Albanian hospitality

Leaving Greece was always going to be sad. We'd spent almost 2 seasons of sailing in Greek waters: from the Aegean to the Ionian. Circumnavigating Greece was a wonderful experience. But the world awaits : at least the rest of the Mediterranean.

Albania was largely unknown to us. A few people we know had been there, but it was basically all to be new. Great ! A new country and culture. 

Albania was an ex communist country like Eastern Europe. The Greeks had referred to them as a country of gypsies, a Russian sailor I met in Corfu said they were bandits and would never go there. The coast is rather inhospitable. After he first few days I wondered why bother. But our visit to Butrint archaeological site in Sarande, Tirana the capital and now Durres has convinced me this is a place worthy to spend some time. As cruisers we need to watch our euros, Lek ...so for this Albania is great. Cheaper than Greece in most things. The absence of good anchorages or facilities for yachts is problematic, but not insurmountable. 

                                

Pavlov in Durres commercial port

                                   

                                         

Pavlov is now in Durres next to a high concrete dock. Our latest visitor is a large steel ship on bow. See Steve's blog for pic.

Hospitality must be an Albanian characteristic. We have been an oddity in the streets. Everyone stares at us? Steve says it might be his shorts! But all people we meet are very helpful and generous. 

A few examples of this hospitality: in Sarande a 17 year old girl took me to change money because the bakery couldn't change my 5ooo Lek note. She spoke excellent English and wants to study psychology in Norway. She happened to listen in to my attempts at conversation and offered to help.

In Orikum I went to the village to get money and some food, leaving Steve on Pavlov in the only marina in Albania. Walking back from the village a car stopped and a man said" port?" I clearly stood out again. After doing so many auto stops in Turkey I studied the man and car , and decided he was genuine. First hitchhike in my life. Safe to say I made it back to the boat with two ice creams barely melted at all. 

In Durres we were beckoned over to 3 men sitting in local coffee shop. They asked us to stay for a drink" raki" ? We said ok for coffee. It was only 9 am. It turned out that they were from a large ship nearby called Roger?! they said it was their way, to offer hospitality to strangers. 

In Durres yesterday, we stopped for a coffee after shopping in the open air market. A young man began to speak to Steve. He was a professional soccer player. His dad owned the coffee shop and offered to buy us the coffee. Wonderful hospitality. 

History is another interest of mine. When The National museum in Canberra was built it was very controversial. It reflected a different view of our past. History and its presentation certainly is not objective. Albania has had a violent past. The twentieth century has witnessed war after war. Studying photos of 19th and 20 th century Albanians often show men, women and children holding guns. The reputation Albania has a country in which blood feud still operates has some basis in fact. But the country still is coming to terms with its communist past: like the rest of Eastern Europe.

The National Museum in Tirana is a typical static, not modern museum. The period after the war when the communists were in power is presented as the period of terror. There is no other information on the period 1945 to 1990. The period of the war is missing, where a Nazi collaborating government was in power. Yet when you visit places like Durres there is an emphasis on monuments which celebrate the efforts of the partisans in standing up to the fascist invasion in WW2. They were communists. Statues stand to remind all today of the fight. In other excommunist countries such statues were pulled down. but they commemorate Albania standing up to the Fascists and the Nazis, so they stay. 

There is a conflict here. Truly representing the past is a difficult thing. 

                                          

                               

                                

 

                                                     Plaques on walls in Durres ,

                                  evidence of the opposition to the fascists in Durres.

Six months of Wintering in Lefkas

Time for remembering and reflection:again. Lots has happened since November. Berlin, Potsdam, Prague, Xmas and meeting new friends. Soon we will depart Greece for new countries- Albania, Montenegro, Croatia and our next winter home Sicily.

Firstly Germany. What a great place! Due to just good luck we arrived in time for the celebration of the coming down of the wall. Steve's blogs have covered this but maybe my perspective is different: bound to be.

For at least 20 years I taught WW1 and Germany 1918-1945 to HSC students in NSW schools. There were times that I said I didn't want to study or teach these topics any more. I wish I had the opportunity to visit Berlin and Potsdam while exploring these topics.

I was struck by the landscape. We drove along motor ways, or autobahn, into the heart of Berlin. I could easily imagine Hitler's tanks rolling along them or his people's car the Volkswagen, which I am pretty sure I saw photos of when it was first produced next to a beaming Hitler, on one of these autobahns. Around Berlin it is quite flat. There are quite few horse stables outside Berlin , so flat.

Our Moroccan room in wonderful Petra and Marco's home Deetz, Germany

Petra and Marko our dear friends were great hosts in Germany. They really went out of their way to give us an amazing German experience:cultural and culinary. We visited Kiel,  Lubeck and Weimar. Drank German beer, experienced a real beer house, were taken to some truly amazing musical and cabaret events. Mutti's Kinder was probably my favourite, followed by the musical event in the church in Potsdam. We were definitely enculturated! is this a word?

Germany

Prague was a city I have always wanted to visit. Buildings in the centre of the old city are covered in paintings, or drawings. the clock is beautiful. At night the lights make Prague a fairy land. Fortunately we stayed in a hotel near the train station. We soon got a gist of the tram network and started to use it. It rained a bit so using public transport was essential. I remembered the film "The Incredible Lightness of Being " which Ray and I saw when it was first released. I was also reminded of the images of Russian tanks rolling into this beautiful city in 1968 as Dubcek had tried to give communism a human face. Moscow was not ready for this. The cold war was at its height.

We spoke to a woman in a lovely coffee shop about the economic situation in the Czech Republic. Many are unemployed and businesses are going under. She said she was lucky to still be there. Tourism is clearly vital to Prague's economy. There are many sites to see and the centre looks prosperous. But it is only a facade, as for many of these cities in Europe. Go into the streets behind and you see the poor living conditions. Greece is the same. What tourists see is the side which they only want to see in the main. The real country is a few streets away.

Back in Lefkada for Xmàs, Anne and Gordon hosted lunch. Great to find friends so far away. Finally I finished my painting after Classes with Lissa in Lèfkas town ,bought a new guitar from Berlin and continued going to the gym. My hand was a minor issue, but the ganglion got cut out for 4300euros!

My painting finished, but how am I going to frame it!!

Not happy!! 

So now in Moutros.We cast off the lines in Lefkas and sailed north to Paxos. Now opposite Corfu we wait to cross for Greek Easter. Can't wait. 

Going to try blog more in 2015, you know history and everything.

Yasas!

The Ordinary Things

Some may think all we do is loll around in ports, foreign cities or sailing to new destinations. However ordinary things too need to be done. We also need to keep our minds engaged.

Running out of clothes or using that towel for too long also needs a solution. Washing.

Pavlov was not given a washing machine. Imagine the power it would consume. I have met other cruisers with machines, but they usually don’t live full time on board or spend a lot of time in marinas. Our washing machine is two part. One part plastic cylinder the other part muscle: usually mine.

Wonder wash  given to us by Sarah in Orhanyie

Manual labour has its pluses. Mindfulness. I can immerse myself in the task and while away hours. It is also a healthy activity, particularly for my right arm. I used to try to turn the machine around so both arms were exercised but I gave up on that idea up.

Water is always of concern. At the moment we are at anchor and it is blowing so we wont be leaving this safe anchorage for a day or two probably. Keeping water available for drinking and cooking is vital. So washing wont be done for a while.

When done our safety lines provide nearly ample space for drying. I have only personally lost one t- shirt and one pair of pants in the time on board.  I think.

Yesterday I decided I would start to time timetable my time when at anchor, not going ashore investigating new places. Listening to a podcast of the Radio National Health Report at 3am last night on Alzeimers  reinforced this idea. Keeping the mind active when sailing or anchoring is not a problem. New things or solving problems is food for the brain. But there are times when we sit and sit, so organizing ones’s time is essential. You do get bored after a while.

 Reading is of course easy. I like real paper books so this is a problem in non English speaking countries. Fortunately we picked some up at Yacht Marine last year and a couple gave us some of their old books a while ago. I don’t like the e books. I think it’s the light, or something. But we have some of those, a 1000, if I really get into trouble.

Then there is music. I liked learning the guitar before we left Australia but they were too big for the boat so we took them back last year. I brought my Blues Harp which I try to play. And then I bought two drums: in Turkey then Greece.

These are fun to play. The bigger is loud. So I practise usually out on the deck while Steve plays guitar in the saloon. But then in Voulos I decided to buy a guitar again! Bright red! Trying to play it again has been great. Steve had been keeping my timing in check. Theory lessons also are part of the deal. 

As a child I liked to draw so Derwent pencils, of course, paper and crayons have been purchased. Drawing is also a mindful pursuit. Hours pass trying to get it just right. The crayons were forging the pencils a little harder. Fortunately I am an impressionist.

In November we go to Berlin for a month. So German lessons from the net also take up some space on my Nano. This takes determination. I did 4 years of German at school so this helps. We should be doing the same with Turkish and Greek. I did listen to some lessons, but that was hard work so a few key words we try to remember.

The internet when available has to be the best source of entertainment. The SMH, BBC news, emails, Abc podcasts, researching new ports or our other excursions into foreign lands like Israel, Rome and London. I love researching and the net is essential. Of course downloading TV series must not go unmentioned as it is our nightly entertainment, unless it is hot day and we also have Midday at the movies. We close the curtains, get out the cold drinks, or coffee and slide into our positions on the couch for an hour or two.

Today I am going to timetable myself, like back at school, to keep those brain cells healthy. Might do a spot of boat maintenance or cleaning too: forgot to mention those activities.

Akti Peninsula- remembering Fratricides

While in the Cyclades last year I read "Fratricides" by Nikos Kazantzakis, the writer of Zorba the Greek. This story follows the life of a priest living in post war Greece, during the civil war. Like Kazantzakis , he is wrought by metaphysical and existential concerns. The priest criticises the priests of Mt Athos. According to him they are not concerned with people just making money and living a good life them selves.  Such was Kazantzakis inner turmoil spiritually that he lived in a monastery for 6 months. However he and the Greek Orthodox Church were doomed to clash. They condemned him and when he died in 1957 refused for him to be buried in a cemetery.

His work is worth reading, though difficult at times. He reflects on history and his own personal struggle.

As we sailed past Akti Peninsula where Mt Athos looms over 6,000ft above, I remembered this book. The monasteries and hermitages were colossal and quite remarkable. Steve has given you the history of this site. Here are some more images.

Island hopping in the North Aegean

To sail from island to island is wonderful. To be able to see your next destination is comforting.  Travelling from Lesbos to Lemnos, Samothraki, Thassos and now Kavala in northern Greece is what sailing in the Med is about: day sailing in  perfect conditions. Over the last month we have mainly sailed. The engine has been used but not nearly as often as last season. So for us this means less money on fuel and more comfortable sailng.  Peace and quiet.

The personality of each island is apparent when you visit them in succession. We are lucky to be able to stay as long as we like this year in each place due to our year long visa for Greece.

Limnos or Lemnos had the visage of a place affected by war: the Gallipoli campaign. My grandfather William Burtenshaw walked the shore of Moudros Bay in 1915 before that fateful landing on 25 April on the Gallipoli Peninsula. As we visited the graves of the young men who had been left behind I felt a connection to the site through Will. I wish mum had talked more to him and then to me about what he remembered of this place.

Limnos is a comparatively low island. We had grown accustomed to high craggy cliffs, occasionally pine dotted. This island appears windswept. The harbour is extensive. You can imagine all the ships waiting in the bay, the hospitals set up on the land surrounding.  The Hellenic Airforce is based here. Jets were always flying over, practising manoeuvres. The military presence is palpable. It is particularly evident in the main town, Myrina.  The local café owner said that the Australian Ambassador to Greece visted the site and his restaurant where he heard about the plans for the 100 year anniversary of the landing. Australian warships plan to be there too. They hope people visit this site as well as Gallipoli.

Samothraki is a beautiful and peaceful island. It seems to be trying to attract tourists for eco tourism. It is certainly a place for hiking and bike riding. Samothraki is a comparatively small island with a population of about 2000 which doubles in summer. Only one ferry comes here from the mainland and it is not connected with the other islands. Seraphin, a café owner told us that this lack of connection has made it hard for tourists to get  there so this is hard for business. The small population, the lushness of the landscape, and the interesting archaeological evidence of past cultures make this site a worthwhile addition to any trip to the north Aegean.  Hiring a motor bike made the excursion inland possible as there are few buses.

Samothraki 

I think I can.......

Stylised Nike Figure at Chora Samothraki.  Original found in Great Sanctuary site, now in Louvre.

Thassos is certainly much more affected by tourism, manly Greek. The two ferries which service this island arrive and depart on the half hour and cost 3 Euro. Often they appear nearly empty.

Thassos beach

Thassos

Again we were able to moor side to the dock. A short walk into the main port on the island brought us into tourist land. We discovered a little beach about 500m away where we could escape the heat for a dip and use their wifi. Locating wifi has been vital. At last in Thassos we signed a contract with Vodaphone for 12 months which will give us 20 gig per month. This will not be enough however so we still will search out free wifi.

Thassos

Beautiful green blue bay Thassos

knarled olive tree

Thassos beach

Hiring motor scooters on Samothraki and Thrassos enabled us to see much of both islands. From waterfalls and deserted beaches to archaeological remains and small tavernas by the sea, both islands had their charm.

Thassos also introduced us to Gert and Ina in their Cat. Having set sail from the Netherlands they are now thinking about ending this part of their journey. We spent time with them singing and Steve and Gert jammed together. Steve has missed these sort of opportunities so really valued their company.

Now we are stern to the dock in Kavala. Town life for a change. Today we “Lidled”.  All boaties know the value of these excursions. We bought a fishing rod in town to troll with and hopefully enhance our chances of catching our dinner.  Shops provide opportunities to idle our time walking around the town.

Kavala dock looking to the castle

View back to dock from old town

Rocks are always available to view. I mean archaeological sites. Yesterday we caught the local bus to Philippi, named after Philip 11 of Macedon. There were artefacts from Greek to early Christian times. Roman and Byzantine ruins also exist here. The museum, air-conditioned, was a welcome respite from the heat of the day.

 

Phillipi

Phillipi

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Protected mosaics

Bronze figurine in museum Phillipi

Glass Phillipi Museum

Clearly EU money used to build the Museum.

Hoping to find the mud baths we walked into Lidia. Dusty and hot, no shops or a taverna so we turned back to Kavala. That night we listened to some blues, badly played Steve said, being played at the café opposite the boat. Hopefully we will hear some good blues at the “Bikes and Blues” festival being held this weekend. We will ride our bikes there as it is only a couple of kms away.

More on that latter.

Limnos-

Lesbos had been a pleasant and safe introduction to Greece. Sigri on the west coast provided us with our last calm night at anchor before launching for Limnos. 

Near the entry to Sigri we noticed a boat wreck on a tiny island. I think it was an island since it was very sandy and rocky: maybe it was just a lot of rock. The wreck is on the far left of the photo below.

Wrecked boat at entrance to Sigri, Lesbos

Wreck of boat

The sail and later motor to Limnos was very calm. Earlier reports said that wind was coming so we wanted to be in a safe harbour by then.

lighthouse Sigri

We arrived at Moudros to be met by a Greek Coastguard ready to take our lines. They were expecting a cargo ship later that night but they were going to dock on the other side of the pier. Marcel and Martine dropped by to say hello. They were anchored nearby. He reported that wind was coming. He was right.

sunset Limnos

Pavlov "safe" but the calm before the....

Moudros town

Moudros church

Moudros

Neat garden "Greek style"

We left the boat early to locate the Military Cemetery. Limnos was the staging post for the attack on the Gallipoli peninsula in 1915. The harbour in Moudros is very large. Hospitals were set up to treat casualties. Little did they realise the catastrophe that this campaign was to be. British, French and Commonwealth troops, including my grandfather, left the comparative safety of Limnos for the hell that Gallipoli was to become. There are at least 2 cemeteries on this island where you can find graves of Australian young men. This cemetery just outside Moudros was beautifully maintained, as are all the cemeteries of war dead that we have visited here and in France.

Moudros Bay 1915

Moudros Military Cemetery

Many ANZAC graves

Owen's poem "Dulce Decorum Est" resonates here

so sad, died for the Empire!

looking towards British , Indian, Egyptian, French and Russian graves

We missed the bus to Myrina so true to recent form we hitched a ride. The first car to drive past picked us up. It was 30 kms to Myrina so we were grateful that the lift took us all the way.

The port was quite calm, but no yachts. There was the coastguard and fishing fleet. Behind the port was a large rocky outcrop. A Genoese castle was built on top it and overlooked the port.

Myrina

Myrina

Myrina

The other side of the castle, a pretty sandy beach but too cold yet to swim

Restaurants on sandy beach Myrina

Greek caiche Myrina

Genoese Castle

Myrina Archaelogical Museum

Myrina was settled in prehistoric times and in antiquity. Evidence has been found linking the island to Minoan period to Roman occupation.

Sacrificed young bull

Series of artefacts

Today, we woke to a different Moudros. Windy...... Glad we had relocated to our concrete jetty inside the harbour, the day looked grim.

Windy day Moudros

 Pavlov was being pushed off the dock by the wind, nevertheless my anxious self kept observing the lines to shore. Were they secure??

20- 40knots !!

See Pavie in background- the only yacht in port!

windy selfie