We're back!

Al Reid was there to pick me up at Kos Airport after a great flight from Aus. Etihad Air gets my vote, mainly because they didn't steal my wallet as happened with Emirates last time I arrived.

The boat was still on the Hard and filthy after a 'red' rainfall covered it in dirt that had blown over from North Africa. Inside was clean and tidy but staying on the boat proved untenable as it was way too far from a power supply point, a water supply point and most importantly, the toilet!

After complaining to marina management about having to pay for the boat on the Hard without being able to live on it, they let us have an apartment overlooking the Marina in the centre of everything for half price.

For those of you that may be new to this blog, I was asked many times last year for a video tour of the boat. If you are interested  click here

You may have read that Kos has become the 'go to' place for Syrian refugees. They have been moved along by the Turks or bypassed the Turkish coast choosing Greece and therefore the EU rather than Turkey.

My impression of refugees was of a bedraggled, desperate, destitute lot who left their homeland with the clothes on their back and whatever they could safely carry.

Sliced up dingy

We strolled along to the place where they had all gathered and here was a crowd of well dressed tidy looking folk taking selfies with their IPads or smart phones, some coming out of the Western Union office looking as if they'd just won the lottery, probably having transferred adequate funds from Syria I assume.

Speaking to a local restauranteur we were told that they arrive in the mornings, slice up the dingy they arrived in rendering it unusable and ask where they are....

Al taking a closer look at the inside of the hull

                                                                            When they are told they are in Greece, they give the whole "We are free thanks be to Alla" spiel and then make their way directly to the police station somehow knowing exactly where it is and that it is the first port of call for refugees?

Not much to impede their arrival either. This is the Coast Guard Boat for Kos! Someone ran it up something hard at high speed which would have taken some explaining and is going to take some fixing.


So, I'm happy that these refugees are not destitute but they would be desperate none the less. I couldn't help but reflect on the incongruity. Kos is a holiday destination, brimming with pink, happy tourists. I couldn't imagine how these people felt about that or what lay ahead for them in a foreign unwelcoming land with a different language and culture and the thought of having to start to build a life all over again.

With nothing to do but wait for new batteries and a repaired helm plotter we eat, drink and just soak it all up. I thought this was worth a photo... an itemized meal bill. What the? Must have been prepared by a doctor.

Al's time away included Skiing at Big White and then a motorcycle trip from Canada to Costa Rica which he had planned before we dragged him over to Turkey to help crew last year.





Mine... well. Get the kids to school, make a nuisance of myself at the office and basically tread water until it was time to come back. I did manage to get my Open Water Divers ticket, have my nose fixed and get the years tax sorted but I couldn't help being a little envious of Al's Central American adventure. Maybe the next little jaunt....

Now, before you go I'd like you to take a look at this. I believe it is a first. We strapped a GoPro to the top of the mast and time lapsed the procedure of getting the boat off the hard, into the water and onto the dock in the marina. It is worth a look, just click here