David and Cathy on Charlie in Greece

Now, good old David Evans sailed on Charlie from the coast of France at Port la Nouvelle and got off board in Athens after a great month at sea. David started his sea career as a ship's cook and promised us "never to eat a snack while he was on board." He is a great navigator and when we left France for Corsica, I had neglected (stupid skipper) to buy a marine chart for the waters there. In fact, I never expected to go to Corsica, but we left France with not enough food to make a single long run to Malta. So, with a Michelen road map(no kidding) David negotiated Charlie to the proper harbor. "Just around that next headland" he would say as we passed several headlands. We got there with no problems, except stupidity, and arrived just as the local community was celebrating the FISHERMAN'S FESTIVAL with lots of wine and mussels and general nonsense, including the most amazing dancing I've ever seen.
Cathy, David's wife, didn't go on that trip, but did come with him to Greece for a vacation on Charlie.

The Two Richards in July, 2007

Richard Eisermann and Richard Freedberg, the Two Richards, in the Acteon Cafe in Ireklitsa. Richard, The Big, just had his 48th birthday and we had a party in our favorite taverna, including a cake brought out by the taverna owner. We were teacher and student when Richard El Giganto was in High School, and we have spent the last two summers sailing and swimming and eating and drinking on Charlie. This year, the weather was very hot and there was little wind, but we found one day with Beaufort 4-5 and took Charlie out for 4 hours. There is a new mizzen sail and she sails much closer to the wind now. But, this is the last sail on Charlie with me as the owner. After 24 exciting years, we decided to sell her. It is funny, but, when we are out on her, people telephone Anthimos, the brilliant mechanic who has bought her, thinking he is sailing her, and say, "Anthimos, that is the most beautiful boat in the harbor." He told us that Charlie is a unique boat and has a long future. He will replace all the wiring, which is 27 years old and getting dangerously thin in spots. He will also strip her down completely, removing even the motor(which is excellent) and then sand-blast her and repaint her completely. We have had 24 years sailing her twice across the North Sea to England and have even taken her into Istanbul. So, for a Dutch-built boat, designed for the rough and cold waters here in The Netherlands, Charlie has found her final home in the tiny harbor of Ireklitsa on the North Aegean Sea. The end of an era for us and we were delighted to share this last sail with El Giganto and his daughter, Lily, who is an experienced and effective crew. I am 68, Richard is 48, Lily is 14, and Charlie is 27.

Goatherd on Samothraki Island

Samothraki has 35,000 goats which sleep on the road, walk across the road and wander freely around the island. The visit to the island is one of our favorite times. There are 60 sea miles from Ireklitsa to Samothraki and it takes about 9 hours to motor there. Since the wind generally comes out of the Northeast, unless there is at least a Bft. 5, we have to motor. When the wind blows, it can reach a Bft 7-8 in minutes. I have photographed the sea at the northwest corner of the island. You can clearly see the wind flags on the ocean. There is a line drawn between the flat sea on the right and the rough waves on the left. We asked fishermen about the wind around Samothraki and they told us that it stops about 10 miles outside the island. On the island itself, you can't feel the wind unless you get to a hilltop. Judy and I have been "trapped" on the island for three days in a wind that reached Bft 8/9 and even the ferry boats weren't able to sail. We followed the fishermen's advice and motored out of the harbor and when we reached 10 miles, the wind stopped dead. Samothraki is a lovely island to visit, although there are few tourist hot spots. Just friendly people, a couple of good tavernas, and the Fonias waterfall.

Judy and Danielle in Ireklitsa

This is the harbor in Ireklitsa. The tavernas are up on the white wall to the left and to all the way to the little red building on the far right. You can see the hot white color of the part of the harbor that is not covered by the palm trees. Judy is walking with Danielle on the way to some light snack. Here, if you bring a bag full of fish to the taverna, the cook will clean them and cook them and only charge you for the cleaning. Because it is so hot in the village, and traditionally in all of Greece, a huge, heavy warm meal is eaten in the early afternoon and then a nap is taken. Of course, at 9 or 10 or even 11 at night, the Greeks show up for an evening meal. At that time, there are no holds barred, and kilos and kilos of food are eaten. It always amazes us that no matter how late WE eat, there are others who eat later. No matter how MUCH we eat, they eat more. What is best, is that after the meal, as a gift, the taverna will give you dessert, for example, a platter of sweet cakes, or a platter of watermelon, or grapes. And then, even though you can't walk easily, you MUST go for a plate of loukemades(round balls of doughnut consistancy, deep fried and served with ice cream or grated cheese or both. And then, and only then, can you roll off to bed. Danielle, thank god, has cooked us meals at home and they are not only sensible, but delicious. We have been saved by her many times.

Charlie's pilot house control panel

The control panel has not changed much in th 28 years of Charlie's life. We have added controls for the electric anchor winch, the electric toilet, the wind speed and direction indicator and the bow thruster. The original Ritchie compass and the autopilot are there as well as the GPS and the new computer with plot charter. There is a intruder alarm and battery chargers for the video and cell phones. The "best" item is the control that shows the position of the rudder, which makes backing up very easy and this is useful when tying up in a harbor. We added a new pilot's seat for comfort after the old seat broke its back.

Charlie's kitchen

This is the starboard kitchen on Charlie. Plenty of work space, with three storage areas and two drawers. There is a counter-top cooking stove and a refrigerator under the stove. There are two storage areas behind the sink, where glasses, cups and tea and coffee are kept. And finally, there is a full length shelf at the back. There are two long windows behind the shelf and a porthole above the stove for ventilation.
Our usual diet in Greece consists of a morning cup of Greek coffee and a tomato salad; a lunch of a large(huge) Greek village salad, fresh bread and beans in tomato sauce. At night, we hit the tavernas and chow down on fish, salads and retsina.

The pilot house bench

After the long sail to Greece, Judy decided that Charlie needed a comfortable bench for the pilot house. Anthimos had a carpenter make the bench(the area used to have the chart table) with storage under the cushions. It is a bit narrow, but perfect for napping and has given us plenty of room for tools, swimming gear, shoes and beach equipment. And, also, it has given the pilot house a homely and comfortable feeling. Charlie has a lot of visitors over the summer and this room has proved its worth. The cushions can be taken out for easy access to the top storage spaces and the bottom drawers when the rope handles are pulled out, become foot rails. Anthimos has managed to create a room that fits in with the original character of Charlie, at 28 years old.

Dubai passenger ferry taxi, called an ABRA

It is always interesting to see how other water cultures make their boat. This abra taxi crossed the Dubai Creek to the old souk, or market place. It is made of wood and holds 20 people, who pile on as the abra hits the dock. The drive stands in the motor hold and has a car seat on the upper deck. When he is in the car seat, he steers with his foot. The trip takes about 15 minutes and costs 20 Eurocents. The Dubai Creek was a shallow foot crossing in the 1950's but the former Sheik of Dubai borrowed $20 from Kuwait and had the creek widened, deepened and expanded. Now, Arab douws get loaded here and travel all over the Arabian Gulf. The prevailing wind sweeps down the Creek toward the sea and makes the crossing choppy, but the skippers are experts and the trip is fun.

Richard on the stage at ancient theater Filipi

The ancient ruins of the city of Filipi are outside of Kavala on the road to Bulgaria. This is the place where St. Paul came to preach. There are ruins of ancient Greek ceramic tile floors, the Roman street with accompanying agora(market place), the bathing room with toilets, the remains of a Byzantine Basilica and this theater. I stood in the center of the stage and talked in a quiet normal voice and I was heard easily in the back row. The theater overlooks the ruins of the city of Filipi. I have seen a couple of productions here and it is thrilling when the sun sets and the show begins. But, of course, the seating is the original stone and it wrecks havoc with your rear end. So the people sell styrofoam squares to sit on. The place holds about 3,000 people and even today in modern Greece, once the play starts, the audience, including grandparents, little children, young hip types, all slam shut and don't move for the duration. This silence is enthralling.

Boelie Woelders on Samothraki crazy truck

This photo was taken in April, 2007 when I sailed with my old friend, Boelie, to Samothraki. We wandered over to the ferry dock to watch the loading up process and had an adventure. The driver of this amazing truck was refused entry to the ferry and his assistant got angry. The assistant was a large man carrying two huge shopping bags on his shoulders. He stood on ferry loading bridge and spread his legs and crossed his arms and refused to move. The Coast Guardsman walked over and told him to move because there was another car that had to be loaded. He walked over to the car, which was backing up, and put his foot on the fender. The driver jumped out and there was almost a fistfight, but the Coast Guardsman broke it up and angrily ordered the man to leave the dock. Meanwhile, the truck driver had begun to drive toward the ferry. The Coast Guardsman shouted at him and he jumped off the truck. Boelie immediately jumped on and I took this photo. The fly wheel is unprotected and very close to your feet. This was a strange interlude because we were told that the iron junkman had a workshop about 7 kilometers from Alexandropolous on the mainland. So, how did they let him on the ferry to get to Samothraki? Anyway, the man and his assistant drove off into the town and the ferry left.

CHARLIE'S Greek ship's document

This waterlogged document is supposed to represent CHARLIE as we travel in and out of Greek harbors and when we cross international borders. It lists all the dimensions, the name of the insurance company, the motor details, the weight, manufacturer and other details. It is in the Greek language, with minimum English words. In order to be given this document, you have to go to the office of the Coast Guard, present all your papers, including passport, and manufacturer's documents. Of course, we didn't have all the papers, but we made things up, for example, the name of the harbor master of the home mooring in Amsterdam. Now, CHARLIE has a Dutch flag, but is, in fact, permanently moored in Greece. The European Union rules allow this, but the manner in which the rules are defined and enforced is left up to individual Coast Guard officers. This is a gray area and we slide easily through the red tape. At the bottom left, you can see the 12 stamps from the Coast Guard in Kavala. This particular document was so waterlogged that we had to buy a new one when we travelled to Turkey. Paperwork is a big issue when you travel to foreign harbors, and my brother and I have written about this in the magazine LATITUDES AND ATTITUDES.

CHARLIE up on the blocks and Peter in Keramoti shipyard

In April, 2006, Peter joined us for a sail on CHARLIE to Samothraki, but the boat was still up on the land having a few holes in the hull cut out and new pieces of steel welded in. The hull is in remarkably good shape after 29 years of life in salt waters. You can see the round hole in the blue at the bow, which houses the bow thruster. You can alse see clearly the meter and a half bow sprit with the two jibs. CHARLIE was designed for Dutch waters, especially the Isselmeer(the inland fresh water sea in Holland) and the idea was that if the ship ran into trouble, it could be motored directly up on the beach and the passengers could step off the bowsprit. There has been a lot of rusting around the points where the bowsprit attaches to the body of the ship, but this is now repaired. The photo also shows the work terrain at Keramoti beach. Peter is unloading material for the summer. We didn't sail, but we had a good vacation anyway.

harbormaster in Canakkele, Turkey

This man greeted CHARLIE when we first tied up in Turkey. We were flying the "Q" flag for the health officer, but the harbormaster started shouting, "My friends, my friends, lower the flag NOW! My friends, quickly." It was a strange request, but I did lower the flag, which is completely against international law. After the boat was tied up, he told me that it was a difficult and long process to obtain the proper ships' papers, BUT, that he had a friend who was a ship's agent and "for only Euro 100., would do all the work for us." We agreed, and he organized the whole affair for us. We had to pay him for the mooring position, for the water and for the shower. He was friendly, but we definitely had the feeling that we were being charged for too many extras. As we were drinking a coffee, another sailboat entered the harbor. It was flying a Ukranian flag, and had two families on board. There were two men, three women, and a couple of kids. These people had made a great voyage from the Ukraine all the way through the Bosporus, the sea of Marmara and the Dardanelles to arrive at Canakkele. We stood there to applaud them. The harbormaster came out of his office. Other sailors looked up. Then we noticed that the boat was going rather fast. Too fast. The harbormaster began to shout and wave his arms. The people on their boats next to the empty slip began to shout. We began to shout. The people on the boat began to shout at the man behind the wheel. He didn't pay any attention. The boat entered the slip too fast and smacked into the railing of the sailboat next to it. It hit the dock so hard that the people on board were thrown around. The harbormaster was hysterical and angry. After money changed hands and a couple of bottles of wine were handed out, things calmed down, but we said to ourselves that our planned trip to the Ukraine might be a bit more risky than we thought. We never made it, because the European Union had a huge meeting in Istanbul and the Bosporus was closed for three days. Too bad I guess.

Turkish "kaiki" in Canakkele Harbor

All over Turkey and in the northern Aegen of Greece, this type of boat is typical. It is a kaiki and the first one we saw was outside of Athens before we went through the Corinth Canal. They are wooden, and very lovely. Mostly used for tourists now, they are traditionally coastal ships. Wide, deep and very roomy inside. We were invited in for tea by a skipper in Atakoy Marina in Istanbul. They are still being built and are expensive, but lovely to see on the water.

Sergei watching the fishermen on Galatay Bridge in Istanbul

We took the Asian ferry to cross the Bosporus and came upon a group of men fishing from the high walkway. What they did was load up a fishing rod with 10-15 fish hooks with NO bait. They would flip the line into the water and with a single flip, they would bring the line quickly to the land. From the hooks, there might be one or two or ten little sardines flailing around. They would quickly unhook the fish into a bucket and then, flip-flip all over again like a flash. A few seconds was all it took. The catch was walked over to some restaurant boats tied to the wall. There was a cook standing outside the boat behind a charcoal barbeque. He was quickly grilling the fish and the waiters were carrying them into the restaurant for the customers to eat. It was fascinating to see the speed of the fishermen, the speed of the cooks and the delicious smell of the fish. We ate sardines(it was not really a sardine, but we never found out the real name) with our fingers with bread and cold beer. Delicious!