This leg of our journey was always going to be problematic. The Peloponnese is very poorly served by public transport. What little there is can be sporadic. Ktel, the bus company, is constantly changing its timetables without any prior notice. Hence for the delay in the blob. I can honestly say that this part of this journey has been the most difficult to manage in all of our adventuring anywhere. I have had to change plans on the hoof as options for onwards travel get closed or removed in front of us. Never say never but it’s been a pain in the ass. I’m sure it is going to remain so for the remainder of our travels here.
We left Lefkada after a very pleasant 2 days stay in Nidri. We were staying just 5 minutes walk from the ferry port so we were at the ferry in plenty time. 11.30 was a great time to board and the journey was very picturesque. Crispy was provided with her on board refreshments and took up her place in premium economy for her Island tour cruise. We sailed past several small islands and made our way across the straits to Fiskardo. A very small fishing port on the most northern part of Kefalonia. The interweb assured us that there was a bus from Fiskardo to Sami at five pm. One of only two that operate daily. On arrival we cheerfully asked as to location of the bus stop. At first the local guys confirmed our plans and informed us with a smile that the bus was due at 17:00. It soon became apparent that the timetables for the buses had changed today. Honestly you can’t make it up. It seems that the winter timetables offer many more routes than the summer ones and include the weekend services. We are from today on the summer timetable. You would think that if a ferry was scheduled to arrive at a certain time then the bus company would play its part in providing onward travel options. Especially in summer. I don’t think we were the only ones stranded in Fiskardo. Come on Ktel. Get your act together and update your websites or at least warn of the impending alterations.
Once again we hailed the taxi and were the unwilling victims of more highway robbery.
Sami is another port that has tourism as a sideline. It’s geared up for passenger transport and is mostly functional in its appearance. It’s not my idea of a holiday resort but is very popular with the yachting fraternity. As such the main marina and port is lined with a row of small tavernas to serve said yachting community. All next to each other and all vying for your custom. We chose one called the mermaid. It was very nicely presented and very, very cheap. It was also very busy. We managed to grab the last table and had a pleasant evening looking out over the marina. We visited Sami on a quad bike years ago when they were filming “Captain Corelli,s Mandolin”. The harbour had been mocked up to look like the Germans had just invaded. There was even a WW2 half track on the quayside. Today the only Germans invading arrived in luxury yachts and stripes t-shirts.
On returning to the room I gingerly opened the interweb to find that Ktel had indeed updated their timetables but this, not surprisingly, did not work in our favour.
We were due to take the Tuesday ferry at 08:00 to Patras before catching the 16:OO bus to Kalamata. This would have give us an extra day in Sami to visit a couple of the local sights. An underground cave just 30 minutes walk away being one of them before an afternoon on the beach.
The Tuesday 16:00 bus from Patra to Kalamata, was now cancelled for the rest of the season and would only run on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday. If we had any chance of making the connection for our onward travel south then we would have to leave tomorrow. Monday. We quickly sourced the tickets and prepared to leave in the morning.
Up early and onto the ferry as the sun climbed into the sky for a three hour sail to Patra from Kefalonia. Patra is a large city by Greek standards. In UK terms it’s probably not much bigger than Horwich, We had four hours to kill before our bus departed for the three hour ride to Kalamata. We had a walk around the centre and called for a couple of drinks in the cafes. It’s very cosmopolitan and a university city. As such the streets were heaving with people drinking coffee and chatting.
Just before our bus was due to depart we made our way to the bus station back near the port and boarded our transport south.
On arrival in Kalamata we found our lodgings and settled in. It’s been a long taxing day and we were very tired. This has been the longest day travelling so far. We walked to a little market not far from our lodgings and bought the essentials we needed before dining on our roof terrace overlooking Kalamata and the Peloponnese mountains. Tomorrow we shall explore our new surroundings. Kalamata is both an historic city and beach resort. We will have to check with the local Ktel office back at the bus station for our options regarding onward travel. Let’s hope we can sort something without too much trauma.
Bare and Crispy, on a roof, Kalamata, Peloponnese, Southern Greece
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