08-Apr-2004 -- Yesterday was a busy day. From Israel to the Strait of Gibraltar Sicily is on the track, and so I decided to pass my hometown Taormina in a close distance. All my friends were duly advised in advance and about 100 people were standing by to see my ship. Several long blasts with my horn caused quite a reaction. They waved flags and bedsheets and a "welcome"-banner was unfurled.

Later in the early evening I passed the Strait of Messina, and during night we sailed along the Northern coast of Sicily, until we reached the Archipelago of the Aegatian Islands (Isole Egadi) at sunrise.

38N 12E was my first of all offshore confluences I ever visited. It had started on Sep. 13th, 2001, with my dear friend Dr. Mancini and a small hired boat, and since then I have seen a hundred or so other offshores.

The comeback to Marettimo Island was a real funny one. When passing North of Marettimo, still well wrapped with low morning clouds, and when setting the course towards the confluence, I found in the radar, my confluence to be already occupied!

The present holder of the point was the tuna trawler "B. Padre Pio LTP 389", quite coolly engaged in fishing, as we realized when having a look on the cables brought out from his stern. With such a situation I did not have to deal with so far. Chasing him away was not feasible, as with his tunny nets out he is very restricted in his manoeuvreability. He was moving towards South at a very low speed and it was clear we would collide at the confluence if not some preventive action could be taken.

And I had the idea: Let's contact him by VHF and agree on a joint venture visit. The ocean going reefer ship "Nova Scotia" and the Aegatian trawler "Padre Pio"! As he was already within the 100-metres range, slightly North of the confluence, I asked him to stop for a five minutes and let me pass in front of his bow exactly over the confluence. So we would be together within the range for several instants. And he agreed! This is not a matter of course, as fishermen are known to be usually extremely pigheaded and stubborn. When they have their nets out, the Sea, the World and the right of way belongs entirely to them. No discussion at all about. Many thousand hours of my navigational watch during the last almost 30 years they did already poison with driving me wild and making me sweat blood and water.

But in all likelihood he had had a good catch overnight and was in a good mood.

So we both visited the confluence and I could make my picture with the only view where land is in sight, - towards ESE.

The tuna fish from the Aegatian Islands is the far most exquisite worldwide. It is not some commercialized mass production 50-cents tin-stuff from Thailand, but a jar of one pound of Aegatian tuna is sold for easily 20-30 Dollars! To everybody planning a visit to Sicily I recommend not to miss the various Aegatian Islands. Buy a jar of the local tuna and you will learn what tuna really is and how delicate it can taste!

Prices are, however, negotiable to a certain extent. The islanders usually have the unpleasant attitude, to immediately treble up the price, when smelling you to be an ignorant chicken from the mainland, or even better: a foreign tourist and not aware of the Italian language. Then you are completely lost and will be fleeced full power :-(