Sunday September 4th we returned to Gouvia on Corfu very late at night to find Deja Vu just as we had left her. Joining us for a week were John and Ada Roberts, friends from Farnham, who were looking forward to the plan of sailing with us to Kefalonia.
However we had known before we left home that storms forecast would prevent us getting away in the early part of the week and it transpired we were very fortunate to have extra days on our booking in the Marina to enable us to stay on there.
We had arranged to hire a car until Wednesday and explored the island by land as gales and torrential rain swept over Corfu. The scenery on the west coast close to Paleokastritsa was mountainous and impressive, the beaches sandy, unfortunately deserted in the inclement weather!
We had a nail biting journey through the middle of the island as the roads through villages got narrow, cars were parked everywhere and sightseeing tourist coaches were trying to drive through against a steady stream of traffic going the other way. We reached many an impasse with some heroic manoeuvres being executed to free up some space. We were grateful to have a small car and as we escaped the worst of it in driving rain, it was clear there were major problems behind us.
Our foray north took us to Kassiopi, a pleasant resort, but we were not impressed with the northernmost towns of Acharavi and Sidari, which had an air of abandoned US outback to them.
So what about the sailing? Beyond Wednesday the outlook remained grim, so on Thursday John and Ada admitted defeat and rescheduled their flights from Corfu instead of Kefalonia, a trip we were never going to manage in the time with the persistent strong southerly winds and storms. It was immensely disappointing for them especially and expensive, as it turned out, but we could find no alternative solution to get them home.
We did manage a couple of sails locally including a visit to Platarius where we enjoyed a lovely fish supper.
On Sunday 11th September we dropped John and Ada off by dingy on the shores of Garitsa Bay where they would be well placed to get a taxi to the airport. As they left, another thundery squall came in to the bay and we endured a very uncomfortable night .
Monday 12th September still had the risk of storms in the forecast, but there was a new optimism now for an improving spell of weather. We set off south, firstly 30 miles to Paxos and then 40miles the following day to Preveza, sadly mostly done by motor as the wind had decided to abandon us temporarily..
Here we are in Preveza today Wednesday 14th September, on the town wall. We have a whole new area to explore to the south and plan to set off tomorrow when we have filled up with water and food!
Deja Vu 
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