Part V: Leave Her, Johnny

Part V-

Leave her, Johnny

The last 24 hours of our trip gave us a taste of another aspect of sea voyages. We made a night passage from Ereikoussa to Santa Maria de Leuca in Italy, on the heel of the boot. After a quiet, restful evening and a light omelette supper made by our host, we set off. It had been hoped that the waves would subside, as they usually do in the evening. But oh, what a time we had! Rollicking all the way, there was no sleep for the weary. Hunt took a watch with one of the crew, but I stayed in my bunk (except for a few inevitable trips to the head) and hoped the boat would hold together for the rest of the trip. Which, of course, it did! I finally dozed, and woke to blinding sunlight and calm waters in the harbor.

We soon bade farewell to the wonderful friends we had enjoyed for 12 days, and took a taxi to the small city of Lecce. The driver spoke almost no English, we speak no Italian, but he and I managed to carry on in fractured French. Our B&B was located in a part of the town that restricted most vehicles, and our taxi/van was too big for the street, so he called a cab driver friend who met us beneath a beautiful church and drove us the rest of the way.

Casa li Santi was in a beautiful old building on a quiet, ancient street. Our room had tiled floors and a vaulted ceiling. We walked around the city, had espresso and fresh fruit at a delightful café and watched the people walking by. It was a magical ending to our journey.

The next day we took a 5-hour train trip through the rolling Apennines to Rome. The last leg of our trip passed in a blur- Rome is a large, modern city and after the serenity of our days on Impala, we were in shock from the contrast. We stayed at Sotto la Cupola, a B&B across from Vatican City, and we wandered around the neighborhood and through Piazza San Pietro but opted not to fight the crowds to go inside and see the treasures- it was just too much. And the flavor of the place belied its stated spiritual intent- hawkers, vendors, armored tanks manned by young men with machine guns- as we approached the line for the Sistine Chapel an elderly woman shoved Hunt into the street- so we determined that the purpose of our time in Rome was to sit in sidewalk cafes and drink espresso, and that we did.

We arrived home safe and sound to an ecstatic dog, and since then we have been settling back in and rejoicing in the good fortune that allowed us to make this trip, thanks to generous friends and happy concatenations of circumstances.

Since our return, we have bought a boat! Inspired by the Drascombe Lugger we saw off Paxos, we now are the happy owners of a Drascombe Dabber we had dubbed “Puffin.” We are painting the hull, varnishing the spars and arranging for a mooring, and soon we hope to sail again, under our own Maine skies.

Today is the Summer Solstice. Here in our northern clime, the daylight lasts much longer than it did in our old home in NH, or in Greece, for that matter. Today we have daylight for approximately 15 ½ hours. The summer is short and the winter is long, and we are savoring every moment of every day, for every moment is a gift.