EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN YACHT RALLY   FEBRUARY 2010 NEWSLETTER

It is now two months till the commencement of the 21st EMYR and we have received and answered many questions from EMYR2010 participants. This newsletter will also give you some general answers to your questions concerning EMYR2010.

Safety; You will obviously be having some concerns about the safety issues in visiting those Middle East countries that have been the subject of conflict during the past many years. We are continually monitoring the situation both in conjunction with our representatives in the country and the relevant embassy’s as much as we can. We believe at the moment it is safe to visit all the ports in the programme but we will adapt our sailing passages as or may be required before or during the rally. The Rally Committee is continually monitoring the political situation in the Middle East. We will make appropriate decisions to ensure the enjoyment of the Rally as and when the situation and the time draw nearer. We have received the positive reports for the safety from the EMYR Representatives in Israeli Marinas/Ports and they all are looking forward to welcoming the EMYR Yachts in their ports & marinas. There are progressive talks in Cyprus Island between Greek & Turkish Cypriot communities and they are working hard to achieve a positive solution, there is no safety issue in N.Cyprus at all. EMYR Lebanon representatives Michel Naufal & Jean Phillipe El Khazen, ATCL Club Management Board Members, have reported that Lebanon is fine and safe for EMYR2010 visit. Yves Belleli, Carmel Club Commodore and his deputy Ilan Doron is happy that we will visit their club marina as usual and they are planning even better welcome than last years. Our representative Nagib and the Felix team are organising all for our arrival as usual in Egypt.

Tours; We are working on a regular tour programme and we are awaiting final details from all the harbours including Turkish ports & marinas, N.Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Egypt. The tour details and the prices will be announced on the EMYR web site. There are already charges for the last year tours and last year information will remain in red colour letters. The updated information for 2010 will be in black colours.

EMYR Program; Attached is the program for 2010. Please let us know by e mail that you have sailed with the rally.  You may have the updated list on the EMYR web site. This program is confirmed by the most of
North Cyprus; We haven’t received the confirmation of our possible visit at N.Cyprus – Girne yet. We will have alternative stopovers at Bozyazı & Taşucu if we can’t find berths at Girne harbour to stay in N.Cyprus.

Visa; There are different procedures for the visa charges in Syria but no visa charge at N.Cyprus or Israel. There will be a tax per person in Lebanon and Egypt. Please see the information on the web site.
Entry – Exit Charges; There is no charge in Turkey on departure at İskenderun and no charges for N.Cyprus. Please see the information for entry – exit charges on the EMYR web site for the other 4 countries.
Crew: There are NINE (9) overnight passages after Alanya. Do you have adequate crew? We realize that this is an ambitious schedule of passages and tours but necessary in order to not inconvenience the local fishing boats and yachts owners. Tired crew can lead to short tempers and intolerance and would defeat the purpose of the Rally. We have an experience that also unknown crew can be a problem. Take people you know very well and really get on very well as a crew for the long Rally program.
Crew List; There are still some yachts that their crew list is not completed. Please complete the online crew list form as early as possible. Urgent.
Shirt sizes: Please don’t e-mail the shirt sizes separetly for crew (S, M, L, XL, XXL) if you haven’t complete the crew list form yet. Please include this information in crew list form.
New Passports; Please inform if there is a new passport for your crew. The list of the total EMYR participants should be 100% correct with passport details including passport numbers. Please don’t e mail passport copy and information separetly. Please use our online form for it.
Insurance: For your own benefit, it is wise to check with your yacht insurance agency about coverage in some of the Eastern Med countries since they may be on the company's list of 'war territories. We recommend that you receive written confirmation from your insurance company that you are covered in these counties. Other participants have received approval by sending their company a letter of request for coverage explaining that we are a large group, that this is the 20th year for this rally.
Reservation at the Marinas; If you are arriving at a port before the designated Rally time, staying longer or returning after, you must have reservations! And pay the agreed upon fees. Some marinas will have special rates for yachts returning after the Rally depending on the length of your stay. Please contact the marina managements individually.
Return to Turkey; Many of you will stay in Israel at least for few weeks to discover the Holly Land and also to visit Jordan. Some of you will sail to N.Cyprus or southern Cyprus marinas or direct to Turkish mainland in groups and some alone. It is always good to sail in company. Monastery bay in N.Cyprus, on the southern side of the Karpas peninsula is an ideal stopover place in nature. You will love the place.
Dave and Kath highly recommend this anchorage don’t miss out the visit to the small restaurant on the cliffs above.
Where to stay after the rally; Herzliya is a beautiful well organised marina to leave your yacht while travelling inland. info@herzliya-marina.co.il Second option is Ashkelon Marina with less expensive charges. marin_nm@netvision.net.il You can contact them for reservation. You are always welcome to stay at Alanya Marina after the rally if you need a berth to fly home for couple of weeks or months. reservation@alanyamarina.com.tr
Visiting Lebanon or Syria after the Rally; You have to visit Cyprus, either north or south and after sail to Lebanon or Syria.  The authorities at these countries will question whether your last port is one of the Israeli Marinas/ports. You have to prove with your passport or a piece of document from Cyprus Immigration or harbour authority that you are coming from Cyprus not from an Israeli port.
Pets; It is fine to have dog or cat on board. The problem is you can’t take them with you while touring in the buses. There are two times two days tour in Syria & Egypt. You can’t take them to the hotels. There is quarantine system in N.Cyprus but no trouble if we don’t report that we have a dog/cat on board.  
Children ; There have been always children in the rally. They have enjoyed the entire rally even if there are no other children. EMYR Rally will be a life time experience for any child. We don’t charge the children if the age is less than 12 years old and full charge for the above 12 years. There will be some discounts on the tour charges for the children if we can convince the tour operators.
Dress ; There will be many dinners and nearly all will be Jacket and Tie dinners. The ladies will have their best dresses. Possibly we will have the Pirate Party at Girne but if not there will be a place for our Pirate Party Dinner. Don’t forget to buy your pirate out fits. Walking shoes is a must.
Difficulties; After Alanya, there are some ports like Mersin, İskenderun, Port Said that there will be some water and power connections, very primitive sanitary facilities or non. Lattakia has some services but it is not a proper marina but only place where we can keep our yachts. There will be double tier. The rally yachts will be packed in Jounieh & Haifa. There is not much that the committee can organise. Please don’t complain because of the limited facilities or no facilities at the ports that we will visit.
Water; You will find a way to fill your tanks but you would better have bottled water for drinking.
Fuel; There will be always option to refuelling by pump at the quay side, by tanker or by jerry canes.
Flags; Please inform if you need the national flags for N.Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Israel & Egypt. We can buy them on your behalf and you will receive and pay at your entry port.
New Marinas; EMYR will start from Setur Kalamış Marina at İstanbul and visit new Setur Yalova Marina before visiting Mürefte Port. New Didim Marina will be visited after New Çeşme Marina. New Marintürk Village Port Marina is our new place to stay at Göcek.
Rally Groups; There will be 6 groups after Kemer & Alanya meetings and every group will have a group leader. Groups will be formed according to the length over all and group changing inquires will not be accepted.
Volunteers; Medical people are required to inform themselves to the committee as there can be urgent situations. The names will be kept confidential. The musicians are very welcome to announce their names to the groups.
e-mail addresses; EMYR2010 participants may like to contact each other and we can provide you the list of the participants with e-mail addresses. Please inform if you don’t want to share your e-mail address with other EMYR participants. EMYR Committee will make the e-mail circulation within couple of days.
Joining Ports; There are 75 yachts listed as 5 yachts are cancelled their participations for different reasons and there will not be new yachts acceptance for EMYR2010. Please check your joining ports on the web site http://www.emyr.org and inform the committee if there is any mistake.
Cost Sharing Fee; Please complete the credit card payment form on the EMYR web site and sent us as online (pereferred method) until the end of February 2010 either by internet or fax to 00 90 242 323 45 80. The cost sharing fee is 400 Euro per person. Please deduct 150 Euro advance payment from your total cost sharing fee. The cost sharing amount will be fully refundable till the 30th March 2010. There will be no refund option after this date as the committee will complete the arrangements and settle the certain payments for the EMYR organisation. Please don’t even ask the refund after30th March 2010.
Update information; You can visit the web site of the rally to find information about the rally, ports, tours, and articles written by past Rally participants. The Rally Committee will be happy to respond to any of your questions if the above information is not answering. We would welcome your contributions to the memories section of the web site. Please e mail to info@emyr.org.
Hasan will be at Copenhagen 27-28 February 2010 - at Stockholm 6-9 March 2010 and Moscow 15 – 18 April 2010 Boat shows. He will be happy to meet you and give you more information.
Dave and Kath are planning to leave Girne, Kıbrıs at the end of March beginning of April to sail up to Istanbul for the rally start they may well meet up with some of you on their North bound passage please feel free to offer them hospitality on the way.
The Committee members look forward to meeting you in the Rally where you will be sure of a warm welcome with cold drinks. If there are further questions, please do not hesitate to e-mail but as less as possible info@emyr.org. Our hope is for good weather, friendships, hospitality, and great experiences as we will make the 21st Eastern Mediterranean Yacht Rally a wonderful event for both the sailors and our hosts.
We wish fair cruising and many Happy Hours. (Dave’s happy hour starts at 9 and finishes at 8 every day)