On our way...slowly

We left Suakin,Sudan on April 7th and are slowly making our way north. I was able to make my first dive in the Red Sea which was on the wreck of the Umbria. It is an Italian ship that was on its way to Massawa when WWII broke out. The skipper of the ship scuttled it rather than let it fall into the hands of the British. There is still cargo in the holds and it would be nice to do more dives on it, but we needed to continue moving. The weather windows where you have good winds can be quite short so you need to move quickly when they occur. We anchored the night of April 8th at Khor Shinab. A khor is a narrow opening into the land that often offers good protection from the sea and wind. Khor Shinab was starkly beautiful, it made you think of a lunar landscape. On the 9th we sailed to Elba Reef, this anchorage does not provide as much protection from the wind, but does have very nice snorkeling and a large number of dolphins that visit daily. The forecast looks like the wind will drop enough tomorrow so we can continue to move north, though it does not look like it will be a long enough window to make it to Port Ghalib. That means one or two more anchorages before we check into Egypt.

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Pictures from Sudan

Ruins on Old Suakin

Market in Suakin

Camel in Suakin market

Waiting for milk in Suakin Market

Local fishing boats

Old Suakin (from the mast of Endelig)

Endelig from the top of the mast (I was checking fittings)

Trying the local food on the streets of Port Sudan

Good produce at the market in Port Sudan

Pictures from Eritrea

Entering the Red Sea

Henry (Captain of Endelig) in Massawa, Eritrea

Mike (he can help with anything) from Massawa & Henry

Local swimming competition

Bombed buildings in Massawa

Beautiful tree lined street in Asmara, Eritrea

Sietse getting a beard trim in Asmara, Eritrea

Cathedral in Asmara

Market in Asmara

Market in Asmara

Local transportation in Asmara

Girls in Ghinda - lunch stop between Asmara & Massawa

Local transportation

Sudan

After anchoring one night at Khor Nawarat and another night at Reef Island, we reached Suakin, Sudan on March 31st. We were  hoping that the weather would support a short stay and heading north quickly, but it looks like we will be here at least until the 7th of April.
Suakin is a relatively small town with few things to do. There is Old Suakin which is the old town that is in ruins. The buildings were built from coral and have crumbled over the centuries. They are planning on restoring this historic site. Old Suakin had been the major port in the past and was the last slave trading location in the world.
We are anchored in a small harbor with a restaurant that has internet access and good food. Internet access is a fairly new in Suakin, it was not available last time Lo ,the rally organizer, was here (around a year ago). Yesterday we took a bus to Port Sudan, Sudan's second largest city. We wandered through the markets, tried local food and had an enjoyable day seeing a little more of Sudan. The Sudanese people are truly some of the friendliest and warmest people I have ever encountered. People are continuously welcoming you to Sudan, asking if they can help you, inviting you to join them when they are eating and asking questions about your home country. You definitely feel like a welcome guest.
I will try to post some pictures if possible (the connection to internet may be too slow).

Moving North

We finally have a weather window after 10 days and have left Massawa, Eritrea to continue north. On our way we stopped at Harat Island and relaxed for a bit with snorkeling and dinner. We left Harat at 3am so we can reach our next destination in the daylight. The highlight of the day for me was catching my first fish of the trip (maybe a type of mackerel - very nice white meat) on a lure I made from trash. Sietse, who is crew on Mistral (the organizer's boat) showed us how to make lures from the tops of old soda bottles and the liner from a wine box. At least 3 of us have caught fish on these lures. What a great way to recycle and save money on lures!

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Still in Massawa

We are still in Massawa waiting for the weather forecast to show the winds dropping enough to continue our way north. The current forecast has strong winds coming from the northwest which is the direction we are going, so we need them to be light enough so we can make progress against the wind.
One of the highlights since we have been here was an overnight trip to Asmara, the capital of Eritrea. It is an amazing place. It was part of an Italian colony in the past and there are still many little cafes that sell expresso, tea and pastries, yum! There is also unique architecture from that period, including Italian and art deco buildings. It is one of the few places that was not bombed during the war with Ethiopia and is a lovely place to walk around and stop in cafes. People there are very friendly and many like to speak English with you. It is also a place where people of different religions live side by side very peaceably. Many countries could learn a lot from the Eritreans. It was a 3 1/2 hour minibus ride from Massawa to Asmara along a very windy road with hairpin turns. We had a very good driver so we were able to enjoy the beautiful views as we traveled from Massawa to Asmara. It has been very warm in Massawa so the cool evening in Asmara felt quite nice.
There is not too much to do in Massawa, but we have been eating well. We have had dinner at a number of the local restaurants (some are quite rustic) and the food has been quite good. We also were invited by one of the local women to have coffee at her home and it was very, very good. They start with roasting the beans in a little tin over charcoal, then crush the beans by hand in a small container, then they place the grounds and water in a ceramic carafe and place it on the charcoal, once it boils they pour it in the cups. Truly excellent coffee and a very enjoyable visit. Even though all the damage from bombing during the war is evident everywhere in Massawa, you can tell this was a beautiful, bustling port in the past.
We tried accessing the internet with no success. So if you have sent email it may be a while before I am able to respond. (This is sent via SSB radio from the boat.)

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Massawa - and Real Rain

We are in Massawa. Tomorrow we take a 36hr trip inland to Assmara, the Eritrean Capital, which is at 2,500 mtrs and we expect it to be cold (what a change). Down here on the coast - 40 miles, but four hours by bus - is, on average, one of the hottest places on earth but at this season it is quite pleasant. The 'convergence zone' (between equatorial and continental weather systems) sits right over us at the moment giving grey skies and occasional rain. On our way in to Massawa we had a really heavy squall shower which washed away an accumulation of Bombay filth and Aden fine red sand off the boat and rigging - at least off the windward side. And tonight a thunderstorm helped clean the other side. This is the first rain since the Bay of Bengal and, if reports are to be believed, the last we will likely see until November in the Med. It is surprising what interests and excites us 'yachties'!!!

Massawa is a fascinating place. Once the jewel of the Red Sea and a major port with Ottoman, Egyptian and Italian influences (and for example Haile Salasie's winter palace)it was carpet bombed in the war with Ethiopia and little has been done yet to repair that devastation. Yet the people are strikingly handsome, proud of their new country and very friendly and welcoming.

Internet access is sparse here so we are not sure we will find anywhere. So if you are expecting responses from email other than sailmail it may not happen soon.

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