End of the Vasco Da Gama Rally

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  1.  

    Jamie – It’s been nearly a year…how do you like the foldable boat?
    FYI – sent a FB friend request.

    •  

      Hi Rich – we love the Portabote. We haven’t used it that much lately as we’ve had to get the outboard serviced but just folding it up and stowing it on deck keeps me happy!

  2.  

    Hi Jamie

    I just met someone who knows you, he is here in Galle harbour on a cat he just delivered from Seychelles. (Sorry, I forgot his name) Listen, I am on a boat myself, a 48 ft. ferro monster and look for a place where I can leave my boat for up to a year. Do you think Cochin is a good place? I hear you are based there right now. Whats the situation there, NOW? Still room, and what about prices? Burocraty, still a nightmare?

    I need to go back to Switzerland to work, I am running out of money…

    Would be GREAT to hear from you, Jamie! Maybe see you soon!

    Gerd Fehlbaum

    •  

      Hi Gerd. Nice to hear from you! Cochin Marina is very safe indeed. Your only concern will be getting the boat properly prepared for monsoon, which is about ensuring the humidity doesn’t affect the boat. Beaurocracy is always a nightmare in India but if you get Naser 72 to help you, you’ll be fine. Just be prepared to spend one day at anchor whilst you sort the paper work out, and don’t turn up without a visa or they’ll escort you to the airport. I have your email address so I’ll send you some more details shortly. It would be nice to meet up, and see if you can find out the name of that delivery chap!

  3. Cheryl Ellsworth
     

    Jamie, I am now in the market for a new camera and I have been researching Nikons and Canons, SLR’s for a general statement. I was wondering what camera or cameras you are currently using to get your fab photos. We certainly enjoy your sites, looking forward to more of Liz’s stories.
    Cheers, Cheryl

    •  

      Hi Cheryl. I’m a Canon man myself, and always have been, but Nikons and Canons are much of a muchness. It all depends on who has the latest camera out and who got the best review! For EOS Canons the entry-level dSLRs are the 000s series, with the 600D being the latest I believe. The semi-pro are the 00s series, with the very well-received 60D being their latest. Then you move up into pro full-frame cameras. I have the 5Dii. but you can spend thousands on a 1D! Thing is, it’s all about the lens, not the camera. Most of my images up until recently were shot with an 8 mega-pixel 30D, ancient by today’s standards. I would recommend something like the 600D, use the kit lens that comes with it, work out what it is you like photographing and then buy a pro lens accordingly. Canon pro lenses are labelled with an ‘L’, so the pro mid-range zoom is the very sexy 24-70L. L lenses are some of the best lenses on the market. Or you could scrap all that and just buy a Leica M9!

  4.  

    Liz, I have a number of friends who read your stories, I did send them off to them, and they are wondering if you will be writing more. You have fans!
    Jamie thanks for info – nearly bought a Leica but I was concerned about finding lens, etc for the camera – they are in very selected stores. I like to see the difference in photos from when we all started off from Turkey to where we are now, even I have improved, we really enjoy your site and phots gallery, I do believe you have fallen in love with India, from your camera it really is a special place. Cheers Cheryl

  5.  

    Sorry I forgot, we are off to Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, do you have any plans to sail away from India within the next year or two, we plan to spend at least two years in Thailand & Malaysia, as we want to do a lot of travelling by planes, trains and automobiles to visit other countries, like China, Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, etc. It would be great to see you both again.
    Cheryl

    •  

      We might sail to the Maldives next year, but that was what we said this year, so who knows? We’ll certainly be coming over to the Thailand/Malaysia area at some pont, and like you plan to visit all those places by plane and train.
      It would be lovely to see you both again.
      Thanks for your message about my writing and J’s photography.
      Stay in touch!

  6.  

    Hi,

    I was just reading your report on Madurai and you mentioned having researched and selected the perfect hotel but you don’t give the name. Could you share it with me?

    Thanks,

    Steve

    •  

      Hi Steve, I certainly don’t recall referring to the hotel as ‘perfect’. It was a business hotel, quite smart but relatively expensive. Service was quite average but it was a welcome relief from madness of the streets of Madurai. I’ll hand you over to Liz who can give you more details…

    •  

      Hi Steve,
      We stayed in the Royal Court, one of many business-type hotels in this area of Madurai. Occasionally we stay in these types of hotels, especially in cities, but mostly we prefer small, family-run hotels or homestays. I remember there weren’t many options available for the weekend we were there as it was Pongal, and everywhere was full. Have a look at my Tripadvisor review here. Good luck!

  7.  

    Hi Jamie,

    Firstly, a fantastic website and love reading how and Liz started off. Gives me a reference for when I think I’ll be ready to make a change in my life. Also, what was the reason behind decided to live in Turkey? Was it the country itself, the people, the atmosphere, its location for travelling? I’m curious because I will be travelling to Istanbul soon for a short visit.

    However, my question at the moment is related to the ‘log’ system used in your website. Was it customed made, did you program it yourself, or is there a plugin for it?

    I’m pretty clueless with programming and I read your post on the wordpress forum and I myself have a similar question. When users make a post, I want them to select a country from a drop down menu so when someone visits the website and they are only interested in posts from a particular country, they can select the country from a drop down menu on the right side of the website (similar to your archive system). Can it be done with custom fields and linking the country field it to a dropdown menu?

    Any help will be greatly apprreciated or any particular resource that you can point me to.

    Thanks for your time.

    Kind Regards
    Faysal

    •  

      Thanks for your kind comments. Please note I have responded to you directly via email to answer your questions. Cheers.

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