s first (to my knowledge) weather station. The friezes line up perfectly with the 8 cardinal wind directions –
The beautiful Tower of the Winds
Given that we would soon be leaving the EU again where finding products is easy, Jack independently found a LEGO store. Agreeing that we would go with him to spend his hard-earned money, we took a train to the mall. Many toy stores have Lego – but there are very few LEGO stores, and these are truly special places for Jack. We gave him about an hour to meander and labor over his decision of what to buy. I was particularly touched that he chose a very large and expensive (Jack is more of a saver than a spender) Expert build of a bookstore- which he said he wanted us to build together.
Speaking of collecting things on our last and final stop in the EU, Alec and I had some things shipped to Athens. We have been coveting Ebikes since we used them last year in Croatia. Alec very wisely did careful research and, a year later, we are finally taking delivery of these prized possessions.
We have been riding them ALL over -ever since we left Athens. They have become our primary source of transportation, allowing long rides involving cobbled stone streets, and enormous hills. I’m not sure if their use will involve less or more exercise since we are riding bikes rather than using public transport, but we love them!!!
Our final event in Athens involved spending the day with our nephew and his bride (and our newest Niece). We are so very proud of you Michael and the amazing things you are doing in the world, and we love your choice of brides – Marianne you are lovely. Welcome to the family.
Marianne on the Left and Michael the bigger handsome dude in the middle. Standing in the Agora you can see Acropolis in the background
PS
I’m writing this in Istanbul about 6 weeks late. I can hardly get busy in writing about this amazing city.
When we travel from one country to another, despite the level of research we do, I can never really know what we will find when we arrive.
It is for this reason we like to take a ““peek”” at a place before committing to an entire winter there. We were glad we took this approach in Morocco. While an interesting place to visit, it was not a place we felt we would be happy for an entire winter. We again peeked in Montenegro and that peek helped us to relax all summer long, confident that we would be happy there for the winter.
Here it is August, and we still haven’t seen our winter home of Kas, Turkey. Unfortunately, there is no simple way to travel that far South and East when so much of our summer plans are North or West. So, we are crossing our fingers.
But having arrived in Turkey only two weeks ago, what we have seen of Turkey, we love. Easy for me to say now…
I must say, I had my reservations. I’m not sure why there was so much uncertainty with Turkey. Perhaps it was comments from family or friends who don’t know the Turkey of today. Perhaps it was due to my own “Western” – centric tendencies.
Arriving in Didim, Turkey
You see, Tukey is – well, Eastern, or at least, middle Eastern. By the time we make it to the Bosporus canal, we will be straddling the dividing line between two continents. We can’t go any further East and remain in Europe. Officially, we are on the Asian subcontinent.
Perhaps that is why recently, I have been at once feeling like the travel we have been doing is getting, well, redundant. I suppose if you do anything for long enough it can lose its “Alice in Wonderland” feel and after our 5th summer aboard and 4th summer cruising in Europe, we are feeling …. Well, comfortable I suppose. And it is the DIS-comfort that I usually like about travel. The getting outside of our comfort zone which is where the real work and the real personal discovery happens. I just don’t want to be too far outside of my comfort zone.
So, just in the nick of time, we leave the “West” and arrive in the “East.” Of course, we have been traveling in the Eastern Hemisphere for a while now having just passed the 26th parallel East. And we are shaking things up again by being here.
Many of the islands just 10 miles away from the Turkish Coast are Greek. Why? Because the entire Dodecanese Island group originally belonged to Italy following the first World War but became Greek after the second World War. It makes traveling these islands and navigating interesting given that there is just a line on a chart separating the Greek waters from the Turkish. I have looked up to see a lovely island oriented perfectly to find a protected anchorage given the winds, only to discover moments later that its Greek – so we continue.
But it is remarkable, given that, even though many Greek Islands are a stone’s throw away, the feel of the island, the language, the religion, the currency, the flag, the food, the history… are all totally different.
When we first arrived and got settled and I peddled to the grocery store with Kim, I felt at once despondent. A Crushing feeling of overwhelm came over me – and it shocked me. Staring into the dairy case trying to discern the Turkish word for “butter” after spending 3 months learning the Greek words, left me lost. At once realizing that despite having achieved some level of proficiency finding the Greek products which I could use to prepare the foods my family loves – I realized that I was starting all over again. Rather than feeling excited at the prospect of learning a whole new lexicon of foreign words and phrases and discovering a whole new flavor profile of delicious food, I just felt exhausted with the effort of starting over again. All the new words, useful only a week ago, useless for my endeavor today. Even the word for “Thank you”, the first and most important word we ever learn even before the lines are on the dock, eluded me for the first week. I just could not learn this word. I practiced it repeatedly and the next day, it would fail on my tongue. (Tesekkurler) by the way.
At long last, reunited with the Crew of The Long Summer from last year and Mimpi of course‘This vendor shared some tea with us after we purchased his peaches. The best peaches we have ever eaten! Every fruit under the sun dried for winterThis is how the food is delivered to the market
An acquaintance from Montenegro sent me an article today -which was timely given the changes that I have been grappling with. This person was grappling with his own changes – far greater than those that I have been dealing with. You see, alone and while on a passage, at night, he was knocked unconscious and awoke many hours later aground. Ultimately, he lost his home, his boat, and all his plans for the coming months.
According to Dr. Robert Puff, PHD writing on Physcologytoday.com, one’s ability to adapt to change is the determining factor in happiness. We all know that change is inevitable, so being able to anticipate and adapt to the change we all know is coming will decide one’s happiness.
I hope this makes Jack more not less adaptable…
I have often said that this lifestyle would either attract people for whom change is no adversary or it will make a person this way. One cannot be happy cruising if they are averse to change. There is very little about this life that is known or set in stone. The stops we make, the plans we research, everything we do is left to the vagaries of the weather and a machine which, regardless how well it is maintained, will incapacitate your trip from time to time.
This is what qualifies as “fast food”
This is not the first time I have become overwhelmed in a new country. But this is the first time I had to fight back feelings of panic given that we will be living here for the next 6 months. This was the first time that I had to admonish myself to keep my mind and spirit and heart open to all the new experiences. And for these first two weeks, I am breathing into the change and embracing the newness of this experience.
Inspired by the fresh veg, I made this tomato tartPurple Basi! Amazing and worthy of a vase
And my disposition has drastically improved. For one thing, I may not know how to say or read “butter” but 90 percent of the food we eat on board comes from the market and the market here is second to NONE. By the time we made it to the market that first Saturday, I felt my mood lighten and my spirit lift and within 20 minutes of my arrival, I was joyful. Stunned at the feeling of love and joy that overcame me, I had to take a moment to ask why? Why did standing amongst these lovely farmers, and rural shoppers surrounded by the most incredibly tasting fruit and vegetables I have ever eaten have such a profound impact on my peace of mind. I’m not sure but I think it is this: First, all the fresh food was a reminder of the abundance that we enjoy in our life. Regardless of any materialistic thing, the fresh food, and the abundance of it, is an enormous gift and nothing to take for granted. Alec added that the energy in the market is higher, and I think it is the energy emanating from the food as well as the people who shop and grow what is sold here.
I left with very little in my bag from the grocery store that day, but the bags upon bags of fresh fruit and veg we found in the market – you can’t believe! And while, as a longstanding coffee snob, I’m struggling to adapt to a very tea centric culture, I have enjoyed a few cups and I can see that I may well be a convert, at least while here anyway. I am reminded of the grocery store trip in Italy, overjoyed I was that I finally found what I thought was tahini and bought several large jars to discover a few hours later, on board, that we had bought mustard. None of us a fan of the condiment, I found a lovely recipe for honey mustard dressing and now I can’t keep enough mustard on board!
Kim and I poolsideJack and his milkshake Alec taking a rare day off to relax by the pool
We rode our bikes the Ancient Greek sanctuary called Didyma and it was amazing. Founded in the 8th century BC, evidence of the temples to the twins, Apollo and Artemis dominates the grounds but other deities were also worshipped here. Look for people in the photo for some idea of the size and scope of this remarkable project.
I hope to write several more posts about the Turkish culture in the coming months but what I can tell you today after this short time here is that the handful of people we have met, are kind and warm and hospitable. The fruits and vegetables are incredible. The cost of living is incredibly low – but sadly for the Turks, inflation is very high. I feel grateful that I don’t have a bank account full of Turkish lira losing value every day. The waters here are unspoiled and the country incredibly clean and the historically significant archeological sites are remarkable.
If we were lucky to have an ole’ salt in Kelly aboard for the passage from Schioussa to Paros, we paid our dues with Jennifer and Tracy going to Poros. A 12-hour passage and forecast to be off and on high winds and bigger seas than we like to see with guests aboard, we received their blessing when we asked if they wanted to give it a try.
Poros in the evening
We knew (and assured Jennifer and Tracy) that there was no safety factor in jeopardy or, of course, we wouldn’t have left. But the seas were forecast to be 3 feet at 3 seconds. The 1-meter seas were not the issue – but rather the time interval between the waves. A 3-meter sea isn’t so bad if it is a long swell with 15 seconds in between, but when the period is the same as the wave height, it indicates short steep chop which is very uncomfortable. Gratitude is a full ocean crossing sea boat though, and while we don’t love the uncomfortable ride of short steep chop, Gratitude couldn’t care less. She is in her element in big seas.
We LOVE our home! Notice the different foliage and architecture from the Cyclades
Another factor is from which direction the waves and wind will present, and for us, it was going to be forward of the beam. If the waves are not on the nose, we have found that the stabilizers do a brilliant job of coping, but any component forward of the beam increases the discomfort. So, the forecast of 3 feet (1 Meter) and 3 seconds 10 degrees off the nose did portend a lousy ride. To be honest, we would have taken a pass if it was just us, but anxious to get our guests to another island and one closer to Athens for their final few days with us, we rolled the dice.
I don’t like suggesting that gambling is something we do regularly on Gratitude – but what we got was in some places quite smooth, yet in others, 4-6 feet with 3 seconds. Really uncomfortable.
As lovely as the port is, I prefer to anchor……and take the dinghy to shore
Jack and I usually take a ½ a seasick pill when we know the conditions are forecast to be lousy and Jenn took one herself. Luckily, Jack and I did fine – unfortunately Jenn did not. Alec, Tracy, and Pratt all handled the sea like pros. So, several hours into our 12-hour passage I asked Jennifer if she wanted to duck into another island. Trooper that she was, she said “Nope, press on”. To be fair, we had moments of nice weather, but it was, unfortunately punctuated with steep pitching for most of the passage.
But we made it to Poros, and we really enjoyed our time there.
POROS
Enroute, and when it appeared certain we would be going the distance, Alec and I began doing research on the 3 islands which make up the Saronic archipelago. Wanting to go to Hydra, we soon discovered that there is no transportation from one end of the island to the main town given that no cars are allowed. But by going to Poros, we were able to enjoy the lovely anchorage off one of the prettiest beaches we have seen, while being able to enjoy the main town of Poros. Additionally, there is ferry service to Hydra, so we managed to get another island visit in.
As I have previously written, each of these islands are completely different from each other and in the case of Poros and Paros, two islands couldn’t be more different. For one thing, the Cyclades Islands, of which Paros is a member, is more arid, drier, and breezier with cool winds nearly constantly pelting the island. There is little green, and olive trees dot the Cyclades only sporadically. It is lovely in its own right – don’t get me wrong – but it is totally different than the Ionian side of Greece or the islands closest to the mainland in the Aegean.
More closely resembling Italy, Poros had mountains covered in Cypress trees and olive groves by the dozen. Even the houses and hotels followed their own color scheme of terra cotta roofs with natural hued facades contrasting with the Cyclades stark white buildings with blue domes and trim. The water was equally cool, but the air was much warmer as we were now out of the heart of the cool Northern Meltemi winds.
Away from the touristy mecca of the Cyclades, we found the shop owners and restauranters’ slightly more hospitable. Arriving in the Sporades meant a return to the hospitality tradition of thanking guests with a small gesture after dinner of a sweet treat or sometimes a drink of ouzo or lemoncello. There seemed to me a higher ratio of locals/guests even though Poros was clearly a charter fleet start/finish.
We spent the day in these lounge chairs with a view of Gratitude in the distance
We enjoyed meals ashore; sauntering around town and in and out of shops and we even hopped aboard a free bus to have a quick look around.
We spent a day swimming, snorkeling, and laying on the beach changing our view for a day.
And we took a ferry to Hydra.
Alec meeting some locals
Known for its beautiful if pebbly beaches, and stunning Byzantine architecture, Hydra (pronounced IIdra,) even has their own flag. Alec and I could have whiled away the entire afternoon watching the sport of boats attempting to arrive and depart in the incredible wind and waves which pounded the port. We enjoyed meandering through the cobbled stoned streets and wandering in and out of shops. Jack and Tracy took a short trip around town on a donkey.
With no cars on Hydra, Donkeys are the primary form of transportation Evening Aperitif
We loved an old monastery – Panagia Phaneromeni (The most Holy Virgin Mary Revealed of Hydra). According to the information on the building, in 1656, Barbary pirates raided the island and the Monastery. They stole the Sacred Icon of Mary as well as 3 notable Hydrean citizens. While heading toward Crete, their ship encountered a storm and fearing that they would sink, pirates begged the pious Hydreans to pray. One of the pirates desecrated the icon by chopping tobacco on it, and then broke it in 2 and threw it into the sea when his comrades asked for prayers.
A short time later, both pieces of the icon were found joined together on the shore of Hydra nearby the Monastery. The clergy, with incense and candles, reinstated the icon to the place in the Monastery. Simultaneously, in Africa across from Crete, the Most Holy Virgin Mary appeared to the pirates and ordered them to liberate the 3 captives. The men were returned unharmed to Hydra. A book, published by the Sacred Cathedral in 2014 recounts this and other miracles.
Riding back on the ferry we encountered the same high seas and wind we observed in the boats coming and going. The ferry departed 40 minutes late due to the slower speeds they needed to travel and 20% of the passengers were ill on the trip. All of us were fine – but we felt bad for the steward who was busy delivering sick sacks and caring for the ill passengers.
The rough weather, due to persist over the next several days caused us to change plans – again. Jennifer and Tracy decided to take the ferry back to Athens and we would take Gratitude, thus giving them a few more hours in Athens and a smoother ride. We all met later in Athens aboard Gratitude.
The next post will consolidate my 2 trips to Athens. The first with Kelly, then Jennifer and Tracy and finally with Michael and Marianne who arrived from a cruise ship on our final 24 hours in Athens.
Until next week…
PS As I write this, we are at anchor in Turkey. We are nearing our 3rd week in this amazing country, and I have already begun writing some of our experiences – I can hardly wait to share!
Kelly and I took this photo then when Tracy and Jennifer arrived…Taken 1 week later at the same spot
Can I just begin this post by saying that moving Gratitude this summer with the Meltemi winds has been a challenge. That said, we have mostly managed to keep to our original plans – plus or minus a few days. Getting from Ios to Schinoussa to Paros with Kelly on board was nerve wracking given that the winds were high and the sea state a little lumpy, but Kelly handled it like an ole salt and we were worried about nothing at all! Even Jack and I opted to take a pill and Kelly didn’t and was perfectly fine! Brava!!!
Constant spray and high wind have been the norm this summer
So, after a several hour passage we arrived in Alyki bay on the South end of Paros.
Something that we just recently discovered is that as the Meltemi is a thermal wind that begins the day as calm and builds throughout the day, until around 1900 when it begins to calm once more. Some bays have a katabatic wind which funnels down from the hills or mountains on the land and pour into the south bay. This is a totally new phenomena for us which we discovered while trying to find a calm anchorage sheltered from the Meltemi. The katabatic winds were gusting in the force 8 to 9 (40-50 knots of wind). Paros winds were so high that we broke our 2nd dynema anchor snubber! Dynema is supposed to be stronger than steel cable and after our first snubber snapped in high winds, we attributed it to wear since we have used it for several years. After putting on our spare we lost it on another windy day. Alec has spliced the 2 broken snubbers and made a 3rd which has been holding up thus far.
Alyki bay seemed to have these katabatic winds since our friends, Kim and Steve on Mimpi arrived shortly after us and anchored in Parikia. Realizing that there was a big difference in the winds they were experiencing on the same island, Alec and Jack decided to move Gratitude up to the port town while I was traveling to Santorini to meet up with Jennifer and Tracy.
Winners of the “most prepared for anything” award The luggage took up 1/2 the dinghy! But to be fair, 1/2 of it was stuff they brought us from home which we were missing!!
The absolute saving grace is that the ground holding here is fantastic. We have set the anchor and held firmly in place for days on end in 40 knots of wind. The amazing holding is the only reason we have been able to be at anchor as much as we have all summer and still travel freely off the boat with reasonable certainty that Gratitude would be safe and sound while we are gone – which is a great thing since Paros is a wonderful island to explore.
Check out this circle of trust! We regularly inspect this track to make sure the anchor is holding
And we had the opportunity to explore it, not only with Kelly but also with Jennifer and Tracy 1 week later. So, I’m going to combine both trips in 1 post about Paros.
The Frankish Castle used building materials from the archaic temple of Athena
Taking a public bus from Alyki to Parikia, the main port town, we had explored the main “city” and enjoyed … yep … more great food, and anther very cool old town. Meandering streets filled with cobbled stone roads which have been wandered since the 4 or 5th centuries BC, is at once surreal and delightful.
Fishermen spend the day repairing nets
Paros has become the “new” Mykonos or Santorini with night clubs and throngs of 20 something Europeans arriving (literally) by the boatloads daily. Not since the earlier days of South Beach have I seen so many beautiful bikini clad young people, backpacks slung over their shoulders coming and going on ferries all day. Since we are well past the age of nightclubbing – what follows are the attractions that interest us on Paros. Jennifer, Tracy, and I were amongst some of the new arrivals when we took the ferry to Paros from Santorini.
2 highlights of our time in Parikia include the Frankish Castle, built in 1260 by Venetian Duke of Naxos, it is comprised of “building materials” from the archaic temple of Athena. What has resulted is a fantastically interesting structure, the pictures of which are below. In town, art galleries have photographs and artistic renderings of this iconic building. We did see a similar use of past building supplies resulting in a magnificent old building in Croatia. But despite the frequent use of old building materials through the centuries, these are the only 2 buildings we have ever seen with this unique “style”
And the second highlight of Parakia is the Aghia Eleni – Panagia Ekatontapiliani (The church of 100 doors)
The Panagia EkatontapilianiThis castle was unreachable in the high winds the following weekThis walkway was awash a week later
Our first encounter with St. Helen was when we were in Venice last year. We stayed at the Santa Elena Marina just adjacent to the Santa Elena church. Briefly decommissioned and then later re-consecrated in 1928, this church holds the relics of the Christian Saint, Helen, the mother of Emperor Constantine. St. Helen was in and out of favor amongst Roman Nobility but while she was granted status as a “Noble woman” when her son rose to Emperor in Rome, and she was granted land near Rome.
According to Lewis, Jone Johnson. “Helena, Mother of Constantine.” ThoughtCo, Aug. 26, 2020, thoughtco.com/helena-mother-of-constantine-3530253, Among the notable events attributed to St. Helen – she is believed to have found the original cross of Jesus while traveling in Palestine “on an official inspection for her son of the construction of the churches he had ordered.” While having a temple to Venus removed and replaced with the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the cross was supposed to have been discovered.
The Panagia Ekatontapiliani (also knowns as the church of 100 doors), was built in the mid 4th century by St. Helen or by her son, Constantine the Great who fulfilled his mother’s vow. According to aboutparos.com, Saint Helen stopped to worship here on her way to the holy land whereupon she prayed to the Virgin Mary that should she find the cross, she would return to build a bigger church. Destroyed but rebuilt in the 6th century, the church has 100 doors but only 99 can be seen. The 100th is closed and, according to legend, will only be open when Constantinople (currently Istanbul) becomes Greek again.
A 30-minute bus ride North from the port town of Parakia and you will arrive in the charming fishing village called Naoussa. We loved it so much while visiting with Kelly, it was at the top of the list to show to Tracy and Jennifer. Nightclubs throb into the early daylight hours here but during the day the quaint fishing village is charming. Winds on our second trip were so high as to make the trip to the old 14th century Venetian Castle fortification impassable but we did get to see it with Kelly. From the North side of the island and on the safety of land, the Meltemi was very impressive.
On both trips we arrived just in time for lunch on our body clocks- or breakfast for the 20 somethings that I mentioned earlier. While we were looking for a place to eat, it was clear that most of the town was still just waking up with young people lounging on chaises drinking bloody mary’s and coffee. But the shops were open while we wound our way around the labyrinth stone paved lanes, and the charming fishing boats were unloading their catch of the day in the noontime sun. Mostly what we saw was octopuses drying in the sunlight, but I can’t take photos of them because I hate to see them endure such a tragic end. Jack and I have seen some hiding under rocks while snorkeling but here they are a mainstay of the local cuisine. Meals we enjoyed on both occasions were amazing. Incredibly fresh ingredients are the star of the Greek diet and for once in my life, I could walk into nearly any restaurant and be delighted with the offering (the exception being strictly seafood).
There is also a town in the center of the island to which we never made the trip. It is purported to be the source of the crystal-clear marble that made the Venus de Milo and the Parthenon.
A short ferry ride from Paros, Anti-Paros lies just to the Northwest of Paros. Known for more upscale shops and rugged hikes, it was the perfect place to spend the day eating lunch and whiling away another lovely day in the Cyclades with friends. Steve and Kim came along for the ride and after a quick change in plans upon finding that the smaller boats wouldn’t make the trip due to the high winds, we took a bus to the larger ferry further south from Parakia and enjoyed a lovely day together.
Ferry Service in the Greek Islands is reliable and timely
Kelly and I traveled by ferry to Athens for the end of her time with us and Jennifer and Tracy continued on the Gratitude with the next stop… Poros…
Poros, a totally different island in the Argo-Saronic Gulf has almost nothing in common with Paros, in the middle Cyclades Island chain. But we will keep that for the next post….
Right now, I’m sitting in Didim, Turkey where we have a small mechanical issue with our davit (the crane which lowers our dinghy, bikes, and some beach toys) to the water. The timing of this issue could not be better as we had planned to take some “down time” to get caught up on life admin tasks and I’m able to do some chronicling of our adventures before we get too far down the road in Turkey.
Continuing our travel North from Santorini with Kelly aboard, we first stopped in Ios. We enjoyed Kelly for 8 days and in that time, we visited Santorini, Ios (all over the island), Schoinoussa – primarily the water and anchorage, and finally Paros.
Likely the question we are most frequently asked is: “What is your favorite xyz?” Depending on the person asking or the context, sometimes xyz = country and sometimes it is island. Sometimes xyz = food and that one is easier to identify. For me, the Greek food has been the far and away my favorite (though I remember thinking Spain was my favorite while there), and Ios was absolutely a favorite island (though I remember falling in love with Folegandros also). All of this is to say, it made the list of standout places that were special to me.
As we have been cruising the islands of the Greek archipelago, of which there are 227, we have only scratched the surface at 20 island visits. We tried to see and immerse ourselves, as much as possible, in the islands we visit -seeking opportunities to connect with the people who call the island home. We do this through arranged tours but also through random encounters. For me, my favorite is usually the place where I am now living. This isn’t a quip or lie – but honestly how I feel. Some cruisers and travelers will reply “the next stop on the itinerary” and I get that too. The reason we keep traveling is a desire to experience “the next”. But for me, I often struggle to let go of a place because where I am standing is the most amazing experience I have ever had.
So with that in mind, I’ll try to convey my loves of Ios.
Can you see some of the trail we walked to get here?IosCicadas are everywhere and sound wonderful!The port of IosYou
Jack and I struggled to get through Homers’ Iliad and Odyssey a couple of years ago. We never quite finished it – Jack was only 9 or 10 at the time and it was foolish of me to foist it on him. But we did enjoy the stories contained within through BBCs programs of narrating fantastic stories from the Iliad. It was with those tales in our mind that we have been enjoying our tour of the Greek islands. Ios is the presumed burial place of Homer, and it is here we found his “gravestone” and small monument to his work. This visit has re-invigorated my desire to re-read and understand Homer and his famous Iliad and Odyssey.
If you read our post on the Kalamata olives from – well, Kalamata, you might have felt just a small inkling of the love of food we have and the love of the people who, through the connection of a love of food, share these experiences with us. Well, we found a similar and equally amazing experience here in Ios and utterly and completely by accident. Driving down the road we saw a sign indicating a cheese museum. Of course, I love museums and I love cheese, so we were bound to stop right?? The lovely woman who passionately shared her love of her culture with us will forever touch us. If you are visiting the Cyclades islands, this island warrants a stop if ONLY for the amazing cheese museum. You can visit online and book a tour through Diaseli.com. We learned so much about Greece in general from this visit alone.
Married into the family but originally from Athens, our tour guide walked us through the life of her Greek family and shared passionately her love of its culture. At the end of the tour, we loved it too. I’m sad to say too much time has passed and I don’t recall our hosts name, but she had so much soul – we all fell in love with her.
We feel you can trust food being served to the local priest!T
Have you ever had a conversation with someone and after an hour or two felt that nothing was said, no meaningful connection made? Yet conversely, had a conversation with someone and after 15 minutes felt that you knew them heart and soul? This was what happened with this guide. She had so much love and passion and soul and she generously wanted to share it with us. Walking us through her family’s 18th century home, we learned that the paved road and electricity on the island was only 40 years old and prior to that, farmers would only walk between towns with mules, donkeys, or goats. This explains why there are so many wonderful hikes on each of the islands, – they are what remains of a practical means of travel from over the centuries. What was particularly shocking to us is that only 40 years ago, life on this island would have been much as life in America was perhaps 150 years ago! Our “progress” has been so swift it induces whiplash, while the “old ways” here persist with only minor changes in terms of improvements in economies of scale or industrialization.
These “shoes” belonged to her father in law. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!
The result of that tie to the past is the most amazing cheese one has ever tasted! The goats, visible in the distance, still meander the hillsides feasting on wild (not cultivated) herbs. They are not penned; they eat what is growing wild and untreated with chemicals. We were not permitted access to the “factory” due to health and safety measures, but we looked in and witnessed just a small room which produced the nicest cheese we have ever sampled. Alec loathes goat cheese but with some prodding decided to try this. The purveyor explained that with no stress hormones and a rich diet of herbs – the goat cheese has none of that weird flavor that we all associate with goat cheese. She was right. Not even the slightest hint of goat cheese in the cheese from goats. Alec LOVED it – we all did.
Thank you Diaseli for an amazing experience!
We learned that the iconic white houses are the result of an epidemic of Cholera in 1938. The Greek dictator Metaxas mandated that each house be whitewashed in limestone to kill the infection. Later, during the dictatorship of the 60s and 70s in accordance with a military regime of order, the whitewashing persisted to be homogeneous and impersonal. But along the way it became iconic and a touristic draw and today it persists if for no other reason because it is cool.
Our guide showed us where the man of the house slept (in a bed) and where the women, huddled with children, slept (on the floor) and we gained a sense of the roots that persist today in this patriarchal society.
We enjoyed local herbs (one I have found in Turkey at the market, and I still don’t know the name) and cheese, and mostly we enjoyed a connection to this family and their very recent past.
Herbs like this wild thyme grow EVERYWHERE
Continuing our travel, we went to a monastery up in the mountains, the trip to which is a pilgrimage in itself. The monastery is still in use and services are held here regularly.
After a long and full day exploring, we were ready for an amazing dinner which we enjoyed in the main town of Ios. Gratitude was anchored on the South end of the island from where we took a bus to the port town. We loaded up on fresh groceries and traveled back “home”.
A well deserved treat!
It is always fun to share our “real life” with people who visit us. There is no way of explaining that we are not simply laying on chaise lounges sipping drinks with umbrellas in them. No matter how we try to convey that this lifestyle, though wonderful and enriching, is challenging in ways we can’t possibly explain, we know that when visitors come, they have had their own visions of what their vacation will look like and we also know, that unless they have been here more than once, it won’t look anything like what they envisioned. Even though Kelly has visited us before, she hasn’t had the chance to see us while cruising and moving from place to place. So it was fun for her to experience what our real life is like. All the moving parts that must fall into place for us to move from one island to another. All the weather planning, all the logistical planning, and even the grocery shopping. On this trip we purchased groceries since we had a rental car, and it was simple to get the groceries to the anchorage, but from there we had to convey the groceries to the dinghy whilst climbing over rocks in winds exceeding 40 knots, at night. The dinghy was tied to rocks and stern anchored but had to be pulled in and the groceries loaded. From there we traveled to Gratitude and in pitching seas, loaded us and our precious cargo aboard. So, you can see that we may not have a lot of ice cream on board, or beer, or even wine. We don’t carry much more than that which we need because carrying only what we need is as much as 3 people can manage. It is truly fun for us to share this part of cruising because this is what real life is for us. We try to make sure we do the cleaning and preparing before guests arrive so that their time with us isn’t drudgery but sharing some of the realistic aspects of what we do is authentic and fun as well.
Ios was a fantastic stop – amazing food, swimming, snorkeling, beachcombing, and history. What more could we want? Our next stop was a request by Jack for his birthday. He specifically asked to be at an island that was minimally inhabited, and he wanted to spend the entire day in the water. Happy to comply, we thankfully and barely found an acceptable weather window to go to Schoinoussa.
There is no place to look here and NOT see a stunning view…
While at a cocktail party in Montenegro- before we left on our 3-month tour of Greece, we met someone who had cruised the Cyclades the year before. One of the highlights of enjoying time with other cruisers is the wealth of information we can share with each other from one year to the next. Rarely do we all have the same itinerary. Even if we are wintering over for more than 1 year together, we will have varied cruising schedules. So, imagine my shock when the person replied, “they were all the same – one was as the other and honestly I can’t recall even the stops that we made to recommend or not”. Even though I had only been to Greece 30 years earlier, I had the memory of knowing that the few stops we made on a short cruise ship itinerary involved places of completely different (if similar) character. Suspecting that our conversation was unlikely to improve, I made my way to others in the room.
Even the few islands right in Thira are totally different from each other
But as I sit here on the fly bridge approaching what is scheduled to be the last and final island on an exquisite tour of some of the most stunning and soul rich places we have been, I am in true awe of what makes the Greek Isles so special. And I can promise you that after stopping at 20 islands, each is decidedly NOT as the other. Each of the islands is as each of the people we met – unique and special and a treasure we will keep with us forever. I’m at once joyful at what we have experienced and sad to have to leave this wonderful place. (Americans are only permitted 90 days out of each 180 days in the Schengen area of which Greece is a part). I haven’t updated the blog lately because we have been living living! Living! but now, I’d like to get some words on paper so we can preserve some of the special memories we have made in this stunning archipelago.
At first glance, our routing would look haphazard and as Alec said it, “like a drunken sailor.” But we had a motive in mind when we resumed our course East ward following the Peloponnese to port. Even though Santorini was not intended to the be the highlight of OUR summer cruise, we knew from polling our guests who were joining us that it was an important stop. And why wouldn’t it be? It is so unique in terms of geology and scenery with the gleaming white buildings crowned with the iconic blue domes. It is likely the most photographed of all the Greek islands and it is an Instagram/social influencer dream.
One Soulful human we met on Thirasia – check out his tour company if ever in the area!! These special tomatoes and cucumbers were gifts from Manolas own family – our host on the mooring ball
But we are far from influencers aboard Gratitude. We aren’t looking for the perfect shot to convey the perfect image. Rather, we are looking for the perfect person who can sum up the perfect soul of a place.
So, for that reason, Santorini was further down on our list of favorite islands but what I CAN say about it – the caldera in the center, the largest in the world, with water of 300 meters depth climbing to mountains of 100 meters high was incredible. I could sit and stare in awe imagining the amazing cataclysmic explosion in 1400 BC, felt around the world, that left this gaping hole in its wake. People are an adaptable species and given the high cliffs and abundant sea life, for centuries, donkeys have carried goods up and down the 566 steps to the top. Today, that effort is augmented by a cable car operating from Thira which shuttles cruise ship passengers up and back to their ships. Speaking of cruise ships…
You can only glimpse the size of this massive caldera. This cruise ship is one of RCLs mega-ships as it steams out of the caldera
There is, near where the cruise ships ferry their customers to the port, a large, enclosed net which sits on the surface attempting to contain seepage from a cruise ship which sunk on April 5, 2007. I heard this shocking tail of a cruise ship, damaged and with a Captain dithering about for 8 hours, and then going to the deep commercial port to disembark the fortunate customers who made it safely to land, from someone sharing our ride to the port. Rumors abound on the island about what became of the captain, though the most credible is that he changed his name and ran off to avoid prosecution. Remembering that we have friends who were on a sunken ship in Greece, I asked them if this was their ship and, in fact, it was. The cruise company offered them compensation of 2500.00 each and a voucher for a future cruise. 2 passengers were lost and presumed dead. And the wreckage is still a ticking time bomb on the bottom of the caldera. Every day this ship sits is one more day that the fuel tanks suffer the corrosive effects of salt water. The insurance company and cruise ship company have already been ordered to contain the wreckage and remove the ship, but they are appealing the decision and the biggest loser (aside from the poor missing passengers) may well be the environment and the people who call this special place home. Today there are roughly 10000 regular inhabitants who work incredibly hard to support the 500,000 yearly visitors on this tiny island. But enough of that poor misbegotten adventure, on with ours… The weather, warm over much of the Mediterranean, is cool and comfortable in Santorini (and many of the Cyclades islands) owing to the pleasant cool air funneling down from the North. This same North wind, called the Meltemi, is also what has kept us moored in several locations a few days longer than we may have preferred to remain, and to arrive earlier.
Santorini is made up of lava, ash, and oxidized iron which accounts for the 3 beaches, black, red, and brown.
A different perspective with Jennifer and Tracy
I was able to enjoy Santorini a couple different ways, first while we were moored in Thirassia while awaiting my sister Kelly’s arrival, and then later when I took a ferry to meet Jen and Tracy. Both trips were totally different but equally enjoyable. With Kelly we were aboard Gratitude, and we took the dinghy over the Oia where we hiked, shopped, and dined on beautiful food. We met a few lovely humans away from the hustle and bustle of the main island and it was these encounters which left me with a sense of the soul of the place. With Jennifer and Tracy, I met them at a lovely hotel (for lack of a better word). But “hotels” on Thira are truly in a class by themselves. The nicer of them, such as where we stayed, provided multiple rooms housed in one shared space with our own small wading pool. Truly God help the humans who daily deliver luggage to the inhabitants perched on the side of a mountain. These men (I didn’t see any women doing this job) climb up and down the cobbled stoned paths carrying cases larger than a child. They do this with a smile on their face and commitment of service.
Enjoying breakfast from our private balcony was a different perspective indeed!
We rented a car for a day and traveled from end to end seeing all that we could see and again, we ate and ate some of the most gorgeous food I have ever seen! If you are heading to Santorini, highlights included Mia’s, and a home cooked meal but I can’t remember the name – Jen or Tracy – Any help??
Kelly and I hiked from Oia to Thira – incredible!!
It is hard to imagine anyone being disappointed by a trip to Santorini (Thira) but I beg you to make certain to include some smaller islands on your itinerary if you come to Greece. It is the smaller islands who hold the soul of Greece and in the absence of throngs of short-term visitors, the locals have the energy to share and impart that soul to you. What will follow in the next blog entries are the smaller islands in which we stopped making our way Northward to Athens.
Rounding the peninsula of the Peloponnese, we had opted to head due East, rather than make the turn North heading to Athens. Our primary considerations for the next 6 weeks are the 7 guests arriving in 4 different increments. Since all our family and friends arriving should see, at a minimum, Athens- and most want to see Santorini. Our challenge is that we don’t wish to spend 6 of our precious 12 Greek weeks in these locales, so it has involved a bit of “visitor calculus” to make sure everyone is getting what they want after traveling 5,000 miles to be with us.
MilosFamily Fun Day Chora above the port Greeks dip their garlic in the sea to make it last longerOld fishing village – boats stored on the bottom and the fishermen lived on top
While we have only hosted 2 people thus far, we have high hopes for achieving these goals – though weather will certainly play a big role in this. The summer wind events in Greece known as the Meltemi have been causing a few disruptions to the schedule and we must plan to make sure we are where we can receive guests – i.e., near an airport or ferry. In fact, during the most intense Meltemi, even the ferries cancel service. That said, we have had 2 events so far and we arrived in Milos ahead of the first, and we tucked into Folegandros for the second. So far, so good. But back to Milos, where we entered the Cyclades….
Obsidian (I think)Castle on Top of the hill
Our first visitors arrived in Athens within a couple of days of our arrival in Milos. We planned this so that they could spend a couple of days acclimating to the time change in Athens and see the Acropolis and anything else they wanted to see, then take a ferry to us in Milos. This worked perfectly as we were then “stuck” in Milos for several days while the Meltemi blew. We had several days of 35 knot winds during which travel would have been in violation of rule number 1 on Gratitude – “Keep the pleasure in pleasure boating”. That said, by the time they arrived, we were rested, ready and had some family time “in the bank” so that our week together was enjoyable.
MILOS
Milos is an amazing island and since I had never heard of it before this visit, I can only assume it is considerably underestimated. The southernmost island in the Cyclades Island group, located just north of Crete, it is known for its stunning beaches and is also famous for the location of the discovery of the Venus de Milo.
Fishing Village Finally… Jacks Legos Arrive!Accidental Side Trip! Stunning Beach Sarakiniko in Milos
We originally planned to anchor in the south of the island due to the prevailing Meltemi from the North but opted instead to try out the harbor as the journey around the island to collect our niece from the ferry would have been a long one. Surprisingly, the harbor was very comfortable and reasonably protected with the 30 knots of wind we encountered on several of the days we were there. This can only be attributed to the excellent holding of the anchor and the ‘flopper stoppers” we deployed to counter the effects of the swell. I don’t think we would have been any more comfortable at the marina and, In fact, as it was much warmer at the dock, I can only imagine we would have been far less so.
Fun Beach Find (Left Behind of Course)
The port town of Adamantas was busy but lovely and contained many shops, restaurants, and bakeries as well as a salon where Jack got his hair cut. He has been letting it grow long but found that it is interfering with the seal on his snorkel and mask, so he has decided to cut it. I love function over form, and I personally prefer his hair short, so this was a welcome change. We also toured the old caste near Trypiti, and after Ryan and Sarah arrived, we went to the fishing villages, Sarakiniko beach and the Catacombs. Discovered in 1844, The Catacombs of Milos are an ancient burial site for Christians as well as a place of worship during a time when it was dangerous for Christians to openly practice their religion.
Early Christian Catacomb
Wishing to avoid further delay, we opted to head to Folegandros, to wait out another weather opportunity for our planned destination of Thira (also known as Santorini).
FOLEGANDROS
A nice treat after a long hike…
A smaller island than Milos in terms of occupancy and historical sites, it more than made up for any perceived deficiencies in terms of beauty and hikes. We found a perfect little anchorage, again in the South, and out the path of the Meltemi but the surge was remarkable and probably given other circumstances, we may have gone elsewhere. Still, the flopper stoppers performed admirably and, mindful of lockers closed and locked, we had a wonderful stop. We were here for US Father’s day which we were happy to celebrate with Sarah and Ryan. The Chora in Folegandros was adorable and we found one of the best meals we have eaten there. And this little shop housed handmade toys and crafts that reflected the sweet nature of the shop owner and craftsman who made them.
Garlic as DecorationBest Toy Shop Ever!Celebrating the BEST FATHER EVER! We love you so Alec!!!
The final island on Sarah and Ryan’s itinerary and the place where we will continue to stay awaiting Kelly’s flight on Wednesday, we were fortunate to secure a mooring ball in Thirasia. Warned by multiple sources that the Infamous Thira – aka Santorini – would be difficult to manage in terms of anchorage or marina opportunities, Alec worked hard to find a suitable option for us. And here is why: Santorini is so incredibly well known that for us or our family to miss it -would be a shame. Added to that is the convenience of having an airport large enough to accommodate arrivals and departures from Athens. While we probably wouldn’t have planned a week here, this week is necessary between guests to clean the boat and hit the master reset on our family time. While we love having family and friends visit, having 2 back-to-back would fail to honor their visit with our best selves.
Iconic Santorini (Oia)
THIRA (SANTORINI) Anchoring… or not…
The island of Thira is a giant volcano which most recently erupted in a cataclysmic event in 1400 BC. For this reason, the mountains climb to 100 meters and descend to depths of 300 meters leaving little in the way of suitable anchorages. Not only are all the shallower depths littered with volcanic rock (not the best medium in which to anchor), the depth alone prohibits suitable anchoring. We typically use a scope of 5 to 1 meaning that in 300 meters of depth we would need more than 5000 feet of chain. So, you see the dilemma. There are also no marinas on either of the 2 islands. There ARE, however, mooring balls. Used primarily by the day tripper boats shuttling tourists from Thira to the smaller neighboring island across the caldera called Thirasia, the owner of the substantial mooring offered to rent it to us for several nights. Problem solved. We have the privilege of watching 5000 thousand daily tourists invade this tiny island of approximately 150 year-round inhabitants. Honestly, it’s not as bad as it sounds. They come to deliver people en masse to the handful of restaurants and have a little swim in the cool clear waters away from the main towns of Oia and Thira. I don’t blame them; the water is gorgeous and the respite from the busy streets a wonderful break. The cost of this service ranges from 1035.00 per person on the catamarans to 2200.00 for the faster speed boats. It includes lunch and drinks. I’m not sure what the charge is for the giant, filled to the rafters, tourist boats but for those lunch and drinks are not included.
But with Ryan and Sarah we only had 1 day to make the most of their visit here so with little time to spare, we enjoyed some traditional Greek music at a sweet small festival on Thirasia, and we went to Oia for the day.
Charming and quintessential, Oia is the lovely cliff top town on the North side of the island. The shops, though certainly catering to tourists, (and there are many that have the cookie cutter “evil eye “likely made in China), are many artist shops and special places that reflect the unique nature of Thira. The lovely and Jet set abound up and down the streets crammed with restaurants and those iconic white buildings with blue accented doors and domes. But it works. Arriving by dinghy at the port, we were all a bit daunted by the site of several hundred steps to the top but Laurie, Sarah and Ryan climbed up while Alec and Jack (worn out from our 2 very large and steep hikes in Folegandros) opted to take the donkey to the top.
Thirasia from above
There is a reason why Thira is the most famous and photographed island in Greece. There is simply no other place like it. End to end the island is only approximately 9 miles long but the interior Caldera is roughly 6 miles. Which is to say that much of the volume is water of depths exceeding 500-900 feet. Fascinating.
Following Ryan and Sarah’s departure, we spent a family day on the small boat, searching out snorkeling spots and in search of the famed “White” “Red” and Black” beaches. The “Red” Beach is probably the most famous and interesting with oxidized iron accounting for the red color of the cliffs.
Jack has spent some time building the huge project that Sarah delivered. Jack had ordered and paid for the immense Lego with birthday and job money months ago. And Alec and I have gotten caught up on some “life admin” tasks. Gratitude is all shiny and clean following an entire day spent cleaning her inside and out and we are ready for Kelly to arrive next week.
Correction: There are 18 UNESCO world Heritage sites in Greece as of 2021. The caves are still not on the list, however, there are far more than the 5 that I read about in my (clearly outdated) travel guide.
M/VGratitude 