Stranded!
...and then off to Greece
28th April - 2nd May | 2023
After breakfast the next morning I started to post the situation on various groups on Facebook to reach out for a mechanic between here and Patras in Greece. After some time I started to receive the first answers, comments and even messages. After talking and explaining the situation, a Greek gentleman wanted to speak to his mechanic in Ioannina at the end of the day and give me feedback. Perfect! In the meantime I received some more offering some help, but, of course, I put them on hold as I don't want to mess around.
As there was not much to do for me, I had a stroll around the village, to discover the beaches and then get some basic shopping done. Later on, I went to the sea, for my first dip into the Albanian Sea, well, actually my first dip into the sea for this year. Man, that is freezing cold, like our Atlantic at home!!! With the 3rd attempt, it was much better and didn't feel anymore that cold! However, the outside temperature was just over 20C, so it took me forever to get warm again. Also, the wind started to pick up, so that didn't help at all! After a while, I had enough and returned to my room for a hot shower to get warm again. The rest of the day I was busy catching up on my blog here and still sorting out the garage in Greece. Finally, I got the OK from the garage to receive my bike. As in most European countries, the 1st of May is a bank holiday, so I am stranded at a beach town ;-)
As I only can get to the garage in Ioannina, Greece on Tuesday, I extended my stay until then, as the accommodation here is much cheaper than on the other side of the border. Also, I had again a nice and spacious room and a 200m walk to the beach! The only downside of the hotel is the really weak internet, as I need it for my social media.
The next day I went for a stroll around and to cool myself down after I went for a dip in the turquoise sea :-D. And again, shortly after the wind started to pick up, it started even to get cloudy. So off to the hot shower and then for pizza, craving for one for the last few days. It was not the best pizza, but at least that craving is satisfied.
Unfortunately the next day the weather was cloudy, but I had a mission to climb a nearby hill for the view. This time I was a bit better prepared, as wearing today my trainers ;-) There was not even a goat or sheep track up to the hill, only rocks and shrubs. I don't know how I made it, but foot by foot, stone by stone, sort of rock climbing! Up at the highest point, I had a fantastic 360 panoramic view over the mountains, sea and lake! Mission achieved! About 400m straight line was a bar/restaurant, but it took me another 20mins rock climbing to get there. I was really proud of today's achievements!
After another chilling day, I headed off to Ioannina, Greece finally. The owners of the hotel were so sweet to me - I will miss them, especially her, always smiling!
Unfortunately, it was not nice weather with some light rain on the way. Google send me over a lovely twisty road, along "Blue Eye", which I would have enjoyed more with a running bike. As long as I did not ride low idling, meaning 1st gear, it was pretty okay-ish. The border crossing was no problem and about 1hr later I was at the garage in Ioannina. Chris, the guy who helped me to find the garage, was already there. That was good, as Pavlos, the mechanic, doesn't speak a word of English.
However, he found pretty fast the problem - or is it another one?!? The inlet rubber vacuum hoses seem to be leaking, so there is an "air leak", which most probably is responsible for all the problems. Funnily, on my way over I suddenly thought about an air leak ... So the parts are ordered in Patras and should arrive tomorrow. He will then start replacing them (and the spark plugs) and hopefully, I have a purring cat again!!
So let's see in the next blog if a Greek mechanic working for Yamaha could resolve the problem ;-) In the meantime have an Ouzo and smash some plates ...
Places | Cities:
ALBANIA:
Ksamil
GREECE:
Ioannina
Driven km | Trip:
Total | Steffi: 3745 km
Information Border Crossings (in May 2023):
German BI and bike registration - easy.
Maintenance | Breakdown:
Air leak - replace inlet rubber vacuum hoses and hopefully all the problems about stalling and spluttering are resolved.
Health issues:
./.
Special thanks to:
Chris helping me to find the mechanic here in Ioannina.
Pavlos, the mechanic, to identify the problem so fast.