Kicking around Kefalonia Thursday 12th October

 Until the Wednesday evening the plan was that we were all going on a boat trip to Zante with George and his friends Sandra and Kevin. Mary had left for home on Wednesday morning and since we received the news that the boat trip had been cancelled, we decided by way of compensation we would all go on another car safari. The reasons for the last minute cancellation of the boat trip were a little mysterious. High wind and choppy sea was the justification given,  but quite frankly the weather didn't seem any different from what it had been all week. As it transpired, we actually did two cruises on the day. 

But I am getting a little ahead of myself, remember we were by now,  card-carrying members of the Loggerhead turtle game warden's society, so we had to put our knowledge to good use. Neither Sandra nor Kev have seen the turtles so we couldn't pass over the opportunity to revisit them. The turtles did not let us down. 

A word about car parking in Kefalonia. Parking is very laissez-faire, although there is some private parking which is charged for, all public parking is free. Bearing in mind we were far from high season, Agostoli had more or less run out of places. Under these circumstances people resort to double parking and use of the hazard lights or there is a continuous trawl around the streets. Something will have to change. 

We had decided to explore a new part of the island so took our first cruise,  the car ferry across to Lixouri.

Each item was €3 per crossing, for example, a car €3 or a passenger €3, easy. Here is the ferry. 

 

This is the stern or in non-nautotechnicological terms, the back. Also see a little contrast below. The back of Cunard's cruise liner Queen Victoria, curiously named after a member of staff at our apartments. She (the ship) has about 2000 passengers and around 1000 crew. Agostoli hosts about one a day of these beasts. They must be both a curse and a blessing.  Me, I prefer a car full to a ship full. 

Meanwhile we'll take in the view and dream. 

Now you can meet us all sitting like Buddhas underneath the banyan tree. Left to right, Kevin, Sandra, George (with the ball), Helen and Nigel. This was taken after we had coffee in the main square in Lixouri. 

This is looking back west towards Lixouri from the mountains on the peninsula. The Gulf is visible centre left. 

We  are making for Petani beach which lies on the west coast of the Paliki peninsula. This beach is described as the finest one on the entire peninsula. Accessible by sea and a single road which is precipitous enough to discourage all but the foolhardy. The beach can be seen from the edge of the road, but please don't lean over too far to try and get a better view. 

This photo is a 360 degree one, which is why it may be confusing you. To the left is the Xouras restaurant of some renown owned by Dina a Greek-American lady. The main restaurant was closed for the season but the bar and snack kitchen remained open. 

A more conventional picture of the beach. Petani beach has crystal clear water as befits an EU 3 star (best) rated Blue flag beach. The floor consists of tiny pebbles ranging in size from around 2mm up to 5cm. They are quite hard to walk on and retain your balance, (ask George). A small modesty screen with a door is provided for those who want to change before they go swimming. The water is cuddly warm, though the beach shelves quite steeply and you are out of your depth within a few metres.  There's no reason to panic however as I found it very hard to get below the surface. 

After a very enjoyable afternoon on the beach when each of us could do our own thing (I'd swear Sandra did a little lotusie meditate) it was time to tackle the ascent and head back to Lixouri. 

This was a striking statue and it had the great benefit of stimulating some discussion. Situated on the harbour front, central to the main square, we spent some time discussing the figure and the ship's bow plinth where there were references to architecture, both ancient and modern, mathematical equations and geometrical diagrams. In addition portraits of people and Greek words. Maybe celebrating all things Greek. However with no stated title and my complete failure to find any textual references online, we are not really much further on. I would welcome any further information. 

Concentrating on the above resulted in me giving insufficient time to Lixouri's most famous statue. The statue of Andreas Laskaratos a satirical poet from the town. His statue was placed in the town with his back deliberately facing Agostoli, to take a stance against the long running feud between Agostoli and Lixouri. The feud dates back to 1757 when the capital was moved from Castro (St George's Castle) to Agostoli. This was not a popular decision with the good citizens of Lixouri and the grudge has been handed down through the generations.

 

Definitely time for our second cruise of the day and on home. We are heading east with the setting sun behind us. I bet that's a brilliant sight on Petani beach.