Up early today (Wednesday 21 September) to get yoga done and outta here to catch the boat Aviva 2 at 10am to be taken on the “12 Island” tour out from Gocek. Its a little cloudy but still beautifully warm. I get to the boat about 9.40am, buy my ticket for 40 TL (about AUD $23); get a spot on the top deck, planting myself at the front in a bean bag; and sent my dear brother a Happy Birthday message before the day ended in Australia! There’s a lot to be said about bean bags on a boat...very comfortable! Those that crewed along side me to Tasmania the year I thought making a bean bag mattress for sleeping on may not agree! Unfortunately the bag burst, right about the same time we broke the boom and those pesky little beans just get in everywhere, bilges, bunks, fridge, toothbrush holder, trouser pockets! Mostly unintentionally but sometimes intentionally...sorry Keith... :)! Anyway, on board this vessel (not a yacht) this was a sturdy, much used, outdoor bean bag so no fear of it bursting. The day started with apple tea and we left dock about 10.30am. This was another tour recommended by Sheila and Graham. There were about 30 people on board from all over the world.
There were five stops along the way including Cleopatra’s Bath (where she is rumoured to have bathed with her lover, Antony), Bedri Rahmi, Aquarium Bay, Ancient Shipyard and Pancake Island. So I guess the other seven islands are ones where we entered bays or went close to on our way to our stops. I hadn’t really expected to stop 12 times and it is a beautiful area to travel around by boat. When we had stopped it was for about 30 minutes in each bay for swimming and snorkelling. The lunch stop was one hour and a delicious lunch of fresh fish and salad is served (or you could have chicken). The meal was ended with Turkish delight which I would usually say no to as Im sure I don’t like it. This day I decided to try it and whaddya know, I actually like it! And you think you know yourself...:)
The snorkelling was just okay in these places. Highlights included an enormous school of smallish silvery clear fish that swam around me for ages and kept coming back; Cleopatra’s bath; the dramatic sheer drop offs underwater in these places; the ever favourite trumpet fish, this one quite large; and the bright red underwater caterpillar thingy just like the one shown in this photo. http://projektionstudios.deviantart.com/art/Underwater-Caterpillar-139949683 It was about 10cm long and looked really pretty against an otherwise grey backdrop. I watched it move around the rocks for ages. It was the first time I had seen one of these.
It got quite windy as the afternoon progressed so some adjustments were made to the itinerary. Quite good ones though so each place we stopped was calm and serene compared to the quite unsettled conditions outside. Freshly cut watermelon was served for afternoon tea and more apple tea. Yes alcohol was available on board but I abstained, imagine that!
On the way home I stopped at my local, Dice Cafe as I hadn’t been for a couple of days to have a wine and some sarma (stuffed vine leaves). To my surprise, the gorgeous waiter was very chatty and ignored calls from his boss several times to continue chatting. I had mentioned to my friend Steve that I thought most Turkish men were quite gorgeous so I was quite happy about this. I think I may have scared him off when I told Yassem (?) I was 50 as he is only 35...darn it! Anyway I am blaming the threatening rain for interrupting us. As I drank my wine the wind strengthen and it was all hands in to batten down the hatches as this little cafe is right on the water. Cest la vie.
I made it home before the downpour which was really heavy! There was a bit of battening down the home hatches when it hit. Then the power went off but Necati (the fixer of all things at Safir) sorted that out quite quickly. It appears it is meant to rain tomorrow as well and then clear. I cant really complain, can I, one day or maybe two out of 20...:)!!
Up early today (Wednesday 21 September) to get yoga done and outta here to catch the boat Aviva 2 at 10am to be taken on the “12 Island” tour out from Gocek. Its a little cloudy but still beautifully warm. I get to the boat about 9.40am, buy my ticket for 40 TL (about AUD $23); get a spot on the top deck, planting myself at the front in a bean bag; and sent my dear brother a Happy Birthday message before the day ended in Australia! There’s a lot to be said about bean bags on a boat...very comfortable! Those that crewed along side me to Tasmania the year I thought making a bean bag mattress for sleeping on may not agree! Unfortunately the bag burst, right about the same time we broke the boom and those pesky little beans just get in everywhere, bilges, bunks, fridge, toothbrush holder, trouser pockets! Mostly unintentionally but sometimes intentionally...sorry Keith... :)! Anyway, on board this vessel (not a yacht) this was a sturdy, much used, outdoor bean bag so no fear of it bursting. The day started with apple tea and we left dock about 10.30am. This was another tour recommended by Sheila and Graham. There were about 30 people on board from all over the world. 
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