Day 10- Lesbos

Last night we gat a call from our friends Molly and Dave whom we were to meet in a couple of days.  Because of our news blackout, we had not heard about the Ankara bombing nor about a Russian Mig that was shot down by Turkey near the Syrian border.  Molly and Dave had a lot of reservations about our planned trip extension with them to Turkey, and asked if we could change plans and go to Italy instead.  They were going to have a travel agent friend of theirs try to book a trip to Cinque Terre and Venice.  Over the next 24hr there were a lot of emails and overseas calls (thank God for Skype), but we got it all squared away and we are now doing a trip extension to Italy instead.  Disappointed about Turkey, but we are definitely coming back!

When we docked in Lesvos this morning we had a beautiful sunrise 

and also got our first view of the Syrian refugee problem. 

The Syrians, as opposed to the Afghans, Pakistanis, and North Africans that we saw in Kos, are here with their families and have left their homeland to try to protect their families from the scourge of the civil war raging in Syria.  They also, for the most part, have transit papers, and money to purchase ferry tickets to Athens.  From there, though, all bets are off.

Jeri and I tried to give a family with some small children some bottled water, but they declined.

We thought that food and water might be an issue, but apparently, they must be all set (or afraid to take something from us).  There were a lot of cell 

phones in use

and photos being taken. 

I’m wondering whether they had better WiFi then we had on the boat.  Probably still wouldn’t want to trade places. 

When the ferry to Athens was ready, the entire dock got up in an orderly fashion and queued up for boarding. 

Hopefully these people will find a place out of harms way. 

Today was primarily a riding day.  On our way out from the port, we spotted a coast guard ship coming in

  

with a large load of refugees on deck.  We surmised that they were rescued at sea.

We covered a lot of terrain with some tough hills.  We made a quick stop at a local ouzo factory, 

long enough to visit the bathrooms and a quick look at the processing plant. 

Ouzo is a licorice flavored liquor that is about 90 proof.  

It is generally mixed with varying amounts of water which turns the otherwise clear fluid a milky white.  We sampled a bit before we headed back out on the bike.  Even cut with water, it burns the whole way down.  The next few miles on the bike were very interesting, though neither of us remember any of it (just kidding).

There was an olive oil factory/museum that we also visited on the return to the port.  

                       

Oil was no longer produced there but the old machinery was still in great shape.  The pressing machines were belt driven by utilizing a large steam engine.

It was a pretty impressive operation.

The remainder of the ride seemed to be all uphill with the final climb about a 1½ miles long and an average grade of 6-7% (with a few sections 10-12%).  We were happy not to have to walk our bikes.  NH hill training paid off again.  The sun was another factor we had to contend with and the temperatures on the hill with no shade or wind must have been in the high 80’s.

When we got back to dock, we got a bit lost and wound up amongst the refugees on the wrong side of the fence.  After some trial and error (mostly error), we were able to get back on the ship.

A bunch of us were starving, and decided to walk along the waterfront to grab a bite (and try to find some WiFi that actually worked.  Most tavernas have WiFi for patrons. Jeri and I decided to split a gyro for 2.50 euros.  We got more than we bargained for!

On the way back to our ship, we passed the coast guard ship that had been full of rescued refugees earlier in the day when we were leaving for our bike ride.  

The same ship was now empty.  Hmmmm?

Tomorrow is our last cycling day, back in Turkey on the Gallipoli Peninsula in the national park.  Then I have to take the bike apart again.  Argh.