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| Swept Away spent the winter of 2002-2003 at the Setur Finike Marina. Finike lies on the southern coast of Turkey. Everyone described it to us as a "real Turkish town." We were happy to spend several weeks there in October and again in May getting the boat ready. | |
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This is the main boulevard of Finike town. Notice the lack
of traffic at this circle in midday. Also notice the May snow on the
mountains behind the town. The mountain streams provide the town with its
water, either in bottled form or right out of the tap. The clay amphora sculpture at far left symbolizes the ancient history of the area. Public art also includes huge papier-mâché oranges (to represent its world-renowned export) and fountains in odd places. There are fountains in the canals, and others falling from the undersides of small bridges. It's a friendly place. |
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It's common to see solar hot water heaters all over the Mediterranean, and Finike is no exception. Winter or summer, the solar panels capture the sun's warmth to make hot water. This photo is typical of what you'd see on every house in Finike. On a twenty-unit apartment building, there will be twenty of these on the roof. Keeping in mind that the price of energy is much higher than in the US, solar water heating is a very worthwhile investment to make. |
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Sundays, you see men sitting in groups all over town,
playing this game, which is called Okey, and probably means "Okay!"
There are 104 tiles, including thirteen numbers in four colors and two
additional pieces with no numbers and no letters. So it's like playing cards
with two decks and two jokers.
Tea houses rent the card tables inside for a nominal amount, and hope to sell tea to the players while they are there. |
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Swept Away was launched a few days after we arrived. It's a little heart-stopping to see your 20-ton home carried around a boatyard supported by two canvas straps. This 80-ton- capacity lift surrounds the boat in its winter cradle. The straps are attached at specific points that ensure that the boat won't fall forward or backward. Then the straps are tightened and the cradle removed. Our boat spent the winter at quite a distance from the launching slip. What you see here is the culmination of a trip of several blocks, lumbering through the marina. You can see that the launching slip is just wide enough for the lift to stay on land and deposit its cargo gently into the water. |
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