"It's Gonna Be a Better Day"

So I thought I was doing a good job with my varnishing. Until our neighbor came over to ask if he could give me some suggestions…but keep in mind that he is a perfectionist (and I mean perfectionist, he considers it ‘heartbreaking’ when he sees dust on his floors). And I gave up perfection on this boat a long time ago (we find it ‘heartbreaking’ when we find a big hole in our boat). I was informed that I need to sand even more (I would have no finger tips left if I did) and I need to varnish quicker and with a bigger brush if I want that really smooth, glossy finish. But my reasoning is that a smooth, glossy finish will make our floors like an ice rink which isn’t so good. So brush strokes are better, more grippy, right? After he left, a worker across the way then told me I need a bigger brush. What’s up with all this advice coming on Day 5 of varnishing and one coat away from being done? After my shoddy varnishing was finished, I started to help out with prepping the decks. Wow, it is overwhelming and I can see why Mike gets a bit frustrated. I am going to have to break it into sections to be able to deal. After a little sanding, I pulled off a couple of windows in the aft cabin that were pulling away from the deck and leaking. By this point I felt like I was forcing myself to continue working because by now I am feeling a little spent after this week. Mike spent his day putting more putty down around the dodger and other places to even out the decks before paint. He also spent more time figuring out how the new rigging will be attached to the decks. Every so often I realize how much we are actually doing to this boat and I think we will be pretty proud of ourselves at the end of this haul out. At 7pm, I was just winding down and Mike was still down below working when John and Aysel showed up with ice cream! So I brought down some bowls and spoons (and a little Raki) to enjoy our desert underneath the boat. We sat down there talking and laughing until the sky finally grew dark. It was definitely a positive way to end the really long, hard day.

Trying to figure out the best home

The metal plates Mike made for the deck blocks

John and Aysel to the Rescue!

This morning, Steve, who has been helping us with our electrical issues came by to try and sort out the wiring for our starter battery. Something about a diode switch…anyways it’s turned off now so now we can monitor our battery usage and get an idea of what sucks our batteries dry the quickest. We always thought it was our old fridge that was the culprit. But have found that it is our lights which consume a huge amount of energy. Hopefully some new LED light bulbs will help the issue. And to continue our work towards making ourselves more energy sufficient, Mike went into town with plans of ordering solar panels. Again, John and Aysel to the rescue. They happened to be with Mike and overheard the conversation. Panels made in China, only a 2 year warranty, didn’t know of any where outside Turkey that would honor the warranty… Mike was reluctant but was at the point where we need to keep making progress and this was the place a ton of other cruisers have used. Thankfully, John had another resource for solar panels which looks to be a much better deal…made in Spain, 25 year warranty, sizes better suited for our boat. They will even travel from Izmir, just for the cost of diesel, and install them for you! As Mike was running around town, I continued my varnishing. I got a coat on all of the ‘outside’ and inside floors, plus some extra spots and in the process have practically sanded off the tips of my fingers! And the galley is now officially closed and so thankful that Aysel invited us over for dinner on Quest! She fed us and even helped with translation with the solar panel guy who Mike phoned in the evening. How are we going to survive again without them?!

Hands Off My Varnish

Today wasn’t much better. Mike continued to work on making the metal bases for the rigging. Only to get bashed in the ankle a couple of times with a deck block while trying to drill out the stainless steel mounting plate so it would fit a metric bolt. But with much perseverance and a bit of swearing he got it done. I continued with my varnishing and started on the aft floor boards. And we thought it was a little difficult while Ishmail had all of the floors. But this has proven to be a bit more challenging, maybe because we haven’t had the energy to find the pieces of wood scrap we used before to create our stepping stones. So now we are jumping from brace to brace and trying to avoid wet varnish that surrounds us. It feels like we are living in the game ‘Operation’ where we can’t touch the sides. Since the aft cabin has wet floors and a big hole, we are sleeping on the day bed which is actually quite comfortable. I also tried to close the galley due to newly varnished cabinets and floor but Mike talked me into to letting him make one more dinner of beans. This was only because our plans to eat at the worker’s cantina were scrapped. Before we headed on our way, we fortunately called John and Aysel to invite them to join us in a meal of ‘mushroom meat’, pasta and ‘cherry jelly’ for dinner. But unfortunately for them, they had eaten there the night before with some gastro-intestinal distress as a result. And that is the last thing I want while being hauled out with a long walk to the bathroom. At least we had a good laugh while listening to their bathroom humor.

A Hard Day

So we weren’t as optimistic today. There is still a ton of stuff to do on this boat before we can get in the water. It’s looking like the launch date of June 5th isn’t going to happen. The realization of this was a huge let down and took its psychological toll. Mike had one of his worse days since being here. He spent all day trying to figure out the best method for attaching the rigging blocks to the deck. But at the end of the day all he had was a pile of botched attempts, scrap metal and one bad attitude. And it doesn’t help when we have been telling the canvas guy for weeks that we want an estimate when the dodger is in. And he finally decides tell us today that we need a metal guy to do the stainless work first. Don’t you think that would have been worth passing along a few weeks ago? So for a quick quote he grabs the guy for Demir who quoted us 880 Euro for 7 meters of stainless steel pipe. Translation: $50 per foot! Crazy! So now we get to wait for Mehmet to come to the boat to give us an estimate. Why he can’t just tell us over the phone, we don’t know. Sometimes it just feels like the boat is winning.

More Work, Less Food

We’re off to a good start! It was definitely a full day of work for the both of us. Mike started on prepping the decks…grinding, painting, putty. It’s funny, it sounds so simple and straight forward but is anything but. It’s a game of coordinating and planning your steps. And it seems like there is always something else that comes up to throw a wrench into the works. I started the job of varnishing our floors. At least that is straight forward. We took the forward boards outside and got a couple of coats on while sanding and varnishing part of the inside boards. By the end of the day we were beat and had to cancel on hanging out with John and Aysel. Another meal of beer and peanuts, a quick shower and then straight to bed while there was still light in the sky. But despite being really tired, it felt good to have a productive day.

Yummy Sunday

Why haven’t we been going here every Sunday?!
Cinar (pronounced Shinar) was incredible. It’s a huge outdoor restaurant nestled in the trees, with streams and ponds running amidst the tables. Among the guests are ducks waddling along with their chicks, kittens hunting on the rooftops, the inviting smell of wood smoke, and fresh springs where you can fill your water bottle. We even saw a goose attempting to hide a very large egg in a nest of twigs and feathers while it went to take a dip in the pond.


After trying to decide where to sit, we settled on a table in the ‘treehouse’ and had a feast! What a combination of flavors….warm bread, fresh eggs, garden ripe tomatoes and cucumbers, salty olives, sweet honeycomb and homemade strawberry jam. You just wanted to sit there and eat all day.








We finally managed to pull ourselves away from the table and started on our way back to town. But wait, we needed something else delicious to eat and couldn’t resist a stop at one of the many road side stands selling fresh strawberries and honey!






On our way back to the marina we took advantage of Aysel’s turkish, and with her and John’s knowledge bought a wireless modem and SIM card. No more of this crappy wi-fi at the marina. Now if we have a cell phone signal we can get on line! Eventually and definitely in no hurry, we made our way back to the boat where we lounged and napped. And then enjoyed another feast of chicken kabobs on board with John and Aysel. I promise, tomorrow will be more work and less food.

Pide Pide

I blame a combination of things (too much wine with no dinner, cramps and scrubbing anti-fouling the day prior) to explain why I didn’t feel like doing any work today. The continued rain and my reasoning of working tomorrow (giving up my Sunday!) helped diminish the guilt a bit while I napped and read the day away. But Mike stormed ahead and got the new metal at the bow prepped and covered with paint, even welded up an extension to the box in the dodger that houses the companionway hatch. As for the evening, we went into town with John and Aysel to patronize a familiar restaurant to them from last year. Mike has been talking about this pide (Turkish pizza) for the past 2 months and it was pretty damn good. And cheap! Our dinner cost 10 lira ($6.50) for 3 pide and 2 ayran, a delicious yogurt drink. And we probably took one whole pide home for leftovers. Despite how full we were, there was talk about going to lunch tomorrow. Outdoor restaurants in a beautiful setting, such as in the mountains or on a river, seem to be common place in Turkey. And John and Aysel know of a great one not too far from Marmaris. So after a phone call, we got Herbie reserved tomorrow for a little drive and brunch in the mountains!