 26 April 2007Katakolon According to the daily schedule the sunrise this morning was at 06h46. Not that I saw it because today is sleeping-in day. This morning we have arrived in the small port of Katakolon, Greece which is a popular destination because it is close to Mount Olympia where there are some more ruins and is where the ancient Olympic games were held. Even today it is where they light the Olympic flame using a magnifying glass and the sun. And, last of all, Mount Olympia is where yet another of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World was located - the Statue of Zeus, which was a gigantic temple and statue of a seated Zeus made of ivory and gold which inspired the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC. But all of that we won't be seeing today because it has been decided that today will be a day off. No more ruins. No monumental walking tours through cities. Just taking it easy. Don't worry, however. It's all ruins anyway. We've seen enough of those already. The Temple of Zeus is long gone and they won't be lighting the Olympic flame today, of course.  As you can see the Veendam is docked quite close to the town and it will even be an easy walk in to have a look around.  And so we're off to take a look around the town. Welcome to Katakolo.  There is even a sort of beach in the town. Albeit kind of crappy.   The water here is not the beautiful clear blue water that we've become used to on this trip so far.  A sign at the beach showers informs us that "Shampoo Using Is Forbidden". I hope that means just in these showers and not in general.+  And so we head into town. This is all there is, it seems. Just this one street of shops and cafés.  Something about this boat reminds me of a Van Gogh painting somehow.  Some fishing boats with the Veendam in the distance beyond.  Beyond the better maintained storefronts on the main streets the houses here are run-down.  There are plenty of touristy stores to buy things, but I want something that at least seems authentically local. This shop is run by an old couple who tell us in fractured English that the make their own Olive Oil. Sounds good. I will take a bottle of that.  On the walk back to the ship we pass by a local fellow fishing.  He has this huge pole but the fishes he's pulling out are like 4 centimetres long. What's the point?  Back to the Veendam we go. Not much happening in Katakolon, which was just what we needed today.  Some kind of local welcoming committee is handing out free Ouzo and Baclava to the returning passengers.  Well, that's it. Fast-forward over a day of relaxing and swimming and we set sail once again.  Back out on the water again we head North once again. The clouds and islands on the horizon give me some hope for the sunset this evening. These cloudless sunsets are nice, but I prefer there to be a bit of cloud for the light to reflect off of.  I'll just sit here a while and watch the islands sailing past us.  I am fascinated by the wake of the ship, aren't I? I like the colours of blue.  Far off in a reddish haze are some Greek islands.  Soon we shall leave Greece behind us and sail up past Albanian and Croatia once again.  Ok. Here we go. A long string of sunset pictures begins and I will have nothing much to say. Talk to you later.          Well that wasn't that great, was it? The secret of a good sunset is for there to be clouds ABOVE the horizon, but not below it so that once the sun sets the light is able to shine off the clouds above.  So it's off to dinner once again. I meant to take a picture of this guy earlier, but didn't get a chance. This is the fellow who comes out when dinner time arrives and plays a song on these chimes to announce that dinner is ready. It's a bit old-fashioned and hokey, but this is exactly what I look for on ships - old-school traditions.  As you can see, once again I have chosen the meat course. And with that a somewhat shortened day of pictures comes to an end. But, as always, before we go to bed let's check the Daily Logbook: Fact of the day: Hmmmmm. I lost the port information sheet. Sorry, no facts today. Distance travelled (Piraeus to Katakolon) = 254,5 Nautical Miles (471 km) Total distance travelled = 4781 km |
