WHERE ARE WE ANNE?: 2015

ANNE AND MYSELF WITH BROTHER DAVID AND JANE. PEDI, AGAIN.

Symi to Nisyros to Tilos to Symi

September 2015

When I first heard a Greek person say to me “More Syrians than tourists”, I laughed in agreement at the pithy summing up of the kind of summer tourist season he was having. Bit by bit during summer in the Greek islands of the Dodecanese along the coast of Turkey I came to realise it wasn't such an exaggeration. Most of the upward of 500,000 refugees crossing from Turkey to Europe via Greece, did so north of us around Lesbos. Hundreds still arrived while we were in Symi though. We tended to see the calm orderly side of the crisis after the refugees had arrived or were being processed in Greece. I'd queue with groups of young Syrian men in the morning to buy spanakopita while others sat in groups smoking and waiting.

Leaving the throngs of Syrians behind, we overnighted in Panormitis before leaving Symi, then with what little wind on the nose, we motored all the way to Palun, Nisyros, I think our biggest motor for the season. David and Jane saw the sights of the volcano while Anne and I swam and carted extra water to the pig that lives under the fig tree where we picked our figs. The pig took a small drink but was more keen to tip the water out with its snout and wallow in the cooling mud.

Before returning the hire car we all explored the towns up on the rim of the caldera and down on the main port of Mandraki. Nice little towns perched high on winding roads with sensational views both in to the caldera and out to sea. Lunches on board Fourth Dimension stepped up a notch with David and Jane in charge. Jane's sumptuous salad and David's marinated mushrooms became signature dishes during their stay.

A motor sail south from Nisyros in little wind got us to the small harbour of Livadhia on Tilos. We hired another car to tour the island taking in several beaches for swims and a very steep drive up to a mountain top. Well, we got part of the way up. Slowly and steeply we crept up a narrow but solid concrete road. At a certain point with the precipitously steep drop off the side of the road becoming vertiginous, Anne said that was enough and she was getting out. Jane joined in solidarity and there wasn't much point pressing on. I can't blame them, I turned around but it was an exhilarating little drive with great views. It may be just as well we turned around, given the billiard ball smooth state of the tyre tread we discovered later.

From Tilos we left at dawn to sail back to Symi for David and Jane's ferry connection to head home.

We had mixed winds and even flew Big Purple. That didn't end well. Due to the captain's inattention during a gust all that taut light purple fabric in the air went all flappy and sustained a rip from the clew. Very unprofessional. Oh well, some more work for Suleyman the sailmaker back in Finike and another lesson for me.

We snugly tied alongside a wharf in Pedi bay happy that we wouldn't have any anchor dragging issues with the rising wind gusts. I'd just got to bed when there was an awful wrenching noise. On deck in a flash, I was expecting to see a boat had dragged into us, instead I found one dinted solar panel lying on the quay having been torn from it's corroded mount in a gust. It tested ok and was reinstalled the next day. Lucky.

It was great having my bro on board. We hadn't seen each other for a few years so the reunion was that much more welcome. Thanks David for the pic of me lolling about naked in the Aegean. That one won't make publication.

BREAKING IN THE NEW CREW WITH PEDI SUNDOWNERS

SPECTACULAR ANCHORAGE SOUTH OF PEDI

SYMI

PANORMITIS CHURCH

WE STOPPED MID PASSAGE BUT FORGOT THE FISHING LINES. DAVID CUT THE LINES FROM THE PROP.

IT WAS TRICKY BUT SOMEONE HAD TO DO IT.

ANNE GETS THE STERN LINES READY

APPROACH TO NISYROS

ONCE EVERY TWENTY OR THIRTY YEARS YOU TRY SOME RETSINA. IT WAS OK!

ANNE CARTS WATER TO THE FIG PIG

SMART PIG TIPS THE BUCKET

AND WALLOWS

THERE IS GREAT BEER IN LIFE FOR THOSE WILLING TO TAKE THE JOURNEY

THE CRATER FROM NIKEA, NISYROS

WE WALKED UP WHEN EVERYONE ELSE DROVE

NIKEA

TURKEY FROM GREECE

THE CREW

DAVID

SHOULD LAST ANOTHER SEASON

MONASTERY ON TILOS

THE MONASTERY AND GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF SAINT PANTELEIMON

CAT RESCUE TEAM SAVES BLIND KITTEN THAT FELL IN THE HARBOUR

ANNE AND JANE WALK DOWN RATHER THAN DRIVE THANK YOU

SUNDOWNER

MISSING ONE SOLAR PANEL

ALAN FROM 'JALANO' HELPS WITH THE STEP LADDER I FOUND

REMOUNTING THE OTHER SOLAR PANEL

DAVID AND JANE LEAVE SYMI ON A PRE DAWN FERRY

ANNE WALKING IN PEDI BAY. TURKEY IN THE BACKGROUND

12 DAYS OF PEDI CURE

25August 2015

Once the Meltemi threat had passed we motored around to Pedi, just around the corner from Symi harbour to take our chances anchoring in the bay notorious for bad holding. On arrival, we found the centre jetty completely empty and took up alongside knowing we'd be weatherproof against any gusts. It was just dumb luck that we chose the southern side of the jetty. It turns out the yachts tied up on the northern side have to vacate at short notice anytime a cargo ship or oil tanker comes in. We were alongside for 12 nights and had four ships come in during that time. Man, I'm glad I chose the south side!

During our twelve days on the jetty in Pedi we said goodbye to Pip, took many swims and exploratory walks, picked ripe figs, caught up on innumerable boat jobs, took many other boat's lines as they docked and welcomed my brother David and his wife Jane on board. We got into the rhythm of things as we took the Pedi Cure. We got to know George the water taxi man with his sizable wake, the local tavernas, where the best grog shop was, who had the best wifi, what the local shipping timetable was and we took many walks in the cool of the morning over the hill to Symi port to buy fresh Spanokopita. The village on the saddle between Pedi bay and Symi seems to avoid the tourist throng and is very authentic, run down, rambling and grows on you despite a large Brit expat clique.

We had one particularly gusty bout of weather. I noticed an unattended boat dragging it's anchor through the anchorage with no one else nearby seeming to realise. I dinghied over and got on board to do something about it but the other boats thought I was the owner and had it sorted. Little did they realise in my haste I only had my sunnies on and in the failing light and no reading glasses I couldn't work out how to start the keyless ignition. As I dragged past fending off one boat they asked do I need a hand? I said yes and it dawned on them that it wasn't my boat. With three others on board I learnt how to start the keyless ignition and we re anchored the boat with a lot more than the twenty metres of chain he had out.

While most Syrian refugees arrive in Symi port, there were six men that arrived in Pedi bay near us. They had a brand new reliable little dinghy and motor. They were clearly asking a fisherman where Symi port was as he pointed to the walk over the hill. In the meantime the Greek port police swooped in a joint effort Austrian loaned boat with machine guns drawn and ordered them into their boat. This six had at least made it safely to Greece.