Aboard the Alaturka

(September 23-26) The Mediterranean is pretty spectacular wherever you find yourself on it, and the southern coastline of Turkey is no exception. The water has none of the turquoise you associate with the tropics, but it does sport an eye-popping sapphire, almost electric, blue. We are aboard the Alaturka, a Turkish “gullet” perhaps better described as a wooden sailing vessel. We are among eleven other passengers: five Aussies (including a couple of newlyweds), two Lithuanians into homeopathic medicine and beekeeping, a female Canadian journalist working for Reuters, three other Americans, one of whom is literally pedaling himself through eastern Europe and Turkey on his trusty but well worn bike, and one non-English speaking Turkish dude, Umete. Except for Umete, we are all united by a common language, a love for travel, and a fondness for storytelling.

What is not to like about this? Nothing, I tell you. We all have “staterooms” below, but they are small enough to test even Clark Kent’s legendary skills at costume changes in small places. And, the bathrooms each of us gets are so microscopically tiny they should issue elbow pads as standard equipment. As a result, all of the action is on deck, including sleeping. I mean, why sleep in a claustrophobe’s hell when you can bed down on commodious pads with your blanket and pillow and fall asleep under the stars? As for day-time activity, I know this sounds stressful, but we eat, drink, swim, nap, read, mingle, and repeat. This cruise is not for the antsy.

I thought the sunset last night was as good as it gets, but I was wrong. This morning’s sunrise was a psychedelic pastiche of neon pinks and blues against a foreground of the steep Turkish hills that slide into the sea, each a different hue of black.

Spectacular.