Our next day was full of incident. We sailed to Gemeler island, otherwise known as St. Nicholas island, the former home of various Orthodox Churches, a monastery, and a world class view. This island was a stopping off point for pilgrims on the way to the Holy Land for many centuries. It is indeed a beautiful, restful spot… but you have to be careful.
There was in addition, a warning written in the sand on the beach where one lands, saying ‘Beware of the Spiders!!!’ And they weren’t kidding— huge spiders hanging in tunnels, windows, between trees, with huge webs. It was like something out of Narnia or Lord of the Rings (only a more real size).
The climb up takes one through tunnels and church ruins, and graveyards of various sorts,
Once one gets to the top of the island, there are spectacular views of coves in all directions…
Going down the other side of the island from the major sanctuary at the top, there is an amazing tunnel that reached all the way to the monastery or guest houses at the far end of the island. This was probably because in many months this island is very windy, and when bad weather hits, the trails on the island are treacherous.
Look who I found in the monk’s tunnel?
Meanwhile, while we had been climbing all over the island, down below, the party boats had arrived…. with loud music, drinking, and all sorts of mayhem…
There were parasailors, there were bumpy speed boat rides on rubber rafts, there were hang gliders floating on updrafts all the way to the top of nearby mountain peaks, there were paddle boarders,
And just when you thought it couldn’t get any crazier, the captain of the other Gulet boat dangled off the front of his boat, walked on a wire barefoot, and messed with an anchor issue while we watched and held our breaths.
A storm was coming up and it was time to sail back to Fethiye
The water was showing an amazing variety of colors as the sun peaked through off and on…. including torquoise…
As we neared Fethiye, a rainbow broke out from the rain clouds…
As we came back into the now familiar harbor, I was remembering that Lykia was famous for its marauding pirates that roamed up and down this coast, and who were eliminated by Julius Caesar and Pompey, among others. But look…. there in the distance in the harbor…. a dark three master! It appears to be the Black Pearl! Avast ye maties! Shiver me timbers! Could that ole Kentucky boy Mr. J. Depp actually be around??
POSTSCRIPT ABOUT ST. NICHOLAS
St. Nicholas was a genuine Christian person, indeed a very good one who was noted for his generosity and gift giving to others. He is the origin of both the name St. Nick and Santa Claus, and thus the origin of part of our Christmas traditions. It has nothing to do with ancient pagan traditions any more than the Nativity story has to do with ancient pagan traditions or rituals. Some Christians, and others, should stop suggesting that these traditions are pagan in character or origin. They are not.
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