Whilst a month is a long time in reality it went very quickly so it was with a clean van and spring in the air we left Nafkaptos. Our friends Sonja and HP whom we met at Lake Bled had been onto the island of Lefkada and it looked enticing. I have said sooo many times before taking a large van, and ours is not large in length at only 6.4m, but anything bigger than a car is even too big for this summer idle and it has to be carefully considered. But March before anything really starts to open for the season is a perfect time, the roads were empty the water was so beautiful an Aqua and deep blue the likes of which we have never seen before. Sonja, and I think shes right said its the white stones that reflect through the water and it is mesmerising even when up close the colour didnt change. I had one mission and that was to swim in it. We spent three glorious days on the island, a real gem and visited some of its beautiful beaches and enjoying the vistas from its coastal road and yes I did get my
swim and boy it was a cold one. We spent our last night/day at Ammoudia in a Bay where Poppy enjoyed the sand we did some beach cleaning before we headed to the Port at Igoumenista for our 1am Sailing.
After a few attempts to actually get into the Port, we ended up with the trucks?!? Then I had to go separately through the terminal building and meet Graeme with the van on the otherwise, then a bit of a hunt we eventually found lane 7 and our boat. The chaos that ensued over the next few hours was a sight, it may have been that the original boat for this crossing had sadly had a devastating fire on it and this boat wasnt built for trucks but the goings on were amazing with vehicles reversing on. We kept our fingers crossed we werent going to be one of those! Some 3 hours after starting the process and an hour and half over the sailing time we were on!! At least we did get a few hours sleep in the cabin.
24hrs at a coastal spot, we were also tired from the previous days activities. The rain passed and we drove into Albarabello which is a little town of beehive houses. Made in this style as when they were given authority to start urbanising the area permission was given but only without the use of mortar. Therefore the self supporting domed roof was the simplest configuration and also the easiest to demolish. Although the town is a tightly squeezed area of these now refurbished buildings as we drive in they are littered through the landscape.
The following day we head towards Pompeii with a stop off at a viewing spot for Matera. The guide book tells us we will be transported back to the Holy Land and it does have that look about it. Our viewing place is across a massive gorge and the original cave houses of its first inhabitants, who came here some 7000 yrs ago made their homes making caves in the limestone rocks. More elaborate structures including churches were built on top in later years and in the late 1800s, Materas cave dwellings became noted for poverty, poor sanitation, meagre working conditions, and rampant disease. Evacuated
in 1952, the population was relocated to modern housing, and the Sassi (Italian for stones) lay abandoned until the 1980s. Today with investment it has of course home to many visiting tourists, but it still allows you to understand how its original inhabitants lived here. After an enjoyable walk through the landscape we head to our overnight park up on a hill, only to be thwarted by some more of the white stuff. We abandon the stop and head towards the coast, after a long days drive we stop at Potenza not an attractive town or parking spot, a car park, sometimes you have to take what you can, but we are away from the higher mountains and the falling snow.
