The sails were returned and put
up on Friday. We plan to leave the marina Monday morning but there are still
some things outstanding. The
weather-fax was collected and sent to Istanbul for repair, it should
have been returned on Saturday. Now it will have to be sent on to one of the
ports we visit with the EMYR. We have been rather disappointed with the
weather-fax as it hasn’t worked since we were in
Portugal last
year. We are also waiting for a spare part to arrive so that we can fix the
problem with the inverters which keep blowing the trip. That will also have to
be sent on to us.
Things were getting a bit tetchy,
particularly as the lap-top wouldn’t connect to the local WiFi network and we
had to re-install the driver which had somehow ceased to function. We do need to
communicate with suppliers, family, friends and our crew. Without the on-line
facility, life is quite fraught.
The guys that fixed the
protective stainless steel frame over the water-maker, have drilled 2 holes
through the locker containing the water-maker, into the pristine gel-coat in the
main cabin. Even fixed, it will never be perfect again.
The SSB aerial, which we broke on
my birthday last year, has been mended and erected, and all of the safety
equipment has been attached to the guard-rail.
Dick has installed filters to the
outlet from the sink in the galley and from the washing machine so hopefully we
won’t be offensive should we use them on the rally.
The Perspex shelves, which have
been made with holes in, for storing the drinking glasses, were installed on
Friday. They should have been ready last Saturday but the chap who was making
them had problems. He even broke one of our heavy based glasses, much to Dick’s
chagrin.
As we have been so busy sorting
out the boat, we have tended to eat in the workers canteen which is frequented
by more yachties than workers. A good meal is served at lunchtime and early
evening at the amazing cost of 6YTL, equivalent to €3.
There is quite a large
live-aboard fraternity at Marmaris and they appear to have organized themselves
very well. Various entertainments take place in the evenings which include quiz
nights, karaoke, films, bowling, progressive suppers and barbecues. There are
regular excursions to art galleries, talks, ancient sites, concerts, shopping
expeditions etc. Every morning a group of people leave the marina at 7.30am for their daily constitution. There is a
network over the VHF for the exchange of information, led by one of several
different live-aboard folk. The net covers a variety of subjects such
as:-
People arriving or leaving,
birthdays and anniversaries, medical and dental problems, items for sale or
wanted, social events and taxi shares.
After the net, those listeners
who have an interest, contact the appropriate person. It seems to work admirably
and Dick has purchased and sold various items both via the morning network and
at the Saturday morning mini market, held by other yachties, who no longer
required these treasures of the bilge.
The German that threatened to
kill Klepto-cat, fell onto a piece of jagged fiberglass and sliced into his
upper arm. His wife bandaged the wound but he had to go to hospital to get it
stitched. It was a nasty wound and he has been told not to continue renovating
his boat for at least 12 days. He ignores the advice of course.
The owner of Klepto-cat lent us a
booster and aerial, to help us connect to the WiFi. At least we can now get
on-line. We have subsequently bought one of our own. How could we possibly post
this blog otherwise!
There is a ferry, which leaves
the marina every morning at 8.30, and takes the workers to Marmaris town. It is
free of charge and is also used by yachties. On Wednesday, we decided to take
advantage of this facility and duly arrived at the departure point with plenty
of time to spare. To our disappointment, the ferry, which takes about 20 minutes
to do the crossing, was full.
The frame on Dick’s glasses broke
on Saturday and made his life quite difficult. Fortunately, on Sunday, at the
local bazaar, we managed to get them repaired, and the lense refitted, for only
€5. Incredible!
