The plan was to be the meet sojourn at Oludeniz and she had left at dawn to avoid the wind on the nose in the motor up the coast. she had made good time and decided to carry on to Fethiye and we would transfer there. We decided that the "best beach in Turkey was worth a look as the pilot, any travel brochures and countless articles allude to its blue lagoon and fine sand beach. some talk of development but the photos showed a stunning sand spit guarding a lagoon entrance with a sparse number of bodies on the beach.
Fletch had a conference call so sat off and we took the RIB to explore the beaches of the sea side and lagoon.
All yachts were banned from the lagoon for some time, we didn't realise that in fact all motor powered boats of all sizes weer banned. we pulled up in the water sports lane tied off and greeted by a couple of guys who needed to sell us tickets to the beach.
Fletch had a conference call so sat off and we took the RIB to explore the beaches of the sea side and lagoon.
All yachts were banned from the lagoon for some time, we didn't realise that in fact all motor powered boats of all sizes weer banned. we pulled up in the water sports lane tied off and greeted by a couple of guys who needed to sell us tickets to the beach.
The beach was extremely commercial, entrance turnstiles with tokens just like the public transport system of Istanbul. Acres of mainly English tourists in all sizes lazed on their ticketed loungers as far as the eye could see. Tape marked the access lanes to the water and signs proclaimed it was illegal to sit between the rows. This was a serious beach scene.
We explored the isthmus which gave the impression of being a cross between a Normandy camping ground and a British holiday camp complete with people running back to their designated places with the hot chips paid for a t one kiosk, ordered at another and picked up from the Que point somewhere else.
We taxied across the top of the lagoon in the hot midday sun to get a look at the other side. We thought it looked better. We were wrong.Here at beaches variously known as "Sugar Beach" each with a glamorous hoarding showing blue lagoon and dolphins we went looking for the elusive views of the brochures. They were not to be found. Here it was even more down market with a Balkan look to the rows of very small cabins among the trees and the beach made the worst of Denarau look like Bondi.
There was no blue lagoon. at best a still pond and stretch of water that cried desperately to breath and change but it wasn't happening.
We headed back to Ocean Free and started for Fethiye. As Don conned the boat through the increasing traffic Gend and I went into rapid housekeeping mode on our quarters.
Fethiye has a different look at the same time a large busy service town but still from the sea retaining that coastal village that grew look. We transferred to Sojourn and received the usual Blackman welcome to a well prepared cabin with gifts and they were pleased to have us on board.We relaxed in the cockpit and talked, we would meet ocean Free for dinner in the town and they roughly mapped out the next few days.
Ross and I needed to find an ATM, me more than him and we strolled the town receiving every message on their menu's...not enough funds for transaction, blank screens, blank responses, and for Rosco a heart stopping three minutes of complete close down with card firmly embedded were the screen faded a Microsoft down load box appeared transferring at an agonisingly slow rate then disappeared to first a root directory screen then just plain old fashioned black. Sayonara card. Ross is used the ways of the med. He waited and out of no where a brief gasp of electronic life as if rested and a card thrust out into the evening light. Words were not necessary we looked at each other, breathed deeply and moved on.
Dinner was the usual but the company was good and it was a new town. The restaurant would not have looked out of place in Stow on the Wold Cotswolds. it was called the duck pond complete with old stone wall ducks and pigeons and a green pond enlivened by a tapped into fire hydrant gushing continuously into its dark waters.
We explored the isthmus which gave the impression of being a cross between a Normandy camping ground and a British holiday camp complete with people running back to their designated places with the hot chips paid for a t one kiosk, ordered at another and picked up from the Que point somewhere else.
We taxied across the top of the lagoon in the hot midday sun to get a look at the other side. We thought it looked better. We were wrong.Here at beaches variously known as "Sugar Beach" each with a glamorous hoarding showing blue lagoon and dolphins we went looking for the elusive views of the brochures. They were not to be found. Here it was even more down market with a Balkan look to the rows of very small cabins among the trees and the beach made the worst of Denarau look like Bondi.
There was no blue lagoon. at best a still pond and stretch of water that cried desperately to breath and change but it wasn't happening.
We headed back to Ocean Free and started for Fethiye. As Don conned the boat through the increasing traffic Gend and I went into rapid housekeeping mode on our quarters.
Fethiye has a different look at the same time a large busy service town but still from the sea retaining that coastal village that grew look. We transferred to Sojourn and received the usual Blackman welcome to a well prepared cabin with gifts and they were pleased to have us on board.We relaxed in the cockpit and talked, we would meet ocean Free for dinner in the town and they roughly mapped out the next few days.
Ross and I needed to find an ATM, me more than him and we strolled the town receiving every message on their menu's...not enough funds for transaction, blank screens, blank responses, and for Rosco a heart stopping three minutes of complete close down with card firmly embedded were the screen faded a Microsoft down load box appeared transferring at an agonisingly slow rate then disappeared to first a root directory screen then just plain old fashioned black. Sayonara card. Ross is used the ways of the med. He waited and out of no where a brief gasp of electronic life as if rested and a card thrust out into the evening light. Words were not necessary we looked at each other, breathed deeply and moved on.
Dinner was the usual but the company was good and it was a new town. The restaurant would not have looked out of place in Stow on the Wold Cotswolds. it was called the duck pond complete with old stone wall ducks and pigeons and a green pond enlivened by a tapped into fire hydrant gushing continuously into its dark waters.
We wandered and shopped the girls went off for a hubbly bubbly! and we met them in the alley were we lazed on the bean bags at street level, they tentatively puffed we had a beer and swatted off hawkers in the hot night air. One little guy of all of ten with his Sindy scales under his arm was having a lean night so for a lira I jumped on for the weigh in. I had zeroed before alighting but they zoomed past 115kg, my heart raced then he shook his head made the inhouse calculation and pronounced me to weigh 91. I was pleased to the extent that i let him clean up the bowl of nuts provide by the bar when the patron wasn't looking. A high five and he was gone.
It was a great night and a great start to the Sojourn chapter.
PS: in Oludeniz I lost my wallet and two cards. Picked or shaken out of my pack who knows. It was a high entrance fee that I paid that day, and I don't want to talk about it.
PS: in Oludeniz I lost my wallet and two cards. Picked or shaken out of my pack who knows. It was a high entrance fee that I paid that day, and I don't want to talk about it.
No comments:
Post a Comment