Egremni and other beaches of Lefkas

The dark clouds are gone, we wake up with a clear blue sky. Today we take a lot of photos with sky, sea and beach and it was difficult to choose which to use on the site. These are photos that are a bit cliché for Greece, but we never get bored at all with these views. Along the west coast we drive to the Gialos beach, from the main road another exciting road full of sharp turns. It is still early so there is no oncoming traffic back from the beach.

The Gialos beach is one of the longest on Lefkada and mostly a sandy beach although there are also many boulders. There are some people but for us it is quiet enough so we get our swimming gear from the car and find a place. In a small area there are beach chairs on the beach, but we always avoid those, I can not imagine that people like it to lie so close to each other. But fortunately not everyone is like me.

The sea is rather wild here and there is a powerful undercurrent. At a certain moment I really get dragged awaya and Teije has to literally fish me out of the sea. So I better stay on the beach with my e-reader. I do not need to swim, but the water is nice to cool off now and then. And it is a nice long beach to walk along the water and to look for shells although it is a little disappointing to me what I find: not so much, especially some nice polished stones but very few shells.

Two hours on the beach is more than enough and we continue driving. T look at some more beaches but this time not to lie there. A few kilometers to the south lies the Egrimni beach, the most beautiful beach of Lekada and it is in all kinds of top lists of the most beautiful beaches in Europe and even the world. From above it looks great too but what stops me are the 340 steps leading down from the parking lot.
In November 2015 there will be an earthquake that will partially destroy the stairs and until 2018 the beach will not be accessible from this way. We read (end of 2018) that the road to the beach has also been closed due to repair work.

On the south side of the island lies the village Vasiliki at the end of a large bay where many sailboats sail and surfers show their skills. It is a small but nice village that has been built around the harbor. From here, ferries also go to nearby islands such as Ithaca. But you can also take a boat to one of the beaches in the area. We are looking for a place in the shade for something to eat and drink.

Under the beams of the roof of the restaurant hang baslets with flowers and everywhere we see nests of swallows and other birds, who are flying off and on with building materials.
In the neighborhood of Fterno we see again one of the many unfinished constructions. You see it a lot here, the phenomenon not completely finished houses, because then you do not have to pay taxes for your house. But due to the economic crisis you see more and more skeletons of buildings, simply because the money is gone and the client is bankrupt.

Along the east coast of the island we drive back and this time we see that the Vlyho bay is littered with sailing boats. It is one of the many water sports that you can practice here. We have said it before, we are not so sporty and prefer to enjoy the views. And we get to see those enough on Lefkada.

Today we make more than 100 photos and it was difficult to choose. The island is not very big (about 35 by 15 kilometers) but we drove a lot of roads, along the coast and through the mountains and all in all we spend a lot of time in the car. Although, we have to stop every step of the way and get off to make another picture.
In the evening our landlord comes by again, this time with a bottle of wine. It is very well meant but not necessary for me. I would rather have some more privacy.