He didn’t even reach the shore. A Turkish sailor was so obsessed with a British woman he
met in Cyprus back in 2005 that he sailed his 16ft boat Ninova from Bodrum, Turkey trying to find his love whom he believed was in Plymouth. Immigration officers intercepted his boat in the English Channel.
Lovelorn Ramazan Noyan Culum’s amazing journey in search of his love began seven months ago in search of the woman he knew as Courtney Murray. He had met her while on a scuba diving holiday in Cyprus in 2005.
The UK Border Force confirmed a 38-year-old sailor had been intercepted by its cutter HMC Valiant in a “dramatic capture” this week in seas close to the Devon coast.
The yacht was towed to Plymouth Yacht Haven at Turnchapel and Culum was arrested and taken to Charles Cross Police Station for questioning.
Rather than being reunited with his love, he is currently in an immigration detention center awaiting removal from the UK back to Turkey and his faithful Ninova remains at Plymouth Yacht Haven.
The UK is just the latest European country to throw him out. He was apparently traveling without passport or papers of any kind, and therefore had a difficult seven months trying to reach the UK.
According to his story after setting out from the yachting hub of Bodrum on the Turkish coast in March, he has been imprisoned, gone on hunger strike, slept rough and found accommodation in a mental hospital while trying to reach Britain. He says he battled storms and disasters as he crossed the Adriatic, the Mediterranean, through the straits of Gibraltar, hugging the coast of Spain and onwards across the English Channel.
Sadly his love is not returned. The woman he knew as Courtney Murray has rejected his suit, blocked him from her Facebook site and apparently married someone else.
Courtesy of www.sail-world.com
Poor guy! This is is reminiscent of John Caldwell’s “Desparate Voyage”, although that (true) story had a much happier ending – they got married and had a long life together!
Poor guy! This is is reminiscent of John Caldwell’s “Desparate Voyage”, although that (true) story had a much happier ending – they got married and had a long and interesting life together!
Quite a story!
Would the outcome been different should he have shown with a 40+ footer?
You know, some like bigger…
Quite a story. I guess will wait for the book or movie.
Would the outcome been different should this poor guy showed with a 40+ footer instead? You know, some like bigger…