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Still on Thassos we are waiting for the right wind to sail south-west. But it’s not coming. On the contrary – it’s getting calmer and calmer. So we decide to motor the 58-nautical-mile leg to Chalkidiki, to the southern tip of the middle finger.

We set off just before seven, with the sea as smooth as glass and no swell, sailing 30 nautical miles towards Mount Athos. The closer we get, the more impressively it towers above us. We can still see many small patches of snow in the steep rocky gullies, and then the numerous monasteries on the rocky slopes. You’re not allowed to moor or anchor here.

We pass the southern tip and then set course for the southern tip of Sithónia, the middle finger. At four o’clock in the afternoon, we sail into the bay of Porto Koufo. We already know it well from last autumn. The small pier is free, so we moor alongside there. Very pleasant. But then a local informs us that large trawlers are very likely to arrive in the evening to land their catch here. We don’t want to get in their way. So we drop anchor in the bay. Actually, that’s much nicer. And sure enough: as darkness falls, one large trawler after another arrives. We count at least eight. They can’t all fit at the pier and have to circle the bay until a space becomes free again. By morning they’ve all gone.

We’re staying another day, waiting for the right wind again, mooring at the pier during the day and dropping anchor again in the evening. There might be trawlers coming around again.

But then we’ll head further south to the Northern Sporades, to Steni Vala on the island of Alonissos. Another fairly long leg. And all along the way, dolphins – lots of small ones, but some big ones too. Some accompany us for a while, perhaps in the hope that we’ll throw them a fish, or simply for fun. 

Steni Vala is a small, narrow bay with a pier. We were here once before in 2022 with our friends Andrea and Axel. We remembered it as idyllic and cosy. And that’s exactly how it is again this time. The owner of Café Icarus helps us moor and then hands us a long plank, as we can’t get our stern quite close enough to the pier because of the rocks. After a brief thunderstorm in the evening, we sleep soundly, as if in Abraham’s bosom.

The next day takes us a good 40 nautical miles further south to the island of Skyros. First there’s no wind at all with stormy conditions, and then suddenly 25 knots are on the weather forecast today. In Linaria, the small ferry port of Skyros, we moor comfortably at a bollard. The harbour master recalls that we were here for a few days four years ago, waiting for three new service batteries that were delivered by bus and ferry from Athens.

During that time, we had explored the beautiful island by hire car and on foot. This time, we only want to stay for two nights and simply take a day to relax – and, of course, experience the spectacle once again when the ferry arrives in the evening and Richard Strauss’s ‘Thus Spoke Zarathustra’ (performed by Eumir Deodato) resounds through the harbour.

A day later as planned, we were back on the water with Aglaya on the afternoon of 7th of May. All the necessary work has been completed. This time, even the propeller has been given a coat of anti-fouling paint. And the sacrificial anode on the water collector had to be specially turned and filed down because of its unusual shape. Stavros had picked up two new mooring ropes for us from the chandler at Thessaloniki. We had told him how long they should be and what diameter they should have. But we hadn’t specified the colour. Now we have two ‘white giants’ on board. Unfamiliar. But they won’t stay white for long.

Once in the water in the travellift berth, Vlad carried out the engine service. In the process, we realised that the starter battery was running low. Not good at the start of the season. We were allowed to stay in the berth overnight and were given a new starter battery the next morning. Now our Nanni starts up like a dream again.

But we want to sail! Over to the south-western corner of Thassos, to Limenaria. It goes quite well in a light breeze, but then the wind dies down completely and it starts to rain. So we motor the rest of the way into the harbour. Here we are greeted again by the black cats we already know from last October. 

This year, we didn’t get back to our boat in Nea Peramos until 29 April. Gisela’s 97-year-old mother is in very poor health. We’ve been looking after her and are still keeping busy with it all from afar, taking things a bit one day at a time. How lucky that Gisela still has three brothers, and how helpful it is, that so many organisational matters can be sorted out digitally.

This winter was “somehow peculiar”’, Stavros from the boatyard tells us on our arrival. It rained almost the whole of February and March. The boatyard was under water, it looked like a lake. But we found Aglaya in good condition. Although everything on deck was covered in reddish dust again despite the winter cover, below deck everything was bone dry. 

So, let’s get to work! Scrubbing the deck, metal and wood care, greasing the turnbuckles, hoisting the sails… It’s cold (12 degrees by day and six at night), the north-easterly wind is blowing strongly and it rains on and off during the first few days. It still feels very much like winter. The snow on the higher mountains fits the picture perfectly.

But then the sun does come out after all, and on Walter’s birthday we take a trip to the ancient city of Philippi, the first early Christian settlement in Europe. There is plenty to see here of Christian and Roman origin, but little of Greek, as much of that still needs to be excavated. The Apostle Paul stopped here on his travels. The ancient trade and military route, the Via Egnatia, ran right through the city. We admire not only the many excavations, but also the magnificent mountain landscape.

More pictures from Philippi:

Back at the boat, the underwater hull still needs sanding and painting. The engine service is also still pending. And the mainsail still needs to be rigged. There has been too much wind for that over the last few days. We’re due to launch the day after tomorrow. Will it work out? We’re sceptical.

It's cold at home in Germany this winter. That's nice. Finally, snow and ice again. In Greece, too, it is quite cold at times in some regions. And there is extreme weather with lots of rain, flooding, strong winds, snow, and temperatures around zero degrees. “Usually we didn't have winter in Greece. But since we are in the EU, we have to follow Ursula,” comments our friend Stavros with a smiley. Our Aglaya is ashore in Nea Peramos. So far, she has been spared from storms. We hope it stays that way until we get back on board in mid-April.

Even though we like winter, we like to warm up from time to time and look back on the past season. We have now made two videos with lots of pictures. Take a look if you want to warm up a bit too.

Video 1: Sailing 2025, Part 1, From the Ionian Sea to Thessaloniki
Video 2: Sailing 2025, Part 2, Sailing in Northeast Greece

Now that Aglaya is safely moored in the boatyard, we treat ourselves to a dessert on land. Thessaloniki, the capital of Macedonia, where we recently spent so much time sailing, is Greece's second largest city with a population of around three million. It has always been the second largest city – even in the Byzantine Empire after Constantinople. We definitely wanted to visit this lively yet relaxed city, which has been shaped by an eventful history. We had left our boat in the Aretsou marina just outside the city for two months in the summer to go home, but it was far too hot for us to explore the city. Now, in the cool November weather, we are perfectly situated in a tiny flat very close to the harbour.

First, we got an overview of the city on a sightseeing tour, then visited many of the sights by foot: the long harbour promenade to the White Tower, the statue of Alexander the Great and the Umbrellas. In the city, you come across churches at short intervals, large and small, each with its own saint and its own history. The most famous is the large Agia Sofia. We were fascinated by the fact that they all stand in the middle of the tightly packed high-rise buildings. The remains of the Roman buildings are also impossible to miss in the middle of the city.  The Arch of Galerius and the Rotunda of Galerius are particularly striking. Unfortunately, we could only view the Bey Hamam from the outside, as it is dilapidated and therefore closed. What a pity! A large part of the city was destroyed in a major fire in 1917, and an earthquake in 1978 caused a great deal of damage.

Here in Thessaloniki, it became clear to us once again how much the history of the Levant has been shaped by war, displacement and migration. For example, the history of the Jews has been closely intertwined with the history of Thessaloniki since its founding as the capital of the Macedonian kingdom. And although we know about the atrocities committed by the Nazis in Greece during the Second World War, we were once again deeply moved when we stood in front of the sculpture commemorating the Holocaust. Almost 50,000 Jewish citizens from Thessaloniki were deported in freight cars to the Auschwitz and Treblinka concentration camps.   

The Thessaloniki International Film Festival is currently taking place, which means there are a lot of visitors in the city. Many of the screening venues are located in the old harbour area. The warehouses also house museums. This was our favourite place to enjoy a draught beer in the evening, with a view of the Thermaic Gulf, where we also went sailing. 

There are many young people in the city, certainly tourists, but mainly students. No wonder, as Aristotle University is the largest in the Balkans. The university's namesake lived here and has been immortalised with a statue.

After morning coffee (‘two Greek coffees, medium sugar’), a walk through the market halls was a great start to the second day.

And then the more athletic part of the day: climbing up to the upper town with its densely packed little houses with red tiled roofs, the city walls and the castle. The view down to the city, the harbour and the gulf is magnificent. The sun is finally back, but Mount Olympus, which can be seen from here on a clear day, is shrouded in clouds.

We have one last evening ahead of us before we fly home tomorrow. Perhaps we'll go back to the market halls for a delicious Greek dinner.

And then it's winter break! 

The 2025 sailing season is now over for us too. Aglaya is ashore and over the last few days we have completed all the necessary work for winter storage. As heavy rain was forecast for 4 November, we hurried to put the winter tarpaulin in place. After we leave, the mechanic from Manitsas Marine will come to flush the cooling system and do a thorough check of the entire engine. We will probably be in contact with him from time to time over the winter.

Stavros Manitsas is the owner of the boatyard. You have to take a little time to get to know him. Our first visit to his office lasted an hour – not only because we discussed everything concerning our boat with him in great detail. We came away with the impression that Aglaya is in good, experienced hands here. Stavros also told us a lot about his family's eventful history. Originally (more than 100 years ago), they lived in Crete. The family no longer felt safe there and moved closer to the Ottoman capital Istanbul, to a small island in the Black Sea. In 1922, after the founding of the Turkish state, the Greeks were expelled. So his family settled in Nea Peramos near Kavala. Many Greeks who were expelled from Turkey at that time founded new places, all of which begin with the term ‘Nea’, including Nea Peramos.

With a touch of sadness, we left our Aglaya behind in the pouring rain. Sleep well, Aglaya, we'll be back in the spring!

Yesterday, we performed a somewhat challenging manoeuvre in crosswinds and waves to enter the Manitsas Marine slipway in Nera Peramos. It was exciting to see whether we would fit into the travel lift with our two masts. It worked. It wouldn't have been possible to do it forwards because of the large distance between the forestay and the main mast. Our boat is completely different in terms of dimensions from standard charter boats. The Bulgarians who then pulled us out of the water with the travel lift did everything professionally, calmly, but with great attention and care. A photo of our underwater hull was also helpful. This allowed them to position the lifting straps correctly so that they did not rest on the keel and bend it. It was precision work, also when they stabilized the boat on land.

Now Aglaya is parked tightly between many other boats at the Manitsas Marine boatyard. We climb aboard using a long ladder and have to get used to the fact that our boat is no longer rocking, but that we are still ‘rocking’ with it. Our sense of balance is confused. However, we managed to pour the champagne into our glasses without any accidents. Over the next few days, Aglaya will be winterised, and then we will say goodbye to her for the winter break and look forward to being at home.