With our second season of sailing in the Mediterranean behind us, it is time to remind ourselves that we have experienced many new things and have much to be thankful for. This season we were in five countries with five different languages: Spain, France, Italy, Greece, and Turkey. And we were in two continents: Turkey, with the exception of a small area around Istanbul, is part of Asia.
We have listed, in no particular order, our major observations and impressions over the past year:
- The Mediterranean winds – The meltemi winds which usually blow throughout the summer, were calm for the first part of our season, kicking up mid-August through the rest of the season. We were surprised to have to motor most of Italy with almost no wind, a bit frustrating. The meltimis had more of an impact on our sailing and schedule in Greece. The positive part of the meltimis is that they do not bring rain with them. While the winds blow hard and the seas whip up, the sky is cloudless, allowing us to still easily do land touring on islands and get in some good swimming. With careful planning we were still able to get in some good sailing on the edges of the meltimis.
- Heat – The summer temperatures were a bit of a surprise. The heat and humidity were much higher than we were prepared for in spite of being forewarned. It took being there for a month before we started to acclimate. Fortunately, we had set up the boat to run one of the air conditioners on European power. Anchoring out, frequent swims and occasional air conditioning were our strategies to beat the heat.
- Financial Crisis – The Greeks are being stoic about their country’s financial crises. Very few people complained. Their attitude was to just muddle through. They are living on extremely low incomes. We were in the more touristy areas which, fortunately, were busy for the summer. At the end of the tourist season Greece will really feel the pinch of austerity. People’s incomes have been slashed and they now have higher taxes. Their buying power is far less than it already was. In the tourist areas, people work extremely long hours 7 days/week, then most are unemployed for the winter. On the flip side, Greece and Turkey offer some of the best bargains for shopping and dining. We were also able to get boat work done in Turkey at a third of the price in the US.
- Cats and Dogs – Stray cats are a problem in all of the Greek islands as well as Turkey. The good side of this is that they are a culture that accepts and takes care of its stray animals. Unfortunately, the strays are always looking for food. Some are taken care of by local people and the restaurants; others get a bit assertive. Twice we had a cat land on our table in a restaurant looking for food. A bit startling! The passarelle always had to be put up to keep cats off the boat.
- English – It is truly the international language. Many people speak excellent English in each country, the most in the Greek islands and least in Italy. When we watch cruisers from multiple different language countries work out tangled anchor chains or share recommended places to see, it is always done in English. While sailing this area of the Med, the dominant countries we saw represented were Germany, England, Switzerland, Norway, and Russia.
- Anchoring and docking – There is very little anchoring in the Med. The anchor is used but not in the traditional sense. To anchor out means dropping the anchor near shore and taking long lines ashore to secure the stern to a tree or rock. This is done because the water is usually too deep to anchor with enough room to swing freely. Docking is also quite different where one drops the anchor and backs up to the quay or pontoon. This is done to allow docking where there are not fancy marinas with finger docks. This system also allows more boats to be berthed in the same amount of space. In a few places there are laid lines provided which you pick up after backing in.
- Food – The best olives are in Spain with more variety and seasonings. We could live on Greek salads, and pretty much did, five nights per week. In Greek restaurants, food comes out, for a group, as each plate is ready and not all at the same time. Our best pizza was in Greece. Produce in all of the countries we visited is abundant, fresh, and not expensive. The peaches in Sicily and Greece are the best we have ever had and we have never eaten so many tomatoes.
- Cathedrals, churches and mosques – Spain, France and Italy are great for huge impressive cathedrals. Greece has an abundance of small Greek Orthodox churches, most towns with multiple churches. The churches in Greece are almost always white with a rounded dome, light blue trim and non-enclosed steeples holding exposed bells with ropes hanging outside from the steeple to the ground. Some Greek islands have up to 200 churches, many privately owned. The mosques which are mostly in Turkey, but also some in Greece, in size are in between the small churches of Greece and the large cathedrals of western Europe. They all have a domed roof (usually tin) with a rather dominant slender minaret towering above everything else. The minaret has loud speakers mounted all around the tower that announce the call to prayer five times per day. The mosques are usually rather plain on the outside but with beautiful hand painted tiles adorning the inside. We were surprised to discover that the call to prayer seems to go on in the background of daily living. There is not an immediate migration to the mosque. For a country that is 99% Muslim, locals have suggested to us that only about 50% of them regularly practice.
- Refugees – It has been humbling to see families, with only what they can carry, taking the risks to start a new life with security and safety. The ones we spoke with were positive, and ready to share their stories. The issues with the refugees is that vacationers shy away from coming to areas where there have been reports of refugees coming ashore. Parts of Greece are now suffering from the loss of tourism.
- Overnight passages – This season we had fewer overnight passages, with only two multi-night sails. There is nothing like being on watch with a full moon lighting the sky and creating a stream of light across the water. Often from one watch to the next, a few hours later, the moon has set and the dark sky is filled, beyond imagination, with stars and the Milky Way. Under sail the only sound is the water music created by the boat passing through the water. It is magical.
- Kindness – At a time when we read and hear so much negative press on extremists and politics around the world, we continue to be amazed by the welcome and kindness of people we have met in every country especially in Italy and Turkey. Repeatedly we found that when asking about boat parts, or anything for that matter, when a vendor did not have the item they would suggest other places to check for it or, often, walk us to the store that might have it. In Turkey, hospitality is an important part of the culture. In most shops vendors will offer tea if you stay for more than a few minutes. It is always served the same way: a small hourglass shaped glass set on a small white saucer with a demitasse spoon and two sugar cubes. Each vendor has a “tea man” whom they call. The tea arrives within minutes, delivered on a trapeze style tray. The gesture promotes conversation and we learned a lot about the people, politics, culture, and history of Turkey in the process.
- Security – Personal security from violent crime or terrorism was never a concern. Terrorism is very localized and, although any terrorism is too much, occurs in small amounts. Regarding violent crime, it was not an issue in most of the places we went. Petty crime was a huge problem in Spain and Italy. In Turkey we never had any concerns about crime. In Barcelona we would walk down the streets clutching our cameras and hand bags–in Turkey we could dangle them over our shoulders and leave them unattended at a restaurant. In Turkey, we find that shop owners will leave their shops wide open while they go to lunch or run an errand. It was nice to not have to be on guard every minute when out in public. A lot of business deals completed between Turkish business people are done in cash with no written contract. It is all done on trust.