Even by plane, it's a very long journey from Nova Scotia to the eastern Med. Consequently, we don't get many visitors from home. Our kids haven't even been onboard Aisling in over three years. So when we heard that our friends Donald and Victoria were travelling to Greece with their son Fraser and his girlfriend Elektra, we immediately mounted a campaign to have them meet us. Right up to the last minute, we weren't sure whether their travel plans would align with our sailing schedule, so it was pretty exciting when they emailed to say they were on the way to Lefkada!

"Isn't this a hoot?" said Victoria, when we met them on the dock in Nidri. I knew exactly what she meant. There's something incomparable about a rendezvous with friends in a foreign location, and we were in high spirits as we sat down to lunch in a waterfront restaurant. Since Elektra is Greek-Canadian, we weren't surprised to hear her converse with the waiter in fluent Greek, but it was a bigger surprise to hear Fraser chime in...what a luxury to have translators with us! We lingered at the table until mid-afternoon, then piled into Elektra's car and drove to Geni in search of a hotel, leaving Rick behind to meet Alex, who was coming to install our new stereo.

Rick and I had already had done some preliminary sleuthing and had short-listed two hotels on the Geni road. The Hotel Ilios won the day, and with the tourist season drawing to a close, two very nice double rooms were available for only 40 euros each/night. After getting the bags stowed, Fraser and Elektra drove off to the beach while Donald and Victoria and I walked down the road to Tranquil Bay, where Aisling was anchored. Our plan was to play a few hands of bridge in the cockpit until it was time to go to dinner.



Of course, things never go quite as planned. After yelling ourselves hoarse trying to get Rick's attention, he finally appeared, looking rather sheepish. "The boat is in a bit of a mess" he said. The task of installing the stereo had not gone quite as smoothly as he had anticipated, and we arrived onboard to find that the boat, which we had cleaned and tidied to an unusually high standard in preparation for Victoria and Donald's arrival, was now in complete disarray. The floorboards were up, the doors of the salon cabinets were thrown open, the content of the cabinets were strewn across the table and the new stereo was blasting out techno-rock music (but only on one speaker). Fortunately, the view from the afterdeck was a nice as ever, and we sat sipping cold white wine in the cockpit as we waited for Alex to find the corroded wire that was the source of the problem. Within half an hour everything was back to normal and we were able to enjoy some Van Morrison tunes as we played a rubber of bridge. (Never mind who won.)

In our search for hotels, we'd noticed that the restaurant at the Seaside hotel, just down the road from the Ilios, had been named the best restaurant in Lefkada by the Times. It seemed like a good choice for dinner, and with Ni and Krissy joining us we had a merry group of eight to celebrate Ni's birthday. The food may not have quite lived up to the "best restaurant" standard, but personally I am still dreaming of the warm feta cheese wrapped in filo, topped with sesame seeds and honey.

With not everyone feeling confident about their sea legs, we decided that Aristotle Onassis' private island, Scorpios, would be an ideal destination for a day-sail. Obviously we didn't expect to be invited in for a drink (setting foot beyond the high-water mark on the beach is not permitted) but it's a lovely place to anchor and swim. So the next day, we motored out and "circumnavigated" the island, taking note of the small beach house that was a favourite hideout of Jackie O's. Her wedding to Onassis took place here, presumably in the small chapel on the island that is now the final resting place of Aristotle and both of his children. The staff put fresh flowers on the tombs every day, but there is no one there to see them- a sad end to what was meant to be a dynasty. If Onasssis bought the island of Scorpios to find solitude, he certainly has it now. The only surviving Onassis is Athina, the daughter of Christina, who apparently never visits the island. Rumours abound that Athina plans to sell the island, which is said to be worth $200 million. The Emir of Qatar is high on the list of potential buyers (along with Ralph Lauren and Bill Gates) and perhaps this explains the Emir's recent visit to the area. In case you were wondering, here's what a billionaire's view looks like:



As we anchored the boat, there was no one else in sight, but within 15 minutes our peace and quiet was shattered by the arrival of a day-tripper boat. Another arrived a few minutes later. Music blasted from their loudspeakers and tourists streamed onto the beach. They weren't making enough noise to wake the dead though, because Ari did not appear.



Oh well. It was still a perfect day, in water so clear that we could stand on the deck and watch the fish swimming around the boat. Here are Victoria and Elektra, swimming with the fishes!





As we ate lunch, we waved away the wasps that seem endemic in this part of the Ionian, and pieced together the few bits of gossip that we remembered about the Onassis story. Was Jackie Kennedy really paid a large sum of money to marry him? Or did she see the marriage as an avenue to ensure the privacy and safety of her children? What about Maria Callas? My curiosity was piqued by our conversation, and later I was surprised to read that Onassis was born in Smyrna to a wealthy family that became refugees after the great fire, when Smyrna was taken by Turkey and renamed as Izimir. It's a riches to rags to riches story, but without a happy ending.

After lunch, we finally ventured to the beach. I'm saying "Jackie Kennedy stood here"! I wonder if Maria Callas did too? (Doesn't this photo look like it was taken by a paparazzo?)



On the way back to Tranquil Bay, we even managed to get the jib out for a while. There wasn't much wind, but at least we could really claim to have gone for a day-sail!



The next day, the Donald, Victoria, Fraser and Elektra went off to explore Lefkada, but we rejoined them in the evening for dinner at Demetrius' taverna.



Even after dark, we could see fish swimming in the water beside our dockside table.



There was no sign of the little girl who played at taking our order when we ate there two years ago, but her older sister was already working as a waitress. (The following week, Demetrius' dock became the repository for items salvaged after the storm and we finally saw the younger girl, now a sturdy five year old.)

Our time together was too short. The next day, they headed off to tour the Peloponnese. We wished we could go with them to see Olympia, but it was time for us to prepare for our passage to Sicily.

In spite of a taxi, bus and metro strike, Donald and Victoria managed to catch their flight out of Athens to Paris, taking off just minutes before the air traffic controller strike began! Travelling in Greece these days may require an "expect the unexpected" approach - but I think we all agree that it is worth the effort!