Well, here we are again, back at the wonderful Samos Marina on the Island of Samos wallowing in the comparative luxury of marina life after 3 months abstinence.

 Kardamila
When we last wrote we had just arrived at the fishing town/village of Kardamila on the north end of Khios . On getting moored up on the quay we found that they gave free water and electricity. We were also later to discover that this one horse town also had a free internet café (admittedly with only one computer).
 
The town itself is a strange mix of modern apartments and houses, old Ottoman and Italian style villas, hotels ranging from the tourist class (like a 1970s Spanish package hotel built by MFI with a 5 year lifespan) to the luxurious, dotted in amongst all this are a number of millionaires pads with there own private docks.
 
On our 2nd evening we were just popping out for a beer when we saw a large charter boat approaching the quay - it was full of male Germans - generally a formula for disaster! Survival instinct kicked in and we helped them moor up while the strong winds attempted to blow them from the quay. There were 5 of them on board, probably all over 60, large and strong, yet it still took us half an hour to pull them alongside. They were a jolly bunch of guys, clearly enjoying themselves. As we struggled they were constantly thanking us and there were many slaps on the back in congratulation when the boat finally came alongside . The skipper commented watching Gina take charge of the stern of the boat "Zat is a very strong voman ja ?".
 
Later that evening, just before dinner, Gina managed to break the dental crown at the front of her mouth. We discovered that it had actually come out whole and, after carefully putting it in a small box we now had to find a dentist.
 
Khios Marina
The weather for the next week was decidedly iffy with strong north easterly winds setting in the following morning - Friday. We therefore departed for Khios marina the next morning and afte,r 3 hours of strengthening winds up our tail, we arrived in the nautical scrapyard that is Khios marina.
 
When we last dropped in there were 3 visiting boats. This time we counted 17. We managed to get a secure berth at the far end of the marina . The only drawback being the wind blowing over the marina blew sand and dust over the boat. To say that the marina was dusty is like saying that the Sahara desert is warm. A fine sandy dust coated the boat all the time. The solar panels needed frequent washing .
 
Sadly, Khios marina, whilst free of charge, is filled with rusting ferries, fishing boats etc and has no water supplies so we had to get water from a garden hose, hauling our little trolley and two 5 gallon containers about 400 metres from the marina across tracks that would have made a great 4 wheel drive off road training course. It is certainly quite a good way to get fit.
 
That was the down side. The up side was that we were again amongst a community of liveaboards and even met up with some old friends who we had seen in our travels up north. Amongst others was Sean (previously misnamed John in this blog) and his wife Brenda. You may recall that Sean, a Norwegian of Irish and Liverpudlian upbringing, had use of only one arm as a result of polio in his youth. This didn't stop him becoming a classy mountaineer and representing his country at international sailing events. Brenda was suffering badly from a damaged knee and was booked to fly home shortly leaving Sean to sail the boat, literally single-handedly, back to Turgutreis in Turkey . Bear in mind that he is 75 years old. The boat is a 45ft ex racing machine with running backstays and other complex kit. Rob said that he wouldn't fancy sailing this boat with two of us on board but Sean said "No problem, I have had to do it often enough before". Us mere mortals can only look on in awesome respect at such a man.
 
On Saturday we found a dentist and Gina can now smile again. The strong winds continued and gave us a constant battle with the sand and dust being blown into the boat. However, one of the great advantages f being among other liveaboards is that we were able to swap books with other boats. We each get through about a book each day so were in desperate need of new reading material. The social side of a liveaboard community was also refreshing after 3 months in the remoter parts of the Aegean. Nonetheless we decided that as soon as the winds abated we would leg it, double quick, to the nearest marina and a bit of luxury. 

Cesme - Briefly 
To while away a day we decided to take the ferry to re-visit the Turkish town of Cesme to do some Christmas shopping - my,my aren't we well organised? We had an enjoyable day in this pleasant town . It was quite a contrast to our visit to Ayvalik. Even though the season was drawing to a close we still found the shopkeepers and restaurant staff very friendly and helpful.
 
One other reason for going there was to buy some cheap Kelims (Turkish rugs) for home. We have already bought quite a few beautiful hand made ones but needed some of the machine made variety which normally retail for about £5.00. We went to see a guy we had bought some pottery from on our last visit. He also sold rugs and was very pleased to see us. Unfortunately he speaks very little English. Rob, looking at his rugs, asked the price of one or two and was told the history of them, how they were hand made by the women of a mountain village etc, etc. He then quoted an eye wateringly painful price. Rob, at that moment spotted a cheap manufactured rug covering a hole in the wall and asked the price of that. The man tore it from the wall and kicked it around the floor shouting "I not sell this manufactured shit. It is an insult"! Rob, ever the diplomat, said "Quite right, quite right" and we then made as dignified an exit as we could!!

Khios Again 
While we were on Khios it suffered a number of hill fires . To put them out they used a helicopter wit a large bucket hung on a string below it. The pilot brought the chopper over the marina and, just on the other side of the wall lowered the bucket into the water, filled it and shot back into the hills to quell the inferno. This takes quite some skill, especially when the wind was blowing at over 30 knots. Whilst it certainly made an interesting diversion for a few yotties one could not help feeling sorry for the poor souls whose land was being decimated. However, sometimes these fires have more sinister reasons for starting. We are told that property developers often set fire to fertile hill areas with ancient olive groves or woodland in order to make them available for building. The old olive groves and woodland are apparently protected from development but, once they have been burned down then the planners have been known to give consent for building.
 
Samos Again - Vathi and Strange Smells
Finally, after a week in Khios we got a weather window on Friday and headed for Vathi on Samos . The 55 mile sail (well, motor really, we only got enough wind for about 20 minutes actual sailing) took 10 hours and was really quite boring until we got close enough to the island to enjoy the beauty of it's green yet mountainous North coast.
 
You may recall that last time we visited Vathi the local council decided to clean the storm drains and spoil our lunch. This time the same smell still lingered over the harbour, albeit in diluted form. We were the only yacht in the vast harbour which is surprising because Vathi is a pleasant place to linger for a few hours. It has good shops and restaurants, an excellent museum, free water and electricity, no mooring charges and superb views from the harbour. The old town with its ancient, narrow winding alleyways wending their way up the hill behind the port, is one of the nicest , shadiest spots to enjoy a glass of ouzo out of the sun.

Samos and Sinful Showers 
On Saturday we headed for our favourite marina at Pithagorion on the South coast of Samos . As we got closer we realised that we had now left the remote Northern Aegean and were back in among the yottie playground of the Samos Sea and the Dodecanese. Within half an hour of arriving on the South coast we saw more yachts at sea than we had seen in all our journeys in the North put together.
 
We arrived back at Samos Marina where were greeted by the marineros, shown to our mooring and they were on hand to assist us tie up. That evening, after a quiet beer in town we had the luxury of unlimited water from the hot showers after months of having to use limited supplies of water from our solar showers on the boat. The non- yottie cannot understand the sheer, almost sexual, pleasure of standing under a hot shower and just wasting water, it feels really sinful and at the same time one has the physical pleasure of the hot water drumming away at ones flesh - bloody orgasmic!
 
While we have been here we decided to do what Samos is famous for. We went hill walking. The day was windy, clear and a wee bit cooler (in the low 20s) which. The views from the tops were breathtaking with the rugged Western mountains towering over the large fertile valley that sits behind Pithagorion.
 
Following the path down from the hills we chanced upon an attractive monastery sitting among it's own copse of fir trees. It made an attractive finale to a great days walking. Even better though was the ability to stand under a hot shower for absolutely ages and wash out the aches and pains from this unaccustomed exercise.