Gocek to Finike (Alexander's Path). May 4 to 19 on T.G. Ellyson. Great holiday as weather was very good. Lots to learn about history of Turkey. Excellent service from Gordon and Brigitte. Wonderful variety of food served every day. Strong memories from Turkey to be cherished every day. Turkey is a wonderful place to holiday and am sure to tell all my friends about great times in Turkey. Ron Christie, Victoria, British Columbia, May 2010

Bodrum to Kalkan (Cleopatra's Route). Gordon: Thank you (and Brigitte) for a wonderful unique blend of elegance and sport, history and hiking, intelligent political discourse and simple natural wonders. The clear, clean swimmable sea, gray-green olive groves, ever present red, pink, blue flowers, sunny days and cool nights provided an ideal sailing stage. Your knowledge of ancient history was matched by your understanding of intriguing ports, superb restaurants, and the families that own/operate them. Your yacht is comfortable and first-class. It was a privilege and pleasure. Our two weeks flew by. We will remember the voyage forever. Fred and Tina Cowles, South Salem, New York, June 2010

Bodrum to Kalkan (Cleopatra's Route). Fred and Tina described the highlights very eloquently. I especially enjoyed the archaeology. Brigitte was a treasure with her cheeriness and skill at speaking Turkish for us. I had a great time chatting with her in French. Happy Sailing, Gordon. Vi Patek, South Salem, New York, June 2010

Bodrum to Kalkan (Cleopatra's Route). The cruise on T.G. Ellyson provided far more than I anticipated. Gordon's love of history and knowledge of so many hidden ruins was contagious and I hope to continue learning of this archaeology. Brigitte's care and feeding was another of the unexpected pleasures of our weeks on board. We were given a great introduction to Turkey and hope to return. Mark Patek, South Salem, New York, June 2010

Gocek to Gocek (Lycian Sailing Holiday). Swim before breakfast in the cobalt sea. Explore ancient ruins and imagine life during the fourth century BC. Sail under constant blue skies. Dine at quaint seaside restaurants. Repeat daily. Thanks for the ride and the experience. "Because life is not to be missed." Chris and Liz Bedford, Calgary, Alberta, July 2010

Gocek to Gocek (Lycian Sailing Holiday). The time I spent on this boat was quite the experience. We went to many bays and saw quite a bit of ruins and tombs. One highlight for me was paragliding. It was unbelievable. I really enjoyed it. I won't forget it. Altogether I've had a great time and will miss the T.G. Ellyson. (Happy Face). Aidan Bedford (age 13), Calgary, Alberta, July 2010

Gocek to Gocek (Lycian Sailing Holiday). I had a great time swimming in the sea, sailing through the beautiful water and reading on the deck. Justin Bedford (age 11 and a big-time reader), Calgary, Alberta, July 2010

Bodrum to Gocek (Cleopatra's Route). Dear Gordon. Wowwww. What an amazing holiday. To spend your free time on the water and on a boat was new for me (not for Maick). The first two days I had to get used to the floating of the boat (which made us a bit dizzy - Happy Face) and to the size of our cabin - Maick makes a mess easily!! We went to many beautiful bays. Especially Nisiros for its motor-bike ride and great food, Selimiye for the nice bazaar and super restaurant (Aurora) with its lovely owners, the bay called Ova Buku with its big-smile people at Ogun's Place. Also the gorgeous ruins at Caunos and its impressive tombs will be in our memory. Also the rendezvous with my dear friend Zeynep at Kappi Creek will not be forgotten. Our minds are clear because of the wind... Now back to work, back to reality. But what's reality, Gordon asks?!?!  For sure we passed the sixth day easily (perennial day of holiday angst). We left behind a travel-size Scrabble for William and Sian. While writing this we're looking at their cute faces. Thank you for the beautiful trip and for showing us Greece and Turkey! With love, Marieke Meulendijks and Maickel Weyers, Amsterdam, Holland, August 2010

Gocek to Ucagiz (Alexander's Path). Thank you Gordon for being an excellent sailor and historian. Your knowledge of the islands and their history made the journey very enjoyable. Your seamanship ensured that I could relax. Thank you Brigitte for your role in keeping us fed and everything ticking along. A beautiful boat and great experience - good local knowledge meant good restaurants both ashore and on board. Jean McLean, Melbourne, Australia, September 2010

Gocek to Ucagiz (Alexander's Path). The T.G. Ellyson is my sort of yacht. Thank you Gordon for the experience we cannot duplicate in Australia. Loved the history of Turkey and places like the granary (Andriake) are simply wonderful. Your first mate Brigitte was also wonderful and helped me alot when I was not well. Sorry Gordon. Thank her for me. Lots of love, Eric McLean, Melbourne, Australia, September 2010

Gocek to Kekova Roads (Alexander's Path). Gordon is a fine historian, excellent seaman and a good selector of crew as Brigitte was a most pleasant and helpful #2. We thoroughly enjoyed the trip and will long remember it. Art and Ellie Fredston, Lockport, New York, September 2010

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Dear Homo Sapiens, There is no need to continue reading this page. What follows is intended for search engine robots and spiders and not necessarily for human beings. Further information concerning holiday sailing in Greece and Turkey may be obtained by clicking on the blue links immediately above. Thank You. One of the more interesting individuals to visit the crossroads of history was Alonso de Contreras, a Spanish soldier of fortune and corsair. One reason he is interesting is that he left one of the few first-person accounts of early 17th century life off our shores. Entitled Vida Del Capitan Alonso De Contreras and mostly written over eleven days in October 1630, it is a fascinating glimpse into the life of a rogue for all seasons. During the spring and summer of 1599 Contreras at the age of 17 made two excursions to the Levant aboard a large lateen and square-rigged galleon commissioned by Bernardino de Cárdenas y Portugal, Duke of Maqueda and Viceroy of Spanish Sicily. During the course of his voyage Contreras not only became plunder-wealthy but also became an expert cartographer. His portolan or pilot of our shores rests today in the Biblioteca Nacional de España at Madrid. Contreras was a wonderful cartographer but an unfortunate gambler, and throughout his life money came fast and went just as fast. He was also frequently in trouble with the authorities. And with women. Shortly after his second excursion to the Levant he was forced by an affair to flee Sicily, and for the second time in as many flights landed in Malta. There he took service with Gaspard de Monreal, a Knight of Saint John of Jerusalem, then the Knights of Malta, and again sailed for the Levant aboard a galleon. In an engagement at Cavus south of Antalya he distinguished himself in combat to such a degree that a year later in 1601 he was awarded command of Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt's own two-masted lateen-rigged frigate with a crew of 37 oarsmen and marines. On his second trip to the Aegean under a Maltese letter of marque he was cornered at Fourni near Patmos by two galleys under Suleiman of Catania, a renegade Italian then Pasha of Chios, escaping with damage, an inch to spare, and Suleiman's ire. Later that year he came up the Turkish coast against the prevailing NW wind resting at night. His waypoints included Estanamur (west of Anamur), Satalia (Antalya), Puerto Genoves (Port Genovese), Cape Silidonia (Cape Gelidonia), La Finica (Finike), El Cacamo (Kale), Castilrojo (Kastellorizon), Siete Cavas (Pydnai under The Seven Capes), Aguas Frias (Cold Water Bay), and Lamgra (Fethiye), demonstrating if nothing else how little control of its shores the Ottoman Empire exercised in 1601. Weeks later he learned that Suleiman of Catania was at sea again, and so one night not yet 20 years of age he put into a back bay at Chios, knocked on the Pasha's door, and kidnapped his mistress, an Hungarian beauty. This but a glimpse at one chapter in an exciting history too elaborate to recount here, but Contreras himself recounted enough of it to his good friend Lope de Vega to inspire that poet and playwrite to create a character of similar background for his comedy El rey sin reino (The King Without a Realm referring to Poland's Wladyslaw III). Both El rey sin reino and Vida Del Capitan Alonso De Contreras are recommended reading. We recommend, as well, customized crewed charter yacht sailing holidays or honeymoons by way of Contreras tracks, tracks replete with fascinating ruins dating from 1601 and much earlier. Most unfortunately, however, Turkey's Ministry of Tourism has commissioned rapid-fire excavation and reconstruction at many of these sites, excavation and reconstruction at a pace to make archaeologists wince. You must see Patara and Andriake and Letoon soon or your impressions may be Knossosized with factory-cut blocks. Alternatively you might prefer a Blue Cruise between Greece and Turkey. You may be dreaming of Cleopatra's honeymoon route from Turkey to Greece. Perhaps on your own honeymoon or anniversary. Or you may simply be searching for relaxation. Whichever, you have come to the right place. Our 2010 Dutch guests, by the way, were eager to learn of the flood of Dutch seamen cruising our waters, many of whom achieved lasting renown. Michiel Adriaenszoon de Ruyter was perhaps the most famous, sweeping the English from the sea during three Anglo-Dutch wars and, in a 1655-1656 interim, having more moderate success against corsairs swarming the Mediterranean, some also Dutch. An early Dutch corsair was Jan Janszoon of Haarlem who first appeared in the Mediterranean in 1618 commanding his own vessel in a corsair squadron led by Salomo de Veenboer operating out of Algiers. On Veenboer's death in 1619 Janszoon relocated to Sale (Rabat), Morocco, from which port he preyed on merchant shipping on both sides of the Straits of Gibraltar. He also became the driving force behind Sale's 1623 secession from the Moroccan Sultanate, declaring itself the Republic of Sale. Jan Janszoon became the republic's first president. And its first admiral, commanding a squadron of 16 vessels. He thereupon renounced his Christian faith, converted to Islam, and took the name Murat. He also wed a local woman in spite of already having a wife and children in Holland. At sea when flying the Dutch flag he continued to be known as Jan Janszoon, but when flying the flag of Islam he was known as Murat Reis. It was as Murat Reis that he did the most damage, some in the North Sea and English Channel. In 1627 he even raided Reykjavik, Iceland, sailing away with the city's stock of smoked fish as well as with 400 captives. During his absence in Iceland, though, he had been deposed at Sale and was forced to relocate to Algiers and then to Tripoli. Over the next decade he continued wreaking havoc with merchant shipping including traffic in the Greek Aegean where he also terrorized islanders. In 1639, however, he was taken captive by the Knights of Malta and, as a notoriously wealthy robber baron, held for a ransom paid in 1640. That was Jan Janszoon's swan song. He did not care for the knight's Maltese dungeon. He obtained permission to return to Sale and retired. There he was joined by his Dutch daughter Lysbeth and there he raised two sons by his Moroccan wife, Anthony and Abraham van Salee. The sons became corsairs almost as famous as their father, but later immigrated with their ill-gotten gains to New Amsterdam in North America. A direct North American descendent of Jan Janszoon was Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt, the nineteenth century steamship and railroad robber baron. Another was Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, wife of the 35th president of the United States. According to the Public Broadcasting System's Frontline, still another was the actor Humphrey Bogart. Each of these individuals owed their existence to a reprehensible 17th century Dutch corsair. Come join us at the crossroads of history. Come sail azure seas between remote islands, just as did Jan Janszoon known to some as Murat Reis. Just as did Cleopatra on her honeymoon route up the Lycian and Carian coasts of Turkey and among Aegean islands of Greece. Just as did Alonso de Contreras, rogue for all seasons. And just as each year does the owner's family (son William depicted above en route to Pali, Nisiros, on a windless day in August). Come charter a crewed sailing yacht to cruise the crossroads of history. Do you already plan to holiday in Greece or Turkey? Would you like to holiday aboard a crewed sailing yacht chartered in Turkey? Would you like to charter a crewed sailing yacht to cruise the Aegean from Bodrum? Or from Gocek? Would you like to charter a crewed yacht to cruise the Mediterranean coast of Turkey? Are you searching for Gocek in Turkey? For Bodrum in Turkey? For Nisiros in Greece? Well, come aboard the T.G. Ellyson, a crewed charter sailing yacht offering an exceptional holiday. Come aboard a charter yacht with an experienced crew able to show you the Contreras route between Antalya and Fethiye, or Cleopatra's route up the Turkish coast to Greek Samos, or Jan Janszoon's raiding tracks among Cyclades islands of Greece. A proper crewed yacht available for charter in Greece and Turkey. Contact us today at tgeyacht@aol.com