Ermoupolis still!
We had 10 days in Ermoupolis, waiting for the Meltemi to clear . For several days it was gusting over 30knots & when you looked out to sea it was white spray as far as the eye could see. However, the marina was free, there was a free bus service into town and the company was excellent.
 
Our friends on Caladh arrived, sorted the boat & went into town. Meanwhile a 45ft charter boat, skippered by a German doctor, came in, tried a ludicrous manoeuvre in a narrow space, got caught by a force 8 gust & wiped out Caladh's stanchions down one side along with a piece of the capping. He also caught a wee boat behind & did his stanchions too.
 
Luckily Peter, from the boat beside us, knew who to contact in the boat yard & within 3-4 days Caladh was seaworthy again.
 
Mykonos
Rather than sail to Mykonos we decided to use a windy day & get the ferry. On board it seemed full of excited gay Italians trying to appear both macho and cool but were ever so slightly schoolgirly-excited. The net effect was extraordinary and made for an enjoyable hour or two of people watching to pass the time.
 
We were very glad we took the ferry (which was very comfortable) . It came in next to the marina (a euphemism for a building site). It was dusty, overcrowded and a mile from the town along a seriously dodgy (even by Greek standards) road. Very unnerving, even for Rob who was still getting over the gay Italians! He later bought a pinkish Mikonos Lifeguard t-shirt to prove that he didn't find his sexuality challenged in the slightest- sad isn't it!
 
Mykonos is a very pretty, touristy town, &, on our visit, the windiest place on earth!! It used to be the gay holiday capital of Europe, & still has a large gay clientele who mix with the Yanks, Japanese and the seriously rich and beautiful people. The shops are all designer clothes, jewellery & art galleries. It is an island that is perfectly preserved and beautiful but has absolutely no character or soul whatsoever.
 
The streets are very narrow with immaculate white & blue buildings. On shore there are 4 old windmills with thatched roofs. You could see why they used windmills as you needed to put rocks on your feet to hold the camera still!
 
On Monday 6th August we decided to leave in company with Caladh & head for an anchorage on the South of Mykonos before doing the 62mls to the Dodecanese island of Patmos . We just got outside the harbour into the swell & the engine started to stutter. Oh God, rocks all around!
 
We got Caladh on the VHF & they said they would hang around & keep watch while Rob changed the fuel filter. It only took him about 10mins & all was fine again.
We only had a short time sailing as the wind was on the nose most of the way.
As we turned into the bay off Ormos ay Anna on the South of Mikonos, a big black cloud overhead decided to drizzle some wet stuff at us for a few minutes!
 
By the time we were anchored the sun came out & it was a very pleasant afternoon apart from the jet skis using the anchored boats as a slalom course. The water was beautiful & clear. Rob went for a snorkel.
 
Patmos
After a swelly night on anchor we got up & left about 5.45am for the 60 mile journey to Skala Patmos on the island of Patmos. We had a beautiful sunrise & water like a mirror most of the journey.
 
Mostly it was a long hack under engine but, as we came round the side of Patmos island the wind got up & we had a good , fast sail round to Skala bay where of course the wind got up to 13 knots on the nose & we had not had more than 3 knots all day!!
 
As we turned into the harbour we saw 5 cruise liners anchored several Gulets (not baby gulls but large wooden Turkish sailing boats) milling around looking for space . Caladh was just Med mooring on the last available mooring. We had just resigned ourselves to anchoring when Richard on Caladh called us over & we hung off them & the corner of the Quay, in what proved to be a nice quiet spot - thank you Richard and June!
 
The water tanker appeared a few minutes later so we both filled the tanks & every available container for 5euros.
 
After 11hrs sailing we decided to eat out. We found an excellent restaurant about 100yds from the boat overlooking the harbour, so we passed a merry time watching the cruise liners leaving & huge motor boats like Jaws milling round vying for spaces.
 
The next morning Rob decided to replace the water footpump which was leaking.
5 hours later the task was done! A brittle piece of hose had snapped where it could only be reached & replaced with one finger (two actually, but maths was never Gina's strong point).He deserved a medal in that heat (truly!).
 
I went down town to explore & keep out of the way (I can't stand to see a man cry!). Skala is a very pretty town overlooked by an 11th Century monastery within fortress walls .
 
It has everything a yachtie needs including an excellent laundry, chandlery, bakers
& a supermarket that delivers to boats free. I went in & bought 18 litre bottles of water & coke plus 2 bags of groceries. The girl went & fetched her scooter piled it all on & then said hop on the back!! My first ride on a scooter!!
 
We amused ourselves each evening, while supping an ice cold beer on deck, watching the huge gas guzzlers vying for mooring space. There was obviously a scam going on with the small fishing boats. Mid morning when most boats had left harbour they would come in & moor alongside the quay taking up 3-4 boat spaces. Then early evening, when the harbour was packed, these huge, multi million pound motor boats would appear & hover for a few minutes while the fishing boats departed the space and the super rich took over. We wondered how many euros changed hands before this happened!!
 
Our last day in Patmos we headed for the monastery. There is an old cobbled roadway which leads all the way to the top, & then you are in the narrow streets surrounding the walls . It was apparently fortified to keep the pirates & Turks out.
 
The monastery is a warren of narrow corridors, stairs, archways& courtyards.
The main courtyard is beautiful with frescoes & cobbles. The views over the town & bay are superb.
 
Leros, Lakki, Diesel Bugs and Fascist Chic.
The next morning we said au revoir to Caladh & headed out of the harbour.
We were just in the entrance & "Oh no not again"(that is a printable, brief summary of what Rob said). The engine stuttered & slowed.
 
As usual there were big lumpy, rocky things in the way. However, this time there was a little wind so we put the foresail up & I headed out to sea while Rob stuck his head in the engine compartment yet again! He is getting quick at changing filters and his language is getting worse - you can tell he was brought up in Essex!!
 
We had intended going to an anchorage off Lipso but sensibly decided to head for Lakki on Leros. It has a marina & boatyard. When we arrived we were met by a very helpful marinero who helped with the laid lines . When Rob asked about getting new filters he said "give me the number & type & I'll phone". An hour later we had 2 filters delivered for 13euros!
 
The marina costs 15euros a night & has water, electric, power showers, laundry &
wifi. I am taking up residence in the showers!!
 
When Rob checked the engine he found that it had caught the diesel bug - a bacteria that infects diesel tanks and clogs filters. He has temporarily given it a double dose of bacteriacide until we can empty and clean the tank in Kos.
 
The town of Lakki on the island of Leros was taken over by the Italians as a naval base in the 1930s. They built the town up with their gorgeous rationalist, art deco, fascist chic buildings & wide boulevards which seem a bit incongruous now with a much smaller population. One almost expects to see Benito Mussolini strutting through the town. However, as this is probably the only dual carriageway South of the mainland the Boy Racers who use the Boulevards on a nightly basis would have wiped him out years ago .
 
Leros is also famous (or perhaps infamous) for its lunatic asylums. They are the largest employers on the island and were renowned for their appalling treatment of the inmates. Nowadays, as a result of EU intervention, there is a much more humane regime.
 
Leros has its own springs (water, not bed) so as a result is a lot greener than most of the other islands with a large amount of eucalyptus & palm trees planted by the Italians. This also means hordes of neo fascist mosquitoes appear from time to time jackbooting all over one's exposed bits and bayoneting anything tender.
 
We are seriously considering keeping the boat here for the winter as the rates are really cheap (1400euros for a year's contract - about the same as 3 months in Lagos), they have a good, safe boatyard, there is a small airport & ferries to Athens.
 
We shall have a couple more days here (its Bank Holiday the next 2 days) & then make our way down to Kos to fly home & then be with Will & Angela for some of their holiday on the island.