What is a Saros?
- The eclipse cycle of about 18 years (18 years + 11.32 days), at the end of which the sun, moon, and earth return to almost their exact relative starting positions and another series of eclipses begins, closely resembling the series just completed.
- An ancient word (?Babylonian) for the number 3600, whose significance lies in the related derivation of the 360 degrees of the compass.
- Gulf in the Aegean Sea in northwestern Turkey.
The Story
In 1996, soon after getting married, Erika and I realized that we both had long-standing dreams that were compatible in an interesting way. I had always loved sailing, beginning on lakes in Ohio and continuing on my grandfather's 18-foot Catalina sloop while living in Florida. Erika had always wanted to travel the world, but could never reconcile that dream with the loss of a home that would entail. We realized that cruising would allow Erika to travel without leaving home (in a way) and would give me enough sailing to last me a lifetime. Thus was born the idea for this journey.
So what did we need? A boat and a cruising kitty to last us a couple of years. How far would we go? Let's start with Australia, we said, and then decide if we want to continue. Could we really afford to lose our jobs? Both of our skills are in demand (Erika's in medicine, John's in computers), and we could be pretty certain of coming back to reasonably prompt employment. Was this really a good time in our lives to abandon shoreside life? We hadn't bought a house or had children yet, so what better time to see the world?
This weblog is a chronicle of our adventure. We hope it will be an inspiration to others who have the same dream, and an interesting diversion for those who remain ashore.
