Ecuador in October

Fifteen days was not enough time for a visit to Ecuador. A friend (thank you Nell!) organized a group of seven to spend a little time in Ecuador. Two of us flew into Guayaquil a day early and spent some time on the Malecon. It is a boardwalk that is one of the highlights of Guayaquil. The next day the rest of the group arrived and we were driven 3 hours to a home on the beach in the small village of La Entrada. La Entrada is approx. 15 minutes north of Montanita which is a popular place for surfers and all the fun that surfers bring with them....


Our entertainment the first week included horseback riding, SCUBA diving off Isla de la Plata ("the poor man's Galapagos"), and canopy (zip lining). I am a fan of zip lining and definitely not horseback riding (let's just say that I will pass on that activity in the future). We had a great addition to our group, the person who manages the house joined us for most of the week. His fun personality (and translation skills) were a huge plus! 


After a week on the beach we headed back to Guayaquil. Most of the group went back to the states and 3 of us flew to Cuenca. Cuenca is the third largest city in Ecuador and an attractive colonial town at ~8200 feet above sea level. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is attracting Americans as a retirement location. The city has beautiful cathedrals and churches, a number of Museums, and largest Inca ruins in Ecuador are nearby. Transportation by bus was nice and very inexpensive. I would love to return and visit all the places I did not get to see - looks like another trip to Ecuador in the future.  :)

On the Malcon in Guayaquil

Colorful homes in Guayaquil

Artifacts in the Cultural Center in Guaya quil

Our home in La Entrada

Relaxing in the rainforest

Shiny Penny  at the dive operator's office

Yes, the water was chilly

Zip lining was a lot of fun!

Canopy (zip lining)

Catedral Metropolitana de la Inmaculada Concepción

Catedral Metropolitana de la Inmaculada Concepción

Cuenca

What are we eating?

We know it comes from the sea....

Turkey Pics - finally...

Well soon is a relative term. I had planned to post pictures before mid July, but I just did not get to it. Kwaj time was short and I was getting packed up and saying goodbye to friends. It is a great place to live, but Kwajalein has its challenges.
I am now in the states getting some quality time with family and it is amazing to me how quickly time flies. And how fast nieces and nephews grow!
My goal for the next year or so it to spend most of my time traveling, preferably on a boat. The Vasco da Gama Rally was a great experience and I would love to see more of the world that way.

So, back to Turkey.
We sailed to Alanya Marina and spent time there getting reacclimated to having access to anything we would want. Alanya is a pretty, though very touristy, town. We spent a day wandering around.
On the weekend I spent a day with a wonderful couple from Haifa, Israel touring the towns of Perge anad Side. The amazing thing about Turkey is that everywhere you go there are ancient ruins. You feel as though you are in the cradle of civilization.

I spent a few days in Istanbul with a couple of friends. Ute from another boat on the rally and Joi who flew in from the states. It was great to enjoy the sights with friends.
If you ever get the chance to get to visit Turkey - go! The people are friendly, the food is great and the history is incredible.

Alanya  fortifications

Alanya

You can just make out Alanya Marina in the distance

The ruins in Perge, some from the 5th century BC



Perge

Perge

Side, Temple to Apollo

Side resident

Side, ancient stadium

Dolmabahce Palace with live guards (in boxes)

Topkapi Palace

Tile work at Topkapi Palace





Blue Mosque



Blue Mosque interior



Hagia Sophia



Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia

Basilica Cistern

The head of Medusa - Basilica Cistern

Friends from the Rally

It's great to see the sights with friends

Back in the real world (sort of...)

After spending a wonderful 6 days in Istanbul, I returned to Alanya, packed up and left for Kwaj on May 28. My itinerary was crazy - Alanya, Antalya, Munich, Hong Kong, Osaka, Guam, and the island hopper to Kwaj. After a couple overnight stops (some unplanned due to missed connections) and too many overnight flights, I arrived on Kwaj on June 1st. I will be leaving here at the end of June, spending time with family in the states, and then who knows what I will do next. The world is too big a place and there is still so much I would like to see.
I will post some pictures from my travels in Turkey soon.

Turkey!

We had a quick transit through the Suez Canal with only one night stay in Ismailia. We had a very quick stop (20 minutes) in Port Said for the Egyptian Army to check the boat and we immediately started crossing the Mediterranean. Two and a half days and some stormy, rainy weather later, we were in Turkey! It is almost strange to be in a marina that is very western and full of Europeans. A little culture shift after our last few months. Though I have to say it is nice to enjoy the amenities- there is a washing machine here!
After almost 4 months and 4300 nautical miles, the Vasco da Gama Rally officially ends this Thursday. It has been a wonderful experience with great people along the way. I have been very fortunate to sail with Kikki & Henry - they are an incredible couple.
I hope to spend a few days seeing a bit of Turkey before I head back to Kwajalein. Trying to arrange flights from Alanya, Turkey to Kwajalein was quite challenging. It will travel for 5 days to get there with a one day layover in Hong Kong.
I think I would rather be sailing...

Port Suez, Giza & Cairo

We arrived in Port Suez and are in the process of getting ready to transit the Suez Canal. We will go from here to Ismailia, spend a night or two there and then continue to Port Said at the end north end of the Suez Canal. After that we will be crossing the Mediterranean Sea.
Yesterday we traveled by bus to Giza and Cairo for the day to see the pyramids of Cheops, Chephren and Mincerinus, the Sphinx and the Cairo Museum. Another great day viewing ancient wonders.

Typical Red Sea land view

Pyramids in the neighborhood

The pyramid of Cheops (I think this was his) 

 The pyramids of Cheops, Chephren and Mincerinus

Of course I had to ride a camel

Not the softest kisses

The Sphinx and pyramid of Chephren

Along the coast of the Sinai Peninsula

We crossed the Gulf of Suez and are traveling along the coast of the Sinai Peninsula. El Tur was our first anchorage on this side of the Red Sea. While at El Tur I was swimming in the harbor when I heard some noises underwater. When I stopped to look around I saw several dolphins swimming by - that made for a great afternoon.
As with much of the land along the Red Sea, the coast here is very dry and desolate though rather majestic. Quite a change from the tropics I have lived in for most of the past 7 years. 

El Tur

We arrived at El Tur yesterday afternoon. El Tur is a popular windsurfing and kite boarding destination. Unfortunately for the tourists here, there was almost no wind yesterday, maybe today will be more interesting.
I have not been able to do as much diving as I had hoped, but I did make a couple of dives in Port Ghalib with a local dive shop. The water here is a little chilly this time of year, 72-73 degrees F.  Brrrr! Yes, I  am a wimp when it comes to getting cold.  :)
Tomorrow the plan is to try to make up a little time and head for Port Suez. We'll see how well the wind cooperates.

The following pictures are from my dives in Port Ghalib.

Blue spotted ray (I know it's hard to see the blue spots in this picture)

Crocodile Fish

Tracy the turtle - this is her favorite spot

In the Gulf of Suez

We departed Hurghada yesterday and sailed/motored 27 miles north to anchor at South Qeisum. It was a rather surreal scene as we came into the anchorage. To the west were a number of oil production platforms, a boat behind them with around 6 kite boarders enjoying the early evening and behind that, the low mountains of Egypt. To the east we see the profile of the Sinai Peninsula. What an unique scene.

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Hurghada

The winds finally slowed enough to let us head north and we are now in Hurghada, Egypt which is near the southern end of of the Gulf of Suez. We may have just done our last night time sail. The Gulf of Suez has a lot of hazards, so it is safer to sail during the day. Hurghada is a tourist area, so our goal is to provision (they have supermarkets here!) and leave once we have a weather window.

Egypt

After 11 days and stopping at 3 different places to anchor and wait for the wind to die down, we finally made it to Egypt. We were all very happy to arrive in Port Ghalib. Many of us are out of fresh vegetables, fruit and eggs, so it is great to be able stock up (to some extent). Port Ghalib is a relatively new tourist area and there is not much else here other than the marina/hotel complex so there is only one small store for food shopping. The complex here is a lovely facility with a focus on attracting divers, but with the current economy and reduced tourism in Egypt lately, there are not very many guests.
We spent our first full day here on chores. The boat needed to be cleaned,  the sand from the places we anchored was all over everything and we have access to water and a hose at the marina. Laundry needed to be done - it is amazing how often you'll wear the same thing on a boat to minimize the amount of laundry you have to do.
We just returned from a whirlwind, 2 day trip to Luxor. After a 5 hour bus trip, in a day and a half in Luxor, we saw  the Valley of the Kings, Al-Deir Al-Bahari Temple (tomb of the female pharoah Hatshepsut), Luxor Temple, Karnak Temple (which is actually a number of temples), and Luxor Museum. Words can not describe what it is like to walk through these places. The magnitude and detail of the temples that were built over 3000 years ago is amazing. I will have to come back to Egypt some day to see more antiquities.

We plan to leave tomorrow (23 April) for the next port which will put us near the southern end of the Gulf of Suez.

Cleaning a fish while trying to hold steady in bouncy conditions

The Wreck of the Umbria

The Wreck of the Umbria

On the Wreck of the Umbria

Anchorage at Khor Shinab

On land at Khor Shinab

Sunrise  - leaving Khor Shinab

Pufferfish from dive at Gezirat Wadi Gimal (3rd anchorage between Suakin and Port Ghalib)

Gezirat Wadi Gimal

 Trash washed up at Gezirat Wadi Gimal - you see it everywhere :(

Tomb of female Pharoah Hatshepsut

At the tomb of female Pharoah Hatshepsut

At Luxor Temple

At Luxor Temple

At Luxor Temple

 The following group of pictures are from Karnak Temple (which is really a number of temples). Pictures can not convey the scale of this place.