We actually anchored Wednesday night just round the corner in ‘Pizza Bay’ before moving into the marina on Thursday lunch time. As previously mentioned, it’s not really a marina, just part of the harbour wall with laid mooring lines and water and electricity if needed. No other facilities. We’ve specifically come here to participate in the Cruising Association meal in a local taverna organised for Friday evening. And a great event it was, with over 30 CA members turning up so the opportunity to make new friends and catch up with old aquaintences, including Nigel and Mo Cuthbert who we last met sailing round the Peloponese three years back and who had specially flown in from the Ionian, and Dean and Alison on Silver Witch.
Saturday morning, the email arrived, our Residency Permits were available for collection in Kos from Monday! So we could either sail down there, but parking a boat is notoriously difficult, as you can’t reserve a place in the (expensive) marina, nor the very busy Town Harbour, so again we opted to get there and back by ferry, although unlike our first trip to Kos police Station, we couldn’t do it on Monday, so settled for the 4am ferry to Kos on Tuesday, returning late in the evening.
We’d noticed Greek flags and bunting up on the prominade and on Saturday morning we understood why, there was a large memorial service in memory of the 72 Greek navy lives lost on September 28th 1943 with the sinking on the Vasilissa Olga by German JU 88 bombers, followed by the sinking of HMS Intrepid later in the day. The sinking of both ships lead to the battle of Leros, in which the Germans captured Leros with the loss of over 600 allied lives but many British soldiers were helped to escape with the help of Greeks who knew the terrain.
Drinks with a few CA members at Marietta’s on Saturday afternoon, followed by more socialising with Dean and Alison on Jacana.
Sunday and Monday were lazy ‘catch up’ days with cloud and the first rain for a long time although the engine oil plus filter and fuel filters did get changed.
Tuesday was collect Residency Permit day from Kos police station, so up very early on Tuesday morning to catch the 4am ferry and loiter around Kos from 6am to 9.30am and then collect the permits. We did have to wait a few minutes as an elderly British couple were panicking having been told to sort a 5 year large pile of bank statements in date order outside the office. Then we were summoned inside and after signing for ours we were in the possession of permits valid for 10 years. 22 days ago we weren’t at all optimistic about getting them and now we can come and go to Greece for as long or little as we want for the next 10 years without having to worry about Schengen rules.
Unfortunately Tuesday is the day that all Kos monuments and museums are closed, so the only option left to kill the time until dinner and the 2030 ferry was to find a sun lounger and celebrate with a few beers.
We could have had another day or two at the Marina, but we now need to cross the Agean for lift out on the 9th of October at the Almira ship yard near Corinth. As previously mentioned, we’d booked this yard in anticipation of heading back to the Ionian area to attempt to renew our permits in Agrinio, where we originally had them issued.
So a slightly late start on Wednesday morning, and off westward.
