A Day At Sea
Well, if you guessed on a boat, to answer my last post's question then you are correct! Or if you read the previous post and saw that I was looking forward to a day at sea than kudos to you as well. Husband Jared informed me that I gave the answer away for my guessing game. Anyhow, we did in fact spend Saturday at sea, all 6 of us together. In addition to three other families.
The day began with a sleepy ride to the marina where we were to board the boat. Our captain, Mustafa, had overslept so thankfully our tardiness was not an issue. Mind you, it was the 6 Hansons that ultimately made our party late. I had to have coffee. Go figure. And when we arrived and said good mornin' to our friends I was greeted with a, "How American of you", by my friend Ana. Why yes, thank you.
With giddy Things and loads of gear and goodies we boarded and began our adventure. The Things ran around and claimed stake to the top of boat and everything inbetween. Thankfully Mustafa is a man of patience. He was even brave enough to allow the Things and their friends to be "captain" for a short period of time. While this was amusing, it did cause us grown ups some concern.
And with a child at the helm we were heading to Donkey Island. Land of the wild donkeys and goats. Or so we thought. Come to find out the donkeys are actually "caged" now and taken care of by a family who lives on the island. Once tied up to the dock we all went about exploring. Kids fished, jumped off the top of the boat, searched for seashells and listened for the familar "hee haw" of the donkeys. Once the courage was mustered by Thing 2, which didn't take long, she climbed to the top of the boat and cannon balled her way into the clear blue water. A resounding scream and "it's cold"! echoed from her lips and she was on her way to do it again. What a trail blazer. The other Things and friends followed behind her after the discovery that the water was safe.
From donkey island we cruised to our next destination, Blue Lagoon. There was more fishing, chipura, needle nosed fish, open clams and a multitude of other smallish fish swimming around the boat teasing the fishermen. A few were fortunate enough to make a catch, albeit small, they were proud. Thing 3 was able to add her accommplishment to the list of successes.
Lunch was served and was it ever good. Mackral, chicken, pasta, eggplant and yoghurt puree, Turkish potato salad, bread and salad. Delish. And for dessert we celebrated two upcoming birthdays, Siobhan and Matt, with chocolate mud cake brought to us by the talented Suzanne. Wow, talk about chocolate overload. Nap time anyone?
The afternoon was filled with naps on deck, more swimming, jumping and exploring, snorkeling and fishing of course. No big catches but plenty of small fishies swam onto the hooks. So many that all the kids were feeling quite proud. That's a great day fishing if I do say so myself. As we made our way out to the deep we allowed the rocking waves and gentle breeze to lull us into the sea's song. It was magical. I could do that all day, everyday. Really.
Our day ended peacefully, until the children had decided to hold an all out protest on the dock. The seven of them sat in a circle chanting, "take us to dinner". I know it sounds demanding, but trust me when I say it held the sweetest of intentions. How could we resist? We didn't and it was pide for everyone. That's Turkish pizza. When we arrived I was told that the eldest child in the bunch had told the grown ups he was riding with, "I really am not that hungry, I just didn't want the day to end". Salty discharge enter here. The next thing you know I hear same child rallying the troops again, only this time he says, "next week let's protest to go to a theme park together". The stakes are escalating. We will be on guard next time.
All that to say our day at sea was absolutely fantastic. A dream. Memories made. The Six Hansons on a boat in the Aegean Sea. Who would have thought?
* this post would have photos but just 2 days ago when I was writing this our external hard drive was broken. Argh.
The day began with a sleepy ride to the marina where we were to board the boat. Our captain, Mustafa, had overslept so thankfully our tardiness was not an issue. Mind you, it was the 6 Hansons that ultimately made our party late. I had to have coffee. Go figure. And when we arrived and said good mornin' to our friends I was greeted with a, "How American of you", by my friend Ana. Why yes, thank you.
With giddy Things and loads of gear and goodies we boarded and began our adventure. The Things ran around and claimed stake to the top of boat and everything inbetween. Thankfully Mustafa is a man of patience. He was even brave enough to allow the Things and their friends to be "captain" for a short period of time. While this was amusing, it did cause us grown ups some concern.
And with a child at the helm we were heading to Donkey Island. Land of the wild donkeys and goats. Or so we thought. Come to find out the donkeys are actually "caged" now and taken care of by a family who lives on the island. Once tied up to the dock we all went about exploring. Kids fished, jumped off the top of the boat, searched for seashells and listened for the familar "hee haw" of the donkeys. Once the courage was mustered by Thing 2, which didn't take long, she climbed to the top of the boat and cannon balled her way into the clear blue water. A resounding scream and "it's cold"! echoed from her lips and she was on her way to do it again. What a trail blazer. The other Things and friends followed behind her after the discovery that the water was safe.
From donkey island we cruised to our next destination, Blue Lagoon. There was more fishing, chipura, needle nosed fish, open clams and a multitude of other smallish fish swimming around the boat teasing the fishermen. A few were fortunate enough to make a catch, albeit small, they were proud. Thing 3 was able to add her accommplishment to the list of successes.
Lunch was served and was it ever good. Mackral, chicken, pasta, eggplant and yoghurt puree, Turkish potato salad, bread and salad. Delish. And for dessert we celebrated two upcoming birthdays, Siobhan and Matt, with chocolate mud cake brought to us by the talented Suzanne. Wow, talk about chocolate overload. Nap time anyone?
The afternoon was filled with naps on deck, more swimming, jumping and exploring, snorkeling and fishing of course. No big catches but plenty of small fishies swam onto the hooks. So many that all the kids were feeling quite proud. That's a great day fishing if I do say so myself. As we made our way out to the deep we allowed the rocking waves and gentle breeze to lull us into the sea's song. It was magical. I could do that all day, everyday. Really.
Our day ended peacefully, until the children had decided to hold an all out protest on the dock. The seven of them sat in a circle chanting, "take us to dinner". I know it sounds demanding, but trust me when I say it held the sweetest of intentions. How could we resist? We didn't and it was pide for everyone. That's Turkish pizza. When we arrived I was told that the eldest child in the bunch had told the grown ups he was riding with, "I really am not that hungry, I just didn't want the day to end". Salty discharge enter here. The next thing you know I hear same child rallying the troops again, only this time he says, "next week let's protest to go to a theme park together". The stakes are escalating. We will be on guard next time.
All that to say our day at sea was absolutely fantastic. A dream. Memories made. The Six Hansons on a boat in the Aegean Sea. Who would have thought?
* this post would have photos but just 2 days ago when I was writing this our external hard drive was broken. Argh.
what an amazing day!!! love all the things you are able to do! I live each adventure along with y'all!
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