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May to July 2008
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Uncle Monty checks Craig's credentials |
On the 2nd May Craig and I drove to Benoni to visit Uncle Monty and Hetty. I had not seen Uncle Monty for about 2 years and it was high time that I did. We had a good chat and Uncle Monty was intrigued about my sailing trip and very happy about Craig's graduation. It was good to see such a nice man as Uncle Monty again. He is one of my heroes and also Craig's Godfather.
On the 3rd May, Craig and I flew to George where his flat-mate picked us up and took us to their flat. Craig showed me around and then drove me to Mossel Bay. Tertius and Elsabé insisted I stay with them and it has been really nice sharing their home, the whole family has made me feel very welcome and at home. Thanks guys!!
I have been spending most of my time fixing my vehicle. In the 4 months that I was away it had rusted badly above the windscreen and a few places on the body. I cut the rust out and repaired with fibreglass. I also cleaned and painted all the wheel-arches and undercarriage with chassis paint.
On Craig's birthday, 23rd May, Craig drove to Mossel Bay in the afternoon and we spent some time together, also going to the Yacht Club for dinner and the regular Friday lucky-draw. The whole club sang 'happy birthday' to Craig and he won a R100 ($15) gift voucher in the lucky-draw. A good time was had by all.
In the mean time, I have been offered a position to help skipper a yacht in the Mediterranean for a German family. The boat, "Ferilee" is based in Pula, Croatia and the owner, Helmut Wessels, wants to sail to Slovenia, Italy, the Greek islands, perhaps Turkey, and back to Croatia. My tickets are booked and if my visas are granted, I fly out on the 28th June going via London and will return to South Africa on the 25th September 2008. Three months sailing in the Med. Sounds like fun....
I am still waiting for my Croatian and Schengen visas to come through....... tick - tock - tick - tock...
On Thursday 26th June, Gillian, my travel agent phoned me to let me know that I have been granted a multiple entry Schengen visa but only a two entry Croatian visa, both valid for 120 days. This was good and not such good news because I needed a multiple entry Croatian visa as well. I spoke to Helmut, about this and he has agreed to modify our initial schedule to suit my visa situation. So at the end of the day it was no problem. Time was getting short and the excitement mounting - I started packing....
To avoid more rust on my car, I re-packed one of my store rooms and was able to get my car parked inside (only just) - this I did on Friday afternoon and Tertius was kind enough to pick me up on his way home. By Saturday morning I was ready to go. Jeannie was out at a sleep-over so I never had the opportunity of handing the swimming pool care back to her or of saying good-bye properly but we said our good bye's the modern way - by SMS. I bid Andrew fair-well before Tertius and Elsabé drove me to George airport where Craig met us for breakfast. It was hard saying good-bye to every body but my plane was waiting. Thank you so much Tertius and Elasbé for allowing me to share your home - I hope I did not intrude too much on your lives - I love you guys!!! And a big thanks for the card and chocolates too - much appreciated.
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Straddling the International Date Line in London |
I flew to Johannesburg where I had to wait for 4 hours for my flight to London via Dubai. The Air Emirates flight was very good and I arrived in London mid afternoon on Sunday 29th June. It was previously arranged that I will stay with Kass in London for a week but as my visas were valid from the 1st July and that Helmut asked me to get to Croatia ASAP, I only stayed with Kass for two days, during which time she showed me around her neighborhood (near Hampstead Heath) and London Town, including a ferry trip up the Thames River and some dining out in the evenings. Thanks Kass for your hospitality - you are very kind.
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The Roman Amphitheater in Pula |
On the 1st July, at 4:30am, my taxi picked me up from Kass's home and drove me to Stansted airport where I caught a Ryanair flight to Pula, Croatia. Arriving to 34°C temperatures, it was a lot warmer than Mossel Bay. Helmut collected me at the airport and we drove to Pula, about 10km away. I settled in on his sailing yacht called "Ferilee" and at 8pm we went walking through the old part of Pula also having something to eat along the way. The first thing about Pula that struck me was how old and beautiful the place was. Ruled by the Romans in ancient times, it is said that Pula was Julius Caesar's favourite holiday place in all of Europe and I can appreciate why... The Romans built an exact replica of the Colosseum here albeit on a smaller scale, which is in such good condition that there are concerts and music festivals almost daily. There are still many Roman buildings in existence here, some of them still in almost perfect condition. Many of the roads in the old part of town date back 1,200 years and are works of Roman art!! The second thing that struck me was the fact that there are almost no people of color here - no Indians, no Chinese, no Africans. I have been here 3 weeks now and seen 2 Africans and one elderly Oriental lady - that's all. I wonder how come it is so..... And the third thing that blew my mind are the people - the men are generally stocky and not very handsome, most being over weight and slovenly dressed. But on the other hand the women are amazingly gorgeous, I might even say stunning. Tall, poised, elegant, well dressed and cared for, an amazing contrast to their men.
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Vanessa - those eyes...... |
The next morning, we took Ferilee out on a sail so that I can familiarise myself with the boat and the surroundings and I am sure so that Helmut can check my sailing abilities too. The Pula yacht club is at the end of a 3nm inlet which takes 35 minutes to exit and has a few tricky spots. But we had a good sail until 2pm when we had to turn around as Helmut's brother, Herbert, telephoned to say that he was at the Croatian border at Trieste and will be in Pula by 5pm. Shortly after we moored Herbert arrived. Looking at the two brothers reminded me of my own Father and his brother - one dark and the other light of complexion - almost complete opposites. Herbert will be joining us for two weeks of sailing, his first experience at longer distance sailing. After Herbert settled in we again went walk-about through the old part of Pula also haing dinner along the way.
The next day we started preparing the boat for some serious sailing, filling water and diesel tanks, stocking up on supplies and waiting for Herbert's daughter, Vanessa, to arrive by car from Germany. She arrived mid afternoon and we were briefly introduced before the two brothers and Vanessa went shopping for the last few things at a large department store called Liedl's. On their return we stowed all the gear and supplies and went into town again for dinner etc. As our first meeting was very brief I only caught a glimpse of Vanessa's eyes but at dinner I had a good look - she has the most amazing green eyes. A kind of emerald green that seems to swallow one up - a man could drown in those eyes I thought to myself... Vanessa will be sailing with us for a week before returning to Germany to complete her MBA Thesis on Internet Marketing.
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We arrive in Rovinj |
On the 4th July (a good day I thought), we slipped our berth in Pula and set sail north to explore the Limski Fjord and spend the night at the old city of Rovinj. The wind was quite good to start with but died down by midday so we motor-sailed part of the way. Rovinj, like most coastal towns and cities in Croatia is very old and well looked after. We did a sail-past the old town, around the island of Katarena and went on to the Limski Fjord stopping in at the nudist bay of Kriz for a swim. After an hour or so, we upped anchor and motored up the Limski Fjord as far as was allowed (3nm) before turning back to anchor in Rovinj for the night. Once the anchor was set we got the dinghy ready and mounted the borrowed 2.5hp outboard motor and set off for the shore. About half way there the motor started taking strain and then cut out completely. Not phased, because we are careful sailors, we started rowing the rest of the way. We all had something to eat and drink at the yacht club and then remembered that we still had to row all the way back to the boat (about 600 meters). Rowing 4 adults through 1½ meters of swell was not that easy. We then started pressuring Helmut to get his own (stronger) outboard motor! Our first day together was a huge success and we all fell into bed willingly at around 1am.
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Going ashore in Liznjan Bay |
The next morning we weighed anchor at 8:30 and headed south, going back to Pula. On docking in Pula, Vanessa and I went to buy bread and Coke while Helmut and Herbert went to pick out a new outboard motor. We are now smartly kitted out with a brand new Suzuki 5hp 4-stroke motor! After filling the outboard with oil and petrol (called Benzine here) we cast off just after 2pm and went south for 19nm to the cute bay of Liznjan where we had dinner aboard and then spent a wonderful evening at a beach pub with loud Croatian rock and house music and watched the younger crowd frolicking in the shallow pool, all fully clothed. At around 1am we headed back to Ferilee for a good nights rest.
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Anchored in Rabac |
In the morning, 6th July, Vanessa and I had a quick swim in the crystal clear water and then had coffee and tea before lifting the anchor and heading up to our next stop, Rabac which is 20nm north east. The wind was only around 10 knots so we motor-sailed almost the entire way. Starting the motor was a problem this morning and was either because the battery was low on voltage or the starter motor / solanoid is faulty. Rabac is very pretty but the bay faces the "wrong" way so I christened this anchorage "rolly-polly bay" as we rolled quite badly the whole night. In the morning when we wanted to lift the anchor we noticed that we had fouled a submerged buoy. Our anchor was stuck about 5 meters down and I had to dive down to free it. Luckily it came free quite quickly and we were soon on our way for our next port-of-call, the bay at Silo.
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The double bridge on the northern side of the Vinodolski Channel |
We were supposed to go to Silo via the swing bridge at Osor but the directions given to Helmut were incorrect (or Helmut was not listening properly) so we went to Silo via the double bridge at Dubno and the Vinodolski Channel. A biggish detour as Rabac to Silo is 34nm. The winds were quite good at 15 to 18 knots so we made good time and settled in at Silo in broad daylight. The sun only sets at 9:30pm so the days are nice and long, this leaves plenty of time to explore the area, swim, (have I mentioned that the water is crystal clear?) and prepare for dinner. By now we had a routine where I did the breakfasts (after starting the engine with a piece of wire across the solanoid contacts, weighing the anchor and hoisting the sails...), and Herbert the dinners (when we were not eating out). We kept this routine for the entire time Herbert was with us and it worked well. I christened Silo Bay "Solo Bay" as we were the only boat there, however it eventually became known to the Ferilee crowd as "kissing bay". Vanessa and I rowed ashore to take photo's and empty the water that had collected in the dinghy. On our return to Ferilee, Herbert had a delicious dinner ready for us all. After dinner the four of us sat and chatted for a while before the two brothers retired for the night, a few beers and a bottle or two of wine probably being their demise....
The next morning it was the usual routine, a nice swim in the crystal clear water, start the motor, raise the anchor and prepare breakfast - another tough day in paradise!! On this day, 7th July, we experienced the infamous Bura wind (pronounced Bora for some strange reason). This is a wind that usually blows from a northerly direction and gives no warning of it's arrival - and it arrives very quickly too and usually blows 30 to 40 knots. We were happily sailing south down the remainder of the Vinodolski Channel (the whole channel is some 18nm long) when the Bura struck...
The wind was blowing around 15kn onto the port quarter when we entered the channel and we had all the canvas out. Within a few minutes the wind was around 25kn and I wanted to reef the genoa but something was wrong as the roller-furler would not budge. From the cockpit I could see the furler line was tangled in it's drum. So I went to the bow to try and fix the problem. By this time the wind was over 30kn and I was spilling the main as much as I could. Luckily I was able to un-tangle the line in good time and put two reefs (more or less) in the genoa, just in time as the wind was exceeding 40kn!! Things on the boat settled down nicely and we broke Ferilee's speed record going along at well over 7kn. We could have done much more but "safety first" and I set the sails accordingly. Besides, Herbert and Vanessa were cold and wet by this stage and there was no need to make their trip any more unpleasant, Herbert was also looking a bit concerned. Vanessa on the other hand, after establishing that it was safe, had a ball - she seems to be a bit of an adrenaline junky this one...
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The four church towers in Rab |
At lunchtime the wind was starting to abate so Herbert and I dropped the main, we gybed the boat and I let all the genoa out as we had to make a 90° turn to starboard around the southern end of Prvic Island heading for our next stopover, the City of Rab on Rab Island. By the time we arrived in Rab, we were motor-sailing. Here was a pretty town known for it's four church steeples on a narrow piece of land jutting out which forms part of the harbor. Helmut decided that we will go onto the walk-on moorings for the night as we all wanted to have a nice shower and the boat needed to be filled with diesel as well. I also took the opportunity to wash some of my clothes. That evening we all went for a walk into town and along the esplanade near the four church steeples, ate pizza and had something to drink. Afterwards, the two brothers went to bed while Vanessa and I went for another walk along the shore on the southern side of town - a beautiful walk it was indeed...
After doing some early morning shopping and filling up with water and diesel, we left Rab heading in a south westerly direction crossing the Paski Channel,the Kvarneric Sea, and headed south across the Losinjski Channel towards the southern end of Losinj Island. We rounded the island and headed up the western side, aiming for our next stop at the town of Torunza. Torunza has a long inlet in a north/south direction so the bay was as flat as a pancake. While Helmut was checking his beer situation and Herbert the food, Vanessa and I dinghied ashore to explore the area and on Helmut's instructions "Find for me a pub". Find a pub we did, worked out the best way to get there and dinghied back to the boat for a delicious "Herbert pasta meal". After eating we all went ashore, in pitch darkness, found the pub and stayed until midnight. We headed back to the boat and had a comfortable nights rest.
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Watching the Osor bridge swing open |
After starting the troublesome engine, lifting the anchor, raising the sails and eating breakfast, we headed north for the Osor Canal. The Osor Canal was dug by the Romans and separates the islands of Losinj and Cres. The well protected small bay behind the town is very pretty and flanked on the one side by a huge camping site (for mobile homes, caravans and campers) and on the other by an ancient church in ruins. After arriving in Osor, we dropped the main anchor and secured a kedge anchor to the rocks on shore. Vanessa and I had a swim, in crystal clear water... while Helmut took stock of his beers and Herbert prepared us a delicious meal of spicy oven roasted chicken breasts. We then dinghied around the corner to watch the bridge swing open. The bridge only opens for about 30 minutes twice a day, at 8am and 5pm. As soon as all the boats are through, the bridge closes and road traffic resumes. After the bridge closed, we all walked around town looking in at the old church and it's tower, and admiring all the bronze statues dotted around the town.
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The main street in Osor. Note the statues (in the background...) |
Osor is a preserved town and famous for it's music school dating back to 1496. We went to a restaurant opposite the bridge for something to eat and drink. We were welcomed at the establishment by the owner and his inebriated friends, one of whom bought us a carafe of wine and then started hitting on Vanessa by asking her to dance with him. Vanessa politely declined his offer and then the old man started dancing on a bench and promptly fell off - we could not laugh out loud but inside I was howling with laughter. This obviously embarrassed the old fart hugely as he suddenly became aggressive telling us foreigners to "piss off". Not long after this he was taken home and as soon as we had finished eating, we put our dinghy back in the water and also went home. After another swim, this time Herbert joined us, we got ready to go ashore for a drink at a pub next door to the camp site. After drinks the brothers went to bed and Vanessa and I chatted in the cockpit till late.
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A mid-passage swim off Galijola Island (in the background) |
From Osor we had to start heading back to Pula as Vanessa was due to drive home to Bad Homburg in Germany (Bad as in the germanic word for "bath") on Saturday 12th July so after the usual morning swim in the crystal clear water (have I mentioned the incredible water yet.....?), and attending to the other usual morning routines, we set sail heading west for our next stopover, Veruda Bay, which is only 5nm south of Pula. Just past the northern tip of Losinj Island the wind died down completely so we motored the rest of the way (25 nm). As it was sweltering (35°C) we decided to have a mid-crossing swim just off the tiny island of Galijola (44° 43.46N & 14° 10.39E). This turned out to be a very nice stop as we all had a refreshing swim before motoring on. We arrived in Veruda Bay quite early (the sun only sets around 9:30pm) so we had a swim, tidied up a bit and had a nice afternoon nap (nice photo you took Herbert...) Towards evening, Herbert cooked us another delicious meal and we then dinghied over to the yacht club for drinks and to listen to some local music being played by a live band. The yacht club in Veruda is apparently not open to foreign boats so everything was very Croatian. The band played traditional (oldies) music to the traditional (oldies) crowd but never the less, a good time was had by all - Vanessa and I even managed a dance or two while Herbert remarked that it looked like the crowd had escaped from a nearby old-aged home.
The next morning we lifted the anchor and motored back to our home port, Pula. When we got there, the first order of business was to have a nice long shower. Afterwards Vanessa packed her things - she had a lot of things - and we walked to the car park to fetch her car. After packing her things in her car - she had a lot of things - we all bid her fair-well and she left mid afternoon for the long drive back to Germany. She only arrived home in the early hours of the next morning, after having to stop several times for "power naps" along the way. After she left, the boat took on a completely different character with only the three men on board...
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A very beautiful sunset - Porec |
The three of us took a walk into the old part of Pula later in the afternoon for drinks and something to eat. The next day the two brothers went to Lidl's by car to do some shopping and I stayed behind to get the boat ready as we were due to leave Pula heading north to Rovinj. We left Pula at 12:15pm and had a good sail, arriving in Rovinj at 5:30pm. We went ashore right away for a drink and a walk around town, visiting a historical church on our rounds. On our way back to the boat we stopped for a few more drinks (I have discovered that Croatian coffee and ice-cream is delicious).
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Porec from "Herbert's Restaurant" |
The next morning, 14th July, we sailed further north from Rovinj to Porec (pronounced Por-etch) in good winds. The little bay at Porec is bouyed so anchoring was not necessary. No sooner had we tied up, when the wind picked up dramatically, gusting 40 knots. I was glad to be in a port at this stage. After about 2 hours, the wind died down enough so we could dinghy ashore for a look around the town, and the obligatory stop for a beer or three (coffee for me). We also had dinner at a fancy restaurant that Herbert made us walk to - about 4km - but just the view of the old city and the sunset was worth every step of the way. We made our way back to the boat via another pub and settled in for the night to the sounds of music coming from a party on the promenade.
Early the next morning, 15th July, we made a start for Osor but this time starting in strong winds - not quite a Bura as described earlier - but close. We made the first 20nm in a shade over 3 hours but the last 20nm in only 8 hours as we were in the lee of the mainland. We arrived in Osor just before the sun went down. Herbert made us a sausage meal which was washed down with plenty of beer/wine by the brothers, who promptly went to bed afterwards. I took the opportunity to have a quiet swim and to update this site.
For the next four days we went from bay to bay looking around and taking the sights in:
16 July - Through the Osor Canal, visiting Herizine and stopping over in Jablanac
17 July - Jablanac to Caska on Pag Island
18 July - Caska and back through the Osor Canal
19 July - Osor Canal to Pula
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The tiny harbor at Jablanac
(Ferilee is between the ferry and the red yacht) |
Jablanac is worthy of a mention as we were able to enter the tiny bay and tie up for the night on the town jetty right outside the hotel where we had something to drink. The hotel owners, a sister and brother team, allowed us to shower in the hotel, charge our mobile phones, and get advice on sailing in the area. Later in the evening, we all had something to eat there as well, and the food was really good and the owners very friendly and accommodating. On the advice of Anto Anic (Anich), the brother, we sailed into a beautiful rocky crag called Zavratnica.
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Zavratnica Crag looking out towards the sea |
Only about 40 meters wide but 40+ meters deep, this was an interesting place and a pity we did not stop to have a swim as there were some people snorkeling along the one cliff face and I am sure it would have been nice to see. Caska was also interesting as it is known as a "party beach" with plenty of loud techno and house music that carried on right through the night to the crowds numbering in the 1,000's.
Getting back to Pula was good as it gave us the opportunity to wash-up (body, boat and clothes) and for Herbert to plan our drive through the countryside north of Pula that we had planned for Sunday 20 July, the day before Herbert left for home, Weinheim in Germany. Herbert had a Croatian tourist guide book with him and he always read-up on the towns/islands we visited and this information was very interesting. He did the same for our road trip and explained all the interesting points/places of each area, town, castle, church etc. that we visited. It was a nice break from sailing and for me a very enjoyable day. We got back to Pula in the late afternoon and did the usual pilgrimage into town for drinks and something to eat. The next morning Herbert got his things ready, packed his car and by 9am was ready to leave for his drive home. Helmut and I bid him fare well and a safe journey home.
We went shopping for supplies at Lidl's in the afternoon and Helmut got ready as he had to drive to Austria on business the next day (22 July). In the evening we did the usual walk into old Pula for drinks and something to eat. Again, things were very different now that Herbert had left us, and it was just Helmut and I now. At just after 10am Helmut left by car for Austria and I set about doing a few things that needed some attention.
I spent some time on updating this web page
I changed the boat's engine oil and cleaned the water filter
I fixed the wind charger
I scrubbed the outside of the boat - stem to stern
I cleaned and tidied the inside of the boat - front to back
I re-coiled and stashed all the spare lines
I fixed a couple of leaks on the windows
Helmut arrived back from Austria at 11pm on the 23rd July and the next day he arranged for a diver to replace all the anodes and an electrician to supply an extra battery (200Ah). On the 25th I went up the mast (twice) to replace the anchor light and tri-color lights with LED bulbs. I also changed the cockpit and stern lights to LED bulbs. The plan was to go back to the Limski Fjord so the water tanks were also filled as was the diesel tank. I noted that Helmut did not mention anything regarding all the work I did on HIS boat.
On the 26th at 11:30am we left Pula heading north for the Limski Fjord, but more specifically to a nudist beach that Helmut wanted to visit. We arrived well after sunset and had quite a time finding a spot in which to drop the anchor. We eventually anchored in 20 meters of water and settled in for the night. The next morning a fishing boat drew up alongside and asked us to move as we were in his fishing area. So I raised the anchor and Helmut motored closer to the other yachts at anchor and in his attempt to find shallower waters, he grounded the boat. Luckily the sea bed was covered in a thick layer of sea grass so using the "walk" of the propeller and the rudder as a paddle I managed to turn the boat around by about 100° and we were able to motor out of our predicament. After finding a suitable location and dropping the anchor, we dinghied ashore to the "F.K.K." (Free Body Culture) establishment. Needless to say I was quite surprised - for several reasons.
The size of the place: over 1,000 caravans, 800 holiday cottages, and 600 camping sites. All fully utilised, the place was packed!
The people themselves: All ages, from new-born babies to great-grand-parents, male and female - 95% buck naked. They mostly came in 2 sizes - too thin or too fat. Walking around, riding bicycles, driving cars, and sitting in pubs drinking and eating. Photography is strictly not allowed but I would have liked to take a photo of the groups of people sitting at the long tables in one of the pubs - I found it hilarious looking down the rows of people with all their butts in a neat line facing outwards - it really "cracked" me up!!!
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From Grandma to the kids, all in their birthday suits |
I did not care what others thought or how they looked at me, but I kept my swimming trunks on. We heard that at 2pm there was going to be a German "oompah" band playing at one of the restaurants, so Helmut made sure that we were there to listen to his folk music and enjoy the local brew. After going down to the beach where Helmut had a swim, we dinghied back to the boat and got ready for the evening. First we went to a private pub on the other side of the anchorage where they serve home made wine and cheese platters, so we had a bottle of wine and some cheese, and chatted to two guys (one an Italian Pro. tennis coach and the other a Swiss businessman). The Swiss guy told Helmut about this restaurant in the FKK camp that serves delicious Steak Tartar, so that is where we walked to later in the evening. Helmut had his Steak Tartar and I had some delicious crumbed chicken schnitzels. After dinner we walked to the main entertainment area to listen to a very good Elvis Presley impersonator, but I had to smile when he came back after the show to pack his things up - he was a bald, short, Italian who, without his Elvis garb on, looked and sounded nothing like Elvis. At the restaurant and the main entertainment area, everybody was at least dressed, and I remarked to Helmut that "I didn't recognise a single person..." At midnight we made our way back to the boat and settled in.
The next morning, 28 July, I had no desire to see any more naked people so I took Helmut ashore and returned to the boat for the day where I tidied up and updated this site. At around 3pm Helmut phoned me and I fetched him back to the boat. We both had a siesta and in the evening I made us dinner. We hit the sack at 10pm which was early for a change.
On the 29th we upped anchor at 10am after breakfast and motored back to Pula in 6 hours. On the way I repaired the wind steering system which had gone out of alignment. This is a rather clumsy wind vane that works with a trim-tab on the rudder and somehow the trim-tab had moved on it's shaft causing the rudder to want to veer to port the whole time. In Pula we had a welcome shower and the usual pilgrimage into town. On the 30th we motored to Veruda, via Artaturi, then Losing. There was no place to anchor in Losing so we went back to Artaturi for the night. On the 31st we motor-sailed to Olib and onto Ist. We spent the night at anchor in Ist but this was the most expensive place I have seen in Croatia. We don't know why this was but the prices were almost double compared to the other places we have been to.
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