Crew: Bob & Pam Prokop and Costas & Nancy Douzinas
After having spent a layover in Athens to arrange the new Nokia GSM mobile phone and card phone (for the laptop) we flew to Preveza. To my shock Athena Telecom was unable to deliver after months of long distance calls discussing our needs.
Our new boat came full of everything you could imagine and much more. The sellers took what they could carry back to Virginia. Since they circumvented shorthanded, we had inherited a complete ship’s chandlery, everyday living items, and we embarked upon a discovery, adventure, learning, organizing, weeding and familiarizing experience.
Top sides spring cleaning meant, among other things, washing off red dust that permeated everything. We were told it came from storms that brought it all the way from the Sahara Desert. We mistakenly decided to leave the mainsail zipped up in the cover over the Winter. We not only discovered red dust, but two birds’ nests.
After an exhausting day, we cleaned up and went to our favorite Taverna in Preveza. Taverna dining became a daily high point throughout the summer. The owner remembered us from last year when we bought the boat and treated us to baklava for dessert. The calories, relaxation and social time were much needed before falling into bed.
On May 8 Prokops and Douzinases arrived. Costas and Mike did battle with customs, Coast Guard and the Greek IRS for two days. Delayed, we took off for Lefkada to overnight, then on to Nidri to pick up the new Bimini. The next day we lunched in Fiskardho, a lovely little spot and anchored in a tiny cove on the island of Ithaca, that just fit our boat, alone. Since we were behind schedule, the next day we took advantage of 20-knot wind that blew us all the way to Itea. The next day we took a cab to Delphi, a moving experience. For centuries people, by the thousands, pilgrimaged to the see the Oracle in this very high place. Later we made it through the Corinth Canal to discover a fish taverna on the other side. We finally reached our destination, Poros, where Costas was born. He introduced us, not only to Greece for the past week, but to his home town, its people and his ongoing newly-built home. His dream come true. It was majestically tucked into the hillside overlooking the Mediterrenean and the entrance to the harbor of Poros. We spent the next few days enjoying all of its glory plus a quick high-speed ferry side trip to Hydra. This is one of the few places left where there were no cars or motorbikes, only donkeys for transportation. Costas allowed us to store five large bags of currently unnecessary "stuff," in his basement, making more room for our guests.
