So far, we have joined in on the Sunday hikes and the music concerts. I (Marie) joined the morning women's walk group, aerobics and plan to get back into tennis. Yesterday, a group of women went to a Turkish Bath called a Humam. Certainly my first time and had a blast. After checking in, we were escorted to the changing room and then to the sauna followed by a cold Jacuzzi (I headed for a somewhat cool shower instead), followed by a Turkish loofah rub and then a soap massage. This was done in a large room with a huge marble platform where four attendants were stationed to complete your massage. After the soap massage, we headed up for our oil massage. I think I can get used to this pampering. Needless to say, this season's dry skin cells are history leaving behind a shiny layer of soft skin; hard to imagine the change.
Since we left Barcelona in April, we have traveled 3046 nautical miles. Since we left the US in 2000, we have traveled 11074 nautical miles.
Stay tuned for more fun from Zelda living in Park Kemer Marina, Turkey. Please let us hear from you at kc2gph@winlink.org. Oh, I forgot to mention that every liveaboard is given a free phone, phone line (you pay for your calls but the calls from boat to boat in the marina are free) and a cable TV connection; we haven't seen TV in about 2 years. We also signed up for access to the internet from our boat via superonline.com, eliminating the need for us to go to an internet café.
Stay well and have a Happy Thanksgiving. This November is a significant birthday for Terry-Happy Birthday Terry!!
We apologize for being remiss in updating our web page. Before we realized it, it was several months since we last updated all of you who follow our journey.
We arrived in late October at Park Kemer Marina, Kemer, Turkey, our wintering marina about 45 minutes from the city of Antalya. We were amazed to find that there are varied types of activities that one can join, if desired. For example, aerobics, tennis, hiking, symphonies, movies, lectures, special dinners, happy hours, picnics, Turkish lessons, skiing and so on. We felt a bit overwhelmed by all the options until we were able to sift through them as to which ones to join in while leaving time for the many boat projects we had planned for this winter. Birthdays and anniversaries are celebrated in the Marina with a cake, including candles and singing. All major holidays are celebrated with a grand dinner, dancing and ceremony. The marina staff is very helpful and pleasant. For the most part, they speak very good English and are eager to help out.
About half of the 100 wintering boats leave their boats and head to their home for the winter. However, we had over 50 permanent liveaboard boats here for the entire winter. These liveaboards are from all parts of the world; Australia, England, Scotland, Sweden, Austria, Germany, Holland, France, Denmark and the US. The weather during the winter months was cooler than we expected and much wetter. It would sometimes rain for weeks at a time without a let up. The weather now is finally stabilizing with longer, warmer sunny days and warmer evenings. Throughout the winter, we took part in several of the interesting hikes to well-preserved historic sites. These trips are very popular with sometimes 30 people joining in. There is always a volunteer liveaboard who leads the trips and provides a bit of history.
We began a morning marina net that started at 8 am. Marie became the net manager and the Monday morning net control. The net ran everyday with international net controllers responsible for running the net It provided a five-day weather forecast, daily and weekly activities, trips, signups, things for sale, where to find this or that, etc.
Besides all the boat projects, we set aside time to explore the beautiful country of Turkey and some of its customs. First of all, a popular treat is to go to a Hamam (Turkish bath and massage). I went with a few other women and had a fun day. After changing into typical plaid cloth wrap (pestemal), we sat in the sauna followed by a cool dousing of water. Then into the elaborate hamam (baths) room where the attendant douses you with warm water and then scrubs your entire body with a coarse mitten (like a loufa). After this, you are lathered with a sudsy towel and then rinsed off. (Where did all that dry skin come from!) Then, up to the oil massage room for a relaxing massage. Well worth the time; it was my first and look forward to doing it again. All for the price of $15.
Soon after we arrived, we teamed up with four other friends and rented a minivan. We drove about 8 hours to the famous Cappadocia. Three volcanoes erupted as much as 10 million years ago. The eruptions spread a thick layer of hot volcanic ash over the region, which hardened into a soft, porous stone call tuff. Over eons of time, wind, water and sand erosion wore away portions of the tuff, carving it into elaborate shapes. The result was a column or cone of tuff with a boulder perched on top, these are referred to a fairy chimney. Entire valleys are filled with these formations (see the photos). We hired a young local guide who took us to see all the important forms and valleys; needless to say it was an incredible place like no other we have seen before.
We also had the opportunity to see the whirling dervishes (see photo); they whirl continuously for 10 minutes with their heads slanted to one side, arms and palms upward to receive the blessings of heaven. This is a traditional ritual dance representing union with God. They wear long white robes and full skirts. Upon their heads they wear conical felt hats that represent their tombstones.
Turkey has some of the most well preserved ruins. Around the time of Christmas, we visited Demre which was once a Roman city of Myra. It was important enough that it had its own bishop, one of who was named St. Nicholas, later called Santa Claus. Here we visited the Church of St. Nicholas (Noel Baba in Turkish). Next, Myra with its striking honeycomb of rock Lycian tombs and well-preserved Roman theatre.
The Chimaera was another hiking trip where we found clusters of spontaneous flames that blaze from crevices on the rocky slopes of Mt. Olimpos. The gas seeps from the earth and bursts into flame upon contact with the air. The exact composition of the gas is unknown, but thought to contain some methane. There are about 20-30 flames to see. Although we visited during the daytime, the best time is visit is after dark
Another weekend hike took us to Phaselis, a ruined Lycian city. Surrounded by pines, the ruins are arranged around three small perfect bays