Sagittarius of Plymouth is a 66-foot aluminium sailing
ketch.
A Bareboat Cruising The Greek Aegean And Aegean Turkey Return to Crewed Yacht Summary This page last updated on 01/02/2010 Dear Homo Sapiens, There is no need to continue reading this page.
What follows is intended for search engine robots and spiders and not necessarily for human
beings. Further information concerning yachts cruising the Greek Aegean and Aegean Turkey may
be obtained by clicking on the blue links immediately above. Thank You. You must be
searching for a sailing yacht cruising the Greek Aegean or Aegean Turkey. You may very well be
thinking of a charter sailing yacht cruising among Greek islands. You may also be dreaming of
swimming from a Patmos beach in an azure sea. Of dining on fresh seafood at Nikos' taverna
on Arki. Of scouring Greek islands for the best octopus salad. Of climbing whitewashed steps to
an acropolis here and to an acropolis there. Of exploring byways on Paros explored by Kheir-ed-Din
Barbarossa. Of examining the boy-on-a-dolphin realm at Iasos, including the
dolphins at play in the Gulf of Gulluk. Well, you can do these |
things. You can do these things aboard a modern Argo called
Sagittarius Of Plymouth. Sagittarius, it might be noted, was invented by the centaur Chiron.
Half man, half horse, Chiron was known everywhere for his goodness and wisdom. He invented
Sagittarius to guide Jason and the Argonauts on their way. That's how we know the quest for the
Golden Fleece took place in summer, for in the northern hemisphere Sagittarius is visible only
in summer. On a note seemingly unrelated, but not, Kheir-ed-Din Barbarossa cruised everywhere in
the Aegean, some would say he lurked everywhere in the Aegean. It came naturally to him. He was
born on the island of Lesbos in the Aegean. As a youth he fished the Aegean between Lesbos and
Lemnos with one or both of his sisters. Lemnos, an island in pre-history populated only by women,
was the first stop on the voyage of the Argonauts. It was also Kheir-ed-Din's favorite
destination in those early days between 1485 and 1490. As a young man he later cruised the
further Aegean with his older brothers, most frequently with brother Aruj, the first Barbarossa.
After the death of Aruj, though, Kheir-ed-Din was wont to cruise among Aegean islands ruled by
Latins of Venice and Genoa. Though he bore no love for Latins, in fact quite the opposite, he
did find them useful. Particularly the women. One of the consequences of his exploration of
Paros was enslavement of the high-born on that island. Cecilia Venier-Baffo, a Venetian beauty at
the age of 13, was among the women he found useful. Taken to Istanbul's Topkapi Palace in 1537
and renamed Nurbanu, or Princess of Light, she came to the attention of the future Sultan Selim
II and bore him a son, the future Sultan Murat III. Kheir-ed-Din Barbarossa, it might also be
noted, is frequently compared to Francis Drake
who was born in the same year as Murat III. Born in Plymouth's Devon, Drake there developed his
lawn bowling skills. But it is not for that reason the two are compared. It is because they both
took to the sea as boys, because they both became privateers of renown operating under letters of
marque, and because they both rose to the highest position in navies of their respective countries.
Murat III, it might be further noted, was famous mostly for accelerating the Ottoman decline
commenced by his father. He, too, became enamored of a highborn Baffo, this one taken prisoner by
another Ottoman corsair near Corfu where her father was governor. Sofia Baffo, later Safiye,
became Murat III's first wife and mother of his eldest son, later Mehmet III. By then there was
a lot of Baffo in the Ottoman sultans. Why not let us put you aboard a charter sailing yacht in
Turkey or Greece able to cruise the Aegean crossroads of history, able to show you Kheir-ed-Din
Barbarossa's many tracks, able to show you the Argo's Aegean track, able to show you Sofia Baffo's
matrimonial track, and able to discuss with you lawn bowling on Plymouth Hoe. Sagittarius Of
Plymouth, a fine crewed yacht cruising the Greek Aegean and Aegean Turkey. Contact Blue Cruise
Yacht Charters today at