Wednesday

I'm going to post more on this blog when I get home as it's a bit difficult to get onto the internet here.

Just to say today we took a boat trip to Agios Pavlos rock and triopetra where we had a fab lunch with Tim and sally, who went swimming before and after.  The scenery is so stunning but I will have to wait until I get back to put the pics on here as I don't think my previous ones have worked.  But of course some are on Facebook.

Waiting now for Bill to get ready as we are going out tonight in the mountains to a place called Silla for dinner as the menu the other day looked very interesting.  Mind you I am looking forward to going home and having some of my own cooking, Bill has said I still make the best moussaka and we've had some here ranging from veery good to "all right"

More tomorrow, it's our last day and I think we are going back to Damnoni beach which is a favourite.

Lutro for the night

Saturday we tok a boat trip to loutro which is only accessible by boat. Or ferry in our case to stay the night.  A fabulous experience, staying at a very nice hotel owned by Christina who Tim and Sally know well from previous visits.

At last I managed to air drop a picture !!

Having had a lovely meal and a good nights rest we got the ferry back the next day and then Damnoni beach again for lunch and a swim/snorkel.

Today we went back to Shirana beach which is a bit of another climb with great views and much swimming and snorkelling after another great lunch.

Last night and today, Friday

Last night we ended up in yet another fish bar where we had a banquet of fish to share as I wasnt hungry after the huge moussaka at lunchtime.  Lovely evening with Tim and Sally they are very good company with coffees and brandies to finish (not me tho).

Today's trip involved a drive into somewhere called Spili where the mountain springs come out of lions mouths along a stream, a bit touristy but remarkable just the same.  A quick beer there then off to Danmoni beach again for lunch and swimming, snorkelling and sunbathing.  I had corn on the cob for lunch and the rest had chicken, sardines and shrimps that looked lovely, we are going back there next week.

To get there we passed through a drive thigh a huge gorge called Kourtalioti, the scenery was just stunning.

Tomorrow is the boat trip to a beach that can only be accessed by boat and we intend to spend the night in a hotel there as it is just a dream place to be.

Another lovely day, great that we have our own tour guide Tim and Sally !

I'm sorry the photos didn't come out, I will try again sometime but I put most of the best ones on Facebook.

So Tuesday night we met up with Tim and Sally and had a meal in the goat restaurant but it was quite late when we ate and I was tired so retired early.  Yesterday we met up and went to Damnoni beach and had a lovely lunch of sardines and salad then sunbathed on Plakias beach after.  

The evening was hilarious - Tim mistook the tzatziki for a napkin and picked up a whole load of yogurt !!  Eeaarrr he said

Today we have been to a beautiful beach not far from here called Shinaria but the hair raising bends and heights didn't do me any good, still it was well worth the journey as the moussaka I had was very authentic and Bill and Sally had the chicken dish of the day and Tim had a pork souvlaki which is a kebab.  Hot day but quite windy still I know I have had some sun today.  There were plenty of goats on the hillside one looked like a Spanish black bull.

The ride back in the jeep was off road then we saw a nudist beach with some bloke bending over - we thought it was a goat.

So here we are in the Lamon taverna enjoying a glass of wine, they drink ouzo which I find disgusting but then I'm going to try some Retsina which they said was equally awful.  Mum do you still like it ???!!!

More later....

Arriving in Plakias

Back in February Tim and Sally, landlord and landlady from the Wheatsheaf  said why don't you come over to Crete and have some cracking laughs in September ?

So I duly booked Plakias which is Sally's favourite place in the south of Crete, and he we are a day earlier than them sunning it up and ending the lovely view of the bay and the surrounding mountains. It is truly a spectacular place and the views are fantastic.  We walked to the port, some 2-3km but made out way back fairly quickly in the heat as it was getting very hot.

After having a couple of beers in a local literally waterside cafe we came back and decided as we didn't get here until gone 1am last night just to lounge around the pool.

I have to say I'm  impressed with the hotel as they put some salad and bread out for us in the room in the fridge and a complimentary bottle of water as the journey was 11+ hours all told and the transfer time is nearly 2 hours as we didn't get here till well past midnight.

So now just relaxing having a glass of wine on our terrace - Tim and sally will be here about 8pm where we will join them for either a meal or just a gin and tonic.

So I will now try to upload photos :

Salcombe to Lyme Regis

As soon as we left the Dart River I lost my internet connection at Start Point so haven't until now been able to post.  Salcombe is a very pretty estuary and we laid on one of the visitors pontoons just out of the run of the tide.  Paddling ashore in the dinghy was a bit of a struggle because they are difficult to row and I nearly fell in, but didn't as that would have got to the Wheatsheaf eventually when we got back.  It was a close thing.  The waste and recycling has its own pontoon but trying to get on to it proved difficult from a low dinghy to discard our garbage.

We needed stores; running low on wine, bread and other supplies, luckily all the shops were open and it was crowded with tourists.  No supermarket though and although we paid a little over the odds for the wine it is superb Marlborough Sauvingnon blanc.  This morning we took on water as the water is soft here and it's lovely to have a shower on board without using hardly any shampoo.  I made use of the open butchers to get some sirloin steak and some fresh croissants.

So after that about midday to get the right tides we headed back east towards Start Point, crossing the entrance to the Dart river whereupon another pod of dolphins came towards us at speed and I managed to get a decent picture this time (loaded up later when I'm home).  What I am going to do is go to the Apple shop next week and purchase something that wil allow me to post pictures from my phone or my iPad onto this blog, it's infuriating as the scenery along the coastline and the estuaries and rivers is stunning.

So crossing Lyme Bay in some heat of the day, flat calm seas I read yet another book, that's my 4th this trip and I'm really enjoying them.  it's taken around 5 hours to get here but worth it as the harbour has changed alaot over the years and now can accommodate boats like ours in this tidal harbour and we can get ashore without the dinghy.  Bill is currently being a tourist and looking at a trawler that's just come in to land the fish.

Dart River

So here we are in Dittisham on the Dart River just up from Dartmouth where it is a lovely setting very quiet and glorious sunshine.  We picked up a visitors buoy about 10 minutes rowing from the shore where there is a good pub but we are eating aborad tonight with my home made spag bol.  Probably go for a drink later.  I am currently enjoying a spanish style gin and tonice.

Yesterday we took the bus from Torquay to Paignton and had a very nice lunch in a place called the Harbour Inn where I had a very fresh plaice and Bill had a piece of haddock with chips the batter was fantastic.  My plaice was with garlic butter and absolutely delicious.

Decided to look around the small harbour and I went to the Harbour Masters office and met a very helpful mand called Simon who gave us the low down of visitors.  The harbour dries out completely at low water but there are a few moorings just outside that we could use and then row in.  It may be one of our destinations on the way back as I'd love to try the rooftop restaurant called TJ's as the menu looked great and Simon gave it the thumbs up.

Bill is currently trying to feed the ducks with my stale loaf of bread but trying not to feed the seagulls who are very aggresive and horrible.

Looking forward to Salcombe tomorrow.