SailSail Turkey

Good food and sun was what I expected when I boarded Sail Turkey last year, not a one night stand with a Ukrainian man who, unbeknown to me at the time, would be my future husband. Here’s my story:

I fly into Bodrum and catch Sail Turkey the next morning just as the sun’s coming up. There’s eighteen of us aboard and I feared for my life stepping on because I hated boats. Not only this, I was doing the trip alone – my friends all backed out. 2003 was the year I vowed to jump out of my comfort zone, though, so I forced myself into it.

I’m enjoying a Mediterranean breakfast with seventeen other solo travels – big relief – when my eyes catch Oleksandr. He has a buzzcut, grey eyes, and his strong bone structure sculpts his face in the most perfect way.

He keeps to himself a lot, prefers to listen rather than speak, and when other people are sharing their anecdotes, he close-sets his eyes in deep thought.

We catch eyes across the table just as I’m biting down on a segment of grapefruit.

I get friendly with this other group, two Aussies, one Irish and a Spaniard, and we disembark the yacht together to explore places on the itinerary. My heart feels full, my brain accomplished that I’ve ticked off two of my fears – solo travel on a seven-day sailing expedition – but part of my mind still remains unsettled when I think about Oleksandr. We still haven’t spoken.

“You can call me Olek,” he says that evening. We’re back on the boat, having just finished with dinner, and people go their separate ways – some to journal, others below deck to their rooms. Olek and I both happen to watch the sunset.

Or I might’ve followed him when I saw him at the bow.