At about 0700 we tucked in between an island and the mainland. Sheltered by the island, we had about an hour and a half of flat seas. Ahhh. We were joyous about the reprieve. On the other side of the island, the waves were less vicious and easier to handle, for a while, anyway. This is because the island partially blocks the wind, slowing it down to only 10 knots apparent.

We had gone around the bottom of Greece and were now moving north, up the eastern side of the country. Our plan was to only be in Katacolon for a couple days, then move west to Sicily. Eric had been looking at the charts this morning for a port we could check out of the country from that was closer to our current position than Katacolon. We realized there was no real need to move so far north, seeing as the trip to Sicily would take the same amount of time no matter where we left from on the lower eastern side of Greece. He found what he was looking for, a small town named Pylos, located close to where we were.

At 0900 we pulled into the harbor, which was totally flat and calm. You’d never know how hard the wind was blowing in the ocean from looking at the bay. We pulled up to the “marina”, dubious about availability at this time of the year. Someone was waiting for us and directed us to a prime side tie spot marked “captain”. Of course, we assumed the guy worked for the marina. Turns out there is no marina staff. This guy sells diesel fuel and was hoping to get a new client, hence the helpfulness.

Pylos has a different look to it than the other places we have been to in Greece. Yes, the buildings are blocky and situated on a hill. Most of the buildings look like they are detached, at least the ones most visible. Most of the buildings are less than 5 stories and have pitched, red tile roofs. We guess the roofs are what change the look of the town so much, at least from the distance. In the Plain of Thessaly they also have some houses with pitched roofs, too. It also looks like many buildings in Pylos are relatively new.

Once Kosmos was situated, we walked into town so we could check in with the port police and get lunch. In the marina it smelled OK, but as soon as we walked beyond the marina, it did not smell good at all. We suppose they must dump their sewage into the bay, because that is what it smells like.

The town center is a huge square on the flat land on the north end the bay. The square is filled with tables and chairs, serviced by several restaurants in the buildings lining two sides of the square. There are a lot of mature trees in the square, making it shady and cool, despite the hot day. The square was packed. In between the restaurants are a variety of stores. Few of these stores are geared at tourists, most are geared at the average resident.

We had lunch in the square, then followed the same road past the square and around to where the bay meets the ocean. The port police have a small storefront office facing the sea. Check in was super quick. We decided to explore town some more, so we continued walking north along the shore. It looks like the buildings near the town square are older and adjoining and it is just the ones higher up that seem to be new and farther apart. The beach was packed, and the ocean was filled with swimmers. Oddly enough, almost all of them had hats on while they were in the water.

The road ended at the medieval fort. We turned around and went back to Kosmos, ready for some down time after the rough passage. We again ventured out for dinner. This time we picked a restaurant next to the police station, at the edge of the bay. Big mistake. The smell kind of ruined the meal. We tried a dish called giouvetsi. It is lamb baked in a rich tomato sauce with noodles that look more like risotto rice than noodles. It is topped with cheese.

On a side note, we have mentioned many times that we sometimes find construction layouts to be bizarre. Here is an example. It is a picture of a road. A main road, with lots of car traffic. In America, a retaining wall would be under the road. But here in Greece, there is a building under the road, and the building acts the retaining wall. These buildings under roads are a common sight in Greece. We suppose they are probably common in other places, as well, but you would certainly never see anything like it in Southern California.