Donkeys wait while goods are unloaded from the morning boat delivery. Above: Sunset at Hydra


popular Hydra where yachts moor two deep in the height of summer and donkeys are the only form of transport. We met a friendly family from Tavistock while walking to the monastery on top of the hill above the town who had earlier recognised Leonie’s Devon flag. They kindly offered the use of their holiday-apart- ment shower. We found another shower in


Poros, in a tiny cubicle at the back of a mini-market (called Snoopy’s....) whose half emp- ty shelves featured a limited selection of cheap wine and ouzo and a few bags of crisps and nuts. I grappled with the handheld showerhead in the suffocating space as the guttural voices of male customers buying cigarettes and cheap booze floated through the thin walls. The well-fed owner was very friendly and proud of his lovely daughter Sofia Zara, an opera singer based in London. When I got back to the boat Carl


island of Aegina, famous for pistachio nuts. We bought fruit and veg off the back of a caique boat from a super friendly woman who has been trading on the quay of the island’s main port for 20 years. On route to Agistri island we watched a lone fisher- man on his small boat in the middle of the sea catch an octopus with a hook and line. We waved and clapped at his prowess and, flushed with success, he punched the air with his fist in reply. On Agistri we walked through


pine forests lining the coast, where, according to the island’s holiday leaflet, ‘secrets are hidden and you fantasize about elves watching your every move.’ Anchoring under the ancient


A man leads his donkeys back to the port after delivering supplies to a hill-top monastery on Hydra.


was trying to fend off a 45-foot charter yacht with a Russian crew who were, for some unfathomable reason, trying to moor next to us with a full mainsail up in a brisk onshore wind. Seeing they were in some dif- ficulty and with an eye to protecting Leonie, Carl tried three times to persuade the captain to lower his sail only to be met with a curt ‘No’. The skipper eventually saw sense, lowered his sail and apologised. As we headed to the picturesque port of Vathi on the


Methani Peninsula we passed a couple of sharks thrashing about on the surface of the water, attracted to the area by hot volcanic thermals rising from the sea bed. We had our first swim of the season a short hop away in Epidavros and then sailed to the Saronic Gulf and the


temple of Poseidon, built in 444BC on top of the mainland Cape Sounion, the next day was mem- orable. The classically columned structure was floodlit at night and, under a bright arc of stars,


we paid silent homage to the ancient Greek sea god as we gazed up at the impressive ruin from Leonie’s cockpit.


Ginny swimming at Epidavros


Ginny at Poseidon’s Temple, Cape Sounion


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