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Recent Comments
- Jenny
wrote:
"What a tale! Jamie you had me reading without a breath. It's hard to imagine what you and Liz have been through. I'm so glad you're safe. Where's your book of travellers' tales?..."
See the post "Worse Things Happen At Sea" - Keith
wrote:
"Wow, sounds like a quite an ordeal. I hope your next few trips are slightly less eventful. Glad to hear that you're all safe...."
See the post "Worse Things Happen At Sea" - Susie Keys
wrote:
"Whoa! Ive just had the time to sit and read of your dreadful trip. All I can say is extreme respect! Never again will I tempt fate by telling you you are in paradise. Just because I was on Kihavah I assumed, quite wrongly it really was a paradise. Just goes to show how (obviously)..."
See the post "Worse Things Happen At Sea"
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Topsail specialises in the liveaboard market and was the ONLY insurance broker who gave us a realistic quote for our world-wide travels. Email Laura for a chat and let her know we sent you ;)
YBW Liveaboard Forum
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!
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!
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!
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
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!
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!
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.
Hi guys,love the web site,
I’m keen for anymore information on the Oyster 435, I’m looking at putting an offer on a 1988 model sloop.
So if you get a chance to e-mail I would be most appreciative..
Cheers
Ben.
Ben, I’ve emailed separately. We love our 435!
Hi Jamie
Nice to have met you in Cochin! Finally a GREAT place to be by boat. Cochin seems to me like a fairytale town…
Now I am in Kathmandu, Nepal. The train and bus trip over here was horrible…! Kathmandu is a rather bizarre, even boring kind of place. TOO MANY SOUVENIR shops selling that same old CRA…!
How are you doing in Cochin? Is my boat still floating?
Greetings!
Gerd Fehlbaum
S.Y.LIBERTY
Hi Jamie and Liz,
I have been following your blog and several other sailing blogs for years as I keep my dream to cruise full-time alive. I have been sailing a 46′ Morgan for the last few years while my youngest child finishes school. I came to the conclusion that the Morgan was not the boat I wanted to cruise on and sold it a few months ago. I am currently in the process of finding a new boat and am looking at a 1995 Oyster 435, hull number 64 I believe. She needs some elbow grease, but she appears to be solid, only has 900 hours on the engine, and has new standing rigging. She would be at the upper end of my budget, but I have always loved the Oysters. You obviously love yours so I was wondering what else you can tell me about them as I try to make a decision on whether or not to stretch my budget a bit and put an offer in.
Brett
How long is a piece of string, Brett? It sounds like you know what you’re looking for and the 435 has served us well. The main issue are leaking chain-plates, which are easy to remedy and our rigging, in-mast ketch cutter, means she needs a bit of wind to get her going. She won’t win races against the plastic fantastic brigade in anything under 10 knots of wind, that’s for sure, but in 25-plus you’ll be leaving them standing! The most important thing for us was new rigging, which we splashed out for in 2009, giving us a little piece of mind. The only other piece of advice would be to leave aside 25% of your budget to spend on extras if you are thinking of Blue Water cruising, with a water-maker and solar panels being top of the list. Good luck with the purchase and please do let us know how you get on.
Jamie and Liz,
I’m with Animal Planet working on a new show called “World’s Cutest Pets.” I saw the video of Millie swimming and am wondering if you would you be willing to give us permission to use it on the show, and could you provide a the files of the original footage? If you don’t own the footage, do you know how I can contact the person who does? If there are multiple angles that were shot, as it looks like there are, it would be great if we could see them all in their original form.
Please e-mail me at the e-mail address given at your earliest convenience. Many thanks, and I look forward to hearing from you soon!
Liz Cardenas
Associate Producer
WORLD’S CUTEST PETS, Animal Planet
Hi Jamie and Liz!
I didn’t really like the two of you the first time we met.
It was in Marmaris, Turkey and my first impression of the two of you was that you where two “know it all londoners” (yes, we all have our own preconceptions…)
Then there was the Vasco da Gama Rally and for reasons probably obvious only to myself, I choosed to follow it… The two of you have done / are doing what I thought sailing was about.
You’ve stayed in India (for better and for worse) for….yonks… and you’ve shared pictures and stories (thank you) And now I understand you’re on your way. Could I say thank you for this time and all the best to the both of you on your onward travels. Love.
Hi Guys, my cat is at John Crabbtree’s dock in Matancheri. I’m coming back March 28th to sail to the Maldives. Hopefully your tech problems will be solved by then and we may meet over there. Would you know any good refrigeration technician in Cochin? My fridge has some electrical problem and will not work…
best regards,
Miki S/V Two Oceans
Hi Miki, thanks for contacting us. I think we met you briefly when you came over to the marina? The best person to contact would be our friend Gladwin. He works with Bryan Thurlow on boat projects. He is 100% honest, professional and is technically-minded. He has arranged for fridge engineers to visit us on a couple of occasions. I have emailed you his phone number. We have told him about this message, so when you call him, please remind him that Jamie and Liz referred you.
Hello Jamie, hello Liz,
Just discovered your web site by hazard tonight. Amazing! I’d like to get in touch with you as we might have to haul out our catamaran, Manuka, in the Maldives. Coming from Sri-Lanka where I haven’t yet found a safe place.
Thanks for your attention
Arne & Dominique
Hi Liz, Jamie
We will be traveling to the Maldives in the next two weeks and would
1) Love to meet you there personally
2) Exchange some practical information on ship maintenance and tropical water sailing
Can we get in contact off-forum on this?
Arne & Dominique
SY Manuka
Barramundi 470 Catamaran