Hull Yeah!

We felt that we explored Lindos sufficiently and we were ready to be on our way to Karpathos. So we decided to sail during the hot midday weather down the coast west so that the next day we can leave early for Karpathos. We anchored for the night at Agios Georgios Beach and the following morning went ashore to get some breakfast. There were not that many options but we finally found an open restaurant that turned out to be all inclusive hotel. We really tried to figure out whom to pay for the food but there was no one to take our money so we just walked away. Ok, all in all, good breakfast and the price is right.

Our sail to Karpathos was uneventful and we managed to sail most of the way there. We anchored in Diafani bay at the northern part of the island because our plan was to visit Olymbos, a wind-battered village high in the mountains and sheltered from modern life until very recently. In antiquity, the locals realized that the only way to avoid the constant raids of Saracen pirates is to relocate their village far away from the shore and that is what they did. All the houses are built vertically and we had to take steps up and down at every corner. The local residents sure got a ot of steps in! For centuries Olymbos survived in isolation, retaining its customs, art, clothes, holiday traditions and even special dialect. Everything changed after the paved road arrived to Olymbos in 2010s: most houses on the main street have been converted to restaurants and shop to satisfy the tourists who come here in droves to get a load of Greek authenticity. And still to see these white houses clinging to the mountains, right above steep cliffs on Karpathian west coast, one can still imagine the hard life these villages had to endure to survive in that dry, windy, thirsty terrain.

The bike ride there was hard, over 12 miles back and forth with about 1600 feet of elevation. We did not set off early enough because it takes a while to get our bikes on the road. We have to carry them disassembled to the dinghy, then transport them ashore, then take them out of the dinghy and then assemble them again. The bike ride was brutal but we persevered. We certainly envied every passing bus and car on the way up the mountains. The strong winds were either pushing us forward or blew against us but either way the wind felt good and cooled us down.

We got to the village and had lunch. On the way out, we collected our bikes from the storage behind the bakery and bought a treat from them to thank them for letting us store our bikes. However, it turns out that, unlike everyone else so far in Greece, the owner did not accept credit card and only wanted cash. We did not have any (what were we thinking, going to prehistoric village without hard currency on hand???). The bakery owner said to just forget the money but we kept trying to figure out if there is any other way for us to pay her. Then, as luck may have it, a couple stepped in and paid for us. Thank you, Jack and Greetje from Netherlands. That was really kind and appreciated. We offered to take them sailing over the weekend but they could not make it work. We will pass your kindness forward!