...then we drove back to Ag.Ef and bought a stripey beach umbrella (tomorrow the yacht) and a mars bar and some envelopes. Then we drove to Myrtos bay, which looks exactly like the postcards, stunningly beautiful clear turquoise water and a beach of even white pebbles. The drive down was hair-raising. Another of those road so white it was luminous, though yellow (meaning sort-of paved) on our tourist map. Once we were there, under our Beach Umbrella (we were very proud) we had a great time. The snorkelling was good. The best were the eels.The water was completely turquoise and clear and at the end of the beach big rocks made a reef, covered in brownish green waving weed and there were parrot wrasse (? looked like) and all sorts of fish inc. some as clear white and pure oval as the pebbles (good camouflage). Then I was with Gabriel and he gave a squeal and I looked and there was a beautiful big eel, brown and gold filigree with a purple head and a nice little snout. It was so lovely, it rippled along among the rocks v. smoothly and shyly.

I was v. excited and all I wanted to do was see the eel again. Anyway, to cut a long story short Gabriel & I as usual got obsessed, following these poor eels about, and snorked for ages, including a visit to the chill-out cave, which you reached by swimming under an arch. It had a strange atmosphere. As you went in there were people sitting very quiet and still with a thin little girl wrapped to her ankles in a huge teeshirt & lying asleep on the stones, her eyes looked huge (although shut) in her little pointed face. We sat there for a while, in another part of the cave. No one spoke...

Then we went back to Peter and shortly we returned to Ag.Ef. Debriefed the car (a major effort) and went out to eat at The Pergola the restaurant back in the streets. We had a table in the courtyard under the vines but close to the fire where a pig and 2 sheep (whole with heads) were turning on spits. This was interesting to see. There was also an extraordinary long pale gourd hanging down from the vines, that Peter thought was a sausage but it wasn't. The staff at the Pergola seemed international -some w. v good English, some no English yet they weren't Greek. German, Italian, young... Maybe students? Aspro Krassi in a tin beaker, chill and fragrant: a good deal. Can't think why the reputation of the island's "famous" bottled and labelled white wine survives, I'm sure no one orders it twice. Most of the food was relatively good, the aubergine puree really good, but Peter's "kefallonia pie" tasted like old cat food. Poor Peter! Then we went and recklessly had 2 pints at our favourite bar and so back to Gonatas, Moomintroll and sleep.