Crew: Sadik & Frederique Gokturk, Al & Alice Wofford
July 11. Sadik met Frederique at the Rhodos airport. Sheila prepared a light late evening meal. Mike was asleep. The view from the marina is beautiful.
July 13. Tour town. Dinner at Xadzikeli next to the ruins of a gothic church destroyed by the Franks.
July 14. Stop at Nissiros. Dinner at one of Mike & Sheila's favorite: Astradeni restaurant. We visited the castle, which is a pile of superb ruins, now under restoration.
July 17. For two days we have been pinned down by strong wind in Astypalea anchored in Livadia. Dinner on the boat. Sheila cooked some fishes, which were a gift from a local fisherman the prior evening. There was a magnificent view of the Milky Way, which reminded me of Charles Worth's poem:..."and I leave the milky way to the children to dream of..." Sadik and I went to Analypsis at the other end of Astypalea.
July 18. Departed at 600a to take advantage of the night time decline in wind speed. We managed to reach Amorgos for the night and had a delicious dinner under the stars.
July 19. High wind all the way to Naxos. Sheila and Sadik's favorite!
July 20. Sadik and I went to the beach for the day. Sadik showed us the evening. Starting with dinner at Moustache, then Yanni's for bouzouki & guitar music and the last ouzo. Returning to the boat at 0200 hours.
July 21. Alice and Al arrived at 800a. The wind was stall blowing. We visited the Portera, the castle and archaeological museum. Met Mike at 300p at Kala Kardia, a restaurant across from the marina. Then to the concert at the castle. Traditional music and dancing with the Kondili family. Nico greeted Sadik very warmly and named him "honorary Naxion" at the end of the concert. Drinks were provided as part of admission. Wine and liquors made locally by the farmers. The view of the sunset from the height of the castle was magnificent. We had our last Kitron and proceeded to Irini Cafe for dinner.
July 22. The nearby Swedes were having difficulty departing, before sun up, in the high wind. The commotion woke us up. We lent a hand enabling a safe departure. The Migration girls caught the 830a bus to the quaint town of Apiranthos in the mountains. The church was unusual, filled with chandeliers and beautiful icons. On returning to the boat exhaustion took over. A well deserved nap. Dinner a-la-Sheila.
July 23. Today is Sadik's 65th birthday. We had planned to celebrate in Naoussa, but missed the bus. We decided to go to Mike & Sheila's old friend Christos who started his own Taverna on the sea. He said "Don't order, I will take care of you." He remembered all our favorite things and just kept bringing one wonderful taste treat after another. We topped off the evening on the boat with baklava Sheila bought earlier. It was now time for birthday boy to open his gifts. He received a beautiful olive wood spatula and an antique door knocker.
July 24. Sailed to Serifos, where Perseus cut the Medusa's head off. We anchored in the most beautiful clear water. Later climbed to the top of the Hora for dinner.
July 25. Sailing to Hydra in flat calm sea Alice washing the deck. We suddenly saw what looked like hundreds of porpoises from the bow to the horizon and all around us. The most Mike had ever seen. Frederique was tempted to dive in and play among them. A real lifetime experience.
July 26. Hydra is a beautiful island without cars. Only small donkeys circulating in the streets. We explored town. Prices were set very high for the tourists. Frederique noticed that she must be getting old, lacking in "flexibility" as gallant Captain Mike puts it.
July 27. On to Poros for the last lunch together. It is time for the Gokturks to catch the ferry to Athens. Departures are always sad to Frederique who quoted Lamartine, "Partiz est mouziz un fees," or to leave is to die a little bit.
July 28. The Corinth Canal
