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Adventures on the Sailing Vessel Moorea Pictures of the 2008 Cruising Season Thailand Maldives Red
Sea Yemen Click here to view 2006
cruising pictures Click her to view 2007
cruising pictures |
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Over four
fifths of Our adventures
here include visiting the Acropolis in |
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Transiting the canal saved us about 480 miles. The canal was completed in 1893 and cost about $200 US dollars to use. It’s length is 3.2 miles with a width just over 80 feet. Large merchant ships can not transit this canal since they would scrape there hull along the towering rock walls. Tristan on Ohana Kai climbed to the spreaders on their mast and took some great pictures of us in the canal. |
One of the most popular sites, we weaved our way through the crowd to view the Parthenon and other ancient ruins. Finding that navigating through the city to visit the old sites was easy & cheap with Athen’s transit system. Check out the slide show which has many pictures of the Acropolis. |
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Its Greek to Me White buildings
with red tiles roofs and grape vine ceilings in the patio, the fruit waiting
to be picked for eating are just some of the things that I love about Many charter boats
operate in the But most anchorages have been nice and safe. These pictures reveal a bit of the Greek life…Its Greek to Me. |
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“Peace at Home, Peace Throughout the
World.” Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
Learning that after the Ottoman Empire break up, which
ruled about 623 years, in 1923, a progressive leader had the foresight to
hurdle |
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As we were harbor hopping along the coast, encountering many crumbling fortress ruins along the way, the haunting images of medieval times, added unique character to the anchorages. Many old castles are being preserved and are keeping the history alive. Bodrum is one fine example of what a fortress looked
like. It had seen the Crusades
and This slide show has photos of the Fortresses by the bay. In fact there are two, a citadel by a bay that we explored and St. Peter’s Castle in Bodrum. |
Traditional Turkey Silk or wool rugs, handcrafted, beautiful and a tradition handed down from generation to generation. The craftsmanship that goes into the creation of these rugs has given me a new appreciation for this art. We also had a chance to visit a small village dwelling amongst the hills. Stone homes and pathways make for a perfect picture. The slide show has photos with silk cocoons, looms and the ladies that tie the knots to make their magic carpets and a small village on the hillside. |
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Ancient Efes The Also near the ancient ruins, the proposed site where Mary, the mother of Jesus spent her last years after his crucifixion. We had a chance to visit this sacred place as well, which you will see in the photos. |
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I tried to find Him on the Christian
cross, but He was not there; I went to the I searched on the mountain and
in the valleys but neither in the heights nor in the depth was I able to find
him. I went to the Caaba in I questioned the Scholars and philosophers but He was beyond their understanding. I then looked into my heart and it was there where He dwelled that I saw Him; He was nowhere else to be found.
Melvana,
13th Century Turkish Philosopher
Cradle
of Faiths publication |
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Sharm El Sheikh, Traveling one month
between Sharm El Sheikh (or Sharm ash Shaykh), Cairo and completing our visit
with the final Suez Canal transit, we learned much of this country’s
vast history and found many gems in the dessert. Some of our favorite stops would be
Sharm El Sheikh, where we met up with the Captain’s Aunt and toured St.
Catherine’s Monastery on the Enjoy the slide shows below. |
May-June
2008 |
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Aunt Jana |
The Mysteries in the Desert When we last saw
Aunt Jana, it was at her home in We met in Sharm El Sheikh, a place not accustomed to cruise boats, but accommodations were made for Moorea to tie up to the Port Control Quay, while we stayed at the comfy Sofitel in Naama Bay. Visiting St.
Catherine’s Monastery with its history and beautiful artifacts is worth
a trip to |
Our friendly guards protecting Moorea at the
Sharm El Sheikh Port Control |
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A Note on the Canal Showing up at A Pilot is
mandatory when transiting the canal, 119 miles in length and we decided to break
up the trip in two days, opting to keep the boat in They don’t
appreciate anything. |
Moorea moored at Suez City Yacht Club |
Next Stop, Our plan was to
beat up the Gulf of Suez, while Aunt Jana was to tour Typically we
don’t agree to such aggressive time frames since weather and other
unforeseen events can affect a cruisers schedule, but Aunt Jana was worth the
effort. This slide show is of the canal crossing and depicts how close the container ships get when in transit. |
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“The Mother of the
World” Lively, overcrowded and a bit dingy, this city holds many gems that make it a unique place to visit. The dynasties of the Pharaohs, dating back to 4000 B.C., Greek rulers, Byzantine influences and Muslim Arab invaders are just a few of the many historical events that touched this nation. Amazed at the
wealth of artifacts that have survived centuries and the sites recorded when
the Holy Family (Joseph, Mary and the child, Jesus) hid from Herod, traveling
The Mohammed Ali Pasha Mosque was the first Kelly and I had ever stepped into. It was good to hear some information about Islam from someone who lived and worshipped this religion and spoke excellent English. That person was our guide that we had for three days during our stay and we found him to be very competent, professional and genuinely friendly. The slide shows,
one consists of Ancient Egypt and the other slide show reveals the many Mosques,
Churches and museums we had visited. |
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We say good bye to our Dutch friends, Luna and De Pelikaan. They will be
completing their circumnavigation this summer as they head back to We’ve had wonderful times cruising and surfing with them and look forward to hearing of their future adventures on land as we, (Along with Ohana
Kai) plan to cross the |
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April
–May ‘08 |
Passage from Our slowest ocean passage to date. 22 days crossing the Less than a 1% chance of a pirate attack for small
cruising boats, this area still had the highest risk of being robbed compared
to all the other seas we have sailed.
So a little caution was observed with a tight knit of five boats
transiting 250 miles & 2 days, through Pirate Alley and making sure to
keep clear of the Making our way up the sea, we stopped in |
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Dolphin Located off the coast of |
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Sudan, the largest
country in the African continent with over 20 years of civil war between the
Muslim Arab north and the Animist & Christian African minority in the
south. As the North controls government
policy under an Islamic fundamentalist influence the ethnic, language and
religious differences continue to be an issue even after the civil war has
ended. Only in Port Suakin for one day, we topped up fuel, drinking water and purchased a few fresh vegetables. Our brief visit revealed hauntingly beautiful ruins, impoverished living conditions and a glimpse into the past. Once again, strolling along the streets, we were a novelty as locals stared at us or a few of the curious villagers would approach with friendly exchanges. As ramshackle hovels thrive in this impoverished environment, cats, goats, and camels freely wonder the dusty paths while battered cars share the road with cart driven donkeys, their loud braying more abrasive than a car horn. Most men wearing traditional, long white robes and some crowned with turbans, the few women spotted, wearing colorful fabrics styled in the Muslim tradition, from head to toe, but allowing their face to show. Looking into the faces of Saukin, the African ethnicity prevails in this town with a few Arabs and also a trace of an African/Arab mix. The pictures are just a glimpse of this sea shore town. In the anchorage,
Kelly (The Captain) met another cruising couple from |
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Worn buildings, tired cars and rubble strewn sidewalks
prevail around the old town of Men dressed both in traditional attire, as well as western wear contrasted to the women walking the streets, covered head to toe in a flowing black gown called a Burka. Their images ghost like, as if they didn’t exist. Strolling around the city, we attracted attention and many
of the male locals, asked our nationality. Most were surprised to hear we were
Americans. Some hesitated in
continuing a conversation, but most said “Welcome to Even though our reception in this country was fine, we
only stayed 3 days, being that we were behind in our schedule to cross the |
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February-March
‘08 |
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Male, A Mini-Manhattan Roughly 450 miles
Southwest of Sri Lanka, nested in the Indian Ocean resides the The capital city of
the This slide show takes you on a walk through the city. |
Surf Anyone?
Five adults and three kids is the max for stuffing Ohana Kai’s dinghy with surfers. We dinghy out to the surf, drop the hook and spend hours on the water. Catching waves and having cruiser fun is what this slide show is all about. |
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A nation of Islam A 100% Sunni, Muslim nation, there are numerous restrictions with importing certain goods into this country, like alcohol, pork or even live pigs. However, this nation does cater to Western tastes through tourism, the resorts and certain individuals are allowed to purchase alcohol and pork products but only with a permit. Even though we are clearly not Muslim, we could not buy bacon from an importer without the permit. Some thing else was new when visiting this country. Their weekends were on Friday and Saturday, because Friday is considered the most holy prayer day of the week and the day is similar to our Sundays. |
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Thai food is one of our favorite cuisines and luckily very inexpensive to eat. Whether dinning from a café or a street vendor, most items have been delicious. However I need to admit, the fried grasshoppers didn’t look too tasty but it was good, except when the little legs get caught in the teeth. Besides food, a few other photos that I found interesting, like the Laundry Bar in Ao Chalong. A full service laundry by day and bar by night. |
December ‘07-February ‘08 |
When Rutledge (the Captain’s Dad) and his friend Pat came out for a visit, we entertained them by sailing around Phuket, stopping at many of the national marine parks visiting a Muslim Stilt village, driving a bit inland to Wat Phramahathat in Nikon Si Thammart, and topping off the trip by renting scooters on the island of Phuket, which would even give Mario Andretti an adrenalin rush after a day of weaving between cars and large trucks…the lines on the pavement are only there as a suggestion. |
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One of the most senic
places to sail with the numerous islands of golden stone and accents of ash
covering the rock formations, a spectacular site to glide the by these massive forms. Numerous vacationers find charter
boats to take them out on day trips to these islands for the white beaches
and the most popular are |
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Click
here to view 2006 cruising pictures Click
her to view 2007 cruising pictures
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