Well we've finally managed to get internet access after a
month in the Marina. (Yippee!) You forget how important the internet is until its
not there. Friend’s family... Blogging!! Forget trying to run any sort of
business! We've rented a new type mobile device called ‘Huawei’, like a
wireless router. Ideal for boats because as we move around in the summer we
should be able to still use it! . Its working great so far so fingers crossed.!Weathers still great, which is a little odd as its meant to be a wet island
Samos in the winter months. The winds turned around to the north, so its a bit cold out
of the sun but get shelter and it’s hard to know what to wear!. Still hard to
believe it’s a couple of weeks to Xmas and were still in shorts. We've bought a
cabin heater for the boat as its dark early and we are bunkering down for the
evenings. We've met some good friends in the marina (Anne and Bob) who have
leant us a load of DVDS so we have TV again! Taras son Dec is also sending us
out some more with lots of other Brtitsh goodies like gravy! Mash without gravy…
the Greeks don’t know what they’re missing!! Anne and Bob also have a car, so
they've been brilliant showing us all the winter hot spots around the
island. Including a salt bed where the pink flamingo's over winter! Brilliant to see but not close enough without binoculars to put a proper pic of them on here yet!! We need to get a decent camera now as the one on the ipad is not good enough to capture the true beauty of the island and the amazing things we see!
The area of the island is 27 miles long and about 8 miles
wide. It is separated from Anatolia (Turkey) by the 1-mile-wide Mycale Strait.
While largely mountainous, Samos has several relatively large and fertile
plains. A great portion of the island is covered with vineyards, from which
muscat wine is made. The most important plains except the capital, Vathy, in
the northeast, are that off Karlovasi, in the northwest, Pythagoreio, in the
southeast, and Marathokampos in the southwest. The island's population is
33,814, which is the 9th most populous of the Greek islands. The Samian climate
is typically Mediterranean, with mild rainy winters, and warm rainless summers.
Samos' relief is dominated by two large mountains, Ampelos and Kerkis (anc.
Kerketeus). The Ampelos massif (colloquially referred to as
"Karvounis") is the larger of the two and occupies the center of the
island, rising to 1,095 metres (3,593 ft). Mt. Kerkis, though smaller in area
is the taller of the two and its summit is the island's highest point, at 1,434
metres (4,705 ft). The mountains are a continuation of the Mycale range on the
Anatolian mainland. According to Strabo, the name Samos is from Phoenician
meaning "rise by the shore". There is so much history here, the birthplace of Pythagoras, so give it a google if you get the chance coz will take too much time for us to do it on here!!
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| Smallest Xmas tree ever!! |
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| (MUM!!)... Pink flamingoes on the salt flats in the background.... look like seagulls in this shot LOL |
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| Turkey in the distance and another great little anchorage for the summer... |
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| Tara's determined to find a new puss! |
Well the Christmas tree is up and we are getting ready to celebrate Greek style!! Which probably means lots of Ouzo and Greek dancing! Steve is very good at it now after our trip in the summer with Captain Yannis! We have got used to the cycle into town for essentials,,,ie wine!! lol and also the trip into Samos town{Vathi} on the local bus/coach. It is a great little journey along the coast high in the hills so the view is amazing and we always feel as though we are on a holiday coach trip !!
There are still many "pinch me" moments and we are loving our new life here. Once spring comes there is the promise of much more to see as we are assured by those here that the spring flowers are a wonderful sight and of course we will be looking forward to the warmer weather and setting sail to explore our islands many coves and beaches as well as those of the neighbouring islands. Meantime it is winter here too and hopefully it won't be too cold on the boat . Let's hope Father Christmas figures out how to open the hatch !! Lol
