15/03/16 Still raining hard. We had the big meeting with the Cleopatra Technical Department with regard to the work that needed to be done to Elixir to prepare her for the voyage ahead. The work needed to be completed before she could be returned to the water. The bad news was that the work would mean a week where we could not live on Elixir due to it's being sandblasted and the fine dust created would be hazardous to our health. With a fair amount of hesitation Jenny and I pressed the go button for the work to proceed and rang the rental car people arranging to retain the Fiat for another week. We had about 15 minutes to pack our things and get off Elixir as the travel-lift arrived to shift her to the sandblasting area of the yard.
Once we handed over Elixir to the experts Jenny went off to the Cleopatra Marina office to talk with the girls there in an endeavour to discover where we should travel to, as we might just as well make it an enjoyable week. Jenny and I had been on the Preveza to Athens road several times before so we had no desire to repeat that ghastly trip. On advice we drove north for a couple of hours into the mountains for a first stop in Ioannina instead.



Ioannina is a bustling University City built beside a lake with the obligatory large middle ages castle with imposing defensive walls. We found a bright new hotel in which to stay at 65 Euro for the night including breakfast. As a matter of interest it appears sort of standard to get breakfast included. Such breakfasts include, juices, tea or coffee, a variety of fruit & cereals, toast, breads, jam & honey, eggs, ham and bacon, cake, yoghurt and of course olives, so much for losing a bit of weight, lunch was never more than a snack after such a good kickoff.
16/03/16 Next morning there was little sign of the rain that we had had since our arrival in Greece. So now with the sun shining we hit the road again but this time on the E90 a very fancy sort of motorway. None of your NZ type of motorway this was an exceptional expressway of 4 lanes smooth surface long tunnels and high bridges, in fact I have never found driving so easy, clicking off the ks like you wouldn't believe. There was every 40ks or so a toll gate with tolls ranging between 2 & 3 euros which seemed very reasonable to us. Our little Fiat was struggling to keep up with the bigger more powerful cars on the road, but we were in no hurry so 110 was fast enough for us.



We dove through many tunnels and out into fresh snow covered scenery that was looking like a Christmas card with snow dripping off the pine trees. After an hour or so of easy motoring we pealed off on a side road now heading to Meteora. The next hour was on a narrow winding steep road where the standard practice for local drivers upon catching up to two old fogies in a punto was to immediately pass, at high speed even if it was on double no passing lines around corners, with very steep drop offs. We did get some understanding as to why most of the bends have little shrines built like chapels all so close together all along the sides, such shrines however stand as no deterrent to the brazen. One was left wondering what the hurry was, maybe they were trying to escape a tidal wave, or get home before their wives noticed that they were missing!



We had been assured that Meteora was an astounding Heritage National Park and as it came into view at about 3pm we knew that we were not going to be disappointed. Huge imposing pinnacles of rock upon which many monasteries were built and the remnants of a bygone age. Clearly if you managed to score one of these pinnacles for your little self and did not fall to your death climbing up then you would be quite safe from invaders and then, I suppose, able to live with the perception that you were oh so much closer to God than the mere plebs in the valleys. The powers that be were not at all reticent in dolling out a few sainthoods in these parts. Just the sort of place were son Chris would thrive..hmmm... maybe just for the climbing though!
Our first priority was to find a hotel which job was made a lot easier as we seemed to be the only tourists in town. Booked into a very comfortable hotel right up by the pinnacles with décor of the type reminiscent of that of the Chateau in NZ. The people, service and comfort left nothing to be desired and all this for just 60 euro a night. We dropped off our bags and left for a bit of a bo peep at the lifestyles of the pinnacle dwellers and drive around the precipitous roads to get the best views. As there were three large tavernas close to our hotel which circumstance posed a bit of a problem for us as they all needed customers and there were only the two of us. We ate well that night and very comfortably in front of a roaring fire accompanied by the taverna owner, the waiter and the cook, all of us keeping very warm indeed and the two New Zealanders enjoyed the experience immensely.
17/03/16 Woke to another beautiful chilly day and dragged Jenny down to the dining hall for another fabulous Greek breakfast where at Jenny announced her desire to visit a Nunnery and an Abby that we had seen the night before.







Like playing the game of "Where's Wally"



Jenny trying to decide if becoming a nun is the look she is seeking. I thinkist not!
I would point out that Jenny was obliged to wear this supplied skirt over the top of her trousers and jacket. I think she can count herself lucky that I am refraining from giving full licence to my imagination in writing this blog!



Wild horses could not have dragged me into those places having seen enough of such buildings of torture when I was sent to primary school at a convent and spent time at a Jesuit boarding school in Ireland. I was content to view the scenery and the comings and goings from outside the premises while SWIMBO (she who must be obeyed) did the donning of the mandatory supplied skirt thing and also covered her head with a scarf. Notwithstanding that I did not go into these places I was left with a feeling of awe as to the deprived lifestyle that must have been endured by the Monks over the ages that made this place their life and while I admire their fervour and commitment I cannot help but be moved by the apparent utter futility of it all. It was explained to Jenny that the Monks and Nuns were all busy working so it was left to local people employed by them to collect the 3 euro entry fee and ensure the continuance of the fashionable dress code. We enjoyed Meteora and its people so much that we rebooked for an extra night.


Thessaloniki on a calm day.

18/03/16 Thessaloniki beckoned and we hit the road. It was going to prove to be the longest drive yet but was most enjoyable due to the rapidly changing scenery and the fact that after an hour we were back on the E90 and all in brilliant sunshine with scenery so majestic and historical that we thanked our lucky stars that we were living to experience. What toilets were provided on the E90 were far and few between and were invariably locked (must be part of the austerity program) which posed a bit of a problem for Jenny while I did not hesitate to do the man thing and admire the back of the odd tree along the way. The best laid plans of mice and men I am sure did not include arriving in the second largest city in Greece, not only unfamiliar with driving on the right hand side of the road but in the middle of a riot! My GPS did not explain to me that if you panic and want to get away from the tear gas and crowds of protesters that most of the streets are 1 way. Not only one way but narrow, so narrow in fact that I had to fold in the side mirrors to get down them! In the middle of all this Jenny decided that she really needed a comfort stop. There was nowhere to park as every available space was taken and then there were the double parkers. I explained to her that holding on was better for her than getting out in a riot and I had to keep on driving. It was not until she saw the Riot Police carrying semi-automatics and tear gas grenades that she agreed with me that discretion was the better part of valour, bursting bladders accepted, and a hasty retreat must be achieved, at all costs!
So much for Thessaloniki we were out of there heading south towards Athens when after about 10 minutes I spotted an off ramp to a service station, needless to say I took it. Jenny by this time had savaged me something terrible and with water bursting from her eyes shot past the service station attendant to find the loo. It took a quarter of an hours driving to find our way back to the motorway and head south again. This whole getting away from Thessaloniki adventure was totally unexpected and we did not know where now to go for the night and had grown quite tired and desperate for a decent stop. We consulted our road map and decided to keep near the sea heading south until we could spot a place to stay, well anyplace to stay would do.
As luck would have it we came across a magnificent castle at Platamonas with a most beautiful seaside village filled with wonderful hotels.


Platamonas

We found one right on the very waters edge where we obtained another lovely room for the night. This hotel also provided a restaurant for evening meals so we once again made friends with each other over a very lovely bottle of local dry white. After all things had got a bit strained during the day! Divorce was not contemplated but I think I saw murder in Jenny's eyes just maybe once or twice.
19/03/16 As we were the only ones at breakfast we had a hot breakfast cooked especially for us where we sat in a waterfront dining hall and watched local fishermen pulling in their nets close by. Then as we left the hotel the owner bought me a large cup of coffee to have in the car. What a lovely way to end a great overnight stay. I should mention that during breakfast we needed to decide were we were going to go. Going right to Athens was, as mentioned, not an option. We could drive a further 3 hours south from Platamonas to Lamia and then head across country but the road that way looked arduous and I was not in the mood for arduous and nor, I was informed, was SWIMBO. However, an hour back along the way we had come yesterday and we could once again get on the E90 but heading west this time.


Kastoria

So we made our way to Kastoria for lunch and then on to Psarades for the night.



Psarades is located right on the border with Albania and Macedonia.


The stunning view from our hotel window.

There is only the one road in and out of there so we knew when we went there that we were going to have to retrace our steps for a couple of hours to get back out again. Yachties think nothing of turning back along the same route for an hour or two from time to time so we took it in our stride in our new desire to see this place. Besides we were now really enjoying our adventure and could think of nowhere better to go.


The beast employed to get us right across the top of Greece! Oh yes and the Fiat Punto is ok too for a tiny wee thing.






22/03/16
Here we are back with Elixir. She has been sandblasted to get rid of all of the old antifouling and is now ready to be sealed, undercoated and antifouled again before we get dropped back in the water. This process may take a couple of weeks (weather dependent) to complete but we can now live on board and carry out other preparation work. We loose the rental car tomorrow so life will become a bit mundane. Bring on the big splash!

More news will be posted as it comes to hand.

Ted