We've spent the past 48 hours on Spetses and are now making our way towards the small island of Agkistri where we will spend the night at anchor before continuing on to Athens in the morning.

Of all the places we've visited so far, Spetses is the place I'd most like to return to someday. The island is a delightful place and, like the neighboring island of Hydra, doesn't allow automobiles other than taxis. So bicycles and scooters are the primary means of transportation here until the evenings when horse drawn carriages prevail. I rented a scooter yesterday and there are fabulous beaches in over a dozen of the bays scattered around the 23km island perimeter. Large portions of the island are also covered with pine trees that were planted over 100 years ago in an effort to attract wealthy hunters (and their families) from Athens. So the overall feel of the place is a bit like what you would get if you combined parts of the Italian Rivera, Key West and Mackinac Island. Not a bad combination...

Spetses also has the distinction of being the first island (along with Hydra) to revolt against the Turks during the Greek War of Independence in 1821. Its fleet of merchant ships was converted into warships, playing an important supporting role in the eventual successful outcome. The local heroine, Bouboulina, depleted her considerable fortune in the effort and personally led the Spetsiot naval fleet into battle. She is a George Washington figure to the Greeks and was posthumously awarded the rank of Admiral by the Russian Imperial Navy. Portions of her former home have been converted into a museum and it is well worth a visit for anyone who happens to be visiting the island.

If all goes according to plan, we should be in Athens within 48 hours...