A week gone

Well I’ve lasted a week! I waved farewell to Diarmuid and Miriam on Monday, so I’m on my own again. This probably doesn’t bode well for the content of the blog, given the whims of fancy I took off on when last alone – and that was only for a day! However, I will endeavor to keep on track and not stray off into the dark recesses of my innermost thoughts. So a big thank-you to D&M for providing the best of introductions to the Cyclades with their vast experience of the island of Amorgos.

I had yesterday (Tuesday 10th) to myself on the island. Remained relatively sane and managed to get in the three must-do’s that I had missed out on – a spinach pie for lunch (delicious), a Gyros for dinner (traditional kebab-like meal – also delicious) and watched the movie Le Grand Bleu (The Big Blue for those who were only educated in the ancient classic languages) in a pub/eaterie that shows it on an outdoor screen every evening (delicious yet again but I did have ice-cream at the same time).

Then at the skrake of dawn I got the ferry to Naxos and this is where I sit. It would be a tad more touristy but I’m somewhat isolated from that as I’m staying in a hotel/sports club from which the sailing lessons are run. Just been for a cycle into the town – returned completely drenched. I feel I will not be signing up for the mountain bike treks they conduct every day.

The sailing lessons start tomorrow – on a Hobie-cat, a small catamaran. This is exactly what I wanted – need to get to a point where I feel I could control one of these before heading off into Dawros Bay in Donegal again. The last time I did this was with a certain Brendan Monaghan. I thought he knew something about sailing (you’ld think to look at him that he should) and he thought I did. We did manage to control the thing going out, and could quite happily traverse parallel to the beach all day. Which we just about did, as we were completely unable to come back to shore against the wind. We pretended this was exactly what we intended but night was drawing in. Eventually, and to the unremitting hilarity of both our families on the beach, we shamefully jumped off and with heads bowed swam back towing the thing behind us – with Monaghan doing his Stan Laurel impression and quoting “this is another fine mess you’ve got me into, McQuillan”. We haven’t really been let forget that. Fear not Brendan, never again!

The worrying thing is that I met 2 Germans (it seems to be a German run and populated establishment – slowly taking over Greece – again) who are also on the Hobie-cat course (it’s mostly wind and kite-surfing here). These 2 were nice - Sasha and Sophia - but before anyone gets too concerned, Sasha is male! Their main concern was that they might appear a tad old on the course. Given that they were probably 21 or so, I fear I might be in with some group of young Aryan “vunderkids”.

However, the last time I took on a German in the water was in what was meant to be a gentle flotilla of 2-man canoes paddling leisurely down the Loire for an afternoon, but which I managed to transform into an Olympic mega-event exhorting Conor for 2 hours to “Pull, for f*cks sake, pull). And that turned out well with the fat six foot six kraut and his little blond-eyed beauty of a son trailing in behind us. I’m reasonably sure he was aware it was a competition. I was obviously delighted with the result. Joanna, not so much. Nor Conor. Some very sore muscles for days afterwards. Anyway, it bodes well for tomorrow's battle.

Seem to be more mozzies here. I miss Joanna. They have an affinity for her, which generally speaking means they leave me alone while on holiday. Of course, this is obviously not the only reason I miss her. Apropos of nothing in particular, it’s very hard to get the suncream onto certain areas of one’s own back.

So a BBQ on the beach tonight, but will take it easy in preparation for what lies ahead.