And the Best of the Rest ...

I could talk about sailing in Greece forever, but my B.U. colleagues have been politely encouraging me to wind up this marvellous adventure, so they can take their turn at reporting some of the other exciting things we've been up to this summer.

And so, I have to try and give you the rest of our adventures in a nutshell.

The last few days were spent sailing between different ports on those 2 wonderful islands of Kephalonia and Ithaca. We all love them both, but as Ithaca is a bit quieter, it gets our top vote.

We continued to have lots of fun, in particular when it came to helping our male minder celebrate a special birthday. We'll let you into a secret, it was his 50th! This doesn't seem so old to some of our more venerable members such as Jimmy and Ungi, but to youngsters such as myself and Louis it does seem quite old, although our minders don't appear old at all.

It wasn't a coincidence that we were on flotilla for the big birthday, it had been planned that way, as our minder couldn't think of anything he'd rather be doing on this auspicious day. A great day it was too. While we were strolling round the harbour after breakfast, our boat was boarded and decorated with the led crew's birthday flag (seen above flying with our Norfolk flag), lots of balloons and banners.

We had a race on leaving harbour, which we didn't win, but who cared?, then a fairly slow sail, searching for wind, and a pleasant hour or two at anchor in a delightful bay swimming and sunbathing. We moored that night at Big Vathi and, at the group meal that evening, the lead crew presented the birthday cake they had made. We were thrilled to see it was in the shape of a bear - clearly in honour of us bears ...

Even though it hadn't risen as it should (something to do with confusion over flour types in Greek) but there was plenty to go around and it was truly scrumptious, except for the ears which were made of cardboard. It was our first taste of a yoghurt cake and was a taste we must experience again (note to self - talk to Chef Oakley).

The next highlight was our evening rafting up at Polis Bay. There is nothing there except peace and quiet and nature at its best. See what we mean ...

We started the evening with a blindfolded race on upturned dinghies which we won by miles! In the absence of a taverna we all rowed ashore for a beach barbecue, with the most fabulous array of salads, and one of our favourite competitions, the best cocktail competition. This time we learned from our mistakes of our previous attempt (3 years ago). We kept the ingredients simple, but the decoration fancy (thanks to turtles Zak & Stavros for starring), and this time we won, although our re-used name of 'Bear with a Sore Head' and enterprising story to go with it, may have swung it for us.  None of the cocktails did very well on the flammability test!

From Polis Bay it was time to return to base at Sivota to clean our boats and pack to go home - big sigh! Still we had our final evening and last group meal to enjoy. At the customary awards ceremony most of the crews were presented with signed pirate flags, but not us. We got the Colgate award for always smiling, whatever befell us, and we were presented with a marvellous wooden bear, aptly named Ellie, after the lead boat's name of Elpida.

As you can see I also got a big hug from skipper Liz, so I was very happy. 

All good things come to an end though, and the next morning we piled into coaches to head for the airport and home. We'd all had a splendid time, so thanks again to all the marvellous people at Sailing Holidays. It was more a case of saying Au revoir, rather than goodbye, as one thing we do know, is that we do intend to be on another Sailing Holiday's flotilla before too long (D.V). 

Lots of love, Eddie and the all the B.U. crew of Analipsi xxx

Being Busy Resting

Spending a rest day in Fiskardo is no problem at all as there is so much to see and do, and that is without my favourite past-time of boat and people watching.

We bimbled about a bit in the morning writing postcards, relaxing in the sun and trying the fresh pies from the bakery (the marrow pie was a great hit)

After an early lunch we went exploring on paw, and were soon off the beaten track and away from the tourists (in truth there weren't as many about as the local shops and tavernas would have liked).

We climbed up to an abandoned village. We could see evidence of lots of abandoned houses, but it was such a lovely spot, that none of us, especially Greek bear Louis, could imagine why anyone would want to leave.

Mind you, we did note signs of regeneration amongst the ruins and could imagine that it won't be long before this is a thriving community again.

The village was on a high point and it was a lovely downhill romp to the bay of Dafnoudi for a swim. This was a real gem and only reached on foot by a lovely stoney track. It would have been a long way round the top of the island by boat, but on paw, crossing over a narrow neck of land, it was no more than a hour's walk.

Back in Fiskardo we enjoyed a frozen yoghurt ice with as many fruit and chocolately toppings as we could manage, then we looked round some of the back streets away from the waterfront.

There was still water though, but looking at how well these Koi carp were doing, it certainly wasn't salt water. The frog statue was great even though he wasn't spouting water. Patrick wondered whether there wasn't a slight resemblance between his dapper profile and that of the frog - any thoughts readers?

All us bears appreciated the artistic merits of the lumps of old olive wood and the old olive press. We all took care to stay topside of that heavy plate which could easily crush the stuffing out of us if it dropped.

Before we left, there was one time honoured tradition which needed to be observed. This was a visit to the old Venetian lighthouse, sitting on the headland which marks the approach to Fiskardo.

We climbed to the top, a journey we'd made twice before and looked out to sea for ships and to check for pirates. You can always tell me, Eddie, from my big eared profile.

The coast was definitely clear so we could go off duty and enjoy another fine evening of wining and dining at Nicholas' taverna.

Lots of love, Eddie and the crew of Analipsi xxx

Wind, Waves, then Calm

Our first big sail, where we would need to cover quite a few miles (nautical of course) came towards the end of our first week. We had to sail from Port Atheni on Meganisi across a wide stretch of water to reach the popular and very famous island of Kephalonia.

There was an added complication which we learnt at the previous night's briefing. Some strong winds were forecast for the afternoon, so our lead crew were keen to get us across the big stretch of relatively unsheltered water before the winds got too strong.

This meant an early start in the morning, and we needed to be underway ideally by 9.00 a.m. Now this might not sound that early, but in Sailing Holiday terms it was. We were first away, in good time and there wasn't that much wind about.

We did hit some very heavy showers though, and after the rain came the wind. The seas started to get quite big, but we got our reefs in and we were fine. In fact it was quite an exciting sail. At one point our lead crew radio'd through to take sails down, so we complied, even though I like sailing with my genoa out, as it helps smooth our passage.

By this point we were getting close to the channel between Kephalonia and its neighbour Ithaca, so we were getting some shelter. We could also see our destination of Fiskardo, marked by the old Venetian lighthouse. We were soon circling in the harbour awaiting our turn to be moored. This is never easy in Fiskardo as it is always so busy, so it was just as well that we were there early. Our lead crew took advantage of our shallow draft to squeeze us into a corner which other boaters no doubt thought wasn't usable.

The bad weather didn't last, and it was a beautiful afternoon which we spent visiting the local beach about a mile away.

As you can see from our first photo, it was also a lovely calm evening  ...

We'd been to Fiskardo on our previous flotilla so knew exactly where to go for our evening meal. We bypassed all the restaurants on the quay and climbed up to a personal favourite, Nicholas's Taverna which gives us this superb view which we simply love. You can sit out on the terrace and drink in this view while enjoying superb food and good wine, and the congenial hospitality of the host, Nicholas. 

It's definitely an experience not to be hurried, and Fiskardo looks great as darkness falls and all the lights come on ...   

If it gets cold as it gets dark, you can always retreat indoors and enjoy one of the delicious puddings - on this occasion we went for some scrummy baclava ... 

... and the great thing was that the next day was to be a rest day, so we had 2 evenings to enjoy the delights of this great taverna. 

Lots of love, Eddie and crew xxx

Curry on the Shore

A good blow the next day gave us a wonderful non stop sail between Kalamos and the mainline town of Zaverda. It was quite a few miles but it didn't take us long as we were creaming through the water.

We'd been to Zaverda before, so enjoyed a wander round taking in all the sights we remembered.

We did, however, venture into new territory for our evening meal and our choice was a rather good one. For a start we were able to have a table right on the beach and it was rather idyllic (but perhaps not as warm as you are imagining) ...

... then there was the food; you could choose your cuisine and we decided to go Indian, especially when we realised there really was an Indian chef. the only problem was that the starters were so big we didn't have a lot of room left for our mains, which as you can see were fairly substantial.

At least in Greece there are always nice lanes to go for a stroll and interesting seats which simply beg to be used ...

... and there is invariably some lovely sunshine to take full advantage of them. Mind you I leave the strolling and the people watching to my companions as I like to stand watch on my boat. 

Love Eddie and crew xxx

A Quart in a Pint Pot

As we firmly believe in the principle that small is beautiful, we were surprised to find big brother island Kalamos, so busy after the tranquillity of Kastos.

The harbour at Kalamos was heaving when we arrived, and we were later to discover, after many more arrivals, that this was only about half full. Local restauranteur George, doubles as the harbour master and is clearly a dab hand at squeezing boats in.

Our Sailing Holidays lead crew did their bit as well. They wanted us all at the end of the harbour wall, as this was a good location for the punch party we were having that evening.

I sat on my boat roof and supervised the mooring process. Eight boats can take up surprisingly little space especially when moored up 4 abreast. We all managed to maintain our privacy though, as we tied up head to tail and everyone observed the golden rule of crossing at the front of the boat. We actually had 2 lead boats with us, as a spare crew had come over with parts to assist with a couple of repairs that were needed (but not to our boat).

This was the view of the Sailing Holidays contingent from the far side of the harbour. George (harbourmaster, not bear) is in the launch, supervising operations.

George was an experienced pro so we left him in charge and went off to explore. After a steep climb up to the town we found this abandoned vehicle who had clearly found the ascent just too much.

Louis is playing 'Where's Bear?' in this photo, but if you look hard you should find him.

Following time honoured tradition, that evening's punch party on the harbour wall was a great success. The punch was wonderful, the nibbles and special Sailing Holidays recipe dips were scrumptious, and the company was very good. I took the opportunity to get to know hostie Pip a bit better and helped her ensure that everyones' glass stayed charged.

When we'd all had as much punch as we thought advisable to consume, we all went to George's taverna for a meal. There were tables everywhere, and he and his team were serving huge numbers of people. George certainly doesn't adhere to the Greek 'manana' philosophy and runs an efficient operation. As a result we didn't have to wait too long and the food had not suffered from being served in such vast quantities.

It was a good evening, but we still prefer Kastos.

Lots of love Eddie and crew xxx

Paradise Invaded

We said goodbye to Nidri and headed for a wonderful pair of lesser known islands, Kastos and Kalamos. Kastos is the smaller island and we went there first, for another first, our first visit. This made it especially exciting. What a choice it was. There was plenty of space in the harbour and just 100 yards away, in a spectacular headland location, was the excellent Windmill taverna.

Our evening in Kastos had given us a really good feel for this island, so we were all up early the next morning to have a good look round before it was time to weigh anchor and leave. We decided we'd get to see more if we went running, and we'd get some good exercise at the same time, so running shoes on, we headed out.

We followed a dirt road along the coast. It was very peaceful and the views were superb. The only drawback was that it was so little used, that spiders had built built webs between the trees on each side of the road and then taken up residence in the middle of the webs. At running speed, we were moving too fast to see them with enough time to take evasive action. Spiders in the face is not our favourite thing, so we did an efficient emergency stop.

We turned round and found a spider free track with the sea on our right and goats grazing amongst the olive trees on our left. We also shared the path with a harmless looking brown snake.

We discovered a beautiful, and very secluded, bay on our travels ...

... just 5 minutes walk from the harbour. We decided to take our minders there after breakfast. We got there first and again, it was completed deserted and just perfect for a morning swim. We splashed about happily, until we heard the throb of big engines. We looked over our shoulders and were surprised to see a huge landing craft heading straight for us. We had to swim out the way quickly when it became clear the craft wasn't going to moor offshore, but was going to drive right up the beach.

The ramp was lowered and a huge lorry drove off and across the beach. At this point a minder turned up and couldn't see why we'd described the beach as idyllic - it's all in the timing though! 

It was time to leave anyway and set sail for the big brother island of Kalamos. 

Lots of Love Eddie and the crew of Analipsi

A Special Menu at 'No Menu'

After a beautiful evening on Meganisi, some strong winds up to force 6, were forecast to blow up the next day.

Sensibly, our lead crew opted for the safe option and a short hop to a sheltered mooring at Nidri on Lefkas Island. That way, no-one would be forced to be out battling the elements if they didn't want to.

We were happy with this decision, as we fancied a visit to Nidri which we had not visited with a flotilla before.  As it happened, we had strong winds for a a brief 15 minutes, then it went very calm and hot.

Our mooring that night was on the Sailing Holidays pontoon. It exists because Nidri is an additional base to Sivota, used by a small number of flotillas. It was a fine mooring and it was a luxury to have a water point right at our bows.

At the shore end of the pontoon was a hotel with a lovely pool which we could use if we bought a drink. However, we opted for a walk into town and a swim from the town beach.

In the evening we went, with the lead crew, to a restaurant with a difference, which the lead crew had heard about and wanted to try. It was the 'No Menu' restaurant, which really did have no menu.

As the Chef is not constrained by a menu he is free to concoct the most amazing dishes from seasonal and fresh produce. You get to say whether you want meat, fish or veggie dishes or a mixture, and if you don't like a dish that comes to your table, you can send it back. 

It didn't sound as if we could go wrong and as it happened we didn't. We dined exceptionally well on some truly delicious dishes and it was great that every dish that arrived was a complete surprise. Some of the highlights were the bean salad, fresh tuna steaks, mussels and veggie lasagne. The sheeps' milk ice cream was also very good. 

We walked home via the waterfront. We always enjoy walking alongside waterfronts at night, as it can be very atmospheric. We thought this boat looked especially charming lit up like this.

Nidri definitely got the paw of approval.

Lots of love Eddie and crew xxx