Paxos Info's Blog

The End

Jaco — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:23:04 +0000

It all comes to an end, all that has been posted is what we plan. Now we will see what really happened and if our holiday looks like the plan or better.

Paxos Flotilla - Greece

Day 14 Meganisi to Vounaki

Jaco — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 05:47:17 +0000

Well this is it, last bit. We could go straight or work our way around the east side like in the picture. It will all depend on time available. I will add some pictures little later.

Then it is the bus ride back to Preveza and the Flight to Gatwick. Some serious “Frame of Mind” adjustment will have to be made again in London before we take the flight back home.

Rules of the “Road”

Jaco — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 19:57:16 +0000

Now there are several “Rules of the Road” or as others call them “ColRegs= Collision Regulations” or “Right of Way” etc etc

I am sure of one of them however, if you end up in front of this lot, whether you are

Not Under Command, Restricted in ability to Maneuver, Constraint by Draught, Vessel Towing, Fishing Vessel, Trawling Vessel, Vessel under Sail, Submarine, Any Power Vessel, Windsurfer, Kayaking, On Hobie Cat, Kite Surfing, Swimming, Surfing, Snorkeling, or for that matter anything else.

GIVE WAY, MAKE SPACE, VAMOOSE, BUGGER OFF, CLEAR THE AREA,

AG MAN,

JUST GET THE FUCK OUT THE WAY

Oh Shit!!!

Flotilla ?

Jaco — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 11:31:09 +0000

So what do people actually do on a Flotilla Sail, the answer to this question is quite simple.

Whatever they want to do!!!!

More comments will follow, in the mean while take a look at the pictures.

Why is a bathroom called a head on a boat?

Jaco — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 11:11:53 +0000

In “the olden days”, ships did not have bathrooms. As unclean as it may sound, their system worked for them at that time. Toward the bow of the boat there was a section of the deck that was simply covered with a grating, and was open to the sea below. Sailors needing to relieve themselves would do so over the grating and any waste fell through to the sea, keeping the area clean. This was a simple and effective system for the times.

In Maritime terms, head referred to the top or forward portion of a part of a ship. The head of the mast or the head of the bowsprit or the term dead ahead are examples. When a Sailor needed to relieve himself he would have to go to the grated section in the forward part of the vessel. So when he wanted to go forward he would simply say, “I need to go to the head of the ship”. That terminology has stuck with us and to this day we nautical types still refer to the bathroom as the “head”.

Our culture has progressed in this area and today virtually every boat has some sort of bathroom facility. These range from porta potties on small boats to fixed holding tanks on others. It is illegal to discharge any waste overboard within three miles of the shoreline or in bays.

Now lucky for us our yacht have 2 “Heads” including a shower in each as well. It is still not allowed to use them when we are in a Bay or in the Harbour. In the Harbour it is no problem as you just get off the Yacht, walk over to the ablutions block and do your thing.

In a Bay however, this is a different story, “knyp” is all I can say, or convince the skipper to up anchor and get the yacht moving. So make sure you do your thing before you enter a Bay where you are going to do some snorkeling in order to avoid having a scare underwater.

As for the shower, we will have a shower in each Head and then there is one on the outside as well. We will fill up with water each day, although we have to pay for the water, it is worth it, the sea is quite salty here and a quick rinse with fresh water after a swim will help a lot. When we are in the harbour, we can also use the ablutions block for a nice warm shower.

Things are normally quite cramped in Heads on yachts, so keep it clean and tidy.

Greek word for chocolate means ‘food of the gods’

Jaco — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 16:01:19 +0000

Chocolate is made from the seeds of the tropical cacao tree. In the Mayan language, it is pronounced “kakaw,” and in Greek, it is called “Theobroma,” which means “food of the gods.”

All I know is we will for sure be testing some of their finest chocolate’s and report back to you. A chocolate with my sundowner drink is what I plan every day. After all how must the “Stoutigheid” be kept at bay?

Day 13 – Free Sailing

Jaco — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 12:18:52 +0000

Another day of FREE Sailing, this means we can go anywhere. There is a lot of beautiful spots around the area, depending where we go will determine if we eat on the yacht or not.

Up to the Team to decide where we go….

Gallery show some options for the day.

Yacht Saloon

Jaco — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 16:22:12 +0000

Official Definition : The dining and social room on a yacht, The living area on a yacht.

Now some of these pictures are of the type of yacht that we are going to sail on, some of them are not. In the Saloon we have our dining table, some stowage places along the sides. We also have the galley in here where we can make some nice things to eat and coffee etc etc.

The “Pole” is also here, actually the mast come right through the deck and goes all the way right down to the keel. Whether this will be used in other ways, only time will tell.

The Navigation station is also here, we will do some of our planning here in oder to avoid ending up on the rocks, which I decidedly think is BAD.

Now as we all would use this area, it would probably be a good idea to keep this reasonably tidy. This is also the space where we can play a few hands.

Greek Fruit & Vegetables

Jaco — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 15:40:59 +0000

“If you visit Greece in the summer and stay a couple weeks there are two things that will happen to you if you are able to break away from the tourist restaurants and find yourself in the places the locals eat. The first thing is that you will eat the best tomato you have ever tasted in you life. Shortly thereafter you will eat the best melon you have ever eaten in your life.”

Now this sound just wonderful, read the whole article, it is great and very good information.

Greek Wine

Jaco — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 14:15:38 +0000

I do believe we will be forced to sample some Greek wine, now often there are some really good wine locally available but how do you know what to buy. A colleague came up with this advice, just spend a little time browsing the racks and observe very clandestine which wine the locals take of the shelve, problem solved. Nobody intentionally buys bad wine. Sounds like good advice to me, we will have to try this one.

Glass of Red

Red Wine

Agiorghitiko (“St. George’s [grape]“) is a variety native to Nemea that grows mainly in the Peloponnese area, producing a soft, fruity red in many styles. Its sensory attributes are similar to Beaujolais Nouveau but, unlike its French counterpart, the St. George ages well for about 5 years.
Xinomavro (“sour black”) is the predominant grape variety in Macedonia, centered around the town of Naousa. This variety has great aging potential with a palate reminiscent of tomatoes and olives, and a rich tannic character. It is often compared to Nebbiolo.
Mandilaria, also known as amorgiano, is mainly cultivated on the islands of Rhodes and Crete. Wine from this grape is often very tannic and frequently blended with other grapes to soften the mouthfeel.
Mavrodaphne, or “black laurel”, is a variety that grows in the Peloponnese and the Ionian Islands. It is blended with the Black Corinth currant grape to produce a prized fortified dessert wine made in the Solera style.
Kotsifali is a variety mainly grown on Crete. It is blended with Mandilaria or Syrah to enhance its color.

Glass of White

White Wine

Assyrtiko is a multi-purpose variety which maintains its acidity as it ripens. It is similar in character to Riesling, and is mostly island-based, being a native variety of the island ofSantorini, whose old vines have been resistant to Phylloxera.
Athiri is a lower acid variety and one of the most ancient. Originally from Santorini, it is now planted in Macedonia, Attica, and Rhodes.
Debina is a white Greek wine grape grape primarily in the Zitsa region of Epirus. The grape’s high acidity lends itself to sparkling wine production.
Lagorthi is a variety mainly cultivated on high slopes (850 meters) in the Peloponnese. The grape produces a very malic and fruity wine.
Malagousia is a grape growing mainly in Macedonia, with a special aroma leading to elegant full bodied wines, with medium-plus acidity and exciting perfumed aromas.
Moschofilero is a Blanc de gris variety from the AOC region of Mantineia, in Arcadia in the Peloponnese. Its wines offer a crisp and floral character in both still and sparkling styles.
Robola is most grown in the mountainous vineyards of the Ionian Island of Cephalonia. It has a smokey mineral and lemony character, excellently complementing seafood.
Roditis (the “pink” or “rose” grape) is a grape that is very popular in Attica, Macedonia, Thessaly, and the Peloponnese. This variety produces elegant, light white wines with citrus flavors.
Savvatiano (the “Saturday” grape) is the predominant white grape in the region of Attica, where it displays excellent heat resistance and shows a distinct floral and fruity aroma when cold fermentation is practised.^[14] When fermented without cooling, it makes retsina or rustic unresinated wines that complement Mediterranean dishes well.

Read about Ionian Wines Here