our Journey

Friday, June 5, 2015

CEPHALONIA ISLAND

EUFIMIA

After our rather disappointing stay on Nisis Ithaki, we decided to sail around the southern tip and head for Eufimia on the larger Nisis Cephalonia (Island). As luck would have it we motored much of the way with the wind in our face hoping that our return journey through the channel separating the two islands would be easier. It wasn't.
Eufimia was delightful, large enough to satisfy our shopping and food supply needs and with good tavernas and more importantly power and water (11E).

The square with the HUGE olive tree root!
The houses are beautifully maintained and as usual there are bougainvillas everywhere. It appears to be a very 'twee' sort of marina port, with streets very clean and tidy. Although costs were about the same as everywhere else, it seems the locals are very conscious about impressing the tourists!

Our boat moored right next to the promenade wharf which made the whole experience fairly pleasant.
Night time along the promenade

Austral sitting very comfortably
Some greek communities really know how to keep the visitors happy - this city even has an official sign indicating where to buy Gyros! Amazing!

FISKHADO

From Eufimia we tried to sail up the island to Fiskhado but had to settle for motoring once again.




Here we found a very up-market kind of marina and port but without the pleasantness of Eufimia with costs much higher and more touristy.










We moored up against the promenade and discovered that no power or water was available and that the power bollards were taped up and out of order. Pity, we might have stayed longer!




Perhaps the many fishing boats had greater priority.











As with every place we visit, cats are ever present, in shop windows, on streets, seated in restaurants and generally tolerated as part of everyday life.


 From Fiskhado we left next morning for Nidri on Nisis Levkas.

Sunday, May 24, 2015

VATHI (ITHACA)

We'd heard many stories about the island of Ithaca and how Homer's Odyssey attributed many of Odysseus' voyages to this area. There are many references to both Homer and Odysseus (Ulysses) around the island although it's hard to know exactly which are authentic or just myths. We decided to hire a car and travel up the narrow mountain roads past Stavros at Exogi to visit Homer's school (or the crumbling remains of it).

a well in the ruins
Part of the ancient site (although these looked like they were more recent add-ons)



The ruins of Homer's school
The ruins were just that, although some areas where the huge stones remain appear to have withstood some 3000 yrs of neglect and looked very believable. Behind the School's ruins was the beginning of a stone path that headed up the mountain. We followed it up and
 felt fairly impressed with our efforts to climb a 700 ft rocky path to nearly the top.

The ancient rocky steps




From the top of the mountain steps you could see across the bay and beyond. It's a pity that Greek tourism has not made more of these sites. They seem to just be forgotten.

We did not really enjoy our time in Vathi marina. It is a large port that services the island and does not appear to concentrate on tourism. No water or power made our choice of just a couple of days easy.

Vathi

Looking across to Cephalonia

The main street of Stavros

Frikes


The plaques commemorating the resistance in 1944
We enjoyed our car trip to the rest of Ithaca especially Frikes and a small village in the centre of the island, Stavros.

Frikes is a quaint marina tucked in a bay on the north coast and appears to serve mostly local boats.
It was also a sight where during WW2 local Greek citizens made a valiant attempt to protect the town from the invading German forces who at first were repelled and who then later captured the town, killing those who resisted.



SIVOTA on LEVKAS

Sivota is a delightful port. Located at the southern part of Levkas Island, the port is a perfect spot to stay for more than a day.
Chicken, Greek salad and grilled sardines



We moored at Stavros' landing and were pleasantly surprised by the assistance given by the local taverna. Power and water is provided free by the restaurant in return we dine there at night. This simple solution is terrific, both parties gain.

The meals were very enjoyable and good value for money.



Stavros Taverna
 The bay is utterly beautiful. From the restaurant we could see the entire bay full of boats and local restaurants.The local tavernas are covered in pelargoniums, roses and so many brightly coloured bougainvillias.
The amazing rubber tree growing across the ceiling of Stavros' restaurant



Our boat on the left with the bright blue bimini.
 It appears that Sivota is the main base for the Sailing Holidays flotilla. There were about 50 of these when we arrived and we've made a point of NOT going where they plan to sail!
Most left the next day and the bars and restaurants were again quietly pleasant.

Our next stop is the Vathi, on the island of Ithaca, some 20 miles south.

Monday, May 18, 2015

MITIKAS

From Spartakhori to Mitikas is around 9 miles and so we set out in the morning to reach the town on the other side of the bay by lunchtime. The trip was amazing. We seem to be rediscovering the fun and excitement in sailing each time we venture out.


With the gennaker out we managed to get 6.5kts from the same amount of wind.


The boat slid effortlessly through the water with the wind on a beam reach. There's always something satisfying about sailing with such a beautifully coloured sail. It's as though the wind is whispering gently yet at the same time pushing and pulling hard.



 We motored the last mile into the small port of Mitikas and moored at the rather empty wharf. Still there is no water or power which is a real pity as the town itself has so much potential but cannot attract boats to visit and help fund the local businesses. Lunchtime, as with most Mediterranean ports, meant that the streets were deserted except for the odd taverna and cafes. We explored a little then settled back in the boat for our siesta.

The newly painted Orthodox Church

Towards the Bay

The sign says NO tractors, bikes or cars !!!!!!


After a few hours David and I decided to find George, the ex-Canadian we met last year and who had  returned 13 years ago to restart his family's small cafe. If only the rest of the population had his belief and determination for the town's future; perhaps they are happy to keep it as it is.


Once again we spent an hour discussing the Greek political situation, how it's hurting everyone and how the EU cannot provide solutions to the national disaster that's happening.










Our last coffee was overlooking the beautiful Inland Sea with mist gently hovering above the mirrored water. So beautiful!

Saturday, May 16, 2015

SPARTAKHORI

Our sail down to the Lefkas Channel was spectacular. 6kts all the way on a beam reach, with the sun above and the new sail behaving beautifully. The trip seemed to go much quicker than expected and so we reached the channel with half and hour to spare. As the rotating bridge only opens on the hour we sailed around the bay and then waited patiently to get through. The passage to Lefkas and to the the end of the narrow channel was much easier this year as the dredging was very effective. Boats need to motor though within a 20m channel and this year a poor unsuspecting yachtie decided to go around the dredge. Being stuck in the mud is not a pretty look! Been there, done that!

                                 

Once out into the Inland Sea everything felt like we'd never left. The sun shone, the sea rippled and the sails went up. Dave totally enjoyed the feeling of freedom on the water. He could not stop smiling.

That night we headed for Spartakhori, a small bay on Meganisi Island.  We were surprised to see the old fingers nearly empty and the main wharf free to use (with water and electricity). The Porto Spilia restaurant provides all this for nothing and in return we dine at his place. A great service we really appreciated.

Spartakhori Bay from the town above Porto Spilia

The nights on the water are quiet, and still with usually a cool breeze to help sleeping although this will definitely change once the June summer days kick in.

We stayed for two nights then sailed up to Nidri and then across the Inland sea to Mitikas, some 9 miles away. Dave was pretty pleased with himself (although I a little less so) as we hit 7.4kts on a beam reach with both main and a reef in the headsail. He was quite amazed.

Thursday, May 14, 2015

PARGA and PREVEZA

After leaving Corfu, we sailed to Parga and anchored in the Valtou Bay for the night. We love this spot as it's usually calm with a sandy bottom, excellent for anchoring. Surprisingly there was not one other boat in the bay as about 12 flotilla boats had berthed on the sandy shore. We felt a little lonely, but, as the weather was good we looked forward to a very pleasant night, gently rocking.
Next morning we headed off to Preveza some 27miles south. We motored most of the way as the breeze was slight and we need to be in port before dark. Still, a very pleasant trip.
Once into Preveza we berthed at the marina (never again alongside the main wharf after my tumble 2 yrs ago) and settled in for a couple of days.



We fell in love all over again with the city. It has all the charm of the small ports but also all the services of a large city. Lots of walking is necessary to discover all that it has to offer.

The main wharf (lined with bottlebrush)






The tavernas, supermarkets, hardware stores and even a sewing shop are just off the main road. As we had plenty of 'jobs' to do on the boat, we spent hours keeping very busy on and off the boat. As usual, however we love spending time enjoying the small cafes.
A typical coffee stop - total 4 Euro


The Ionian area is really quite small and sooner or later you come across someone you might have met days, weeks or even years ago.  We received an email from a couple, Tim and Georgina, who were berthed just two piers down from us. They've spent the last 4 years travelling around the Aegean and have only now entered the Ionian area.

We met them first at the mouth of the Rhone, enjoyed their company, shared a meal and kept in touch. We met up and shared another excellent meal in a small taverna. So good to make contact again!

Tim and Georgina
waiting for coffee





























One of the things we have not done is explore the many ruins, so we hired a small car and headed of to see Nikopolos, the ancient city built by Octavius after his victory over Anthony and Cleopatra at Aktion. The city was once huge with palaces, aqueducts and temples spread across many kilometres. It is hard to imagine 180,000 men and 900 ships were fighting here. Eventually Anthony fled with Cleopatra to Egypt where they both committed suicide (someone should make a movie of it!!)





We ventured further on to Kamarina and then to the monastery on top of the mountain. From here we could see the monument to the women of Souli.



















The monument of the sculptor Zogolopoulos, which represents the "dance of Zalogos", is situated on the rock from where the women of Souli fell down with their children, chased by the men of the Turk Ali Pasha, who set aside his promise and persecuted the people of Souli in December of 1803. The Soulians, in order to avoid the Albanian fighters of Ali Pasha who were chasing them, were fortified in the monastery on the top, where they resisted for two days.  They stayed in the monastery and were captured, while 57 women ran away. When they arrived on a rock, at the top named Stefani, in order not to be captured by the Albanians, they threw their children in the precipice of Acherontas river and then they commited suicide falling themselves too. According to the tradition, they fell into the precipice dancing, one after the other.

The afternoon came quickly and so we headed back to the marina. As luck would have it, the only day it decided to pour buckets of rain we were heading home hoping we hadn't left the windows open and the boat wouldn't be drenched. It was, just a little bit!!

The sun appeared as quickly as the rain had come, so after some quick drying all was back to normal again.

The next morning we sailed of once again, this time to the inland sea and Meganisi 



Sunday, May 10, 2015

GAIOS

We headed off to the island of Gaios early next morning and had a pleasant sail for a couple of hours. The new genoa worked beautifully but we had to turn on the motor in order to reach the harbor before the flotilla arrived. Gaios was just as pretty as last year with winding streets full of shops and restaurants.

The locals are always friendly but also keen for business. A small baby we admired last year  in a restaurant had now grown into a laughing toddler. Very cute!

 The relaxed nature of the locals easily entices you to take things easy.


Night-times are wonderful as the centre of town comes alive with happy tourists and playing children.  We always feel very welcome in these small towns.















We slept well , woken by a noisy gaggle of geese on the wharf and then headed off to Naok marina on Corfu where we would be saying goodbye to Petri.

Saturday, May 9, 2015

IONINNA

Next morning we set off for Ionnina some 90km away from Sivota on an amazing new highway. We passed mountains, forests and blossoming cherry trees. There was even a toll of 2.40E.

Snow covered mountains in the distance

The city is large with many facilities and although we were there to explore, we barely had time to enjoy the coffee by the lake and wander around the busy streets. Once again our tourist skills are not that fantastic, we have the best intentions but seem to always succumb to the yiros and coffee shops.
Enjoying the ambience


The renovated old buildings are coming back to life in the most striking way. The shop below shows how an old ruin can be modernised.

We headed back to beautiful Sivota and spent the rest of the evening relaxing by the water.