Sergei in the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul

The Grand Bazaar was built in 1600 and is an exciting place to shop. It is all underground the city and is a maze of little streets and hundreds of shops. Of course, bargaining is the name of the game and Sergei, Lenny and I had several funny confrontations with shopkeepers. One followed us around and said, "Why make two women unhappy? My wife will be unhappy if you don't buy something. And, your wife will be unhappy if you don't buy something. So, keep them happy and buy something." We did after all. Sergei was shopping for some antique jewelry and found a great shop with old watches, bracelets and other items from an old part of Georgia. We spent the whole morning being harassed by the shopkeepers, but enjoying every moment.

Keramoti boat hauling trailer

This is the home made boat trailer at Keramoti beach. The tires are from airplanes and the rest is all made by the workers. They welded hydraulic lifts to a frame, which moves like a caterpiller. The axels all come out so the trailer can be made smaller as needed. The whole thing is pushed into the sea by a tractor, and dragged up on the beach by a tractor attached to an immense winch imbedded in the sand and anchored with chains. Charlie has to be put on sideways or she will fall off.

the shipyard at Keramoti beach near Kavala

During the winter, Charlie is sailed to Keramoti beach where there is an old-fashioned shipyard right on the sand and dirt. Every size of boat is worked on here by a small team of expert boat builders. This is an example of a Greek wooden fishing boat getting a refit. But there is also a huge Russian freight ship that was confiscated by the Greek government. There are sailboats, motor yachts and professional ships. What is interesting is that most of the work is done in very primitive surroundings by builders who work with their hands and heads. The boats are dragged up on the beach by an ingenious system that was made by the men. They use airplane tires and have welded a contraption that looks like a caterpiller. It can carry huge ships or tiny boats like Charlie.

A view of Myrina Harbor from the Byzantine Fortress

When we landed on the island of Limnos, we had to ask advice of the Coast Guard about where to moor. They advised us to moor in front of the Coast Guard rescue boat because a huge ferry was about to enter the harbor that night. You can see the trucks loaded and waiting for the ferry to arrive. Myrina harbor is a very quiet spot to spend the night. The harbor is well protected from the sea winds. The view is from the Byzantine fortress high above the harbor.