The Long Trek Home Begins.
Our slightly stretched 2 year sabbatical will come to an end on November 1st when we move back into Caol Na Mara in Tarbert. In August we had reached the zenith of our cruise when we arrived in Samothraki and are now heading back to Leros to put Tiercel in storage for a year.
This blog is being written in the small, but perfectly formed, village of Kardamila on the island of Khios. The wind is howling down from the North and we are at our lowest ebb since setting out from Tarbert in May 2006. We really cannot get fired up about the remaining couple of months of this cruise and now only want to be home and getting on with our lives in Scotland.
Don't get us wrong, we have loved the travels so far and would not exchange the experiences that we have had for all the tea in China. The memory of them will be with us for the rest of our lives. However, like the drive home from a good week-end party, we have had a great time but want to be home and not wearily travelling a familiar road again.
OK, whinge over, don'cha feel sorry for us? Poor souls, sailing in the azure, warm Aegean sea in temperatures that Britain only gets about once a year, drinking cheap wine and beer, lazing in the sun, reading good books and seeing sights that most people would give a major body organ to see? Say aaaaah!
On with the story!!
The Island of Lesvos 2nd Time Round
Mithimna
Strong winds held us up in Mirina on the island of Limnos until the afternoon of 15th August when we left, on a whim, for Moudhros bay on the South of the island in the hope that good winds would carry us the 60 miles to Mithimna on Lesvos the next day.
After a comfortable night at anchor in Freshwater bay in Ormos Moudhros we got up at 02.45 and set off for what was probably the best sail we have had so far. In winds ranging from force 3 to force 6 Tiercel sailed like a demon under gorgeous night skies which evolved into a spectacular orange sunrise over the Turkish coast and then a beautiful morning. The wind died when we were about 2 miles from Mithimna (AKA Molyvos).
The reason we were on Lesvos at this time was to meet Rob's cousin Tim who was coming out to sail with us for the week. Two nights before we were due to meet him a 60ft motor cruiser squeezed in beside us. The skipper told us it was the tender to a huge behemoth of a boat anchored in the bay - unbelievable but true. Unfortunately, on leaving he lifted our anchor and we had to rapidly recover it and re-anchor, before breakfast - bastard!
This left Rob feeling insecure about leaving the boat so Gina had to drive the 90km to pick up Tim and the 90km back.
Mithimna, you will recall, is a conservation village. Built on a hill, it sits under a large castle with the old houses and villas straggling down to the shore creating delightful shaded, vine covered, alleyways. Many of the houses and restaurants have balconies with views overlooking the sea. On our last night here the three of us had cocktails on the balcony of a cocktail bar (more of a blue painted wee shed with a balcony, but none the less pleasant for that) dinner at the delightful Betty's restaurant with views out over the Aegean and the sparkling lights of the many fishing boats in the bay.
By the by, for anyone visiting Mithimna, Betty's 94 year old father still works in the restaurant. During the day he sits at a table outside telling anyone who cares to listen that the food is excellent. In the evening he helps clear tables and then homes in on any attractive, unattached women, chats merrily away with them and generally adds to the friendly atmosphere of the place. Betty told us that he is something of a war hero having sailed his boat around the Aegean working with the British special forces during the 2nd world war.
To finish the evening we had Greek coffee and Metaxa (local herbed brandy) at the Seahorse Hotel by the fishing harbour. We have got to know the staff and the family who own the place really well. They are a friendly and happy bunch and, as a result, so are their customers.
Skala Loutra
The following morning we headed the 40 miles to the (mostly) peaceful village of Skala Loutra. Followers of this blog will remember that it has a "Prisoner" (Patrick McGoohan and all that) themed hotel, a friendly donkey and a Pelican that is having an affair with a white cat.
The donkey remembered Gina and duly demanded food. She and Tim actually bought it some carrots and apples - softies or what! We went to the taverna where the pelican generally hangs out and had a few beers. The owners seemed to remember us from the last visit which was kinda nice - aaah! The pelican duly appeared and actually came and stood by Tim to allow itself to be fussed. However, noting that we had no food, it casually strolled into the kitchen of the taverna where it was dully chased out by the owner's 3 legged collie. After a chase of 10 yards honour was satisfied on both sides and the pelican waddled over to a local fisherman who was cleaning his boat. He had bought a bag of fish for it and its 1st love, the white cat. Once the cat turned up it duly rubbed itself enthusiastically along the pelican, the fisherman started doling out the fish and they both settled down to enjoy their meal together - aaah ain't that sweet.
Mitilini
After a couple of days re-discovering the delights of Skala Loutra and its bizarre wildlife, we left for the island capital, Mitilini. Last time we were here we really didn't like it much and left after one night. However, this time we got to know it a lot better and rather enjoyed it. It is a major ferry port and has plenty of hustle and bustle. Its narrow back streets are more Ottoman than Greek with tiny bazaar like clusters of shops selling everything from antiques to plumbing.
We were moored right in the centre of town and it was quite noisy but not unpleasant. The three of us discovered an excellent cheap restaurant right by the harbourside in amongst the tourist rip-off restaurants. A tip for all aspiring visitors to Greece (or anywhere in the world really) when you walk past restaurants and see one which is really busy it is possibly OK but, if all the people sitting there are locals (unless of course they are Australian aboriginals with their love of insects etc), then you can guarantee that it will be both good and inexpensive. We followed this rule and ate 3 meals here. Unfortunately its name was written in Greek and we have forgotten it but it is the first one by the fish quay. The guy who served us, when told we were from Scotland, apologised for having no haggis!! Thank God for that we all thought.
Tim departed at 4.45 on the Tuesday morning. We were very sorry to see him go. He is always good company and seemed to enjoy Lesvos as much as we did. However, his departure brought home to us the depressing thought that we had a couple of months or so to pass before we could head home.
A Day Trip To Turkey and the Adventures of Super Mario the Deck Hand
Our original intention had been to head down the Turkish coast. However we had heard on the yottie grapevine, that the port of Ayvalik, our first port of call in Turkey, was suffering from end of seasonitis. A German couple had just been there and said that it was smelly and the marina was particularly unpleasant. We decided to take a day trip on the wee ferry from Mitlilni to investigate.
The ticketing computer for the ferry was down so we were given written scraps of paper . The ferry duly left half an hour late and trundled across the straits to Ayvalik. The town is situated at the back of a huge, almost enclosed bay which is a popular holiday spot for Turks. As a result, the local sewage system is heavily overloaded in the month of August and one could smell the results as soon as one approached the bay. In such places, if you fancy seafood, ask the waiter if it is local. If he says yes - leg it as fast as you can or you will be adding to the sewage overload fairly rapidly and, probably, spectacularly !
It is a pity about this problem because the once Greek town of Alibey at the entrance is very attractive as is Ayvalik itself. However, Ayvalik is more of a working town with tourism being secondary. The tourist season was coming to an end when we were there and the operators, waiters, shop staff etc were obviously suffering from punter overload. Thus they were not quite the pleasant friendly souls that we had met in other parts of Turkey in March and April. Indeed, when we walked to the marina we were stopped by their security staff. We explained that we wanted to get to a chandlery and also to see the marina with a view to bringing our boat across. A guy from the admin office appeared and, with all the charm and charisma of a rectal thermometer, pointed us back to town where he said there was a chandlery.
The town could be comprehensively investigated in a couple of hours. We had 8 to spend there. By lunchtime we had seen it all. The tourist stuff is confined to the waterfront and goes back for a hundred yards or so. However if one explores further one sees that it is a real Turkish working town. Boys with trays of bread and rolls scoot about from the bakeries to the shops, farmers with horses and carts roam the streets selling fruit and vegetables and we even came across a blacksmiths forge where various domestic and agricultural tools were being manufactured before our eyes.
At 5 in the afternoon we were at the dock waiting for a few cars to be driven onto the ferry. A large 4 wheel drive with a sizeable motor cruiser in tow was struggling up the ramp. The rather elegant, dark complexioned, bald driver didn't have a clue how to handle his vehicle. As a consequence when the boat trailer reached the peak of the ramp it broke away from the car and sped towards the doors of the customs building with increasing enthusiasm. If it reached them the resultant mayhem would probably mean that we would be lucky to get away that day.
However, cometh the hour, cometh the hero. A small, middle aged, tubby, Turkish deckhand with a Saddam Hussein moustache, wearing a stripy jumper and a greasy baseball cap shot down the ramp like an Exocet missile, in pursuit of the escaping boat and trailer. His legs were a blur - like something out of a cartoon. Looking like Super Mario(well known character in a popular kids computer game) on steroids he zoomed past all the horrified onlookers, caught up with the trailer, grabbed it and, with a screeching of shoe soles and a smell of burning rubber, managed to stop the boat from careering through the customs building. It really was both horrifying and hilarious to watch. After he had halted the boat inches from the glass doors he chocked it, wandered back to the ferry and while the rest of us were still staring slack-jawed in disbelief, he casually lit up a fag.
On his return to the ferry he surreptitiously placed a large, filthy piece of rug at the bottom of the ramp. At the next attempt the driver - a complete dipstick, assuming that even greater power and speed were necessary, made an even worse hash of it and the trailer made another break for freedom. This time however it was brought to a halt by the rug which became entangled in its wheels and brought it to a rapid standstill. "Super Mario" looked smugly on and took another, satisfied puff of his fag.
Plomarion
Our experience of Ayvalik, allied to our increasing sloth, decided us to head back to Leros via the Greek islands rather than the Turkish coast. After getting back that night we had a couple more days in Mitilini before heading South to Plomarion. We last visited here in June, on our way north. It is a pleasant and attractive small fishing town where we knew we would have to wait a few days while strong winds blew themselves out.
We duly moored up, settled down and got a quiet night's sleep. However, the following morning, as the winds increased, an unpleasant swell rolled into the harbour. By day 4, and one change of mooring, it got to the stage where living on the boat was like trying to sleep in a tumble drier. Much as we enjoyed Plomarion, we had to get away.
The Island of Khios
Kardamila
Thus on day 5, Thursday, we headed down the 30 miles to Kardamila on Khios. It is an attractive village nestled in an inlet amongst the cliffs under the stately mountains of Northern Khios.
In May we had come here by motor bike when we first visited Khios. It was a grey and wet day then, but we had found the place attractive and friendly so were pleased that it hasn't changed. We are currently the only visiting boat here and we have free water and electricity, so are content.
After leaving here we are making no plans except to be back on Leros in early October to prepare Tiercel to be hauled out and stored ashore until we are able to start the proper journey back to Scotland.
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