I am currently stuck in the middle of the Aegan Sea. Not to worry, I believe we are anchored near the shore (it’s dark and I’m not entirely sure any more. We were at last light, though). We’re in Knidos, if you need to inform anyone. JUST KIDDING. Obviously we made it safely to a semi-working wifi spot if I’m posting this. Meanwhile, whilst we’re stuck I’ll just try focusing on this and not panicking.
We’re really not stuck, by the way. Docked for the night is the official term, however, I cannot reach landfall without getting wet or rowing myself in—and even if I did, there’s not a lot around except one dodgy looking restaurant, a lot of sheep, a few passing headlights, ancient ruins and a huge sundial…so I will stick to my story of being stuck.
Today didn’t start out so bad—we left Greece to make our way back to Turkey. We got to Datça, a city in the middle of the Datça peninsula, which we have to sail around in order to get to Bodrum. Once again, the Captain and our passports left the vessel. This time we had no instructions to stay on board, so we disembarked and rambled about the town for about an hour. Our passports magically returned, we had lunch, and then headed back out to begin our sail west and then north to stop at, what we believed to be another small sea-side village at the tip of the peninsula, called Knidos. Turns out, it’s just a dodgy looking restaurant surrounded by ruins, hills, and a lot of sheep. The bay was pretty full by the time we got there, so we dropped anchor in the middle and were going to moor on the empty side. Turns out it’s private property and we can’t tie down there. Also we discover that the motor in our dingy boat no longer is working properly and the poor crew members had to row all the way to shore, get yelled at by the locals, and row their way back to the boat to convey the message (although the owner was shouting loudly at the time, so we pretty much got the gist).
Another boat kindly offered us use of their dingy for the price of 4€ each person. No thanks. So we spent the afternoon napping, reading, writing, playing cards, backgammon, etc, anything to distract from the fact that we couldn’t (without much effort or money) leave the boat. At this point, I know you’re thinking why not just pay the 4€? But it was the principle of the matter. The Captain and crew weren’t offering to pay either, which is a rant for a very long informative email to the tour company.
Overall, it’s been a relaxing day and a complete opposite of the jam-packed beginning of the tour.
As I lay here listening the lapping of the water, I realize that with (proper phone and internet service of course) I could easily pack it all up and move here. There is something inherently charming about the laid-back lifestyle of a small sea-side village, miles and miles of sea from anything resembling a city. No hustle, no bustle, no worries. Just so long as I don’t have to spend any more nights anchored in the middle of a bay, with limited options for getting to shore.
Does make one who loves to travel appreciate the modern conveniences of airplanes, as well as motorized vehicles for that matter. Now, off to bed to enjoy the serenity and something you rarely see in NYC—stars :)
:-P SHEZ
