June 16, 2011 – Amorgos, Greece

The month of June brought us to Greece and the sixth continent (and final) continent that we will be touring.  We’ll leave Antarctica until the next trip J  We were so excited to go our first Greek island, Akronisi, we had all of the kids on deck to help anchor.  But what we didn’t know is that Akronisi is an Army base so we were welcomed to Greece by a soldier with a bullhorn yelling, “Go Away!!!”, “Boat, go away,” several times over and over.  Oh well, so we picked up the hook and went on to the next spot.

We checked in to Greece at the island of Samos and prepared Imagine for a visit from Philippe and Michele (Marc’s brother and wife).  When we left Chicago, they said that they would visit us in Greece and it was hard to believe that almost three years later, we were here.  With all of the dust and grime of being “on the hard” Imagine needed a massive spring cleaning and we all pitched in to make it happen.  Before Philippe and Michele visited we had fun hanging out with our friends from Texas, Bill and Judy on the boat Bebe where we celebrated Bill’s BDay.
 

We had a wonderful time touring Greece’s Dodecanese islands with Philippe and Michele.  The clear, turquoise water was the perfect playground for all of us, as the kids initiated their aunt and uncle to the swing off of the whisker pole, snorkeling off of Imagine, and even catching a fish.  With jobs and three small kids at home, our goal for them was utter relaxation and I think that it was accomplished as Philippe stayed off his email and Michele finished a book or two. 

As with all of our guests from the USA, they came bearing lots and lots of stuff; school books, fun books, Spree candy, boat parts, and even a big combined BDay/Christmas gift for the family....a wii.  As Caroline exclaimed when she saw the box, “We’re not weird anymore”.  OK, maybe still a little weird but this gift definitely put the kids back in the “real world” and they are having a blast with it…..Dad, even likes it.  Thanks Aunt Michele and Uncle Philippe!!!!

Although, we played and relaxed with our guests, we didn’t let Imagine get any growth on the hull, as we visited seven islands in the eight days that they were with us.  Some of the highlights were; seeing the cave where St. John wrote the Book of Revelations on Patmos, cliff diving and exploring the lagoon on Makronisi, anchoring beside a picture perfect blue domed church on Lipso, dining out Greek style in Kalimnos, and hanging out on the beach in Kos (even if there were a few too many topless sunbathers – those wild Europeans).  Even though we saw some beautiful sites, the most fun that we had was just hanging out and enjoying our time together as a family. 

Although it was sad and difficult to say goodbye to Philippe and Michele, it wasn’t quite as hard this time, as we know that we are getting closer to home and we may even get to see them in Caribbean.  But the kids have made it very clear that the next time that they visit they want to see their three little cousins also.  We decided that instead of spending the day, moping around and being sad, we picked up the anchor and motor-sailed the 40 miles to Amorgos.  It’s time to start heading west. 

June 30, 2011 – Levkas, Greece
        

We thought that we were robbed in Athens, but the real fleecing occurred in the Corinth Canal.  Although beautiful, the tiny – 3.2 mile – canal cost us $367 for a half hour ride.  I guess that we are helping to bail out the Greek economy.  The canal separates mainland Greece and the Peloponnese and provides a link between the Aegean and Ionian Sea.   For us, it cut approximately 200 miles of beating into the wind, out of our trip across the Med.  Cut through the rock, the canal is only 76 feet wide and the steep cliff face walls are almost 300 feet above the water.  At $115 per mile, this was by far the most expensive canal that we have used; at least, it may have also been the most beautiful.

But, I can say that we haven’t been through a canal that has had a longer history.  The concept of a canal through the Corinth Isthmus was first proposed at the end of the 7^th century BC, but the scope of cutting through the solid rock was too daunting.  Instead a paved road was built across the isthmus where sailors would use rollers to transport their ships.  This mode of transportation was used until the 13^th century.  Over the thousands of years, many leaders, including Alexander the Great, toyed with the idea of a canal but it wasn’t until 1893 that a French engineering team accomplished the goal. 

Even though we were to the point of being ruined on ruins, we decided to hit one more ancient Greek sight along our way – the Ancient City of Delphi.  Before leaving Imagine, I literally had to promise the kids that this would be our last ancient ruin in Greece and to be honest, Marc and I have had our fill as well.  But once considered the center of the world, this picturesque ancient city was a real treat and we were glad that we decided take in one last ruin.   Built on the slopes of a mountain, looking over the valley of Cyprus and olive trees the city was peaceful and lovely.  With a large amphitheater, Panhellenic stadium, and many temples, the ruins were somewhat intact and impressive.  The modern village of Delphi was also quaint and pretty, with a main street lined with Greek restaurants overlooking the valley below.  Unfortunately, with very few Euros left after the pick pocketing and canal fees and only an AMEX (which isn’t readily accepted in Greece), we opted to take the early bus back to Imagine.
 

The day after leaving Delphi, we caught up with the kid boat, Mehari from Arizona, which has 6 kids on board - Wow.  We first met Eric, Rachel, Maggie (16), Levi (15), Emma (10), Lily (6), Zoe (4), and Miles (11 mo) in Israel.   It sounds crazy to have that many kids on a boat but when you meet them you quickly realize that they are a very calm, relaxed, and fun family.  Since Israel, we have been on different paths and we were all excited to reunite.  For the last week, we have been traveling together stopping at beautiful little anchorages in the Ionian BBQ ing on the beach, swimming, snorkeling, playing, and socializing.  It’s been good for the kids, and for the parents, to have some friends to enjoy. 

We have been moving pretty quickly lately, because we were eager to catch up with our good friend Martin, on Anima III.   We first met Martin, in the Galapagos, in April 2009 and have cruised together on and off since then, especially through SE Asia, the Indian Ocean, and the Red Sea.  We haven’t seen Martin since Egypt as he didn’t go to Turkey.  As a teacher from Austria, Martin is great with the kids and a good friend of both Marc and mine.  We were thrilled to have him meet us at the dock in Levkas and to help him celebrate the completion of his circumnavigation.  Congrats to Martin!!!