Messolonghi (P's arrive)

Pyxis
Karen & Richard
Sun 19 Sep 2010 22:58

Sunday 19th September – Messolonghi (P’s arrive)

38:21.668N 21:25.004E

 

Early this morning we said goodbye to Rosi and Otwin as they left to continue their passage up the Gulf of Corinth towards Turkey.  We then cleaned and tidied Pyxis in final preparation for the arrival of the P’s this evening. 

 

At 1pm the small hire car we had arranged was delivered precisely on time.  Having checked the car, we gave the delivery driver a lift back to the bus station in town so he could get home.

 

Late afternoon we set off for the drive to Aktio airport just outside Préveza, about a 2 hour run.  With time to spare we decided to go up the coast road via Astakós and Palairos which we had been told was very scenic. 

 

The roads were small and winding at times but fortunately there was little traffic, the locals just overtook us at high speed as we ambled along.  The signposts were a bit of a challenge at times, particularly as the spelling of some of the small villages can vary to those on the map.  Generally we made good progress in the right direction, though we did have to stop for goats and cattle in a couple of places as they roamed along the road.

 

The route took us along the side of the Ionian Sea; to our left we could look down across to the islands and to our right up to the mountains.  The views were very good and driving gave us a very different perspective as although we knew the area well we had only previously seen it from sea level.

 

The P’s flight arrived safely on time.  Unfortunately the previous flight was delayed and landed at the same time so we had a bit of a wait whilst they dealt with the luggage from both planes.

 

We set off as the sun went down for the return journey to Messolonghi.  The coast road didn’t seem a good idea in the dark so we wound our way via Vónitsa to Amfilochia to pick up the new dual carriageway down to Messolonghi.

 

The Sunday BBQ was just coming to an end as we drove into the marina just before 10pm but, to the amazement of the P’s, there were still many people sat around the BBQ near the back of Pyxis chatting as we arrived.  We unloaded the P’s and their luggage and then had a drink and something to eat, sitting out in the cockpit of Pyxis.

 

Messolonghi – Aktio:  Coast road

© Pyxis 2010