Wonderful Syria

The Assad dynasty; a vege shop

Kristin at Krac des chevaliers; K and Diane at Aleppo; Camel at Palmyra

Map on a goatskin

Arriving in Lattakia a day later than planned, we met my Mum Diane on the waterfront. The sightseeing programme was very full and we covered many miles to see some wonderful places.

First was the crusader fortress Krac des Chevaliers, a spectacular building dominating the landscape, in an impressive state of preservation. It was easy to visualize the crusaders and their horses in the stables and banquet halls of the castle, looking out over Syria in all directions, even to the mountains of Lebanon with their shreds of snow. We also visited the tiny ancient shrine of St Ananais, who had baptized St Paul after the scales had fallen from his eyes on the road to Damascus.

Lunch was in a Bedouin tent with musicians, an array of aubergines, olives, tomatoes, tabbouleh and hummus. We then drove through the desert - Bedouin tents here and there, long rectangles with awnings and all the household and animals about. With remarkable frequency we passed incongruous fairgrounds with ferris wheels and pirate ship rides – all closed. After some hours, we turned a corner and there was the most impressive breathtaking ancient site - pinkish gold columns and avenues of stone reaching over a huge area – Palmyra. This town was built on a oasis in the desert which is still a lovely patch of green. We visited the ancient temple of Bel, the god of the gods, with its beautifully preserved lintels and ceilings. 72 columns of the original 360 were still standing in this enormous space. We walked along the main colonnade imagining the people of ancient times in this street – camels pacing by, statues looking down from the ledges on the columns, water running in channels alongside…Palmyra was truly a place of dreams.

That night we stayed in a Damascus hotel, and went to an extraordinary dinner and show at a venue that was a cross between Las Vegas and Disneyland – in one huge area there was a Spanish galleon, the tower of Pisa and a windmill – a huge stage for the dance spectacular, central fountain, and tables all around with waiters in turbans. However to the alarm of some there was no alcohol!!!

The next day was a visit to the museum in Damascus which has mosaics, statues, and the most wonderful synagogue from Doura Europus – a whole huge room with amazingly preserved frescoes depicting stories from the Talmud, Moses and Abraham featuring in many of the panels. It had been preserved in the sands of Doura Europus, rediscovered in the 1930s and transported to the museum in pieces for reassembly. It is extraordinary; rare to have any Jewish temple so richly decorated.

Wandering through the streets and markets of Damascus after lunch we thought we were in another time; rickety buildings hanging over us, dusty shops, a bustling souq (market) with Shi’ite pilgrims beating their breasts and chanting as they passed through on the way to the Grand Mosque of Omayyad. .

Before entering the mosque we had to don a long hooded robe (for Kristin) and a skirt to cover Rupe’s knobbly knees. What a sight! almost as spectacular as the mosque with its mosaics and geometric beauty. A shrine inside holds (apparently) the head of St John the Baptist, who is a prophet for Moslems as well as Christians.

Too much to tell; the other places we visited were:

The citadel in Aleppo; dominating the skyline of this northern city; huge gates, two mosques, a sultan’s palace, baths, an enormous cistern.

The enormous water wheels in Hamas that lift water from the Orontes river to aqueducts and groan on their ancient axles as the Hamas citizens wander and picnic in the park nearby.

Saladin’s Castle; the enormous fort that first brought Lawrence of Arabia to the Near East as a student of medieval architecture – from a Phoenician settlement in 1100 BC it was reshaped by the Byzantines, the Aleppo Moslems and the Crusaders before falling to Saladin after a siege. Saladin mercifully let the Christians leave with all they could carry.

Ugarit, a huge settlement that had once been the capital of the Phoenician kingdom, with remarkable stonework and an archive room in the royal palace that had yielded at least 11000 tablets of early writing (sadly, only 300 remain in Syria). The Damascus museum has some, including a tablet the size of a large date with the first ever alphabet etched into it. The Phoenician king described Ugarit in a letter to the Pharaoh; covering 1 hectare with more than 90 rooms, it was a truly grand palace. Diplomats visiting the king would meet with their feet in a grand paddling pool in the reception area to keep cool; what a great idea.

Overall Syria was like a step back in time, the tiny winding alleys with dusty shops, women wound into their chadors in the baking heat, lots of well-loved children.

Iskendurun, Turkey, Cevlık, Daphne

Cevlık, ancıent port
more photos on flıckr.........

We have had an extra day ın Iskendurun. The rally fleet took off yesterday afternoon and wıthın a few hours we had the call to return to port ın Turkey. There were hıgh wınds and bıg seas and ıt was really not safe. So all the fıshıng boats had to move away from theır berths agaın and make way for the dozens of yachts, moored sıde by sıde and bows between bows, now waıtıng to leave tonıght for the passage to Syrıa.

Here ıs the earlıer post:

Iskendurun, Cevlik ( Seleucia Pieria), Daphne

Our boats safely observed by 24 hour police in the harbour, we set off early for a tour to see tunnels, a necropolis, an early Christian church established by St Paul, and the ‘second best mosaic museum in the world’.

We drove from Iskendurun through the Belen pass and surveyed the Amik plain, squares of wheat and corn fields, rich and fertile. On to Cevlik, the ancient port town of Antioch (Antakya). Here we walked up a short path through pistachio, mulberry, laurel and olive trees to find spectacular Titus’ tunnel, an extraordinary gorge dig to divert the river from the mountains away from the town of Selucia (ancient Cevlik) in times of flood. A stream still trickles along the gorge, and we walked over a roman bridge and down to the tunnel – through along slippery rocks with light squeezing through the end of the tunnel and the top of the gorge. Groups of Turkish school kids filed past us, shouting “Hello!”

Nearby was a necropolis, with tombs carved out of the rock. Very beautiful and once peaceful; now frequently visited. Along the way we met folks selling flat bread cooked over a fire, soap made with laurel oil, and bunches of herbs.

A meze lunch overlooking the waterfalls in Daphne was a great opportunity to talk to Sally and Al, a couple from Minnesota who had travelled West to East across the Med last year, almost the same track as Rumpus. We wandered along the muddy main street and inspected the woven cotton, one shop with a working loom clacking. This town was once the summer retreat for the wealthy, with rich Roman villas.

On to the mosaic museum in Antakya – spectacular mosaics from the Daphne summer villas. Wild beasts being speared by handsome warriors, sea creatures, birds, and incredible 3D impressions in the geometric borders. Also a fine sarcophagus and some extraordinary lion pillar bases carved in 800 BC.

The evening was to be a ‘pot luck dinner on the wharf’ – which turned into another really fun occasion, with drinks provided by the local chamber of shipping, dancing (again!) and lots to talk and laugh about.

The passage to Lattakia, Syria promises to be the roughest so far: we have a southerly wind blowing against us and heavy seas. Pippy and Richard have left Rumpus to join another boat and we have my mother Diane arriving to join us in Lattakia. So it’s just the two of us this passage.

A couple of lovely days in Mersin

Mersin is also known as Icel – we were greeted by Turkish navy sailors who helped us berth. It’s surprisingly cosmopolitan along the waterfront - a long wide stretch of esplanade is dotted with amusement parks, grassy parks, reproduction colonnades of archways, open air restaurants and sculpture ranging from beautiful to truly ugly.

In this part of the rally we are making passages at night and arriving in the morning with a day set aside to relax and explore. Our passage to Merson from Girne in Cyprus was just beautiful, with a full red moon rising just after the sun set, to light our way. Our first evening in Mersin was a wonderful event with local dancers and plenty of Turkish music for the rally sailors to carry on the dancing well into the night. The Lord Mayor of Merson regaled us with a song, crooning as he danced with Cath, one of the rally organizers, the microphone nestled between them.

The next day we took our own tour inland to Tarsus, the birthplace of Saul, later St Paul. It is also where Cleopatra met Mark Antony in 41 BC to discuss their strategy in the East. She was able to sail to Tarsus through a large lake that has now silted up – so Rupe and I travelled there by Dolmus (minibus) and train.

We met our French friends from ‘Arcaloune’ and together visited St Paul’s well, wandering through the streets past the shops selling cotton, walking sticks, and tobacco and tea from enormous bags. Caroline and Pilar bought hazelnuts from the street vendor, and enormous bags of fresh cheap vegetables. A very friendly Turkish traffic policeman was happy to give us directions, after a strong handshake: “I am Samil – what is your name? where do you come from? Yes the church is that way! Have a nice day!”

We lunched lunch at a waterfall; simple salads kebabs, and plates of mint and parsley with wedges of lemon – as we walked back across the bridge to the car we wondered at the croaking noises from the stream below – were they ducks?...frogs? Then a turtle slid from the bank and dived under the plastic bags and old bottles into the weedy stream.

Our departure was again timed for the evening, with an all night sail to Iskendurun. But we decided to leave a little earlier, and sail to an anchorage across the gulf from Iskendurun. We had another wonderful sail – sunshine, moderate breeze, a visit from dolphins, and arrived about eleven, anchored and then slept – in the morning a swim and an early start took us across the gulf in time to berth with all the other yachts mid morning. This port is small – we are crammed in side by side and bow to bow like a zipper; each yacht’s bow nestled between the bows of two other yachts. Enormous Turkish flags wave in the breeze and the huge hills loom over us. Iskendurun is the terminus for the Iraqi oil pipeline and the main port of Antioch.

Night Sail to Mersin

Evening sail - happy boys



















Arriving in Mersin


We had a wonderful night sail across to Mersin after waiting most of the day to refuel in Girne from the one pump available for all the dozens of rally yachts.... Gennaker up for several hours and the boys were very happy - though there was a bit of a cluster%&^%%$er before it came down. Arriving in Mersin we were greeted by some very smart looking sailors to help us tie up...

Turkish North Cyprus; Girne

The quiet and ancient portof Girne in North Cyprus was invaded by pirates aboard the 80 yachts of the Eastern Mediterranean Yacht Rally. Last night was a big pirate party with all the crews parading around the town dressed in their stripes and skulls.

We had a day tour to a monastery and a castle in the hills; this morning when we got in a taxi to come to the old town and Rupe said 'to the castle' the taxi driver said "Which one?"!

We saw a shipwreck museum inside the castle; the ship had been carrying millstones, almonds, amphorae of olive oil and wine, and had sunk off the coast in shallow water. Rupe was a little sobered to see that the wreck was almost exactly the same length and beam as Rumpus!

A day of perfect weather; after exploring Girne old town and castle we ate a kebab in the square. Shopping highlights: fake designer shoes and handbags – such indiscriminate knockoffs – one shoe of a pair would be ‘Gucci’ and the other ‘Fendi’!

I was ill during the bus tour on Sunday – I had been fading out during lunch and the restaurant manager Rose, who’d lived in London and spoke perfect English, made me a pot of wonderful fresh mint and cinnamon tea. She then drove Rupe to the urgent pharmacy where he bought all manner of remedies for a sore throat including ‘gargara’ (gargle). The Turkish have a well-deserved reputation for consideration and kindness.

While Rupe and the rest of the group explored the town, I took time out in the Caravanserai - a four walled two storied courtyard lined with shops, stalls and cafes. I found a bench, lay down and went to sleep – Rupe had to call my name so that it echoed off the walls before he could find me. It was surreal to open my eyes and see the vaulted arches of sandstone above me and realize that I was here, resting in a place where over the centuries so many had done the same.

Beautiful Cyprus

A wonderful overnight sail with a nearly full moon and some interesting close encounters...truly ships in the night. Tomorrow we will see Nicosia which is billed as the only divided city (left) in the world. Again all the rally yachts are 'dressed' with flags and make a really magnificent sight.











Rumpus powering along under spinnaker for 60 miles..

Rumpus in Alanya - off to Cyprus today

Rupe, Pippy, David, Richard, Tamsin in Rumpus's cockpit.

Rally yachts in Alanya

Rumpus now has a crew of 4; Kristin arrived yesterday in Alanya, South Eastern Turkey after a marathon series of flights from Auckland. Last night we had a big reception at a lovely restaurant overlooking the port followed by a 5 course meal in a beachside restaurant. This afternoon we set off on our first overnight passage, to Cyprus. We have a light wind slightly forward of the beam forecast, and a nearly full moon; it should be a really nice sail. Of course it’s not a race!!! (yeah right).

We have ambitions to catch tuna on the way and arrive in time to cook tuna steak for breakfast after a swim , then on to the marina. There is a pirate party in the castle on Saturday night, so we will be working on costumes.