Day 1 of Sailing

We're Sailing

The Meltemi wind settled down a bit and the marina we were in was going to be full of regatta boats so we had to leave. It was a good breeze as we left our safe harbour. Pretty soon it was a stiff breeze and the seas got quite rough. We put out half the main sail so that we'd be able to stabelize the boat somewhat. It helped but we travelled through some pretty good seas.
We made our way north to Kalimnos Island and tucked into a nice harbour and little village of Emporeios.
We tied up to a mooring buoy that has a taverna name written on it. It is directly up the hill from our waters. It is courtesy to go in and get a meal or drink at their establishment and then the buoy will likely be free.
It took 7 hours to get here.
We had a good lunch in the boat and are relaxed from our day's events.

In early morning Friday we wake up to calm winds. The buoy was secure all night and we are glad for that. We dinghyed to a pier and then we walked through the town. It is only about 3 streets deep and 3 long. Several cafes along the shore and one mini-store made up the main street. At the 2nd street we saw a dozen goat in an arid yard. Poor things. Across the street was Paradise Cafe. What a beautiful yard, just packed with various flowers and trees.
Back at the waterfront we strolled to the west. We noticed a small pickup stopped at the corner and a couple of older Greek women walked up to it. Jim went ahead of us and checked out what the young man was selling. It was the local vegetable truck. We purchased some potatoes and he gave us a nice english cucumber so that was a treat too.
We continued on our stroll, up past a small Greek Orthodox church, painted white with blue trim. Took several photos and continued up the winding hill. The fragrance was enticing and we realized the sidehills were covered with many kinds of herbs – possibly thyme, oregano, rosemary.

Finally we stopped in at the taverna who's buoy we are tied to. We walked in a selected one of many table available. It was in the open veranda and nothing obscured our view of the bay below or the village to the east.

Across the bay a mountain was on fire. We had watched it flare up last night and it continued all today. It is amazing that fire can find that much to burn on what looks like a rocky, barren hillside.

Now this is how you enjoy a Greek taverna experience. Of course it's was only 12 noon which is a little early for the locals to indulge in lunch fare.
We sat for a while and then a young boy (maybe 12 years old) came to our table and asked if we would like a drink. We ordered our Frappes (iced coffees) and he and his father brought them in a few minutes.We drank them at a leisurely rate, absorbing the beauty of the place.
We thought we might as well have lunch there so I finally wandered in to the main building and asked for a menu.
Again we sat for some time after we'd decided what we'd like. Finally a British man came over and suggested that if we wanted to order we should call “Pavlos” (he is the owner). So when Pavlos wandered by we called him and ordered our lunch.
Mine came first – I ordered beetroot salad (cooked and diced beet in yoghurt with garlic) and tzadziki (cucumber shredded into yoghurt with garlic). It was tasty.
Marg's was next. She ordered the vegetarian dish and didn't really know what to expect. It was a nice plate of baked vegetable, potato slabs on the bottom, aubergine slabs, zuchini slabs, peppers, onion, parsley, some tomato bits – all baked together in lots of olive oil and shredded cheese on top.It was great too.
Both men had souvlakis, Jim's pork, Dave's chicken.
We savoured the meal and the idyllic setting. We waited, wondering if we should order dessert. Pavlos came with a big plate of beautiful cut-up watermelon. So red, so fresh, so unexpected. Sometime later we asked for our bill, paid, and strolled away.
That's the beauty of a day in real Greece. Lunch takes 2 hours, nobody get anxious, everyone visits.
Time to go home for a short nap, do a few chores. Then, if you're Greek, at about 9 pm you'll go out for another meal and spend the next two hours savouring more of life and food.