Orei

Having failed to get out of the Gulf of Volos on Saturday 4 July, we decided that we really ought to get to Orei the next day. Upping anchor and leaving Órmos Pithos at 1030am Nisís Palaio Tríkeri fairly quickly slipped behind us as we headed for the entrance to the Gulf. Near the lighthouse on the eastern side of the entrance we saw a catamaran heading in the opposite direction. It stood out particularly because the crew were madly waving at us; it was Alan, Deborah and their daughter in ‘MacCat’; what a coincidence! With us in the area for the next few weeks and them out again in a week or so we might even meet up again properly.

Aryronísos

The days have started to set into a schedule of no wind in the morning but then some building, sometimes quite strongly, after lunch. All very reminiscent of our time in the Ionian and fulfilling the adage that when sailing in the Med there is either not enough or just too much wind. As it was morning there was no wind and so we motored towards the isand of Aryronísos. It’s a pretty island but it is privately owned so we are not allowed to land there. Instead we headed around the corner to a small bay and anchored just off the beach there.

Swimming in the small bay just to the northwest of the island of Arynronísos    

Lunch and swimming passed the time very pleasantly. Doubly pleasing because after lunch the wind built well. BV likes the wind on her beam and we set off at 7½ knots towards Orei which was just 4½ miles away. In seemingly no time at all we were lowering the sails and making ready to enter the harbour.

BV in Orei harbour

The harbour master directed us to a mooring spot and fairly quickly we found ourselves in the middle of a variety of nationalities of yachts. There was a French yacht on one side, an Italian on the other, a couple of Dutch yachts and another Brit just down the quay, and an Austrian a little beyond that.

Just the other side of the harbour wall is a nice beach; very convenient for us.

In ancient times Orei was a significant port with a city on the high ground just behind the modern town. The clues were there as we walked around; ancient sarcophogai and the odd marble column were lying around in the park where one would normally expect to see a litter bin and looking up between the houses we caught the odd glimpse of the ruins of the acropolis on the hill.

4 Century BC marble sculpture of a charging bull

In the town square there is a large marble sculpture of a charging bull which dates from the 4^th century BC. It was dredged up by local fishermen in 1965 and amazingly is still on display here; you’d expect such a large piece to have been whisked off to a museum in Athens.

Like most of the places we have visited recently Orei seems very quiet and subdued. The quayside cafés and restaurants have a huge capacity but very few people are eating there. Talking to the restaurant owners there is deep concern about the current crisis with fears of potential bankruptcy from the combination of low customer numbers and a proposed/rumoured 50% increase in taxes on restaurant profits. Whilst we were in Orei the referendum took place with around 61% voting against the proposed strict EU bail-out conditions. The banks are closed and have been for a week and locals are restricted to a maximum withdrawal of €50 per day from their accounts. Most small venues are refusing to take credit cards although we were able to pay for our food in the larger supermarket here with a credit card. Let’s hope that a solution is agreed on at the political levels and that the imminent tourist high season brings a much-needed cash inject to these small local businesses.

Sunset from Orei

Orei, Greece