The Maiden Voyage
If you’ve ever read that short story, by Gerald Durrell, you’ll know a little bit of what the journey to Syros was yesterday.
I had intended to catch the 12:00 ferry from Piraeus, but it was cancelled because of winds. However with the help of a Greek called Christos, who I’d met on the train going to the port, I was able to get myself a ticket on the 17:00 boat to the island.
Ferry to Syros at Piraeus
As the boat was there, we were urged to get on and this was a mistake. I should have gone and have lunch in Piraeus first, but I didn’t.
I was in what they called Business Class, but it only seemed that the seats were slightly less crowded.
There was no food on the boat for me, as the Greek salad was off and everything else was gluten-rich. to make matters worse the shop only sold souvenirs, tobacco and drink, so I couldn’t even have any chocolate. The only crisps stated they contained traces of cereal, so I was left with ice cream and coffee with three portions of sugar in it.
I did meet a Greek married to an Aussie coeliac and he said most restaurants in the islands understood gluten-free.
But can I really complain, as most ferries across the English Channel are not much better for gluten-free food.
Off to Syros and Mykonos Today
Well that is the plan! Provided I can find the 12:00 boat!
Mallaig to Fort William
The ferry crossing was windy and cold,but uneventful and about an hour after landing, I was able to take the train for Fort William.
This is another line famous for the view as you can see from the pictures. But again the line was suffering from crowded trains.
Over the Sea From Skye
The bus took a more or less direct route between Kyle of Lochalsh to Arnadale with a small detour to Broadford to put down and pick up passengers.
It was my first time on Skye since about 1972. Then we had all come, with our three boys crammed in the back of our 1969 Porsche 911T. Strangely the car still exists and is in New Zealand. But a picture of the car is the only one of the holiday.
Porsche 911T on Skye
That Porsche 911T was the first performance car we had and we acquired it for £1650 courtesy of a loan from my favourite bank manager, David.
I remember for that holiday we left early in the morning from the Barbican and first stop was Gretna Green at about 7:30 in the morning. So when people say I push myself, it’s nothing new in my book.
We stayed somewhere north of Portree and I remember that we were greeted on the doorstep by a dead sheep. It was nothing against holiday homes or anything sinister, but just an inconvenient expiry. In the end we got the Police, who found who owned it and it was quietly disposed of.
I also remember we hurried off the island and I can still remember hurtling up Glencoe towards Glasgow, which we achieved at an average speed of about 80 mph. Or that’s what I claimed at the time! But it was certainly fast on an almost empty road.
The detour to Broadford reminded me that in 1975, the village had an airstrip. C said that next time we came we’d fly! I doubt I will and she sadly can’t!
I went straight to Arnadale and immediately got the ferry to Mallaig.
Arnadale to Mallaig Ferry
Kyle of Lochalsh
Kyle of Lochalsh is the end of the line and from here I got a bus directly to Arnadale on Skye for the ferry to Mallaig. Be warned that buses only run direct in the months when the ferry is running. There are a couple of restaurants in Kyle and a well-stocked Co-operative supermarket, which I used to buy some filling for my rolls.
An Australian Boat
The Thames Clipper that brought me down the river was built in Australia. You may find this strange, but that country does have a reputation for building large and/or fast catamarans.
Thames Clipper
Here’s the maker’s plate.
Cyclone Clipper Nameplate
Note the builders were bscship.
Are Ferries and Trains Profiteering?
Out of curiosity I looked at the Norfolk Line website to see how much it would cost to go out Dover to Dunkirk on the 23rd and back on the 28th.
The prices seem to be very similar to those that I normally get.
I also found that you can get from Perpignan to Paris for about £90 on Wednesday. There are even seats available tomorrow, although they are a little bit more.
Remember those TGV Duplex are massive trains carrying over a thousand people in one go.
On the other hand the cheapest train fare from Paris to London is £223. Is that rip-off Britain?
Some People are Winning
There are about 150,000 Brits abroad, who can’t get home because of the flights. There are also an awful lot of Europeans stuck here. When I was at the services at Stansted yesterday, there was a couple of girls with a plaintiff sign asking for a lift to Germany. We will start to here a lot of hardship stories, as the ones who’ve made it home are the ones with money.
A friend of mine was stuck in Cologne with his car at Stansted. He got charged £65 as a foot passenger on a ferry at Calais.
It will be interesting to see, what sort of profits the ferries and Eurostar make this year.
But seriously, we must start to find a solution to the problem of Icelandic ash.
The Woolwich Ferry – 2
This is the Woolwich Ferry.
The Woolwich Ferry
There are more pictures of crossing the river by Woolwich Ferry here.
The Anonymous Widower 