FULL BATTERIES, RAIN STORMS, MORE PREVEZA AND BACK TO NATURE – Days 86 to 88

FULL BATTERIES, RAIN STORMS, MORE PREVEZA  AND BACK TO NATURE – 23 to 25 July, Days 86 to 88

We are in Preveza, sea to one side, large inland water and nature reserve to the other. The Town Quay of course is on the inland side and is generally a safe place to be, but experiences swell. The town has some quaint old streets. Many restaurants and cafes fill the streets with their table and chairs. There are many empty shops reflecting the weak economy of Greece. The whole area is green due to high rainfall in the winter months.

We came to the Quay primarily to charge up our ship batteries which are not keeping up with our need to keep the fridge working, but it is a good experience to be at the heart of the waterfront and old town. Right in front of us a man and his mother sell hot sweetcorn in the evening and within 50 metres we are spoilt for choice for restaurants and cafes.

Most useful is a small laundry a few doors up the street towards the little church where we can have a load of laundry washed for 5 euros, drying two euros extra, and we can take a hot shower for 2 euros, instead of using our black camping shower bag in the cockpit. Eva is most welcoming and invites clients to sit down and meet each other. Victor can organise diesel delivery service to boats on the Quay.

At 23.00 on the first evening three men stood in front of the boat asking for ship’s papers. They were Port Police and have authority over visiting yachts. They asked about the Polish flag we are flying, brought by Anita’s daughter. They were generally suspicious about us but our papers were in order and finally they were satisfied that we are just a cruising couple new to Greece.

We explored a little once the sun went down and Anita was excited to find some atmospheric corners.

On Monday we cleaned the fridge, started topping up our water supplies with the good tasting water and bought provisions for the days ahead. It was a mostly cloudy day which eventually turned to black skies, distant thunder and lightning, and more than once heavy rain, and a brief power cut..

I have been contacting local boatyards as we will need to leave the boat safe soon as well as do winter work below the waterline. Probably the choice is made and I walked round to look at the small family run yard, but we need to investigate Italy too.

Tuesday started fine with risk of thunderstorms later but they did not materialise here. We took coffee and ouzo in the charming street known as Satan’s Bazaar. Around 460 BC the Turks were occupying the area and they came to take taxes from the people. The inhabitants of the street put butter on the stones of the street so that when the officer arrived on horseback to collect the taxes the horse shoes slipped and he could not enter. He called the street the Bazaar of the Devil. Thanks to a young couple who told us this, from the next table, Panagiotis and Iliana who we met again later and they gave us more local information and suggested many places to visit in this region.

He was formerly a merchant marine officer but now they both work at the airport. He said that young Greeks tend to rent homes now especially since the Government introduced new taxes on homes, so if you build your own home, which has been a Greek tradition, the taxes are like a rent to pay for having the home, and when you can’t pay, they take your home. He earns just 600 euros a month so together they can afford to pay 300 euros rent for a 90 sq m home.

At the laundry we had already met Isabelle and Jacques, a French couple sailing a Bavaria 40 yacht. We went again for showers and got to know them better at a table in the street. Later we went for a small meal in another restaurant in Satan’s Bazaar street where they were playing music by Cesoria Evora. Many locals were hanging out in that street, students at the lower end, older ones at the top end.

We had much to do on Wednesday before leaving. We really felt that three nights at the centre of the Quay, berth 888, was enough, with music to 2 am each morning, but we can see the attraction of being there and why many yachts stay day after day.

Walking to find an ATM machine I found the WIND Greece mobile store so we came back to try to get phone settings changed to allow direct access to WIND wifi through our modem instead of only being able to access by logging in through the computer.

We bought two water melons, Himalaya salt, one Dorada fish (8 euro per kilo) and a few other things. Then the long process of final water top-up, disconnecting our water hose and power cable, four mooring lines, anchor bridle rope and finally slipping out from between the neighbour boats with help from Russian friend on My Joy.

I pulled the anchor up by hand, as always, opened part of the genoa and held it aback to swing our bows away from the quay and we were sailing. Everyone else seems to have power winches for the anchor, and motor away.  It feels good to be different and to use skills.

We sailed to the East into the Gulf of Amvrika, the huge wetlands nature reserve and with strong following wind moved quickly, anchoring after 8 miles in the lee of Volvalos Island in two metres of water. The only company is one Austrian flag yacht with naturist man and 5 dogs.

We have mountains on three sides which attract cloud and today thunderstorms. We felt a few spots of rain. To the north were black clouds and to the south clear visibility and sun.

Later the wind shifted to north so we had swell which eased as the afternoon became evening. We cooked the fish and enjoyed the moonlight to the sound of cicadas, after beautiful sunset.

The fridge is working, the water tanks are full and we are back in the silence of nature.