What an exit out of the Dardanelles. The wind came up out of the North East and as we put our nose round the southern point of the Galipolli Peninsula we were hit by very strong wind and a very confused sea. The strong current did not help. Malua was tossed around in no uncertain terms. It took us a few minutes to put two reefs in the main and to furl the genoa. Of course things did not go to plan and we had to struggle to get it right. After a few minutes we had the wind aft of the beam and we were reaching at 9 knots touching 11 at times towards Greece. Limnos was our port of entry.
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After passing north up the Dardanelles we sailed across the Sea of Marmara and finally arrived in Istanbul.
The Challenge is to find a safe inexpensive place to leave Malua.
Istanbul
We found an ideal spot for our style of cruising. It is in a small swimming bay just at the mouth of the Yesilkoy harbour. The holding is good although there is not much room. I put two anchors down to restrict our swing and as a precaution. We take the RIB into the harbour and leave it along side a yacht. The train station is only ten minutes walk up the road through a rather upmarket suburb. We purchased an Akbil travel taken which is like an Oyster card so we could ride all the public transport without paying each time. The trains are on their last legs, not full but do they rattle. The metro on the other hand is air conditioned, new and crowded.
We criss crossed the city to get to the different sights and had a great time.
Images of the anchorage
The different mosques are rather grand but dull compared to the catholic churches but used. The Mullah's singing at the prayers is just wonderful. Looking someway like a Turk I can get into the prayer sessions so I have an opprtunity to hear them in full unamplified voice along with all the movement of the believers. An experience to rememeber.
The Topkapi Palace is also grand but not very well presented. The Topkapi dagger with its three emerald stones in the handle is just in a hole in the wall while the Spoonmaker's diamond is very poorly lit. The best pieces are without a doubt the Chinese porcelain especially the green, white and of cource the blue ming bowls. The best collection in the world they say.
The archaelogical Museum leaves a lot to be desired but most of the best pieces are in someone else's possestion.
We visited a number of carpet shops who gave us a different spiel every time as to why they are better than the rest. One was married to a very Australian lady and their daughter came right out of Sydney until she started to try to sell you something and you realised that trading is in your blood. They were a bit put out when I told them my son worked for a dealer in Canberra. Well we all agreed that the carpets were not of the quality they use to be and it is getting more difficult to get good value. The tea and orange juise is always good and we didn't purchase anything!
The trip up the Bosphorus is a must especially on the TDI (IDO) ferry 17.50YTL pier three at 10:35. One can get off at Anadolu Kavagi to walk up the hill to the Byzantine fortress and to look into the Black Sea. The Mussels and Calamari at the fish restaurants are very good. Having done the tour I dont think it now requires us to sail up the crowded, choppy and dirty waterway just to be in the Black Sea.
Images of Istanbul
Images of Bosphorus
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The Marble sea: well it sure is not as flat as a piece of marble. We entered it via the Dardanelles and the wind and current were against us most of the way.
Sea of Marmara
We entered from the Asean side of the Dardanelles and started to sail again after motoring for two long days.
It was great. The sea was choppy but the wind direction did not make the sailing easy.
We deceided to skip the island of Avsa Adasi due to the lack of good places to stay and headed for Pasalimani Adasi.
The pilot notes that the western entrace should be negociated with care and someone on the bow because Rod Heikell put his boat on top a charted reef!
Entering the area we could see the shallows and the south cardinal mark but no dangers. The port mark was obvious but a lone black mark seemed in the wrong place until
I relised the cone on the top was a starboard mark so we soon changed course and entered a wide shallow bay lined with a few houses set in to hamlets Parsalimani and Harmanlis.
The former has a very stunted spire to the mosque. We anchoed in 9m to the west of the hamlet which turned out not to be such a great idea because
the swell enteres the bay, hits you on the beam. Not an uncoumfortable night but enough to make one move opposite the mosque the next day. We went ashore and found the bakery but no baker.
A young girl let us in and we purchased two great loaves. Hope they were not designated for one of the local families.
Marmara Adasi
We left Pasalimini the next day and shot down wind towards Port Marmara which has a narrow entrance and very little room. We anchored out next to a German boat who had returned from sailing round the world via Oz and SA. The town has a great feel about it. The harbour undertakes repairs to local vessels by dragging them up the hard on two sledges. We saw no mavna vessels just ferries, fishing boats and the odd local yacht. The Thursday market is good although small.
Saraylar
The marble quarries dominate the mountainside above the town and the bay has many empty freighters waiting to be loaded with large blocks of marble. We anchored in a bay NE of the town. It is sheltered but the swell rolls round the point and we had to put out a sterm anchor to settle the boat. The town is creating a swimming beach in the bay with a roped off area, a diving platfoem, shows and fresh water all fringed by a marble faced wall.
Images of the Sea of Marmara
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