Tuesday June 21, 2016

Photo: Marty and Paul at the Castello taverna high above the harbor at Navpaktos

We go ashore at o830 into the miniature harbor at Navpaktos and begin our hike up to the castle. It’s hot already. Along the way we =see ruins of Ottoman baths and an enormous old tree. At the castle entrance we met a lovely French couple who have already circumnavigated and are headed west to Panama and New Zealand to do it again. They will be laying up at Aktion in Proveza to make sure everything is all ship-shape before the next ocean passages. Philippe live in the US for about 10 years, part of it in Eugene, Oregon where our son Jon lived.

The castle has had extensive restoration as have the harbor walls. The work has been to preserve this archeologically significant site—like removing huge old trees. There is a room near the top with a good description of the work—very interesting and also cool inside!

After some grocery shopping we see Philippe and his wife again and join them for lunch. They are planning to stay another day since the wind looks better On Wednesday. We think that is a good plan and end up doing the same.

On our way back to Canty we see an American boat—Evergreen—from East Thetford, Vermont. She has sailed in Maine and then went west across the Pacific. In Thailand the owners had her shipped to Greece and they have sailed recently in some of the areas we have visited. They have been sailing about 10 months of the year for 6 years and are deciding what to do next.

After dinner we go back to town for a stroll. Navpatkos had a population of 11,000 in 2,000 and is now 18,000 including “suburban” sprawl. I would say that the highway by-pass has helped the town. It has a lively atmosphere around the harbor and on each side of the long curved beaches that extend on both sides. The beaches have attractive walking areas that are paved and bordered with a one-way street. A few blocks from the beach is a commercial street that is bustling more with local residents than tourists.