billandrews.co.uk

1st September
Got up early as we had planned to set off for the mainland.  After doing a few jobs I checked the weather forecast on several sites and eventually decided after much to-ing and fro-ing not to risk setting off in the forecast 6-7 winds.
Decided instead to go for a walk as it was much cooler than of late and asked Ted if he would like to join us.  We obtained a pamphlet from the tourist information and set off.  Not finding the path we walked by road to Antisami, where we had moored previously.

Antisami

The path back was steep but very beautiful

and at the top were the ruins of an ancient Greek citadel.

Sami Citadel

The views were incredible as it was very clear and the citadel impressive.

View of Sami

AMZ was still there polluting us all.

AMZ

1^st August

We left Platerias into a gentle on-the-nose wind but managed to tack across the 12 miles to Petriti. We anchored without using the engine, a first for us. We came in behind a couple of yachts and turned straight into the wind and as soon as we lost way dropped the anchor. We decided to eat at Stomatis, our favourite taverna, as we knew the daughter, Maria, and her brother would be demonstrating Greek dancing.

Greek dance

The place was buzzing as two groups of flotilla sailors, young and noisy, were eating there. The demonstration was magical with the pair perfectly in time and then the father, 78, got the youngsters on the floor and showed them what to do. It was a hillarious night.

Stavros

The lights went out twice and Maria and her husband were obviously having a huge row. He had just arrived from Italy and something had put his nose out of joint so he huffed and puffed as he did some waiting on. 2^nd August We swam ashore pushing the tender and showered and washed our hair at the beach shower. We also used the free water to do some washing. Then we set off north in gentle winds for Corfu town to pick up Carla and her friend, Krista. We anchored in the corner of the bay close to the airport and walked about 15 minutes to meet them. We celebrated Krista’s 2.1 degree result with a bottle of bubbly and explained the delights of the poo loo and the wee loo before settling them in in two cabins. 3rd August The girls joined us in our early morning swim then we set off for Lidl. Our attempts at sailing off anchor were unsuccessful and I had to start the engine. In fact the winds were so light we motored all the way. I stayed on board and did my mechanical checks while the 3 of them went shopping. The engine was too hot to check the oil. We sailed north and decided to anchor in a bay called Ag Agni but it was too crowded.

The girls sunbathing on deck

As we left the bay the engine cooling alarm started beeping so we switched off immediately as the temperature gauge was right across. I’d been too busy manoeuvering to notice and was in the process of hoisting sails. The wind died and suddenly we were dangerously close to rocks. I tried calling for assistance on the radio with no response. Sue and the two girls jumped in to swim/push the boat away from the danger. I managed to attract the attention of a passing motor boat but the Italian and his girlfriend were very inexperienced and of little help. Then the wind increased. However the girls were in the water and had not lowered the tender but I managed to get them on board, hoist the genoa and sail off, dismissing the willing but useless Italians. We sailed into a familiar bay, Koulara, and anchored. When the engine had cooled down I checked to see if it started to save myself a sleepless night. We then played the train game by candlelight. 4th August Sue got up early and spent ages scrubbing the deck. I had just started my sun salutation when a couple of locals started shouting at us telling us to move and threatening to call the harbour police as we were anchored in their swimming area. We set off as soon as had had breakfast but the engine started to overheat again so we sailed into Agios Stefano and dropped anchor. I checked the engine water pump and all the hoses, then found a header tank which was empty. This was not on my list of mechanical checks unfortunately. We topped it up but the engine still was not cured so I stripped the electric pump and this too was fine. The only explanation was an air lock in the system. We eventually managed to get rid of this and run the engine with the problem cured. I was too tired to move on so we decided to stay put.

Carla and Krista at a bar

Strolling past ‘the best restaurant in Corfu” we were charmed into visiting it again.

Agios Stefanos

5th August Set off from Stefanos with the gennaker but the wind soon swung and we tacked all day towards our destination, Erikousa, a small island north of Corfu.

Krista reading on deck

Neither girl travels well and both became queasy in the large swells as soon as we were out of the shadow of Corfu but niether succumbed.

Ericoussa 7 miles away

The wind died when we were 6 miles away so we had to motor, giving the cooling system of the engine a good test, which it came through with flying colours. The place is absolutely beautiful, much less commercialised than anywhere we’ve been before and the colours at sunset were georgeous.

Reading on the deck at sunset

Evening view of Corfu

6th August Woke up to an amazing transparent sea and went for a before breakfast swim and walk along the long sandy beach.

The anchor in the clear blue sea

Meanwhile the girls prepared our breakfast.

Corfu 2010

Spent the day in the village, walking around, drinking coffee in a shady bar and lazing about on the boat whilst the girls sunbathed.

Welcome sign & police house

The girls on the beach

In the afternoon the girls took the tender ashore and had a shower on the beach.

Carla on the boat steps

7th August

A strong west wind got up in the night and we had a rough night. I rowed ashore to get bread and the girls swam ashore to buy more sun tan cream. Then we set off for Othoni, the furthest island from Corfu. It took us the rest of the day to get there, including an hours motor session. The harbour was quite busy but we found a reasonable spot. Then the wind got up. In the middle of a game of cards suddenly the anchor lost its grip and we were going backwards at a frightening speed.

An evening game of rummy cup

It was almost pitch black too. We managed to start the engine and re-anchor successfully but hardly slept all night, just listened to the wind screaming through the rigging and the anchor bridle rope creaking in the cleat. T he anchor alarm which works from the satellite navigation system, gave me some peace of mind. I set it so it would go off veryuickly if the anchor dragged. 8th August After a brief swim to try to relax, we set off into a wind of about 20 knots with a long sail back in front of us. We wondered why we’d gone to Othoni at all.

Leaving the 2 islands north of Corfu in a brisk wind

We had a brilliant sail to the top of Corfu, reaching speeds of 10 knots, when the wind dropped. We hoisted the gennaker and set off at a good speed. Unfortunately the anenometer doesn’t give usuable readings with this sail hoisted and the wind increased again without me recognising the danger signs. Just as we were passing a dangerous reef by Agios Stefanos there was a loud bang followed by a ripping sound and the beautiful sail had split from top to bottom.

The sad demise of the gennaker

Almost at that moment the wind dropped (why hadn’t the sail lasted a minute longer?) and after retrieving the damaged sail and floundering about for a bit with the other sails hoisted we dropped them all and had a swim. Sue and I were both very upset. We made it to Gouvia bay, after sailing for almost 30 miles and took the sail out of the snuffer. The girls cooked us sausage and pasta. 9th August To Lidl to get as many supplies as we could carry. Then to Corfu town. The girls cleaned while we were shopping and washed their sheets on the back of the boat by hand.

Diving Carla

Jumping Krista

We anchored as close to the airport as we could so it’s only a short walk to the airport.

Last day

We had a final meal ashore with the girls and walked them to the airport.

10th August

A peaceful breakfast with the prospect of a few days on our own.

Bill's morning sun salutation

We collected 50 litres of water from the free taps nearby and Sue did some washing. Then we set off south. There was very little wind all day and we had to settle for a stopover at Igoumenitsa creek, just as lovely as before, calm and beautiful, but disappointing not to have got further

11^th August

Set off quite early and soon were sailing south. The wind lasted most of the day, although we did two hour-long stints with the motor when the wind dipped as we needed to do the distance. We were in two minds whether to stop at two rock bay at about 5 or to try for Preveza, a further 15 miles further south. The wind seemed favourable so we chose the latter, arriving at the buoyed channel in at 9 pm, 20 minutes after sunset. By the time we reached the end of the channel it was pitch black and we still had a couple of miles to negotiate. We’d been unable to locate a searchlight and our torches were useless and there were flashing red and green lights in all directions. We almost ran aground but finally found a mooring spot at 10 pm absolutely shattered.

Prevetza

12th August

Woke up exhausted after yesterday’s marathon sail amazed at how friendly the harbour looked after last night’s difficult sail in in the dark. Disappointed not to be able to explore the town or the inland waterway behind it we set off back down the buoyed channel and sailed down to Lefkas. The wind was very obliging and got us there just before 12 when the bridge to the canal opens and lets everyone through.

Lefkas north end

Passing by the bridge over the Lefkas canal

Again disappointed not to have time to explore we fueled up and carried on through the canal under motor and then sailed to Vliho where we’d heard there was a possibility of sorting out the damaged sail. It was so hot the water was tepid. We both washed our hair, diving into the sea to wet it, shampooing it and then massaging the soap out of each other’s scalps in the sea as the recipient of the treatment lay on their backs. We went ashore found second hand Geoff (no connection to Porthmadog Geoff) who couldn’t help and a couple of other contacts who may be able to. and had drinks and a meal at the Vliho Yacht club – full of English people, which made a pleasant change.

13th August

Vliho at dawn

Back to the yacht club to make use of their washing machine and wi-fi. Very friendly and helpful. The local seamstress just nearby doesn’t want to repair the sail but Mark could bring a replacement from the UK in 4 weeks time and we’ll just have to manage without it.

Just over two thirds of the way through our Adventure and wonder how we’ll adapt toour life back in Criccieth. The way of life here is wonderful in many ways and because we’re mostly very busy quite simple. The stresses are things like are there any rocks ahead, where shall we drop anchor, where shall we head for – quite demanding at the time which is good. Will we want to do something similar in the future is questionable. Sailing is very addictive, very pleasurable when things are going well with rewards when your plans come to fruition but one misses the life we’ve grown used to at home and some of the home comforts – washing machines, showers, space. So the experience will undoubtedly have changed us but we don’t know how yet.

Set off after lunch towards Ithica into a strong headwind blowing down the Meganissi channel. As we emerged we were able to switch off the engine and hoisted all three sails. The wind increased so we reefed the genoa by a third and then down to half. The wind speed was about 22 knots so I was being cautious after the burst gennaker. Not cautious enough for the old sail which startled us by flapping. Upon investigation we saw it had split so we reefed it in quickly. I didn’t seem able to steer the boat with just the stay and main sails so started the engine. The wind increased further to 26 knots and we were battling against it. The oil warning light on the engine started flashing so I switched it off and hoisted the main sail to steady the boat while I topped the oil up – level was OK at my last check? Then decided to try to get shelter behind Arkoudhi, a small island, and battled into the wind and sea making very slow progress. The autopilot could cope as the speed through the water wasn’t much greater than 1 knot. Then the steering started leaking hydraulic oil from below the wheel and we were becoming seriously concerned. We topped it up and the steering became more responsive and also I switched to using the tiller (connected to the propeller) which works well at low speeds. The island protected us from the waves but there was nowhere to anchor so we decided, as the wind had abated slightly, to motor on. We arrived at Ithaca and tried to anchor in a bay recognised in the book but it was too deep so we motored to Frikes harbour. Lots of the yachts were side on to the quays and our only option was against a floating pontoon. Sue rustled up a meal from nowhere. After a while the anchor slipped as there was a strong wind blowing us onto the quay so we threw one rope ashore and slipped the other two, lifted the anchor, dropped it again. There was no one on the quay to help us with the ropes this time and Sue jumped off. We lost position and I had to leave her there and try to manoeuvre the boat in a strong wind on my own. This took ages as by now I was exhausted. We managed to secure the boat again and the anchor appeared to be holding but I took a line ashore from the bow across to the quay as extra security. Then we sent a text to Mark and Francesca letting them know of our predicament.

14^th August

Had very little sleep as we listened to the wind whistling, trying to push us onto the quay, with little faith in the holding power of the anchor. Got up early, wrote the blog, entered the waypoints for the day’s sailing, did my sun salutations, washed up and made breakfast. Before we cast off I noticed the rope pulley that lifts the leg was not attached. While I was fixing that another boat was struggling to release their anchor and we were concerned that they might dislodge ours. We cast off the forward rope and stowed the dinghy only to find the anchor caught on a rope. We tried going forwards, sidewards, backwards etc. to free it but when I got out my mask and snorkel I saw we were hooked on a chain attached to a huge concrete block so we lowered the dinghy and dropped a second anchor so we could slacken off the main one. Magically at that moment a very kind Italian man came by in his tender, dived down the 7.5 metres and released it. Sue then drove the boat (a rare occasion) whilst I pulled up the secondary anchor. She shouted that an engine alarm was showing but we were too vulnerable in the harbour in the strong wind and had to ignore it. As soon as we were out of harbour and being blown up the bay I sorted the problem – the bracket tightening the fan belt had come loose and fallen into the bilges. These were very oily and I got covered so before we started the engine I leaped into the sea and had a good wash.

Leaving Fresas

We were shell shocked by then, wondering what else could possibly go wrong.

We changed our planned destination of Argostoli to Sami, which was much closer and reachable in a day. We arrived there before 5 and moored up. Another very kind Italian and his three lads from a boat on the other side of the quay offered to get the damaged genoa off the forestay. So we hoisted him in the boson’s chair while he tried to unfurl the top of the two separate bits of the sail.

On the bosun's chair

It was very choppy and he was swinging about all over the place. Mark and Francesca texted to say they had arranged to get us a replacement sail but suggested we try to repair the damaged one ourselves.

We had a restful evening and retired early very grateful to the very kind people who had been so helpful in our difficult circumstances.

15th August

Had a good night’s sleep and woke in more optimistic mood. Our new friend Ted, a retired coal miner who’s sailing round theworld and offers free passage to anyone who wants to join him, suggested we move into the harbour, which we did. Started sewing the sail but very slow progress. Went for a swim on the town beach and then invited for lunch with Ted. Jo and Chris arrived on the bus from Argostoli and we all went for a swim. A very kind Frenchman, Andre, took pity on us and offered the use of his sewing machine to repair the genoa so we then tacked the split seam instead of sewing it which took about a twentieth of the time and made repairing it a real possibility.

We cooked a meal and took it across to Ted’s yacht and ate there with him. Our cockpit was full of the genoa.

Jo and Kris preparing our meal on the quay

16th August

Went for before breakfast swim from the town beach and shampoo and showergel on the shower there. Had breakfast all together then Jo and Chris went to the beach and Sue carried on sewing! The two ends of the tear were more problematic as they had to be patched and tacking was out of the question. We managed to get the sail ready for the agreed time of sewing, 9 am next morning. We also plucked up the courage to go and register with the port police, which had concerned us as the boat’s document had not been stamped since 2009.

In the evening we went to a taverna where they were playing traditional Greek music and had a lovely meal.

17th August

Up early to connect up the hose and wash the salt off the genoa so as not to get it on the sewing machine. Then Sue and I found a large flat area to lay it out to dry. Andre arrived and borrowed a table and chair from a pavement cafe and for the next three and a half hours he and his lady friend Marie, Sue and I manoeuvered the huge piece of fabric through the hand operated zig-zag machine.

Sewing the damaged genoa

We didn’t just repair the tear as on inspection other parts of the sail were very fragile and could have gone at any minute. In the afternoon the wind got up so no opportunity to hoist the sail into position.

Jo cooked us a meal and we played blob.

18th August

Woke early but windy so had a lie in. Strong winds forecast. Confined to port. So swimming off the beach. The wind died at about 22.30 so Sue and I hauled the repaired genoa. The idea of using washing up liquid as a lubricant seemed to do the trick.

19th August

Did some engine checks and topped up the oil – had to buy a new can – concerned about this. Did some shopping and said goodbye to our new friends. Waited about an hour in the port police office to pay for the extra day only to be told not necessary. Set off about noon and hoisted sails as soon as possible. Had a frustrating sail as wind kept increasing to 17/18 knots, at which point we’d furl the genoa as we’d been advised it wouldn’t cope with winds stronger than this, then the speed of the boat made it difficult to tack on just the main and stay sails. Eventually made Andresami Bay, where we anchored off a small beach which we had to ourselves later. As it was a little exposed and we’d had some strong winds recently we dropped a second anchor and took a line to the shore. Jo and Kris got a bit queasy on the way over but were delighted to be somewhere new and loved the clear water and diving off the boat.

Very difficult for us as we’ve lost faith in the boat with all the problems we’ve had and we’re just praying there won’t be another major disaster.

Text message from Dave and Viola to say they’ve the spare sail and could we meet tomorrow.

Kris and Jo with gyros

20th August

Woke up to a glorious morning – the only boat in the bay. Retrieved the second anchor and the shore line with the use of the dinghy. Set off to motor to Fiscardo and travelled to a bay just south into a brisk headwind without mishap. D and V waved as we entered the bay and we stopped to chat and pick up the sail. Just then the charge warning light came on and I had to find a spot to anchor quickly.

Sue had invited D and V for lunch so I quickly got up the engine boards to fix the alternator bracket again, this time using spring washers – but unfortunately I could only find one so I tightened the nut and bolt as tight as I dared.

We got on really well with D and V and Sue prepared a lovely lunch. After clearing up and dropping a second anchor we swam ashore and then went back for capuccinos on D and V’s boat, a 1980 steel boat in amazing condition.

Zeehond - Dave and Viola's boat

Jo and Kris were jumping and diving off some high rocks over a cave and we went over in the tender to take pictures.

Jo and Kris ready to jump over cave

Beer and crisps on the front deck as the sun set then a meal and a game of blob. A much better day.

21st August

Swam to the beach before breakfast.

Foki beach

The fresh water pump wouldn’t switch on without a knock so I found the filter clogged and cleaned it. Couldn’t get the pump to switchas bad connection to filter. Put me in a bad mood.

Sue, Jo and I walked into Fiskardo and briefly met D and V were servicing sailing holiday boats.

Bill in Fiskardho

I walked back, took up the second anchor and we motored back to Sami – wind on our noses in both directions, yesterday from north, today from south. Seems like the gods aren’t smiling on us at the moment. We went for a swim, then Jo and Kris took us out for a meal. There was a major function and we were able to sit down and watch an hour’s Greek dancing. Lovely with the ferry on one side and the yacht masts on the other.

Dancers

22nd August

Got up before the others and tried for 40 minutes to fix the water problem unsuccessfully. Then checked the oil – empty again. I was in dispair. Went for a swim and came back. Managed to locate a mechanic as I had decided the boat was not seaworthy until the oil leak was fixed. Felt relieved that I’ve decided to do thid rather than worry continuously whether the engine is going to pack up on us.

A man called Denis called at 12.00 to take Jo and Kris to the airport. We went with them and after our goodbyes went on to meet David and Anna at their hotel in the square of Argostoli. Denis then took us to a pleasant bar for drinks and to a ground water lake before returning to the boat.

Lake

Denis and a donkey

After a cup of tea we took David to the beach while Anna rested, then beer and crisps on the front deck.

Just before supper Andreas, the mechanic, rocked up and inspected the engine, pronouncing the head gasket gone. No spare but Mark texted that we should tighten the rocker cover nuts.

More free entertainment – a rock band so we watched them for a while

23rd August

Found (hopefully) the problem with the water system is the filter not properly seated. Sue took the laundry and then went shopping with Anna. Having tightened rather loose rocker cover nuts and as we have no spare gaskets I decided to set off.

Anchored in Polis on Ithica but the wind kept shifting around we ended up closer to another boat than was acceptable so we put out a stern anchor and a rope to the shore to hold us away. Anna bravely decided to try swimming with a life jacket and did very well.

Anna's first swim in Greece

24th August

We had a swim to look at the cave but it was closed off. Then we took up all our various fixings and sailed to our meeting point on Arcudi with D and V. It was absolutely beautiful there and we went swimming. We shared an evening meal with D and V.

The moon on Zeehund at Arcudi

25th August

We swam over and joined them for a while. Then they persuaded Anna to try swimming and to swap the life jacket for a fender, then to abandon that as well. Very brave of Anna and very good teaching.

Anna swimming with teachers

We shared a meal with D and V again aboard Nine Lives.

26th August
A peaceful night and a lovely calm morning. We went over to Zeehond for coffee and Anna was persuaded to swim back to Nine Lives. Sue and I did some snorkeling. After some discussion we reluctantly set off for Vathi, the capital of Ithica, We had had a wonderful time. We had a good sail until we came within 4 miles when we were in the lee of the mountains so we were forced to motor. David and Anna thought they would like to catch the ferry to Sami and spend another night in Argostoli only the ferry is at 6 am. They took us out for a ‘last meal’ anyway.

Our 'last' meal with David and Anna

27th August
We got up late and I did the engine checks – oil everywhere but the engine! Sue and I went to shop and met up with David and Anna at lunchtime. They decided to stay and have lunch in Vathi and we had ours on board.

Vathi

It was very hot and Bill kept having to cool off in the sea.
We went ashore when it was a bit cooler to visit an art gallery and we met the artist –not really our taste but it was interesting.
David and Anna decided to catch a ferry to Sami next morning and went ashore to buy tickets. Sue cooked us all spaghetti and we played blob. The wind got up in the night and Anna didn’t really like it.

28th August
David and Anna got up at about 5.30 to catch the ferry. Anna had decided she wanted to spend her last night in Argostoli. The arrangement was they would take the ferry ashore and I would swim over later to collect it.
I put a second lot of oil in the engine and we set off for Sami. We motored for a while and the wind kept being on our nose. After an hour we decided to tack and we had a frustrating few hours. We reached the end of Ithica at about 17.30 and the wind dropped so we were forced to motor again. But we had a good sail in to Sami after we left Ithica and arrived just after sunset. We moored up easily and everything was familiar. Ted was still there – his crew hadn’t turned up.

Ted on his boat

29th August

Another day with just Sue and I – lovely.  We didn’t do much – swam twice, changed the sheets and aired the mattresses, shopped, updated the blog.  It was very hot.  Eagerly awaited the arrival of James and Rachel – always slightly nervous about how each set of guests  will take to the boat and sailing .

James and Rachel arrived by taxi and we showed them round and fed them.

30th July

Another day at Sami.  Found a pleasant shady cove in the afternoon. Went out for a very tasty meal in the evening.  Filled up with water and filled the engine with oil.  Strong winds forecast so staying another day.

31st July

A quiet night so we all had a good night’s sleep.  Strong winds forecast for the night so staying in Sami but intend to sail to the mainland tomorrow before the calm period forecast to follow. 

1st July We set off for Petriti on Corfu, soon raising the gennaker. Once out of the bay we set all the other sails and took it down. The wind was kind until we reached the tip of Corfu and then kept dying and changing direction. Finally at about 4 pm it settled down and we entered Petriti under sail. The harbour wall was full so we dropped anchor and had a swim to cool down.

Fishing Fleet

Petriti fishing fleet

Then we went ashore had a look at the substantial fishing fleet, inspected a few menus and finally chose a taverna for our meal. I had the best grilled calamares I’ve had, Mel had fresh sardines and Sue and Di shared a red mullet selected from the cooler. 2nd July Sue and Bill swam ashore with shampoo and shower gel and had their first proper shower since arriving on the beach. Mel came over in the tender with some water containers which we filled. Then we had breakfast and I wrote up this blog. Mel and I took the tender for a sail in the afternoon, then Di took my place and they struggled to sail back as Sue and I laughed at their efforts.

Enjoying our Greek Salad starter

We then went ashore with the intention that I would have a beer in an internet café whilst the others bought food for the meal. No internet in the village so we all stopped for a beer after shopping. It was too tempting and we decided to eat where we were. 3rd July Bucking all the trends we decided to stay for a third night at Petriti and it was cloudy. We decided to walk to the old village, which was high up in the hills.

Old Petriti

An amazing place from another era but in a terrible state with many of the properties just ruins.

For sale

We climbed to the top of the church tower – the church and graveyard were immaculate in contrast with the rest of the place.

Bell Tower

I thought I’d lost my water bottle and climbed up the tower again. The others chatted up an old man who grabbed Sue’s breast and Di’s bottom. We asked some German men if the place they were drinking was a bar and amazingly it was. Our 4 drinks cost only €4!!

Sue in an old olive grove

Walking back in the shade

In the afternoon I continued my efforts to clean the bottom of the boat. We went back to the same taverna and had a feast – a plate of Mediterranean prawns to share to start and fish from the fridge to follow – washed down with beer and copious quantities of wine – the owner gave us a free litre. 4th July Another shower on the beach then a long sail back to Gavia, near Curfu. We tried hard to sail but were becalmed for ages and even after lowering the sails for a swim and lunch we were still only a short way from Petriti. So I decided to motor and 15 minutes later a reasonable wind came up. This took us most of the way but we had to motor the last two hours. By the time we anchored at 9 pm I was shattered. Sue managed to Skype Jo who at last has internet at home. 5th July Our first changeover day. This included shopping at Lidl , washing all the sheets and getting the cabin ready for the next occupants and motoring to NAOK yacht club. Di and Mel disembarked at about 5.30 and Sylvia and David are due at about 1 tomorrow morning. We purchased another mosquito net in case people want to sleep separately a new paint scraper to attack the hull with and some seat cushions to fit the folding deck chairs. We lunched at NAOK and then said goodbye to Di and Mel. A few hours with just the two of us. An early night. 6th July Woke up and located Dave and Sylvia in the bar. Settled them in and explained about the “poo loo” and the “wee loo” before back to bed. Up early and set off for Sayiadha with the motor. After about 15 mins able to sail and managed to sail all the way, stopping during a calm period for a swim and lunch.

Sylvia with us on deck

Horrors a huge barge with a crane in our lovely harbour.

Crane in Sayiadha harbour

Worse as I put the engine in reverse it cut out with a rope wrapped round it. We dropped anchor while we sorted it out. Disaster – the housing of the Z-drive (that transfers the power from the engine to the propeller) had sheared. We rescued most of the unit but got covered in gearbox oil and managed to moor alongside the quay without further mishap. The harbour policeman then shouted to tell us we couldn’t stay here so we went to explain that we couldn’t move in the strong wind. After much toing and froing he took the ships papers and said we MUST stay where we were. We cleaned up the boat and ourselves, showered on the quay with the hose and had a nice meal. 7th July Up at dawn to see if I could find a missing shaft with the sea searcher magnet before the dredger started work. No joy. Plan to clean off tender, inspect the electric outboard, get our papers back and sail back to Corfu to get the boat repaired. Went to get our papers from the harbour police. He asked me to sit down and said there was a problem. Two others arrived, none of whom spoke much English. Then a lovely girl from the supermarket who acted as interpreter. Because we hadn’t had the ship’s papers stamped since 2009 we either had to be impounded and wait for a higher official from a larger port or sign a document saying the accident happened outside Sayiadha. This took some time. Then a captain inspected our boat to make sure it was seaworthy and we were offered a tow. They cast of our mooring lines before we’d had a chance to get ready and a man from the dredger’s boat who hadn’t a clue towed us out at high speed.

Madman towing us

We had wind most of the day but had to put in quite a few tacks but arrived at Gouvia at 9 pm in style at over 6 knots. A small boat came in to help us moor up and we had a lovely meal aboard in good spirits. 8th July Marcos the mechanic came to look at the damage. Arranged for a welder to weld the broken part. We contacted Mark to see if he was happy with that and for his help in finding spare parts. Dave and I checked over the unit ad gave Sue a list to order from the UK. These were duly dispatched for next day delivery. Dave and I continued to check over the unit and undid some seized up bolts.

Inspecting the foot

We ate at a lovely taverna a short walk away.

First day in Gouvia

9th July

Tracking the parcel online we could see it had arrived as far as Athens but it didn’t get here. We all went over to a nearby beach a couple of times for a swim. The noise at our mooring was unbearable at times as we were right next to the fuel pontoon and a tanker was unloading fuel all day and we were also next to the boat hoist which was busy all day.

Moored by the tanker

Sue negotiated a good deal with the manager as the quoted cost would have been about £70/day.

Dave swinging on the hoist

In the evening we went back to same taverna who had kindly given us free bread in the morning. 10th July Waiting for the parts to arrive again. Had a morning scrubbing decks. Checked with DHL – although they guarantee 24 hours delivery that is only to Athens and we really realistically won’t receive the part on Monday as weekend days don’t count. We went for a couple of swims. Dave and Sylvia went for a walk and a boozy lunch. In the evening we met up with Sue’s cousin Linda and her friends Martin and Jane who came here to re-fuel anchored nearby. We all went for a meal to the restaurant Dave had been to for lunch at his recommendation.

Martin, Linda and Jane

Sue and Linda

11th July

No chance of the parts arriving today so Dave and Sylvia went on a boat trip to Benitses for the day.

Dave and Sylvia's trip boat

I did my routine mechanical checks and final preparations for replacing the drive. We adapted the tender davits for lifting it back into place. Sue and I had a lazy day with a couple of swims to cool down. Dave and Sylvia enjoyed their trip and lunch out. We played the train game on the back deck and then had gyros for a late meal.

12th July

Spent the morning trying to be patient in case the parts arrived.

The beach near the marina

The came at about noon and we tried to persuade the director of the marina to let us use the slip. Unfortunately there was a wire accross that the mast would have connected with so we negotiated a deal to get the boat out. We were going well but hit a snag which I had foreseen might be a problem. When Marcos arrived he started to take over and then dropped a bit of a bombshell. There was so much play in all the joints that it would not be wise to just repair the current problem. So the boat was put on blocks and the unit is going to be reconditioned.

The hull before the work

We had a session of hull cleaning, Dave and Sylvia gamely joining in. Marcos arrived at about 8 pm and removed the unit. We went out for a meal on their last night and their taxi arrived at11.05 pm.

13th July

Woken at 6 by a text from Kim. Sue got up to greet her and I got up shortly afterwards to work on hull cleaning. The ladies went for a swim. Had a chat to Mark who wondered whether we would anti-foul the hull. Sue went off and purchased the paint whilst I continued cleaning the barnicles etc off the boat.

Bill cleaning the hull

By the end of the day we had finished cleaning the bottom and anti-fouled one side of one hull. The ronditioned parts for the z-drive and promised for tomorrow evening and will be assembled then or the following morning.

14th July

Sue got up early and started anti-fouling. I had a lie in. Sue worked all morning and did virtually the whole job by herself. How different Nine Lives looks now. We has a couple of swims to keep cool and I tried to make the boat a bit more ship shape, re-set the davits for the tender etc.

Kim in the marina

Sue at the marina

At about 6 the two engineers arrived and fitted the parts. They had had new stainless shafts made and the two major load bearing bits drilled out so there is now no slack in the unit. Of course all this has been expensive but if that’s the only major incident for a 3 and a half month sail acceptable and now the boat is in better shape than it was. Our new galley slave has whipped up a Thai green curry.

15th July

Sue up at 6.30 to clean white sides to remove the brown stains. I feel obliged to join in. Then after a swim and breakfast a visit to the office to pay ad to book our lift back in. Anothe swim, coffee and then liftoff.

The hoist controller

After being lowered back in the water I started the engine and gave the reconditioned drive a good test as we maneuvered to the quay so we could tie up and pick up the dinghy. We motored out of the bay, noticing how much faster we now went and hoisted the sails. We’d decided to take Kim to Koulora but the wind was on the nose all the way and annoyingly seemed to change direction by as much as 100 degrees as we tacked against it. When within half a mile we dropped sails and motored into the bay. We had a terrible time anchoring as each time we dropped it it didn’t hold. Kim hadn’t her sea legs and had to lie down most of the time and even had to be relieved of her duties of galley slave for the evening meal.

The tender at Kouloura

16th July
A very lazy day with Sue and I recovering from the ordeals of the past 9 days and Kim after her first day at sea. Very hot with the need for dips in the sea every hour or so. In the evening we walked along to a small bay and Sue and Kim swam back whilst I carried their shoes etc back.

Nine Lives at Kouloura

Later we had a meal at a beautifully situated taverna.

Happy to be sailing again with the prospect of food

A meal at Kouloura

17th July
After the normal morning routine, swim, sun salutation, breakfast there was some wind so we weighed anchor and tacked north finding a little uninhabited bay for a lunch stop. Then a short sail back, with the wind behind us for a change, to Agios Stefano. A thunderstorm threatened but we only had a few drops of rain.

Agios Stefano

Sue had a Skype rendezvous with her parents and friends after their diamond wedding celebration which was reasonably successful. Then we took Kim to ‘the best restaurant in Corfu’ which was as good as we’d hoped.

18th July
After breakfast we went ashore, Bill to post this blog, and the girls to go shopping. Then we sailed to the bay we had lunched at yesterday. I decided to take a line ashore but in the evening, after all the other boats had left, a storm blew up and we were pushed too close to the shore for comfort. So we cast the line off pulled up the anchor and re-anchored further out. We were then side on to the swells all night and disturbed also by the throb of an unseen disco boats music until the early hours.

19th July

Up early and set off on a busy programme. We had to tack and the wind direction kept changing so we kept crossing and re-crossing our tracks for the first hour. Then we made good progress until lunchtime when we were becalmed. I decided to motor or we wouldn’t have been able to keep our timetable but we hoisted sails again about half an hour before Lidl. We did a monster shop there, all feeling very hot and sweaty, especially compared with all the other customers who’d arrived in air-conditioned cars. We then had a good sail to our meeting place with Si and Elaine, NAOK yacht club and arrived there at the exact ETA to spot them waving from the quay. Kim cooked us all a meal and we chatted till late.

20th July

Si took Kim to the airport at 3.30 in his hire car, accompanied by Elaine and Sue. In the morning they took their car back and we set off from NAOK under sail, hoping to get to Platarias. In the event the wind dropped at lunchtime so we had a mid-sea swim and we had to change plans and motor to Vitou, the little bay we’ve been to before near Iguminetsa.

Vitou

We had a swim then took the tender ashore and walked down the road to the bay the other side where we had some beers under the shade of a big tree by the sandy beach.

A well-deserved beer

The creek

Bill the giant

The road back

Si cooked us a meal.

21st July

Set of under sail after our morning routines and sailed out of the bay. The wind held up all day and our destination kept changing from Platerias, to Parga and we eventually ended up at Monganissi on Paxos and 17.30 having had the best sail so far, doing nearly 30 miles in 8 hours. On the way we passed

Sue and Elaine in the cockpit

through a small pod of dolphins but they didn’t show any interest in us.

The harbour was very busy,full of flotilla boats, so we were unable to use the quay. We had a lovely meal, all four of us having pork roasted on a spit. Then there was dancing, Greek followed by disco until we were too tired and retired.

22nd July

Resaonable wind again so set off for Parga. Unfortunately there was a reef in the way so we had to motor round it and then the wind dropped for a while so we dropped sails and had a midday swim. Simon hadn’t ever swam in water where he couldn’t see the bottom before this holiday and he was amazed by the blueness of the water. We hoisted the gennika as soon as we were aboard as the wind had started to pick up and sailed the rest of the way with the autopilot set to track.

Elaine seeking shade

The wind speed increased as we approached port and almost as soon as we’d anchored a storm blew up which caused several boats problems, one nearly being blown onto the mole. When the storm had passed and Sue had given us a meal of rattatouille we went ashore and walked up to the castle. The view over the other bay was magical so we walked down there – into a living hell of commercialism and crowds. So we fought our way back to the top again, bought a few provisions and made our way back to the tender and the boat. One very drunk Swede on a nearby yacht kept everybody awake with his huge shouting display.

Parga at night

23rd July

Simon helped me do the engine and battery checks and Sue washed a load of towels on the back deck. Then we tacked all the way north to Mourtos and anchored in a strong wind in shallow water, putting out a stern anchor so we wouldn’t swing into the rocks. Sue cooked us cabbage and peanuts for tea.

Simon with camera taped on the boathook

24th July

We used the electric outboard to power the tender across to Mourtos so I could put some pictures on the website.

Cave near Mourtos

Beers in Hans' garden

Pirates

Trying a new method of using the stern anchor

In the evening it was still very lumpy so we decided to move and moor on the town quay. There was a strong wind and I took several attempts to back the boat successfully. A bit later on another Prout Snowgoose (the make and model of our cat) moored next to us and we compared notes. Hans was waiting for us on the quay and helped to pull us in. He arrived with wine and nuts and we had a good time chatting watching the sun go down. He then offered to take Si and Elaine to the airport next day. We had a meal at Stamatis taverna but the promised Greek dancing wasn’t on because the flotilla boats had chickened out in the strong winds and hadn’t arrived.

26^th July

Changeover day and out 7^th wedding anniversary. We showered, did washing, collected water and Si and Elaine packed and cleaned. Then we had lunch aboard and said our goodbyes. Sue and I on our own for the first time, successfully cast off and sailed away, waving to Si and Elaine until they disappeared. The wind was strong and became very strong just as we hit a shallow patch of water at the southern tip of Corfu. I wanted to reef but was keeping my concentration on the depth too. Whatever will go wrong does!! We successfully negotiated the shallow water and reefed in the genoa as the wind was gusting at 22 knots. We raced across to Lakka on Paxos at speeds of up to 10 knots in quite big seas. The bay was quite crowded and we took care over anchoring only to be shouted at by an old fellow that we were over his anchor. Nice welcome! Bloody English I thought. I decided he was out of order and we stayed where we were. Sue cooked a nice meal and we celebrated our anniversary.

Lakka

27^th July

I felt tired and irritable all morning and we did nothing but relax all day, not moving or going ashore and only having 1 swim. It was much cooler.

28^th July

A lazy morning after our usual swim chatting to James and Rachel and Simon. Set off at about 12 for Ormos Fanari, hoisting the gennaker as soon as we left harbour and sailing with it until the wind speed increased, about 3 miles from our destination. By the time we entered the bay the wind was gusting at 20+ knots. The bay is not well protected from a strong NW wind but we anchored successfully. However we were unable to leave the boat in such conditions and if we had it would have been hard to row the tender back against the wind. So instead we had an early supper and watched a film on computer – Memoirs of a Geisha – and had an early night.

29^th July

the wind had abated in the night and we awoke to a beautiful, but cool morning. After breakfast we rowed to the entrance to the canalised river but the stream was too strong so instead we beached the tender and walked beside the canal. I had read about some nearby ruins but as they were 4 k away we decided to take a taxi there. The countryside was very different. Instead of mountains clothed with natural vegetation or olive trees it was flat and lush with crops sprayed with fountains of water spreading across the whole large valley. The ruins, Necromanteion of Ephyra, were at a nearby village Mesopotamo and were of a place where Hades was supposed to inhabit. I was struck by the skilled dry stone walling, unlike any I had see before and the vaulted room where Hades was supposed to inhabit was worth seeing. The taxi waited for us and took us back to Ammouthia where we purchased some bread, fruit, yoghurt and vegetables. We swam and pushed the tender back to the boat and relaxed all afternoon.

Necromanteion

Monastry

Greek Pot 2000 years old

Hades temple

Ammouthia

30^th July

Up early to catch an easterly wind, sailing off the anchor, which is what we like to do if we can. Hoisted the gennaker and made reasonable progress west, not easy when the prevailing wind is from the north west. The wind dropped so we had a swim then we had a gentle breeze from the west and were able to sail north. Our goal was Platerias but as the winds were so gentle we had to settle for Mourtos which we made at about 1900, having started at 0815. We rowed ashore and had a meal, rowing back in the dark.

31^st July

Another fairly early start to take advantage of the early east wind. Sailed off anchor and hoisted gennaker again. As we rounded the peninsula and headed to Platerias the wind increased and we sailed there with the genoa reefed finding space on the town quay at that early hour. An hour later the quay was packed with flotilla boats as tomorrow is changeover day.

Platerias quay

We had lunch and then had a swim off the beach. On the way back Sue filled a carrier bag with rubbish as an act of good citizenship.

2nd June
Arrived at Corfu on Wednesday 2nd June after a very early flight, tired because take off was delayed for over an hour because one of the stewardesses decided she was not feeling well just as our plane was about to take off. A short taxi ride to NAOK yacht club took us to our meeting point and soon after NINE LIVES was along side the quay and we and our luggage safely on board. We motored to close to Lidl and Sue and Francesca went off to buy groceries. Next we sailed to a fuel depot and filled up with diesel. Then to a nearby anchorage and early bed.

Learning anchor drill

Aios Stefanos

3rd June
We were woken before dawn by thunder and lightening. After a while we heard Mark and Francesca get up. Then we heard the anchor being brought aboard and the engine started. Both of us desperately tried to catch up on our sleep but the motion of the boat which by now was slamming into a choppy sea, made this difficult. The storm had passed over by the time we surfaced but M and F had agreed to meet some friends at Igoumenitsa on the mainland some distance away and had previously decided on an early start. Sue and I were like zombies but F made us some porridge and hot drinks for breakfast. Unfortunately Sue didn’t keep hers down for long [very unlike her]. The wind veered, sails were hoisted and the engine shut off. Greek salad and potatoes for lunch [Sue didn't have any] and Mark started his instruction with the electrics. Igoumenitsa is a busy ferry port and we arrived at the same time as F and M’s friends ferry. F and I went ashore and soon we had picked up the stuff the friends had brought and up anchored. We sailed to a lovely bay about an hour away and after a supper of beans, potatoes and steamed veg played a game of train dominoes until far too late.

Best taverna in Corfu

4th June
Woken up by the sun streaming through the windscreen above our bed after a very comfortable night’s sleep and soon heard F scrubbing down the deck, making the most of the heavy dew that had fallen. Sue was still not right but at least managed to keep her food down. I made salad and coleslaw for lunch. We just chilled out most of the day but I went for a row in the tender right around the bay and also tried my hand at fishing. We saw the most surreal sea creatures that I identified as a kind of sea slug. Almost 30 cm long, black with brown markings, they swam near the surface with two wings but very slowly. In the evening I tried my hand at fishing but the only bait we had was a lump of cheese. There were shoals of tiny fish about 5 cm long and shoals of grey mullet up to 40cms long. These latter swam right at the surface at times with their dorsal fins protruding and also jumped right out of the water. Two fish took the bait into their mouths but promptly spat it out again. In the evening we played a game of blob [hi/lo].

Looking at sea beast

5th June
Woken up by rain drumming on the windscreen to a cold grey day. Mark made us a breakfast of pancakes and we decided to sail south as we had northerly winds. I took charge with Mark giving me advice and we sailed off our anchorage. The wind was favourable all day and we sailed down to Mourtos, a small town surrounded by three small islands. We anchored in a small sheltered bay in about 2 m ~ catamarans have a very small draught. Sue and I rowed across to a bay on the mainland and then walked over a hill to the town which had a small harbour surrounded by bars, tavernas and shops. The row back was tough, being right into the wind and when we did get back Sue discovered she had left her debit card in the cash machine. Mark put the electric outboard onto the tender and rushed her back to town. We think the machine swallowed her card but she phoned the bank anyway and cancelled her card. Fortunately my card still will work and we can get one of our visitors to bring out her new card. It was by now too late for games so straight to bed.

Sea-slug?

6th June
Much warmer with bright sunshine. Sue and Francesca took the tender across to do some shopping while I wrote up this blog. We had lunch as soon as they returned and in the early afternoon we went for a swim, our first of the trip. Sue had seen a hat she liked and F some shoes so after that Sue and I rowed back to the town, got some more cash out of the machine with my card, bought the hat, an enormous rimmed black raffia affair and then sat and had a drink at a quayside bar and watched the yachters posing and making fools of themselves. We rowed back just in time for tea. I watched the sun go down from the front deck and we finished off the evening with a game of rummycup.

Sue in bed behind mosquito net

7th June
We decided to sail north as the winds were favourable. The ladies rowed across and retrieved the line securing us to the bank and I wound in the anchor. Mark started the engine which promptly stalled. The onshore wind took us landward onto a mud bank and we were stuck. We had to pull Nine Lives off with an anchor dropped further offshore from the dinghy by winch. It was hard work and took an hour and two attempts before we were successful. The propeller had picked up an old knot of rope, hence the original problem. Nine Lives and all of us were covered in black mud.
We sailed north at 6 knots with the gennaker hoisted in a very comfortable sea.

Tying to the shore

For most of the day but needed the motor for the last half hour. After the 25 mile trip to Agios Stefanos we decided to go out for a meal and togged ourselves in our glad rags. San Stefano is a lovely little place with a whole quayside filled with self~drive boats. We were accosted by a fat restaurateur who charmed us into sitting at a table by the jetty and accepting his choice of food. The Guardian article outside his place said it was the best taverna on Corfu. Before we ate I managed to chat briefly to Dougal on Skype. We had a lovely meal but my credit card wouldn’t work. We played a few hands of Uno before retiring still very full.
8th June
Sue and I swam to the beach and back. I phoned the credit card bank and got them to remove the block on our cards. We also set up the internet link and rang various people on Skype and posted the first instalment of this blog.
After eating several of Mark’s pancakes for lunch Sue and I set off on a coastal walk recommended by Francesca. The flowers were absolutely beautiful and we were surrounded by butterflies for the first part of the walk. We got very hot and had a skinny dip on a deserted beach. Dragonflies dominated the fauna for the second part of the walk. The return journey was not so easy as we were never sure we were on the right route. It was all by road, much of it through groves of massive olive trees.
In the evening F and M talked to their children on Skype.
9th June
F and I took the tender across to dispose of the re~cycling and buy a few things before breakfast and after messing about a bit we set off north to inspect some bays F wanted to visit. I was skipper and learned how to enter waypoints on the computer. We had to motor out of the bay but soon were able to sail. We managed to sail into the bay of and drop anchor but only stopped for lunch as it was too lumpy for an overnight stay and anyway not that attractive. I learnt how to sail off anchor and Sue learned how to raise anchor and we made notes of what to do each morning and night and what to do before we set sail. We returned to Agios Stefanos but had to motor in. I found manoeuvring the boat between the other yachts in the bay hard~the rudders are controlled by the wheel and steer the boat when it has way on it, the propeller leg is controlled by a lever that acts like a tiller. We anchored successfully on my second attempt but I was quite flustered by then with Mark giving me directions into my deaf ear and then shouting them, the ladies by the anchor looking perplexed and the boat not responding to my efforts.
10th June
Sailed out of Agios Stefanos after a morning swim with very little wind so headed into the adjacent bay, Agios Kouloura. Mark had to take over anchoring here as the chain jammed and we had to start the engine. I took the tender for a sail after lunch and in the early evening Sue and I paddled ashore and had a drink and shared a platter of humous etc. and enjoyed the peace of this lovely spot.
11th June
We all went for a walk north along the coast, pausing at a deserted beach for a skinny dip on the way. The flowers and scents were beautiful. On the way back our deserted beach was occupied so we had to wait for a swim until we had returned to the boat. After lunch there was some wind so we sailed across towards Albania and then back to another little cove Agios Agni. It was so hot Sue and I swam to some shady rocks and read our books there.
12th June
After my usual salutations to the sun, morning swim with Sue and breakfast of muesli and yoghurt I decided to row across and inspect the little town – we were moored at the other end of the bay – but it was just a collection of 5 tavernas, a few sunbeds and some power boats. Sue chatted to a lady on a neighbouring boat who came from the same area of Manchester as she did and knew Kim’s brother, Mark. Small world. We then motored out of the bay where we picked up a little wind. The ladies needed to shop so I put in a way point, set the sails and gradually approached the supermarket, which took all afternoon in the gentle breezes. After the ladies returned laden with goodies Mark sailed the boat across to the place we spent out first night as it’s convenient for Corfu town.

Corfu

13th June
A day spent at anchor going through the check list prepared by Mark and Francesca so we are able to cope, hopefully, for the next three months on their own. I was also able to get on line and put some pictures on the blog. Sue and I swam a long way to relax and cool down.
In the evening beautiful Greek music filtered over the boat and Sue and I had a very romantic dance on the front deck.

Corfu

14th June
Off early and motored across to Corfu town ready for the transfer of personnel. We tried going bow on to the quay with me making a few mistakes and getting a bit het up before deciding to anchor off instead.

NAOK yacht club

Sue and I spent the day getting lost in it, a much more attractive place than I had imagined. We bought Francesca a magnetic bracelet/choker/necklace and a load of fruit from the wholesale fruit market and had a very expensive light lunch.

Bill in Corfu

Sue in Corfu

Lost in Corfu

Mark and Francesca were all packed when we got back but didn’t take up our offer of taking them out to dinner so I made a rice salad instead. Then we had a text from Di to say they had landed so we ferried F and M and all their luggage across to the quay. After emotional farewells and hellos we then ferried Di and Mel aboard and suddenly we were the hosts in charge instead of the guests.

Di's 1st day

15th June
Neither Sue or I slept well as it was a very noisy anchorage. We got up early and motored across to Lidl, arriving before 9 am! Di and Sue bought a huge quantity of food and BEER and I bought a couple of items useful for our stay on the boat, a tarpaulin to provide shade and a new mat for the cockpit.

Settling in the tender

Off to Lidl

Then we set off for the mainland – 10.5 miles away. There was enough wind but not in the right direction so we set off on a tack. After two more tacks in a slackening wind the wind had veered and was in a favourable direction, but it was of very variable strength. We had a couple of mishaps, once where we went round in circles and another time when we hoisted the genika wrongly, tried to disentangle the ropes only to find the wind had swung again and it was no longer needed. Finally, after sailing only half the distance we gave up and motored to Pagania, just on the border with Albania.

Albania

This lovely bay had been largely spoilt by a huge fish-farming operation but was very sheltered and peaceful never-the less.

Bill blogging

16th June
The water at Pagania was too murky to entice us into it so we decide to try for the next place south, Sayiadha, even though the anchorage is shown as very shallow. Once we had left the bay the wind was behind us and we raised the genneka again, this time successfully.

Galley

Unfortunately our sail was too brief as the wind dropped again. We were so hot and totally becalmed so decided to go for a swim in the middle of the sea. Sue and Di pushed the boat for a while. We then had lunch adrift, raising a sail halfway through to take us nearer our destination. Sadly we had to motor the last 2 miles and dropped anchor behind a breakwater. It was very hot all day and we were glad of our new tarpaulin.
We swam across to a boat with a Welsh flag to wish them Bora Da and said we might meet the people at a taverna that evening. We had a feast with cold beers to start, squid, prawns, Greek salad, fried courgettes, fried aubergines and chips with retsina and ouzo.

Cockpit

17th June
Decided to stay at this lovely little out of the way village. Collected the fresh bread we ordered the previous evening, then after In the afternoon I took Mel, Di and Sue separately for a sail in the tender a Flatacraft. Each of them wanted to learn how to sail so we did tacks, gibes etc. A flotilla arrived gradually but some of the yachts were too big to enter the harbour. In the late afternoon the wind got up on the beam and I was concerned that the anchor would not hold and spent some time putting fenders in place, tightening the chain, in case it should slip. Sue made ratatouille in case it didn’t drop but at about 8 pm it did and we were able to have the meal at the taverna we had promised ourselves.

Sayiadha

Free Ouzo

18th June
We spent the morning doing chores, filling up the water, shopping for a new washing line, bread and milk and I went to an internet cafe and uploaded pictures to the blog and checking emails. We had the luxury of a fresh water shower on the quayside with our new Welsh friend, Richard, who then watched us as we undid the springs, hoisted the tender, stowed the gangplank and set off. We were very pleased with ourselves as we started sailing only minutes after leaving the harbour but after several hours of frustration with the wind dropping and changing direction and us only 1.5 miles from Sayiadha we dropped the sails and motored to Ormiskos Valtou, a secluded bay we’d stayed in before.

Blue-barrels

I was tired and irritable having found the journey frustrating. We ate the ratatouille, played the second half of our train game.

Evening

19th June
Woken early by strong winds and rain. I rushed out naked and shut the hatches but the rain had stopped before I returned to bed. I then cut up the old washing line and made the tarpaulin properly secure to maximise the shade it gave us. We had a day of swimming, reading and sailing the tender. Mel made a curry for tea and we played rummycup. Di and Mel decided they wanted to sleep on the stern deck even though the weather forecast forecast thunderstorms. They were just settling in when the rain started and they had to rush about closing hatches, getting bedding inside and sorting out alternative sleeping arrangements – ending up in the cockpit. Sue and I watched all this amused from our bed.

123 push

Di reading

Sailing the tender - Di and Bill

Di and Mel

20th June
It was still windy in the morning so we decided to set sail. Unfortunately our first attempt failed as the anchor chain turned the bow a towards the bank as we pulled it in and the boat failed to gybe so we hurriedly dropped anchor. We had breakfast and tried again, this time successfully and managed eventually to tack out of the bay in spite of numerous wind shifts.

Vatatsa

We put up the gennaker and started across the very busy ferry lanes only for the wind to die completely leaving me with no option but to start the engine and motor.

Gennaker

After only 15 minutes a southerly wind struck up and I hoisted the sails again. Then we had the best sail of our adventure so far, constant winds of up to 14 knots in a direction that allowed us to sail close hauled right to the port. There was an ideal space for us on the town wall even though the place was full of flotilla yachts. We ate out at a quiet cafe after a long swim. They produced a macaroni dish similar to mousaka which was what Sue wanted.

Platerias harbour

21st June
Woke early but went back to bed to read. Made toast in a frying pan with the stale bread. Then Sue cleaned the fridge, I bought bread and Di and Mel bought gas. Then the heavens opened. And I sorted the photos. After lunch we decided to go for a walk but we had no information on foot paths so ended up on the main road. We returned to the coast by a side road and walked along the seafront as far as we could. Then the heavens opened again and we all got drenched. After drying out, writing emails and this blog and reading for a while the wind got up blowing us directly onto the quay. One boat had to reset his and another nearly collided with the boat next to us trying to moor. It was stormy during the night and we had to get up several times to check all our mooring lines.

Platarias hills

22nd June
Still windy so we decided to go on a long sail. Had to spend an hour in an internet cafe first. Left the quay in very controlled manner – so very proud. Had to motor for an hour to get out of the bay. Then we sailed all the way to Parga, 19 miles. The wind was about 12 knots so we put the gennaker up but then there was a sudden increase to 22 knots and a rush to get it down again before the wind burst it. Our maximum speed was 10.5 knots! As soon as we dropped anchor a tender came alongside and shouted ‘Have you hijacked this boat?’ He was a friend of M and F called Geoff so we invited him aboard for a beer. Bill and Sue both felt a little sea sick so we went for a walk to put our stomachs right. Then an omlette, another card game and bed.

Parga

23rd June
We had a lazy morning reading and talking to Tom and Betty and Sylvia and Dave on Skype. I spent much of the afternoon correcting errors on my blog. Then we paddled the tender ashore and walked into Parga, checking menus on the way. We had a look round the ruined Venetian castle, perched atop a huge rock reminiscent of Criccieth Castle then strolled between narrow streets, up and down steep inclines, just like old Mediterranean towns should be. It is a touristy place but very picturesque with two bays surrounded by wooded mountains and littered with small islands and rocky outcrops.

Sue atop Parga castle

Parga sea-front houses

The ladies bought some fresh veg and fruit and then we sat down to eat as a busy taverna. We all had good meals and would recommend anyone else to go there.

Ashore at Parga

24th June
The weather forecast still predicted force 6 or 7 winds from the north west so we decided not to go far.

Chapel on a rock

We motored into a 1-2 knot wind from the south east to a small, uninhabited bay 4 miles away and had the whole place to ourselves for a while. We took the tender to the small beach and walked up the hill to a small road that lead to a second beach in the bay.

Bird on a wire (swallow on a stanchion)

We also tried snorkelling but the water wasn’t very clear and there wasn’t much to see. We tried our hand at fishing but the bread just fell off the hook. The Frenchman in the other boat in our bay caught two fish by dangling bread on hooks beneath a 3” cube cork and scooping the ensnared fish from underneath with a large net. We felt little wind all day.

Bill rowing again

25th June
The weather forecast again promised strong W to NW winds but we weren’t convinced. We motored out of the bay and launched our sails to a fresh SW wind. Mel was keen to do another long sail so we set off for Paxos. We got as far north as Parga after a couple of hours, once tacking back exactly over the same track as we’d sailed over an hour earlier. The wind strengthened and I decided we should try to use it to go north. First, however we had to sail west and the wind swung to NW. It became clear that Paxos was closer than Mourtos, the next anchorage in the north. The wind increased up to 22 knots but we had to put in several tacks to get within 1 mile of Mangonissi, our destination on Paxos.

force-5

We were going to anchor but there was space on the quay so we decided to moor there instead. Unfortunately we were unprepared for this and it took a while to sort out mooring ropes, fenders and the tender while the boat was being blown about the harbour.

Sign

But once we were sorted we moored in a comfortable spot and soon after were supping ice cold beers at the taverna 20 metres away. As we sat there we watched them unload a freshly caught swordfish from a dinghy and all ordered that for our main course and it was delicious.

Mongonissi

26th June
What a lovely peaceful place to wake up to.

Sue mopping

Walk to Gaios

We walked to the town of Gaios about 2 miles away along the narrow coast road. This is also sheltered by two islands but is quite commercial with many ferries bring tourists from Parga on day trips. It is still a beautiful place and had planty of mooring spaces on the town quay. We had much needed cold beers and then ate a lunch of pasties sat in the shade of a tree dangling our feet into the harbour waters. It was hot walking back but the wind had started to blow as yesterday. We needed a swim off the little beach in front of the taverna to cool down.

27th June
Sue and I went for a breakfast of toast. Then we set sail at about 11 and tacked up to Lakka in winds of up to 23 knots. Getting the hang of working out when to tack – add or subtract 120 degrees to current course. Lakka is pretty but very busy and our anchor did not hold the first time.

Nine Lives Lakka

Mel and Di rescued a Frenchman whose tender had run out of fuel and we were invited over for drinks. Sue chatted away amiably to our very hospitable hosts and drank a whole can of beer. We had an all-inclusive menu for 3 at a harbour side taverna, Sue just having small mouthfuls of ours.

Meal in Lakka

28th June
Up early today after the ferry woke us all with its horn.

Ferry weaving between yachts

Early morning swim, followed by breakfast, a walk through the olive groves to the lighthouse and coffee at a beach café.

Lakka Bay

Lizzard

Sue bought a bikini and then we lunched aboard – tomatoes, feta, cucumber, peaches, oranges and apricots. We then lazed about all afternoon. It’s become a routine now – one day sailing, one day (two nights) in port. A meal aboard (another routine – one night eat aboard, one night at a taverna) followed by a game.

Working on the Route

29th June
Set off for Mourtos, on the mainland, en route to our destination of Corfu on Monday, after a leisurely breakfast, managing to avoid the yacht that had selfishly anchored so that his yacht was above our anchor. The gennaker and the steady west-south-west wind carried us all the way – a lovely gentle sail of about 13 miles.

Mourtos

We all crashed out in the3 afternoon heat. At about 6 we surfaced, had a cup of tea and a swim before we paddled and walked to the town for our taverna meal.

Mourtos

Sunset Mourtos

30th June
Sue and I were up early and went for a swim, followed by our all over bath/shower. Basically we shampoo and shower gel wet from our swim, dive back in to wash off the suds, then use a garden spray to wash off the salt. It was also washing day and turn over mattress day. We went ashore late morning and after wandering round the shops and purchasing a water melon I found an internet café and had a beer with Mel while the ladies did more wandering. We had a pitta wrap called gyros at €2 each for lunch and ate aboard. In the afternoon Di amused us all with her attempts at fishing using a plastic margarine carton with 10 hook dangling underneath as a float with her in the tender with a large net ready to pounce.

Di Fishing

Father-Murphy

What a year! Started off with Mark and Francesca suggesting we do a swap, our car for their catamaran in Greece for 3 months.  Then we agreed to row for Porthmadog rowing club in the Celtic Challenge race from Arklow in Ireland to Aberystwyth in Wales at the end of April.  We were already attending a weekly indoor training session at the yacht club and doing weekly rows weather permitting but this has intensified so I’ve been rowing as many as 5 times a week.  This has been very demanding, both in time and energy but we have also had lots else going on. 

We had our appartment downstairs smartened up with insulation on the outside walls, new plaster over the artex, a new oak floor in several rooms and a new slate floor with underfloor heating in our main bathroom, a redesigned bathroom with new WC and basin, a new worksurface, sink and tap in the kitchen, a new skylight and redecoration throughout.  The work was only completed in March, just before the first booking in our upstairs appartment.  I did some restoration upstairs, sealing between the floorboards in the kitchen and bathrooms, resealing the showers and removing many layers of paint from the wall strings of 3 flights of the staircase.

We have driven back and forth to Bolton to give Sue’s Dad, Tom, support as he cares for her Mum, Betty.  And recently we have driven back and forth more frequently as Sue has had laser surgery on her eyes to correct her short sightness in surgeries in Bolton, Liverpool and the Trafford centre and even managed to take Tom and Betty back to Criccieth for a few days between check-ups.  We’ve also had visits from Alisa, Jo and Chris, Carla and Ros and it’s only the middle of April.

There’s plenty going on too in and round Criccieth.  We have a regular quiz night at the Lion Hotel on Tuesdays and a regular Jazz session at Cadwallers Ice Cream parlour on a Thursday.  The Yacht Club has something going on, probably once a fortnight, often with a meal.  I’ve been re-elected Chairman of Criccieth Tennis club even though I’m going to be away for most of the summer.  We were given a Community Chest grant for the purchase of new nets and posts and Terry and I painted the white lines of the second court so both courts are now in operation.  Unfortunately the surface of the courts is breaking up and we would need to raise about £30K to resurface and re-fence both courts.

 We both need to brush up our sailing skills and have booked on a yacht sailing from Holyhead for Sue to do the RYA Competent Crew course and me to do RYA Coastal Skipper on 10th May, following a week’s respite after the Celtic Challenge.  Then it will be straight into sorting out insurance and other stuff for our trip and for our posessions at home.  Two friends, Chris and Colin, are doing the change-overs for our holiday appartment.  Then down to London at the end of May for Ros’ 60th party and onward to Greece.

1/ Dog shit – it’s everywhere so, as well as having to spend all the time out walking trying to avoid it, when I fail I have the horrible job of cleaning it off my shoe and sometimes my car or carpet.

2/ The barking and aggression I have to put up with on most walks. I’ve only been bitten once but I’ve had a number of scares and always feel threatened when a dog barks at me. Even when there is no chance of them attacking me I find the noise stressful.

3/ Friendly dogs that jump up at you and muddy your clothes and their owners who say “Don’t worry he’s only being friendly” and I’m too polite to do more than smile when what I want to do is shout “Get your wretched beast off me,” or something ruder.

4/ The awful smell in some of  my dog-owning friends’ houses.

5/ The hair and smell left behind by visiting dogs in my home.

6/ Having to listen to “doggy talk” about how clever, funny etc. somebody’s dog is.

7/ Having to make positive comments out of politeness about someone’s dog with total insincerity – something I don’t even do if Sue asks me if something suits her when honesty prevails.

8/ Having to decide whether to tackle an owner who has just let his dog defecate in a public place – I avoid conflict as a general rule.

Also unbelievable are owners who go to the trouble of removing the dog shit into little plastic bags and then slinging the whole lot into a nearby hedge. Are they trying to draw attention to the good deed they’ve done?

I was walking along the beach today and I was amazed by the movement on the sand beneath me. Vast numbers of tiny animals swarmed as they became aware of my approaching feet, which must have seemed enormous to them. I wondered what they fed on, presumably the washed up seaweed. In turn this made me wonder what the point is of their tiny lives. They seem so abhorrent yet they occupy they are animals the same as us. What is the purpose of their existence? – to produce more horrid little creepy-crawlies? to keep the decaying seaweed from cluttering the beach? to feed whatever their predators are? None of these possibilities are purposeful. It wasn’t much longer before I related their existence to ours and began again to wonder what the point of our existence is.

Then I further wondered why does there need to be a point? Why do many of us want to believe we’re here for a purpose in addition to that of being alive. Life has to be revered and enjoyed for what it is. Yet most religions seems to try to persuade us that we’re here as part of a larger plan. They then seem to try to persuade us that there is another better life after this one and that we should make sacrifices in this one to ensure we are in favour when we get to the next one. I eschew all that. I’m a practical person and I know I’m alive, lucky to be here, and I’m going to ensure I enjoy what I’ve been blessed with to the best of my ability. I don’t need rules imposed by a religion that espouses a master plan to keep my behaviour within certain boundaries. Being a civilised human being I will achieve that without behaving in an uncivilised way. I don’t see the need for a greater purpose – being alive is sufficient for me.

I see religion as a major source of evil. Of people assuming power over other people and seeking to persuade them that their way is the only true way. I see the Taliban and others less ruthless trying to impose Sharia law on a population. This law that removes most of the rights of women. I see the Pope persuading his followers that birth control is evil when the globe is in the middle of a population explosion that threatens it’s very existence. I read about immigrants in the UK murdering their own daughters because they have brought ‘shame’ on their families. The Crusaders, the Spanish Inquisition, Northern Ireland, 9/11 – the list of evil done in the name of God is endless. A believer seems to consider himself superior in some way to a non-believer, that he should then force his beliefs on the non-believer, even to the extent of doing without regard for the well being of the non-believer.

We, in the UK, should stop the indoctrination of children with various religions; we should ban faith schools and disestablish the church of England. The country will integrate more quickly then and become more peaceful.

I couldn’t decide what I wanted to do on my 65th birthday so Sue said she would arrange something. She loves surprises but I didn’t make it easy to keep things from her as we spend most of the time together.

Wednesday

The celebration started with the arrival of Chris and Vicky on Wednesday. We prepared a 3 course meal for them and had a lovely evening swapping news of our various family members. C & V slept in our newly revamped guest room christening our new zip and link beds.

Thursday

We said goodbye to Sheila and Gary who had rented our upstairs flat for 6 weeks. We had decided to try to ride the Mawddach cycle trail on the Thursday and Chris had brought up his bike especially. We borrowed a bike from Manya, one of our neighbours, for Vicky who had not been on a bicycle since she was 14. We set off for Dolgellau in spite of the weather and sat in the car park eating our lunch hoping for the rain to ease.

Fortunately it did ease and we set off and were going well until Vicky discovered that the route was 10 miles each way. We didn’t quite make it to Barmouth and the ladies started saying they needed to get back before the shops in Porthmadog shut. We stopped for a cup of tea and a beer and just about made it back to the cars before the rain re-started. Chris and I arrived back before Sue and Vicky and I started to prepare the quick spaghetti we were to eat before our evening of jazz at Cadwaladers ice cream parlour. There was a knock on the window and looked out to see a familiar face, that of my sister Ros. Her arrival was a complete surprise to me and was the real reason for the dash back from Dolgellau. Cadwaladers was busier than ever as there was a guest musician but we just managed to squeeze in as Anita had saved a few seats. We left around 9pm and shortly after I had another surprise as my brother David, who’d had a 9 hour drive from Canterbury, appeared.

Friday

The weather was still a bit iffy next morning but we set off after coffee with a picnic lunch for Morfa Nefyn, the 6 of us in our old Picnic. We walked through the golf course down to Ty Coch Inn on the beach where we ate our picnic washed down with some drinks bought by Ros. In the afternoon we drove to the art gallery at Llanbedrog, an entrancing old country house with stunning views over the beach below where we drank tea in the weak sunshine.

We moved to the flat upstairs for the evening meal as Nicola and Shaun were due. Chris, Vicky and Ros did most of the preparation and we had Lebanese beetroot salad, followed by salmon, leeks and new potatoes, followed by pineapple and ice cream.

Saturday

Alisa, Jo and Louise (Alisa’s friend) arrived in the morning as we’d planned to take everyone on the Cambrian line to Machynlleth to the Centre for Alternative Technology. We walked up to the station en masse to catch the 9.50 train which only arrived at Mac at 12.28.

Then it was a short bus ride and walk to CAT where we had lunch and did the guided tour which was not really very interesting. We cut our visit a bit short so we could visit the town but unfortunately the shops (and there were some interesting ones) had closed by the time we’d had a cup of tea. The return journey was quicker and a further surprise was in store for me – Sue had arranged for us to eat as guests of Sylvia and Dave at Seabank hotel. Chris, who had been wearing an ECG monitor, experienced the irregular heart rhythms he’d been trying to record and he and Vicky decided to go to bed. The rest of us went to Porthmadog yacht club to listen to Django Jazz playing. Jo’s headache got the better of her and the 3 girls left before the music began but the music was superb and the 6 of us that stayed enjoyed it very much.

Sunday

David and Chris and Vicky all left fairly early after a splendid cooked breakfast and Ros Sue and I chilled out on the front in the sunshine after we’d made the flat upstairs suitable for the next lot of paying guests. We prepared a roast dinner for 4pm and invited Dave and Sylvia. Shaun was persuaded to bring his guitar outside after we’d finished and we had a singsong. In the evening we watched the TV and Nicola and Shaun went out.

Monday

Sue and I went rowing from Porthmadog yacht club leaving Ros to watch us from Borth y Gest. We had a coffee afterwards in the sunshine with some of my rowing friends. Shaun and Nicola had just got up when we returned at lunchtime and poor Shaun was not well and spent the rest of the day retching and sleeping in the back of Nic’s car. Sue and Ros went up to the shops after lunch and I did a bit of gardening. They were so long we were late for our visit to Anita’s for tea. She lives in a stone cottage with a large garden and gave us tea in the conservatory. Carla was here when we returned, yet another surprise! We had a vegetarian aubergine dish (except Nicola who went to the chippie and Shaun who was too ill to eat) and then said goodbye to Nic and Shaun. We watched TV in the evening.

Tuesday

Just after breakfast Bethan arrived – I’d ceased to be amazed by Sue’s surprises by then – and we were told to equip ourselves with walking gear. The ladies prepared a picnic lunch and then Dave and Sylvia arrived. We said goodbye to Ros who was returning by train to London and set off towards Snowdonia. I kept guessing where we were likely to be going but it was only after we headed towards Croesor that I thought we might be going to visit Simon and Elaine (rowers like Bethan). As we drew into the car park Simon and Elaine were there as were 4 friends from Criccieth who do the pub quiz with us and a huge banner wishing me happy birthday hung from the trees. Sue gave everyone coffee and her flapjacks. Two minibus loads of youths sang an impromptu “Happy birthday” in the carpark just to add to it all making me feel even more overwhelmed. Then Simon guided us on a full day’s walk to the west of Cnict.

Two of the ladies found it hard going at times and even managed to fall over more than once but they just laughed it off and managed to really enjoy themselves. Pete and his two lovely children was waiting for us when we returned to the car park and I received two handmade cards from the children. Simon invited us in for tea to his delightful cottage and the spread that greeted us was amazing. Simon had made chocolate brownies and Elaine had baked a cream sponge cake, a carrot cake, scones and a magnificent chocolate birthday cake with candles reading HAPPY BIRTHDAY BILL 65. I managed a bit of all Elaine’s efforts.

We only had 25 minutes for the next (and almost the last) birthday treat (also a complete surprise) – a trip to AllPorts fish and chip shop to listen once again to Andy McKenzie’s music. Carla and Dave and Sylvia came with us and Anita and Arthur were waiting on our table. Elfryn and Brenda were there too but unfortunately could not sit with us. Colin, Christine, Terry and Cath turned up too but even more unfortunately were told there wasn’t a table for them. Jeff (another rower) joined us later for a beer.

The last event was our normal Tuesday pub quiz but more rowing friends turned up, Dave, Ceinwen, Bethan and Mark so we formed a new team (Bill’s Brains Trust) which managed to come 3rd, just 1 point off winning.

Wednesday

Rest day

Thursday

Drove to Wrinehill. An Indian with Mike and Jo.

Friday

Set off at 8.30 from Crewe station with 12 others on The Great Aleway Trip, organised by Alan on a blueprint set by James May and Oz Clark. First pint with a cooked breakfast in the railway bar at Dewsbury then visits to other similar on different stations. A short walk along the Huddersfield Narrow Canal and more pints.

Bloodied 65 year old

No more celebrations. So a huge thank you to all my siblings, children and friends who made this week so enjoyable and especially to Sue who managed to organise all these events without me knowing anything about most of it. It was the best birthday ever!

It is important to understand why more people don’t use public transport. It’s a lot to do with convenience and habit also pays a big part. I suspect that the last time many people traveled by bus buses were not as modern and comfortable as they are now and smoking was allowed on them.

Why is a car more convenient than public transport?

1/ Speed of getting from A to B

2/ Convenience of being picked up and dropped off door to door

3/ Not having to wait or being involved in timetables

4/ Able to carry goods – shopping from the local supermarket, children and all their paraphernalia, etc

Why is public transport more convenient than a car?

1/ Don’t have to drive

2/ Don’t have to think about parking

3/ If you rely on PT entirely don’t have the worry and expense of owning a car

How can the authorities influence the public to choose to go by PT?

1/ By making it cheaper to go by public transport – increase parking, fuel etc. charges and decrease fares

2/ By increasing the frequency and spread of PT

3/ By making buses and trains more convenient for carrying goods – including bicycles which can be used for part of a longer journey or for leisure – and shopping – wheeled trolleys like old people use could be made in different sizes and enlarged for the weekly shop and ramps designed for ease of getting them and pushchairs aboard.

4/ In large conurbations by providing free or reasonably priced personal transport (e.g. bikes, electric vehicles) at stations and other sites.

5/ By increasing the punctuality and reliability of PT.

The disadvantages of cars.

People often don’t realise what the downside of cars but if they cycle or live on or near a main road they do. Cars are noisy and dangerous. So noisy that it’s difficult to get away from their noise entirely, so dangerous if they were invented now health and safety would ban them. Cars spoil the centres of all our cities, towns and villages with their air and noise pollution and even when they’re not moving, just by being there. Parking clutters our roads and often our pavements and creates the needs for some of the ugliest of current urban development – the car park. Whether a tarmac wasteland or a multi-storey monstrosity car parks are a blight on the landscape. The need to park is more pervasive than is immediately obvious – planning regulations often require the provision of parking spaces. I recently had to flatten half of a lovely walled garden to obtain planning permission. I was converting a 9-bedroom Victorian terrace into two apartments of 2 and 4 bedrooms.

Then there are the roads that are continually expanding, taking up more and more land just in order to allow the motorist to get forever faster from A to B. Journey length is judged by time as well as by distance so by speeding up the system so people can go further in a particular length of time you increase the number of cars. As an example if 1 hour is the maximum commuting time that a person will consider this would equate to say 30 miles on country roads or 70 miles on motorways.

We’re just atoms mainly of oxygen, hydrogen and carbon. The atoms don’t know they are anything to do with us, they weren’t in the past and in the future they won’t be either. So does that mean our physical self is irrelevant. There is a continual metabolism so many of the atoms we were made of ten years ago and no longer with us any more. Are we therefore still the same person?

The first order is atoms, molecules, physical stuff – stones, stars, a table

The second order is life, any life. This is another dimension to just existing and is very fragile. Crush an ant, crash in a car. One second alive, the next not alive. They call that dead but really a corpse is back in the first order.

The third order is creativity, appreciation, knowledge. Something in the mind. This is in its creation and appreciation even more fragile than life. A flower is beautiful. It is beautiful for a reason, to be attractive to insects. They are also attractive to humans but that is a coincidence. After creation a work of art can survive its creator so we listen to Mozart, enjoy a Henry Moore sculpture.
A CD is in the first order yet contains information from the third order.

Religion is based on superstition and has been responsible for the most atrocious acts of violence over the millennia. A person prays for the recovery of themselves, of someone close to them or even for their side in a battle. Yet so many of us suffer. Do religious people really think prayer works. That there is a powerful being that will favour them just because they humble themselves in front this higher being.

Then there’s the promise of life after death in some nether world, again that is only granted to those who have worshiped this powerful being. Imagine walking down a path across which ants scurry about. Can you imagine if the ants were to pray that they might be spared being trodden on firstly that you could detect it and secondly that you would favour one ant rather than another? The idea is obviously ludicrous but the analogy is accurate. We even used to image a kind of human figure as our Lord and ruler. Real rulers have exploited this and deified themselves. It just shows the poor imagination of the believers, the lack of analytical thought and the inclination of humans to anthromorpholise everything – start with little children with rabbits that have human faces and talk.

Science has been a major contribution to the demise of religious beliefs in communities that take it seriously. Yet far from explaining everything in the end it appears that the position from which any measurement affects the result and thus makes it suspect.