We're going sailing in Greece for ten days but first England to visit some of Tim's family and friends, starting with his sister, Tessa, in Lincolnshire and a walk through her farmland. Sugar beet, wheat, barley, and rapeseed are just some of the crops grown on her land.
Tessa has kindly invited us to a polo match. The festivities begin with a gourmet lunch and champagne, of course.
The Polo Club presents Tessa with the perfect gift—an honorary vintage Club teapot.
Great mallet action, smashing neck shots, pukka chukkas... frightfully jolly good fun I do declaaare.
It's love at first sight for Sandi when she meets Tessa's adorable dachshund, Beetle.
We drive to Cornwall for a few days. The serene panoramic view from the hilltop overlooking Daymer Bay with its huge, sandy beach gives good reason for pause.
Polzeath is a small village situated on the North coast of Cornwall, home to a fantastic beach and one of the world's most renowned surfing destinations. Fifty years ago Tim's mother bought a house here for family vacations. The house has since passed onto some of the younger family members. Mrs. Lovell Sr. would be very pleased to know Polzeath still remains the family's favourite gathering place.
Sunset over Polzeath.
Today we're in Rock waiting for Tim's nephew, Andrew, his wife Sarah, and their daughter Miya, who are taking us for a spin on their boat before dropping us off across the estuary in Padstow.
Beetle's a natural sea dog.
If anywhere symbolizes Cornwall's changing character, it's Padstow. This once-sleepy fishing port has been transformed into one of the county's most cosmopolitan corners thanks to celebrity chef Rick Stein, whose property portfolio encompasses several restaurants, shops and hotels, as well as a seafood school and fish-and-chip bar. No wonder locals affectionately call it, "Padstein".
En route to Bath we pop in for a visit with Tim's friend, Chris, and his son, Oliver. Thank you for the fine spot of tea and your good company guys!
We've been to Bath before (here) and loved it so much we came back for more. Serendipitously, Tim has another friend who lives here which is an even better excuse to return yet again.
No trip to Bath would be complete without a stop at Sally Lunn's for one of her mouth-watering, historic buns.
We're making our way back to London to catch our flight to Greece but not before stopping in Brighton for the night. Brighton is without a doubt Britain's most colourful and outrageous city. With its bohemian, hedonistic vibe, it's where England's seaside experience goes from cold to “cool".
Victorian spendour, the famous Brighton bandstand, first opened in 1884.
The grand century-old pier is the place to experience Brighton's tackier side. There are plenty of stomach-churning fairground rides and dingy amusement arcades to keep you entertained, and candy floss to chomp on while you're doing so.
The city's must-see attraction is the Royal Pavilion, the glittering party pad and palace of Prince George, later Prince Regent and then King George IV.
It's one of the most opulent buildings in England, certainly the finest example of early 19th century chinoiserie anywhere in Europe and an apt symbol of Brighton's reputation for decadence. An unimpressed Queen Victoria called the Royal Pavilion ‘a strange, odd Chinese place', but for visitors it's an unmissable chunk of Sussex history.
London ✈ ✈ ✈ Argostoli
And just like that, here we are in town of Argostoli on the island of Kefalonia in Greece, about to set sail on the Yantina, a 56ft Oyster yacht, and our home for the next ten days. She comes complete with her own Captain, our friend Ian (who also happens to be her owner), who invited us along on this leg of his 6-month sailing adventure.
The largest of the Ionian Islands, Kefalonia's convoluted coastline conceals all sorts of captivating coves and beach-lined bays. Sadly, the devastating earthquake of 1953 razed much of its historic Venetian architecture.
The prettiest of the low-key resorts on the Gulf of Corinth, Galaxidi is graced with narrow cobblestone streets, handsome stone mansions and two small harbours. A forested headland, opposite the waterfront, is fringed by a 1.5km walking path and pebbled coves popular with swimmers. Galaxidi's most prosperous period was between 1830 and 1910 when it was a major maritime power, playing an important role in the Greek War of Independence against Ottoman rule. When the maritime industry failed to keep pace with modern shipbuilding trends, the town became a centre for building caïques (small fishing boats). We're here for the night and stocking up on supplies.
The view from our cabin.
The largest city in the Peloponnese, Patra is named after King Patreas who ruled Achaïa around 1100 BC. Little is evident of this busy port's 3000 years of history, during which it was an important trade centre under the Mycenaeans and the Romans. The Rio-Antirrio suspension bridge is an engineering feat that links the city with western continental Greece. At 2,880m (1.8 miles) it is the world's longest fully-suspended bridge.
West of the small town of Galaxidi skirting the Gulf of Corinth, and only 9km after the bridge crossing (Rio-Antirrio) from Patras that joins the Peloponnese with Stereo Ellada, is the delightful, bustling town of Nafpaktos. It speads out from a handsome circular-walled harbour dotted with plane trees, trendy cafés and a good swimming beach. Above it looms a Venetian castle.
We anchor in Nafpaktos for the night and Ian zips us to shore in the RIB through the old ramparts for dinner.
The crew: (left to right) Margo, Ian, Sandi, Tim and David. Kate stayed onboard, devoted grandmother that she is, in effort to finish knitting a sweater for her soon-to-be-born grandchild.
Of all the archaeological sites in Greece, Ancient Delphi (from delphis, meaning womb) is the one with the most potent spirit of place. Built on the slopes of Mt Parnassos, overlooking the Gulf of Corinth and extending into a valley of olive trees, this World Heritage site's allure lies both in its stunning setting and its inspiring ruins. The ancient Greeks regarded Delphi as the centre of the world.
Its cliffside location is spectacular and, despite its overt commercialism and the constant passage of tour buses through the modern village, it still has a special feel. It's 40° celsius in the shade and Sandi's wilting fast.
A well-deserved lunch with a view that's hard to beat.
Mount Parnassos, with an altitude of 2,260 metres, ranks among the highest mountains in Greece. Its spectacular geomorphology and rich biodiversity place it among the most important mountain environments in Greece. Here also, is the largest downhill ski resort in Greece. Tim's excited but with the blistering heat, he'll have to wait until December in Whistler to ski.
The Corinth Canal is an engineering marvel. A project that spanned many centuries, it was conceived by a ruler of Ancient Corinth, begun by Roman emperor Nero and completed in the 19th century by the French. Cut through solid rock, the canal is more than 6km long and 23m wide, its vertical sides rising 90m above the water. The canal did much to elevate Piraeus' status as a major Mediterranean port and is particularly impressive when a ship is passing through. The concept of cutting a canal through the Corinth Isthmus to link the Ionian and Aegean Seas was first proposed by Periander, the tyrant of Ancient Corinth at the end of the 7th century BC. The magnitude of the task defeated him, so he opted instead to build a diolkos (paved slipway), across which sailors dragged small ships on rollers, a method used until the 13th century.
In the intervening years many leaders, including Alexander the Great and Caligula, toyed with the canal idea, but it was Nero who struck the first blow himself, using a golden pickaxe in AD 67 before leaving it to 6000 Jewish slaves to do the hard work. The project was soon halted by invasions by the Gauls. Ironically, it was a French engineering company that finally completed the canal in 1893.
Tim spots Moby Dick... er, no...
... just a group of friendly dolphins coming to say “Yasass” (hello).
We're on our way to see the ancient Theatre of Epidauros. Built of limestone, yet one of the best-preserved classical Greek structures in existence, now used for performances of ancient Greek drama during the annual Hellenic Festival, the 4th century BC theatre is the undisputed highlight of Epidauros.
It's renowned for its amazing acoustics, a coin dropped in the theatre's centre (where teeny-tiny Sandi is standing in the above photo) can be heard from the highest seat. The theatre seats up to 14,000 people. Its entrance is flanked by restored Corinthian pilasters and the foundations of the ancient stage are beyond the circle.
The Museum houses statuary (mostly copies) that once adorned the Temple of Asclepius, stone inscriptions, and fragments of intricately carved reliefs.
The inscribed marble in the photo above dates to 150-200 AD. On it Marcus Julius Apellas of Asia Minor, who suffered from indigestion, expresses his gratitude to Asklepios and recounts the healing process he underwent in the healing sanctuary at Epidauros. At the instigation of Asklepios, Apellas travelled to Epidauros, where his course of treatment included diet, exercise, and the use of natural therapeutic substances. The diet was based on bread and cheese accompanied with celery mixed with lettuce. He also had to drink lemon juice with water as well as milk mixed with honey. Apellas' bath was combined with clay therapy. Exercises included running, walking and study in the sanctuary's library—but study led to headaches. Apellas' treatment also included wetting himself with wine to smooth the skin, a mustard and salt rub which causes hyperaemia, along with taking dill with olive oil for headaches. It doesn't seem that different from a modern-day spa.
Today's lunch provided by chefs extraordinaire, the dynamic duo of David and Margo. Bring it on!
Greek salad and tuna-stuffed peppers. Yum!
Mermaid hair, don't care.
Sunset in Aegina.
The Argolis peninsula, which separates the Saronic and Argolic Gulfs, is steeped in legend and history. The town of Argos, from which the region takes its name, is thought to be the longest continually inhabited town in Greece. Argolis was the seat of power of the Mycenaean empire that ruled Greece from 1600 to 1100 BC. Today, it's where we're going snorkelling.
Athens ✈ ✈ ✈ London
We're staying at the George in Rye, an old coaching inn that has managed to reinvent itself as a contemporary boutique hotel while staying true to its roots. Downstairs, an old-fashioned wood-panelled lounge is warmed by roaring log fires, while the guestrooms in the main building, created by the set designer from Pride and Prejudice, are chic and understated. Freddie the French bulldog greets us at the door.
First things first—afternoon tea in the lounge.
Often described as England's quaintest town, Rye is a little nugget of the past, a medieval settlement with cobbled lanes, mysterious passageways and crooked half-timbered Tudor buildings that looks like time has stood still. Tales of resident smugglers, ghosts, writers, and artists abound.
Few inns can claim to be as atmospheric as the Mermaid Inn, an ancient hostelry, dating from 1420. Each of the 31 rooms is different, but all are thick with dark beams and lit by leaded windows, and some are graced by secret passageways that now act as fire escapes.
It also has one of Rye's best restaurants.
Sandi discovers Katherine Morton Ceramics in a gallery and can't resist taking home this charming mermaid bowl.
The Church of St Mary the Virgin in Rye is a hotchpotch of medieval and later styles. Its turret clock is the oldest in England (1561), still working with its original pendulum which swings above over your head as you enter. We climb the tower for pretty views of the town and surroundings.
Our last stop before we head back to Canada is a relaxing afternoon in the sun, yes, sun!, at The Hurlingham Club in London. Cheerio and toodle pip!
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