Vonista

14 August

After the strong winds blew over we decided to head for Vonista. This quaint little town lies in the Gulf of Amvrakia which is renowned for its population of resident bottlenose dolphins. In fact the tour boat operators guarantee 100% that their clients will see a dolphin.

It was also an opportunity for the seas in the Ionion to settle after the winds and our guests to get their sea legs in relatively calm waters.

Above the town is a large Venetian fort which offers great views over the gulf. Michael, an avid photographer would acquire some great images here for sure.

After we arrived and tied up to the small quay and went for our obligatory swim whilst Mike went to check out the fort. Unbeknownst to us it was closed. We also didn't see any dolphins either. Lucky we don't make living out of taking tours. Anyway Mike took some amazing photos of Vonista and surrounds.

On the quays you meet an amazing array of individuals. There are many older guys that live aboard their yachts by themselves, kind of sea gypsies if you will. They are generally fairly opinionated with regard to the state of the world, but are very happy with their almost bohemian existence.

Their yachts are generally chronologically challenged with an amazing array of retrofitted equipment, with solar garden lights affixed to the shrouds being the most popular. This one guy made a hammock that was shaped like a huge nappy. He hauled himself about 2m off the deck, sat in it for about an hour puffing on a dart. (Cigarette). Maree and Sean were with us at the time. He actually looked like an alien hatching out of an egg at a distance....

Anyway, this old German guy, obviously a sea gypsy told us that water on the quay was only available for one hour per day. He told us that the someone in authority decided to restrict water due to the roaming gypsies that frequented the area. Well he was really annoyed at this. Water is for everyone and not just for a select few, and he was going to put it right. He actually went to the municipal offices to challenge this decision.

It bought me to thinking a similar situation that had happened in Fiji many years ago. We were over on Plantation island with our family windsurfing and surfing. There is a famous surf break nearby called Cloudbreak. Surfers stay on the island of Tavarua and get to surf it for, at the time $1000 USD per day. On Saturdays it was crossover day and the general public could surf it for free, but there was usually a fair crowd. Crossover day was the guest changeover day on Tavarua. Josh and I surfed it on the cross over, and it was a truly amazing wave. Anyhow, with much credit to the then Fijian government, they changed the rules. Their view was that the ocean is for everyone and thus lifted all restrictions. All surfers could now surf these places at any time....amazing forethought. So, the "old mate" was in some respect cognisant of this social inequity. By the way he was a dead ringer for Lloyd Bridges, you know the SCUBA diver on the old sealed Sea Hunt on TV in the 70's.

That night we wandered into town and had a great meal at one of the local Tavernas. We love Greek food. The Greek Water Pilot states that if you are a food connoisseur then Greece is not for you. The food however is simple, healthy and wholesome. The generally grill everything and it extremely tasty. Grilled octopus, squid, fish soup and moussaka are on top of the list.