The Fishermen

A 3 hours rotation is requested to place the nets for the night. The next day the fishermen leave the pier at 7 am for another 3 hours trip to collect the nets. Than back to the port they have to collect the fish if ever there are, clean and repair the net for the next night. 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. Sometime they do not pay even the fuel with the sales. Even when the nest are filled up to crack open, the prices drop at the level a loaf of bread. I wonder if we will still see fishermen and fishes in ten years from now because I do not seen young man willing to learn the craft. Wich one will desappear first, the fish or the fisherman?

(note: except the close up on the hand coming from an other boat it is a single team who is reported here)

sunset

A man went to the seashore with his bicycle and sit on a bench to look at the sunset and the fisherman working in the bey. Fishermen are more like miners than fishermen actually, they dig in the mud in 1 meter of waters to find some sort of edible shells. The stay hours in the cold water with old worn diving suits.

A sunny weekend after a "Highland" week

We rarely have a full day of rain in Izmir. When a morning is rainy the afternoon is usually sunny. But last week we had a full cloudy/rainy week, we barely saw the direct sunlight. The gulf waters went darkened by low flying grey clouds . Thanks all is back to normal: a windy sunny Saturday. Early in the morning (or not so early it's around 9 o'clock) the promenade is almost empty. Colourful balloon of the fire range survived the lack of challengers and wait for a better hand. Two hours later on my way back the chapmen start to fill the place and meet the first walkers. The soaked land is still no good to lazily lay down in the grass or for the kids to play but the seaside looks great.

Fishermen back from fishing clean the nets or have some rest. Someone shoes are drying under the sun. After the windy days workers have to clean up the shore of tossed wastes. A food&drink seller heat himself at the sun while a dozen of water-bottles and a bag of sunflower seeds await the client, not a big enterprise. Another prepare kites, sure to make good business in such days with a strong wind. The inflatable toys seller keep his breath and prepare his bike to expose his merchandises.

Fishermen, the cormorants and the city

Izmir is not only a “millions people” city. She is also a large port with some thousands of years of history shared with people of the Seven Seas. This legacy tends to be forgotten by city planners. Fishermen once living close to the city center are now repelled to the last suburbs. Cormorants drying their wings watch the still hand-made carvel-built double-ended “kayik” crossing in front of modern buildings. Good to have still them here bringing daily fresh fish back to our markets.