I got to Marmaris by bus and walked to Netsel Marina, where, while walking along the pontoons, I saw the International Sailing School sign. As I walked across the pontoon, I met two young Turks, Mustafa and Atila. “Excuse me, don't you know how I can find a sailing school?” - I asked. “We are a sailing school,” they said. I told them that I needed to take a course and they immediately called Jim. “Wait here and don't go anywhere, my dad is coming to pick you up now.” I sat down on a bench in front of Pontoon D and 15 minutes of waiting was an eternity. I was so excited and happy at the same time. Will it really work out all at once? Just so you know, in case of failure, I planned to spend the night in the woods on an island near Yacht Marina.

Jim Gokova came in person, a local legend and founder of everything related to yachting in Marmaris. He has founded the first yacht club, the first sailing school and the first charter company. He took me to my homeschool, listened to my story and took out a piece of paper. “To work officially, you need to take these and those courses, and all this will cost you 3,800 euros.” At that time, I had $1,000 in my left pocket (my severance pay) and 1,000 euros in my other pocket (my beloved grandmother's savings she gave me on the day I left). “Jim, I only have 2,000 and I don't have it anymore and never will be again, is there a chance to miss something?” Jim didn't think twice and immediately suggested that I give him everything I could and work the rest at school in 2 months. Of course, I agreed and gave him 1,000 euros, keeping $1,000. He took me back to the marina and showed me all the yachts that the Gokov family had at that time:

• M.A.T 12 - Gokova

• Beneteau First 40.7 - Veronika

• Dufour Classic 41 - Te Avel Mor

• Dufour Classic 38 - Moana Reva

The planned two months of work at school turned into 9 months of unpaid work. I could live on any boat and almost always had the entire yacht at my disposal. At first, I just went as an interpreter and explained everything Jim was telling the Russian-speaking team of students. Then he just asked a topic, and I talked like the previous band. Gradually, they began to trust me to explain bits and pieces of theory, and after a couple of months Jim said that it was possible not to go home and get a residence permit. Then I got my first residence permit for 5 years and mentally stayed forever.

Everything that happened to me at that time can be described and told endlessly; I was the poorest and at the same time the happiest yachtsman in this city. They didn't pay my salary, I had almost no things, I lived and slept in shorts alone, wore the same shirt and swam with one yellow flipper that I found on the bottom, swimming in the mask I found on the shore. I called home from the post office, collecting small liras while cleaning the yacht. But the most important thing was that my work as an instructor was gradually becoming a full-time instructor. And that day has come.

After two months, Jim came up with a new offer. He said I could stay until winter and go through all the steps at IYT. I don't have to pay anything for this, I just have to stay working for free as an instructor at school. I started sailing alongside him on a second yacht. He's on M.A.T 12 and I'm on First 40.7.

During our work, we managed to travel around Greece in summer, go to Levan in autumn, go to Israel in winter, and in between climbed the entire coast from Bodrum to Fethiye. I took all the courses 5 times, passed all the exams not on the first try, and was happy with my new job, not realizing that it was not Jim himself who played the key role in my future life, but those I had taught, things I didn't know how to do.

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