Filed August 13, 2008 at 2:46 pm under Boating by Administrator
This morning the agent came and said that we are going through the canal today! We aren’t organized, haven’t even seen port Said at all, and really would rather stay a day. On the other hand, the ‘marina’ is filthy, there is wash all the time from big ships and there are no showers for women. Anyway, no-one seems to be asking our opinion.
The measurer came, and oren gave him the obligatory $20 baksheesh. Now he has gone to pay, and we will find out how much it is. I have got black coffee and snacks ready, and soon we will be off. The vhf seems to be working today, the navigation lights still not. No time to go up the mast though.
Filed at 2:44 pm under Boating by Administrator
I am writing this in the nasty, polluted yacht harbour of Port Said, and however horrible it is, I am glad to be here. We had a difficult journey here, to say the least. First of all, the wind was against us all the way, and raised a lumpy, uncomfortable sea. Secondly, we had quite a few problems; a kink in a sea water cooling pipe caused pressure to build up until the band was forced off and we suddenly had a massive pipe pumping seawater into the engine room, while the engine overheated at the same time, of course this happened at 2 o’clock in the morning. We acted quickly though, Oren closing the seacock while I turned the engine off, and pumped the bilge, as usual. We thought the head gasket might have blown, and meanwhile set a course under sail north-west, thinking that we would have to return to Ashkelon. However, after letting the engine cool down enough to work on it, Oren fixed the pipes which had variously blown apart, melted or become distorted, and we cautiously started up. Amazingly everything was ok, and we turned back round. We had gone back quite a few miles, and this, together with the wind, made what should have been a day and a half into a three day journey, all of it beating to windward. The next problem was that the navigation lights stopped working, a bit worrying when you are sailing through an area with lots and lots of big ships! So we got an old round engine light, and coloured it red and green with felt tips and oil crayons, and stuck it on the mast. Then for desserts, when we got close to Port Said the vhf stopped working! So we just followed the navigation marks and steamed in, and everything was fine- a pilot came along in a launch and hopped on, and showed us where to tie up. And so we are here, despite everything! We still can’t go and call home, because our passports haven’t been returned yet, so we will have to wait until tomorrow.
Filed August 5, 2008 at 7:28 am under Boating by Administrator
We can hardly believe that the time to leave has finally arrived! After loads of farewell parties, we will finally leave on Friday morning, bound for Port Said and the Suez canal. There we expect to wait at least a day or two before getting all the paperwork done.
The last few weeks have been hectic; we had the mast down for inspection and to change some of the rigging, the autopilot went on the blink again and I fixed it (again), we tried the spinnaker for the first time and for an extra bit of spice, the shaft broke! Yes, broke in two as we were maneuvering inside the marina! That had to be the best bit of luck there is, because if it had waited just a bit longer, we would have been in the Suez Canal, far from any workshop and at the mercy of the Suez canal tugboats, the only ones allowed to tow yachts in the canal. Now it is fixed, and as I write this the engine ( good engine, nice engine, there there) is running for the third hour at 2500 rpm, and seems (tfoo tfoo, knock on wood, hamsa hamsa) to be ok.
We have been in touch with Felix, the agent for the canal- fees have gone up as a result of the canal authority changing to Euros, unfortunately, but he will be waiting for us. We have clearance from the police to leave, and the marina fees are paid. That just leaves the actual stamp, which we will get at 7 in the morning on Friday. We also have all our visas, all the injections and lots of antibiotics and Immodium ( thank you Mum and Dad for the reminder!) We even found time to get the dog clipped, and she looks really great! AND I have photocopied our passports,visas,credit cards and driving licenses,and written on the photocopy the phone number in case of theft or loss of credit cards! Amazing, for me!
Oren holding the mast up!!!
Last farewells
And beautiful Sheva!
Filed June 15, 2008 at 5:06 am under Boating by Administrator
We’re back, after a hard years work, and getting ready to leave. I have enjoyed working in the ICCU in Barzilai Hospital, and Oren has also had a good year teaching Bedouin to drive. We have both made many friends and will be sad to leave them. However, spring has brought the usual crop of Red Sea boats to the marina, and awakened our dormant urge to be on the way.
Our target is to leave on the 1st of August for Suez, and to scoot down to Eritrea as quickly as possible. After cruising in the really untouched waters there, we will try to catch the best weather window and do a non-stop leg to Cochin. Alternatively, we may stop in Goa, we will see.
So, are we ready? Oh yes, apart from needing to change the rigging, get engine spares, get visas, get the dog vaccinated…..
Meanwhile, some food for thought……
Filed February 19, 2007 at 7:03 am under Boating by Administrator
After a week on the sidelines, I’m back, and up to actually running non-stop ( really!) for thirty minutes! At the end of that time, I’m almost out of the marina gate!
No, really, I am still pretty slow, but can almost do a 10 minute mile, which is a personal best, seeing as I have never run a mile before. In fact I remember at school being intimidated by the track, which looked (to my adolescent eyes) at least 10 miles long. In fact I couldn’t even see the other side of the loop. Well, I was short sighted, after all, and also short legged. All the slender, long legged girls would take off like a shot, leaving me chuffing along at the back.
Not surprizing that it has taken me until now, at the age of 44, to run again, but actually I think I was probably badly served at school. First of all, towards the end of the 400 metres ( which was the longest race we ever ran) I was usually gaining on the field, and still had the stamina to keep running, while many of the faster runners crossed the line on their last legs. Secondly, we had no running coaching at all, and no encouragement to try different distances. The fact is that most of the best long distance runners are hopeless at sprinting, and most sprinters can’t keep up a good pace over more than 5k, but no-one bothered to tell me that, so I just assumed that running wasn’t for me.
I may not be particularly fast, but I am definitely getting closer to average, the further I run. As I lengthen the distance, something interesting becomes apparent- the first mile is the hardest, not the last, no matter how far I go. It takes that long just to convince my body that I am serious, and will not give in to the long list of demands it presents ( I can’t breathe, my left leg hurts, I have a stomach ache, let’s just stop a bit, walking is nice too, it’s too hot today, it’s too windy, my right leg hurts….). After that first mile, breathing suddenly gets easier, and my legs tend to get ungummed and really able to run, as though my body has resigned itself to my strange whim yet again, and has decided to just get it over with.
So, basically, what I really was getting round to saying is that on Friday I did my first ‘long run’, a once weekly run which gets longer each week. I ran 6.4k ( 4 miles) in 51′ 20” , and felt wonderful at the end. Oren did it in about 30′, and was upset because he has a personal best to live up to, unfortunately. ( He ran 5 and 10 k when he was 18.) The dog finished with me, and was in shock from the whole thing. Dogs aren’t great marathon runners, apparently. Next week is 8k ( 5 miles), I hope the dog doesn’t die.
As concerns sailing, cruising and general boating- well, it’s winter, but soon spring will get here, and our feet will be itching again. Mean-time, Hillel, Orens son, is hardy enough to go kayaking and dragged his father along at the weekend!
Filed January 29, 2007 at 6:55 am under Boating by Administrator
Well, I may be out of the Olympics. Sheva can’t understand what has happened to her new 5k runs- she was actually up to about 10k, with all her running back and to, and was even starting to get a little winded. Yes, we were up to 5k, running 30 minutes at a time. Now I am reduced to sitting with my feet up ( poor me) and NO RUNNING for at least the next week or two. I have been laid low by an Achilles tendon injury, probably as a result of running up a steep incline.
Of course, I didn’t stop running until I had ignored it for three days, and got to the stage where I couldn’t walk, let alone run. So, it will now take a while to get better, but fear not, this is temporary! After all, there is still a long time before the marathon- nearly a year still, so actually it is a good thing that the injuries are happening now, and not later.
After surfing the web for advice, it turns out, firstly that there is a lot of rubbish on the web. Some sites claim that you can keep running, others say that you should rest for 6 weeks. Some claim that static stretching is best, others recommend dynamic stretching. The best article I found was in www.thestretchinghandbook.com, and deals with the whole process of injury and return to running. I liked the optimistic view that proper treatment can result in the tendon being as strong as or stronger than it was before the injury. According to this site, there are several important stages in treating an achilles injury, the most important things being;
1) No weight bearing activities ( unfortunately had to do the shopping though) until it doesn’t hurt.
2) Ice and rest for the first three days.After the first three days a hot water bottle and deep massage ( very nice even if you don’t have an injury, actually)
3) Stretching carefully to keep the range of movement.
4) Gradually working up to full fitness with exercises to strengthen and loosen leg muscles and regain power.
The most annoying thing about having to miss running is that Oren is meanwhile skipping like a large gazelle round his 5k route, and has had no trouble at all, despite skimping on his stretching, completely disregarding his heart beat target range and doing any hill he feels like at a sprint. He is also getting better at chess than me, which just adds insult to injury.
Filed January 2, 2007 at 7:40 am under Boating by Administrator
Winter has finally arrived, even in Ashkelon. We were hopeful that being this far south we would escape most of the rain, but of course, this year unusual weather patterns have made Ashkelon one of the rainiest areas in Israel! However, winter is late arriving, and only December has really started to be cold and wet, with the last cormorants still migrating south until last week. We are snug and dry under our winter tarpaulin, double mooring ropes secure Chasamba and Sheva has her corner under the sprayhood arranged to her satisfaction.
Ashkelon is one of the best fishing areas in Israel, and this week the white tuna arrived in huge shoals- the fishermen catch them in strong nets, and the delicious smell of barbecued fresh tuna wafts over to us from their wharf. We catch crabs- small but delicious- and try whatever the fishermen have brought in- this is a baby shark which was tasty in a garlic and red wine sauce, and fed three adults and Sheva!
Christmas was nice- Orens parents kindly volunteered their house, oven and crockery, and the turkey was really good. My traditional chestnut stuffing was enjoyed as usual, and Russian champagne was as good as ever. Christmas here is a bit different to England though- no-one has the day off because it isn’t a Jewish holiday, so the kids were all at school until Christmas dinner, and opened their presents after that. ( Actually this may be an improvement, it certainly makes cooking easier!)
So now we are setting out on another year, a year in which we will probably be tied up most of the time, although I hope we will at least get over to Turkey, Greece and Cyprus in the holidays. I have an article due to appear in Yachting Monthly- about our shaft falling out in Turkey, get it and see!, and plan to start writing full time. Oren is working as a driving teacher again, but rest assured, this is temporary only, and we will soon be off again, we have no intention of getting dragged back into the rat race. ( Only the marathon race, ha ha ha.)
Yes, you heard right-in the mean time I have an intermediate goal- to run a marathon. The one I am going for is the Tiberius marathon, held at the start of January each year. ( I’m going for next years race, in case anyone was wondering.) At the moment I can run about 3 kilometers, so I will hopefully build on that base gradually through the year. Why do it?
1) Because its now or never!
2) Getting a bit chubby.
3) Just read about a 61 year old Israeli woman who won the Ironman contest.
4) Because everyone has got used to me living on a yacht and realise that I probably will sail round the world, so I need a new reason for people to think I’m crazy.
I will update you on my progress weekly ( well, lets face it, probably monthly.)
Filed November 1, 2006 at 6:34 am under Boating by Administrator
To get back on to the subject of sailing… We have been back in Israel for months, and I thought it might be nice to get up to date with our Turkish adventures. So…
After leaving Marmaris, ( by the way, the prices at Yatmarin have risen considerably, but are still a good bargain) we set out with the hope of getting to Buzuk Buku, a good anchorage near the end of the first of the long fingers of rock which make cruising so much fun in this area. Of course, the meltemi had other ideas, and we got blown half way back to Marmaris in 40 knot headwinds before managing to find shelter in the bay behind Ciftlik Adasi for the night.
The next day we were up early ( for a change!) and managed to get past Karaburun, the point at which we could change course enough to sail against the meltemi. We had motored for 3 hours, since there was no wind, as usual in the morning. As we passed Karaburun we cut the engine to use the breeze, and sighed with relief. Naturally, the shaft fell out again ten minutes later. This time it fell all the way out, and Oren had to jump into the engine room and hold his hand over the hole like the little dutch boy with the dyke, while I pumped water out and brought epoxy cement to fix the leak. After this amusing episode, we managed to sail to Bozburun, one of our favorite places, and anchored under sail among about 10 yachts in the only place shallow enough to anchor- no mean feat, since the manouvering room was about the same as a small parking space in the middle of city. Understandably, we stayed for a few days to rest and eat as many sheep as possible, while Oren carried out more repairs. This time, he assured me, he was positive that he had fixed the problem.
So, after plowing through most of the local lamb, and one goat which we got palmed off with, we set out on our quest to get to Datcha.
Guess what. Yes, in the middle of the Gulf of Hisaronu, the shaft fell out. Again. By this time we were starting to get used to it, and just stuffed an old tea towel in the hole. Oren did his diving in and tying the shaft on to the cutlass bearing bit, and we got to Datcha anyway. It was a bit annoying having to tack fifteen million times to get into the anchorage next to the harbour, but we were starting to get used to that too.
Datcha is a really nice place, and has a very upmarket feel. The slump affecting tourism all over Turkey is quite evident here, and most of the harbour front restaurants were empty and had reduced prices. Datcha has never been a big tourist centre though, because it is quite a long way from airports and until recently had no decent road leading to it. It is one of the nicest areas for a spring or autumn holiday in Turkey, and is one of the smartest little towns we saw. We anchored free outside the harbour, and took the dog ( and ourselves ) to shore on the kayak- this not only saves money but is much cooler, since the wind blows over the hills behind town and keeps the anchorage cool while the harbour scorches in the summer sun.
There are lots of up market restaurants in Datcha, but the best place to eat was recommended to us by the locals. It serves traditional Turkish food, and the best way to choose your dinner is to go into the kitchen and look at the pans. We had meatballs, chicken soup and lamb stew there, and enjoyed it much more than the tourist restaurants which try to serve international dishes and generally fail at the diners expense.
Datcha is close to Knidos, one of the largest and best known of ancient ruins, and gulets leave every day to take tourists on day trips there and back.
There is a spring which constantly fills a shallow lake where locals swim- the water is cool and fresh, and lots of fish swim round you. On the bank there is a little bar-restaurant serving tea and light meals.
We enjoyed Datcha, and stayed for a week. Unfortunately, there are no yacht repair facilities there, so we had to carry on under sail alone to Bodrum. But thats a story for next week!
Filed October 20, 2006 at 9:54 am under Boating by Administrator
Its been a while since I updated Chasamba, and there is a reason for this- we have been moving house! Well, actually, its not really moving house as such, thank goodness, just a leisurely sail down the Israeli coast from Haifa, past Herzliya and Tel Aviv to the southernmost marina in Ashkelon.
Ashkelon marina seems to be a really nice place, with friendly and competent staff, a travel lift, good showers and clean water, a wifi network and reasonable connections to the town, which is quite close. It is a big improvement on the Kishon marina we spent last winter in, both because of the facilities and because the weather this far south is a lot better.
Ashkelon is an interesting place, with a rich past. It changed hands repeatedly in ancient times, and was one of the five cities of the Philistines. Later it was the birthplace of Herod, who made it into a prosperous sea port. Richard the Lion Heart and Saladin traded blows here, and eventually the Mamluk sultan Baybars 1 destroyed it completely. In modern times the city was occupied by Egyptian forces after Israels declaration of independance, and won back by General Yigal Alon in Operation Yoav. So there is a lot of history here, and quite a lot of remains, which we are planning to spend a winter studying. The first place we will start will be the Ashkelon National Park, which has remains from several different periods, and after that there are several archeological sites in the middle of town.
The other big find here is the sea life. Ashkelons coast is teeming with fish and crabs, and snorkeling is amazing. There are more fish here than we saw in the whole of Turkey! Yesterday we saw someone catch a 5 kilo tuna with a spear gun, only yards from the breakwater. So it looks as though Ashkelon will be fun!
Filed September 3, 2006 at 3:07 am under Boating by Administrator
Well, first of all, I’d like to say that I don’t want to see another lamb bone or piece of fat for at least a year. I actually got to the stage of not knowing what to do with it all, after all, there is only so much a dog can eat, and we don’t have pockets. I tried hiding some of it under the cockpit cushions, but that didn’t make me very popular for some reason.
Most sailing is quite boring, which is good. I go to sleep and hope we will be there when I wake up, which usually works, but sometimes they decide to sail on one side for some reason, and keep flapping the white bits of cloth they hang up. This is annoying, especially if I’m sleeping on the deck, as they hit me on the head. I think they do it on purpose sometimes. When I’m trying to sleep off several kilos of sheep bone it drives me mad.
But to be honest its not such a bad life, really, although I would prefer not to do the long bit where I don’t get off for 4 days. On the bright side, I improved my swimming technique this year. My swimming technique is mostly actually wading, with a little bit of panicking and scrabbling, but this year I added lying in shallow bits, and got quite good at it.
For some reason they aren’t keen on me sharing the nice cool mud I bring out with me.
Its hard to understand humans sometimes, after all, they went and did the same thing themselves;
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