Freya & Us

It was a long journey back to Leros and Freya. We flew from Bristol to Athens, spent the night in a very nice hotel in the airport and then got an early flight on a 'baby' plane to Leros landing on the runway right next to the boat yard so that we could wave to Freya as we landed!

We had booked a lift in for the next morning and so had a busy day doing all the things we need to do to get Freya sea worthy after a winter on the hard. It was a long and exhausting day made worse by finding mouldy carpets in our cabin and a mouldy bathroom. She was sitting at an odd angle in the cradle which we assume allowed rain, which they had a lot of in Leros this winter, to find its way in but we have no idea where! We found water collecting in the headlining in the bathroom which needed to be squeezed out sending black gungey water squirting everywhere! Anyway, added to our long list of tasks was drying out and scrubbing carpets!

At 8.00 in the morning the boat lift duly arrived and we were launched without problems and we were on our way down the coast to Lakki. The main was raised only to find the sail bag had been home to a bird during the winter and bird poo dropped out covering us and Freya! No damage was done and so after sluicing the boat with buckets of water we motor sailed to Lakki marina for a few days to complete our recommissioning including buying and fitting a new carpet to replace the damp stained one in our cabin. Our friends Kevin and Dee on Kestral are across the bay in Leros marina and so we've spent time with them in between ticking things off our list. We really like Lakki - it's in a beautiful setting, there are enough shops to find what we need, Poppy's bar is always friendly and we're comparing all the gyros cafes.

Monday was a bank holiday here - how unusual! This one celebrates Greek Independence Day and the band had been practicing near the marina all week. There was to be a procession in Agia Marina and so we got a taxi with Kevin and Dee to the pretty port of Agia Marina. All of the local dignitaries in uniform and the priest were there and a very professional brass band accompanied the marchers which included the army, scouts, local schools and clubs. It was very impressive for such a small island and most of the island's residents must have lined the sea front to watch. After a little walk around the harbour in the howling wind we had a gyros for lunch (indoors) before heading back to hide from the wind.

The wind abated for a couple of days, but we know it wasn't for long and so we decided to stay put. Dee suggested a walk to Pendeli which is another pretty harbour near the island capital. We tried to avoid the main road and walked into the hills along lanes lined with beautiful spring flowers. It was lovely but we found ourselves back on the main road after a few kilometres! We then walked down a steep road to the beautiful turquoise sea but couldn't find a way along the coast and so had to climb back up and found ourselves on the main road again! Finally, we walked down steep, narrow steps into Pendeli where we had lunch on the beach in the sunshine.

Paul and I had taken the dinghy over to Leros marina to meet Dee and Kevin as there is a petrol station near by and we thought that was the easiest way to fill our fuel cans and change a rusty gas bottle. We tied the dinghy onto a small, wobbly jetty and walked over the beach and across the road with our cans - the strange things we find ourselves doing! We did feel a bit overloaded on our trip back across the bay.

The winds are due to pick up again this evening and stay with us for a few days. Maybe after that we'll be on our way. We know the Meltemi blows here in the summer but we weren't expecting it in March!