Finike

Finike itself is an unremarkable town in the tourist sense.  It has been settled for thousands of years and is named after its founders, the Phoenicians.  The land-use policy in force favours agriculture, not development and there are no tourist attractions in the town itself.  Many older people retire here for the peace and quiet!  It has good facilities and a very friendly population.  Saturday’s market is excellent. It’s good to be settled in a ‘real’ working town rather than a tourist development – everything we need is nearby, and it won’t close down in the winter.

These guys sell cheese, yoghurt and fresh butter.  The yoghurt is thicker and richer than anything we've ever had.  It is a great dessert drizzled with lots of local honey and walnuts (they're in season so there are massive amounts of them in the market for very little money)

They also sell a great range of olives, olive pastes and oil.

 

 
Our Saturday treat is to buy a filled pancake from these ladies.  I like the spinach and cheese stuffed ones, Terry likes the potato and chilli ones. $1.25 for one this size.  We just sit down on tiny toy chairs alongside and eat them.

This is where we get our dried fruits and nuts.  He also sells Turkish confectionary, including Turkish Delight and multi-coloured jubes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finike


The surrounding areas do contain places of great interest, though, as  Lycia's capital city was located a few miles from here.  This was Limyra, and is closest to Finike.  Farther inland was Arycanda.  Apparently it was a bit of a pariah in Lycian times and only had one vote in the Lycian system, while more responsible towns had 3 votes (An Electoral College system,  adopted by the USA!)  The reason for this was that it was known as a Party Town and was forever in debt, not taking life as seriously as other cities.


Further west by some 30km is the much larger town of Demre, which is famous for having St Nicholas as its Bishop for many years.  We visited his church, remarkably well kept and being tended to by the Turkish Antiquities departments.  It is a simple, austere building – quite a contrast with the elaborate festival that ‘Christmas’ has become. A shopkeeper in Antalya pointed out to me the irony that all of the Christmas traditions – St Nick, presents, cypress pines, snow – are Turkish, but none of it is celebrated in Muslim Turkey. St Nicholas is the patron saint of both Greece and Russia and a great number of Russian faithful make a pilgrimage here.  There was a large group visiting when we were there and they certainly take their devotion to St Nicholas very seriously, young and old alike, with much kneeling, crossing and prostrating in each part of the church itself.  The church contains his tomb but not his remains, as these were stolen by the Italians several hundred years ago.

The marina is one of the best we have been in and is filling up rapidly with wintering cruisers.  We are looking forward to a full social program over the coming cold months like yoga classes, Turkish language classes, computer classes, organised trips to other parts of Turkey and weekend BBQs.  Had the first quiz night of the season on Thursday night and partnered up with our new friends from Queensland, Gary and Louise on Takamoana, a Fontaine Pajot cat.  We won by ½ a point, a fine team effort!  42 of us went  off in two buses to Antalya on Friday night for a performance of the Antalya Symphony Orchestra.  It was a superb night out and a wonderful performance.  Antalya is about 100km away so we were very late back, well past Cruisers’ Midnight, which is 9pm.

Our friends Hugh and Linda from the East Coast of the USA on Wild Goose arrived a few days ago and are only a few feet away on the opposite side of the pontoon. They’ve headed off to explore Cappadocia – a trip we’ll take in a couple of weeks.



There is still plenty of good sailing weather ahead, and once the more urgent matters are seen to, we can use the marina as a base for some short trips along this lovely coast.  We went out into the Bay last Sunday with our friends from Malta (they’re actually from Sydney) the Richardsons, Sean, Carol and the twins Elliott and Daniel.  We just went “around” and anchored over the other side for lunch before heading back. They were great company, both on our little cruise and back in Malta, where they treated us to a great home cooked Maltese meal. We wish them all the best for the rest of their stay in Turkey and their final return to Australia.


 

 

 

 

There were light winds, so we did some sailing and some motoring.  Getting in and out of your slip is easy here as the marina staff offer excellent assistance in picking up the mooring lines to help you dock.  One guy even gets out of the dinghy with the forward line in his hand and gets on your bow to secure the front while the other guy heads to the dock to take your stern lines.  Best system we have ever come across and very experienced Marinaras (don't know what the Turkish word is). And our bow thruster is now working properly again.
 

The plan is to head home in early December for about seven weeks, and we are also thinking about a visit to the US to catch up with my mum.

 

PS I keep forgetting to document the amusing signs and brand names seen along the way. Here are a couple of favourites for the record: Kastrati petrol in Albania; Morfat cake mixes in Greece; Arcelik  electronics in Turkey.

 

Kekova, Turkey

Our first landfall in Turkey was in Kekova Roads, a large lagoon protected by an offshore island. As we motored past the gulets moored in the harbour to anchor in the eastern end of the lagoon, we were amazed to see dozens of large stone sarcophagi nestled amongst the craggy hillsides. These are the remnants of the Lycian civilization, which reached its height about 3000 years ago. The Lycians were apparently renowned as fine sailors and fierce warriors, fighting to the last man and destroying their own cities rather than surrendering. When finally subdued by the Romans, Lycia was respected as an independent state. It seems to have been a particularly well managed state, with a matriarchal social structure and a functioning democracy - several of the USA's founding fathers referred to Lycia when drafting the Constitution and setting up the Republic. It is fascinating to imagine what life might have been like for the people whose tombs now line this haunted coastline. There is a famous walking trail, the Lycian Way, from Fethiye to Antalya, part of which we are planning to walk during our winter here. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lycian_Way

Along with the tombs, there is a Crusader castle , a harbour full of yachts, Turkish gulets and fishing boats, a line of good restaurants around the bay with a traditional village nested in behind them and a vast backdrop of rugged mountains. When we were there the conditions were perfect – calm and sheltered with good holding and a gentle breeze to cool things down in the afternoons. Great for swimming or taking the kayak along the shoreline to watch the sea turtles and vivid azure kingfishers in the early morning light.

 

On the first evening we made a point of visiting Ibrahim’s Restaurant, recommended to us by a French cruiser who had visited Kekova 35 years before when the restaurant was run by Ibrahim senior . The food and the views over the harbour were still fine. The village here has a few tourist stalls, but a street back from the water it is very simple and traditional, with the people tending their gardens, goats and chickens and elderly folk sitting watching the world go by.

The trek up to the top of the castle was interesting, the path winding up through a small village of strategically placed cafes and stalls, and spectacular views from the walls of the whole island and the surrounding coastline – strategic also for the knights defending it, of course. From up here, the whole burial complex was visible, with stone sarcophagi dotting the hillsides amongst gnarled old olive trees and even in the water, where the sea had reclaimed parts of the ancient landscape.

Well, after a few days it was time to head for our winter haven in Finike. Common Sense is looking a bit shabby, algae and salt-encrusted and in need of repairs to her bow-thruster, VHF radio and a replacement anchor chain for dealing with the very deep, steep-to anchorages typical of these parts. Our Hydrovane was damaged on the island of Kythnos and needed straightening and there are a hundred-and-one other things to get to after the year's cruising.  Our Google Earth track tells us that we've done 1,734 Nautical Miles this year since leaving Monastir, Tunisia.

 

Terry's Beer Tour of the World #11

Amstel 

One of my favourite drinks.   The complaint about this beer is that it comes from a major brewery.  Probably not “trendy” enough for the new-age connoisseurs of beer but as a fall back this is great. 

Korca   (Albania). 

Ok but nothing to write home about

Tirana  (Albania)

Good effort.  Would drink this in-country with no problems.  Had plenty in the restaurants, particularly in Taverna Fredi in Sarande.

 

Greece

Fischer

A bit bland.  Not something I’d try again.  I had a few, on tap and from a bottle but it didn’t impress me in any shape.

Alfa

Good.  My second favourite Greek beer.  If that’s the only name you hear on the list (usually with that crap Heineken, because they’re owned by the same brewery) pick the Alfa anytime.

Note re Heineken:  I’ve actually come across a couple more people who refuse to drink Heineken.  I tried to palm one off on our friend Rene and he baulked at it.  I’ve found a couple more since then.

Fix

 My favourite Greek beer.   Bar none. This has plenty of flavour, good head, long aftertaste.  The best.

Pils Hellas 

Very ordinary.  In fact, you could even say not nice.

Vergina 

A bit on the sweet side.  Luckily, you don’t see it all that often.

Krusovice

This is a great beer.  It is up with Pilsner Urquell and a few others in my top 5 in the world.

The last one I had was a bit flat, in the “Mr Troll” beer house in Rhodes.  I suspect the keg, not the beer as my introduction to it was outstanding.  I have this on my list of beers when we go to Czech. Rep. in the New Year.  This stuff was requested by Mad King Ludwig for his wedding.  From their website:-

Come and see for yourself how the Krušovice Brewery remains true to long established traditions going back to the 16th century. The royal brewery had its heyday when it was acquired by Emperor Rudolf II in 1583. A lot has changed since then, but Krušovice still attracts drinkers with several types of exceptional beer. Krušovice 10°, 12°, dark, Mušketýr, Malvaz and non-alcoholic beer Fríí are very popular, as are tours of the brewery. These acquaint visitors with the various stages in the production process as well as taking in the brewery chapel. It goes without saying that tours include a tasting session.

 

The last sentence is particularly appealing.

Brink’s Blonde and Brink’s Black

Made on Crete.  Brinks is a German chappy, so he knows one or two things about making beer.  And for sure, he makes good stuff.  This walks out the door on Crete to the tune of thousands upon thousands of litres (Happy Brit tourists!).  It is supposed to be called Rethymnian Beer and they’ve had to draw a black line through this on the labels (they still do as a protest)

There is some stupid Greek bureaucrat who says they can’t call their beer “Rethymnian ” beer because the law doesn’t say anything about you being allowed to call a beer after a place. It doesn’t say you can’t, either, but it doesn’t say you can. (It’s made near Rethymnos).  Fair dinkum, there is nothing quite like a Greek public servant for complete dickbrainedness, so they have to call it by the founder’s name.  The country that gave the West its ideas of individual and representation has descended into the sort of crap that philosophers dream of.  Imagine not being able to leave a port until you have given the Port Police your tax form – 0.81c it costs – or being ready to get your boat lifted out for work costing thousands and you can’t move because you have to give the lift operator your 0.81c tax form.  It’s absolutely no wonder at all that they are in the shit they are in because their private sector is functioning and their public sector is rooted.

 

Nobelaner Premium Pils

One of the ‘bespoke’ beers brewed for the big supermarket chains.  A bit rough.

 

Magnus Magister – from Rhodes. 

I sat in a café in Kos while Cal was checking out something next door and asked what beer they had.  The waitress was a bit rushed/harassed/surly/cranky and said Magnus.  Never heard of it so I asked for clarification.  Didn’t get much help second time around either so I said give me one anyway.  Lucky I did.  They call it “Knight’s beer” because of the Knights of St John.  This is good beer.  Try it if you are close because I don’t think much makes it far from either Kos or Rhodes.

 

Zythos Vap

This is made on Rhodes by the Vap P. Kougios Brewery.  Pale Ale/Pilsner type, 5%.  It’s very nice but that’s all I know.  There is no advertising, no marketing, no info on the bottle.  Zilch.  You make a good beer that would be in with the best of company and then you shut up and keep it a secret?  Anyway, there is no information on this at all, except maybe that for some reason they sell it in New Zealand???

Jupiter

From Belgium.  5.75%.  Very small bottle in the Mr Troll beer house.  Couldn’t really get an idea of the taste from what I had but I’m sure it’s nice.

Henninger-Brau AG Frankfurt. 

Brewed by Mythos.  Nothing remarkable but OK.  When you see it in the supermarket at 60c for ½ litre, buy it with confidence.

Mythos

I think I’ve reviewed this before.  Probably the most-sold beer in Greece.  It’s ok and I’d drink it before a lot of others but Fix and Alfa beat it hands down and you can usually get them in the same places.

Nobelaner. 

Same as Henninger.  Same sort of offering etc.  Again, if you’re stocking the fridge for Ron, put it in

Turkey

Efes Lager

Start with the best first.  This is a very good beer.  Good head, bubbles all the glass down, good crisp taste, nice aftertaste.  They sell this in Morocco, too, and it was good there.  Here it is in large cans and bottles (500cl) but it’s also more expensive.  Expect to pay $2 a can in the takeaways.  I paid 102TL or about $AUD54 for a 24-pack of 500s.  Still cheaper than Australia, but then what isn’t?

Efes Malt

not worth the extra alchohol.  No special taste – can’t tell why the “Malt” label is on it.

Marmara Strong Beer 

Very ordinary.  7.5% but why?  I almost didn’t finish it but the last bit in the glass kept looking at me.

Bomonti 100% Malt. 

No taste.  Ordinary.  Founded in 1895 so you’d think they’d have fixed it by now.

Ginger Rum Punch

For some weird reason, it’s almost impossible to get Dry Ginger Ale in Greece.  I asked a few times and the guy in the shop agreed – yep, it’s hard to get here.  (So, get some? Where’s the hard bit.  Some places do.)  Anyways, I have rum on board (you’re surprised?) and I like Ginger Rum Punch and this lack of Ginger Ale was getting irritating.  So, we made our own Ginger Syrup.  We’ve got it in a bottle in the fridge, and it’s plenty strong.  Made it with a packet of ginger, sugar and water, all boiled up then strained through muslin.  Bacardi Gold (or my Bahamian dark), some ginger syrup and some soda water and you’re on.  No driving after this lot and certainly no lifting the anchor to go anywhere.  The disturbance in The Force has been contained.