Bad luck on Samos!

Bad luck on Samos!

Right, guys. Um, before my video starts, uh, I got a few comments on my latest video, uh, stating that I still haven’t told you why I sold my previous boat. And that’s true. Well, the reason is quite simple. Um, this boat is bigger. It has more living space in it. I mean, the old boat, the Serenity, had a really big off deck. Um, and you only utilize that in summer and in winter time or fall or or autumn or whatever when it’s cold or raining, you’re going to go inside. And yeah, the room inside on Serenity is basically factually smaller than this one. Um, also when I went to bed, uh, I was sleeping in the in the the four peak and I had to get on my easy crawl in there and once I’m in there, I was fine. I mean, the space was big enough for me to fit in, and I slept really well in there, but the process of getting on my knees and getting in, um, I thought it wouldn’t make any difference to me, but it did. Um, yeah, and that’s why I basically sold the boat. Um, moneywise was all also an issue. Uh that boat was 15 meters and a half. Uh in most marinas here in Holland you pay by the meter and some marinas even the square footage square meters. Uh and this boat is 12 m and 75 cm and the other one was 15 12. So that’s that’s a significant uh difference uh in in uh moneywise in moing fees uh in the marinas. Um, so that whole deal together, this boat is bigger, has more living space inside than outside. Uh, I still have a nice uh off deck. Uh, I don’t have a well, it it’s considered the fly bridge, of course, but it’s just a second steering stand. I can drive my boat from the inside as well, so I have more options, more choice. Um, there’s a shower cabin already in it. Uh, I haven’t used it yet because there is a a heating system in here with that old uh we call it aner. It’s like like an uh old school ‘7s uh water heating system that runs on gas and I don’t like that. So, I haven’t used it. Um, also the heating system in this boat to keep it warm runs on gas. Gas here in Holland is nowadays really expensive. Uh, so I’m going to swap that around for electric heating uh for this winter. I mean, this boat is pretty good, pretty well insulated. There are some things I have to do. Uh, just tweak it and I can get this boat warm in a couple of minutes just with one electric heater. I already tested that, so that’s perfect. Um, yeah, as you might know, uh, I took a really bad fall on my boat a couple of weeks ago, about four or five weeks ago, and I fell with my hip on the edge of the steel boat on the rim, and I got a stress fracture in my hipbone. Um, that can’t be operated. That just needs to heal naturally. Uh the doctor said, “Well, you need to keep on walking uh to keep the muscles um nice and smooth.” For as far as that’s possible, I mean, I’m 53. Uh so I went on a little holiday and where did I go? Here you go. Okay, so this is my little studio for the coming 14 nights. The view was not what I expected. All right, here we go. As you can see, this is handy screen to keep the bugs out. My little porch, my little balcony, my romantic balcony. And over there is something that fell apart. Behind there is the sea, the ocean over there as well. But hey, it’s doable. So, where am I? Sos baby. I’m in Greece. Samos. And it’s hot. It’s uh in the airplane. and they told us it was 28° C, but my phone says 31 and at the uh the desk down below they said 33. So, yeah, it’s one of those three. But hey, so I’m just walking on a pier and I came across this one. Apparently, this is a traditional uh Greek style or Greek fishing boat. And then across the marina, you have that thing over there. Holy goof. Nice little bay. Look at the color of the water. Wee. This is a sheltered marina a bit. And then when I go to the other side of this little dock, look at that. Oh, the horror. Never ever in my life will I do that. Hell no. So across the bay there, all the way over there to there and there are restaurants. So I’m not spoiled for choice. And this is just day one. It’s now almost 2:00 in the afternoon. I’m here now for about 90 minutes. And this looks promising. I am going to rent a car or a scooter or a moped or whatever. I’m here for 14 days, so plenty to discover. All right, guys. So, it’s now well near as makes a difference. 10:30 in the morning, Saturday morning, the 23rd of uh August, I believe, or September. September. And of course, I forgot my little adapter for my mini SD card for the GoPro to get the data off and put it in my laptop. So, I’m going to go get one. So, I jumped in a cab and I went to a different little village and online it said that the camera shop was open, but this is Greece, so it’s closed. So, that means I cannot get the footage of my GoPro to my uh my laptop. That’s a bit of a bummer because I want to I want to create a video for you guys and for myself, of course. But hey, it is what it is. Uh I have no clue what village I’m in. Let me check. It’s a bit windy, so I have the camera in my face, or rather the microphone. Uh I just uh got spoken to by a local. uh he thought I was some someone a celebrity or something. So I told him I wasn’t. Uh but he told me that uh the tourist refer to this place as being Samos city but the locals call it Vati F Victor Anson Theodore Hendrik uh and then an igre a Greek style Y. So that’s where I am right now. The weather is amazing again. Of course, it’s 15 11 and it’s already almost 30° C, but look at the scenery behind me. Oh, amazing, right? So, the camera shop is still closed and it will open uh again on Monday or Tuesday or maybe Wednesday. They don’t know. So, that’s a bit of a bummer, but hey, it is what it is. I can’t change that. Yeah, that’s it for now. Got a new perfume. Chanel, I thought it was cheaper than it would be in Amsterdam, but it’s not. It’s exactly the same price. Uh what I do find find interesting though, uh if you order a pint of beer in the the city uh the little village I’m staying at, you get a bowl of peanuts, uh some crisps, and popcorn with it with every glass you order. So, and it’s only €5 uh for half a liter. So, that’s not expensive. But still, I had four. That was enough. I was traveling yesterday a lot. I I left my uh my boat at uh 3:30 a.m. Yes, that’s right. In the morning. Went to sleep at yesterday at around 11:30, I guess. So, that was a long day. I woke up at 7:00 again this morning feeling refreshed. Had my breakfast and uh yeah, let’s see what the day will bring. Well, here we are. I’ve rented a car and it’s now um almost 12:00 uh on Monday the 25th of August. And this is a view. There’s the airport. I hope you can see it, guys. I mean, I can’t see what I’m filming. The sun is too too sh too bright, too sharp, but it gives you an impression, right? It’s an awesome place. So, let me tell you about my car that I’ve rented. I have it for 5 days and it’s an Opal Opal convertible something. It drives okay. It’s nice. I mean, it’s not a Jag or Oh, it’s a Opel Cascada, right? A miss. And the lady at the rental rental station, the rental place, told me not to use Google Maps because that doesn’t work here on Samos. um it will send you to uh some tourist spots but generally you can’t trust it cannot trust it because you get lost and then what but that’s exactly what I’ve done uh not use Google uh Google Maps or whatever just turn it off and just went for a drive and look where I am where I am now. Holy moly. really small roads, twisting and turning, steep hills. If you’re a novice driver, that’s your test. I mean, look at this. Okay, here we go. The roads here are worse than they are in Gran Canaria. I mean, these look like roads in the southern part of France in the mountains, the B- roads. This is, of course, a B- road. The main roads are better, but they are boring as right? Here we go. [Laughter] You can go that way. You have this that much space. Well, that was fun. They forced me into the side of the road because she said there wasn’t enough space. Well, there was. She had over a meter left to her right, but who cares? Okay, here we go again. Oh, I am in second, third. Here we go. Well, here’s the first for me. I have engine trouble. Yep. I have two warning lights on and I’m now uphill, but I’m in third gear. And when I push the throttle, [Music] It stutters and it’s shaking the steering wheel and the gearbox as well. So, I think it’s engine related. Maybe uh ignition or fuel. Where do I need to go? I don’t know. Peto, come on. Where is that? I think it’s straight on. Let’s do it. But I’m going to take this car back, of course. I mean, I don’t want to wreck it. And yeah, I paid for a good car and I need I want a working car, not not one that’s not working. Can you hear it? [Music] May maybe uh the the the exhaust system is cluttered or clogged up or whatever. The air intake, it can be all sorts. I don’t know. I’m not a mechanic. Oh, now I’m not driving really fast. I mean, 40 km an hour and I should be able to do that in third or fourth gear. But now I have to shift back, shift down. And she’s losing power quite a bit. So, I’m going to go back to Porio Peto. turn it turn this car uh back in and get another one. Hopefully that will work. Well, we’ll see. So, I’ve got a new car. Yep. It’s the same model, the same brand. Opal. Uh it was an Opal Gascada. This one works. And of course, it’s a dead end. Ah, well, that’s what you get if you can’t use Google Maps or any other um navigation system. There is no uh no signal here. So, you have to do it by map. And I know how to do that, but I can’t read the names correctly and drive past and what was that? What? What? What? I don’t know. So, I’m just going to go back and see where I end up. And this is why I like driving in uh in other countries. I mean, it’s amazing. Um getting lost in Holland is non impossible for sure. I mean, signs everywhere, every corner. Uh you have cell phone reach everywhere. Navigation will work anywhere. And here it’s a bit different. But I like it. Well, good morning again. Um, I’m off to uh Vati Vati uh also known as uh Samos City. Uh that’s the capital of Samos. Uh and I need to get some headphones. I thought I brought mine, but I didn’t. So, I can’t edit. Um well, not the way I want to do it. So, let me get try to get that and then go to uh the blue village. Uh I don’t know the the name. I will mention that later on. And after that, maybe another village. Uh the the owner of my hotel told me just a minute ago to go there as well. So, yeah, it’s a beautiful day again. Uh it will be hot. It’s now 10:30 a.m. and it’s already 28° C. So, it’s a nice drive with a convertible. Here we go. Well, I was trying to film an uh a little item, some footage, parked my car, and I noticed something weird here. Look at this. Uh-oh. That’s not good. That’s not good. This the sec the second car I broke. Well, I didn’t break it. I mean, I don’t know why that hose is leaking. If I would hit the radiator or something had an accident, I will get it. But this, look at that. Well, I’m going to leave it for now. I mean, uh I’m here in this little village. I will show you in a minute. Let it cool down a bit and then make some phone calls and uh yeah, let someone pick me up. Bloody hell. This is the first time in in all of my holidays in my life I broke a rental car. Well, two of them in one uh one week. That’s new, right? Let’s explore. Right. So, the little village I’m going to explore is called Manolateses. And it’s a little village way up high in the mountains and arguably uh one of the most prettiest and most beautiful little villages on the aisle of Samos. Well, if the view has something to do with it, it starts off good. I mean, how’s that for a view? The drive up here was really, really nice. [Music] [Music] Well, I think I’ve found the other side of the most beautiful or prettiest little village on Samos. I mean, look at this. That’s what you call a dump. Such a shame though. This used to be a little apartment, I think. Little kitchen in there. and it just got away from them. I mean, they started uh an additional build here. Didn’t finish it. I mean, the spot is beautiful, but you need to cut down the trees so you can see a bit. But the thing is, you’re really high up in the well, really high. I mean, maybe uh 1,200 m above sea level or something. I don’t know. But there is nothing else here. I mean, I haven’t seen a supermarket yet, but still a pool or if you want to go for a swim, you have to go all the way down. And that’s a long way down. So, I get it. They tried, but it didn’t work. tourists are not um paying for for an acade accommodation that has nothing. I mean, yeah, there’s a downside of living on a mountain and this is it. So, this is the church, probably Greek Orthodox Church. And here is some sort of community building. And believe it or not, I can show you the inside a bit because there’s a window open. I already checked. There’s no one inside. Broken window. Look at this. Maybe a little school thing going on around here at one time. Who knows? Little pot stove around down here. Yeah, this is a shame. Well, maybe they still use it, but it has seen better days. So, this place would be perfect if you can earn your money uh through internet, but you have to get your own satellite internet here. I don’t think there’s any service here. I will check in a minute on my phone, but I don’t think so. But if you do, if you get a satellite your own satellite internet connection and you you you like the peace and quiet, just build up this little studio and yeah, this is your garden. I mean, come on. The solitude would get me, by the way. But yeah, if it’s your thing, why not? And I can’t imagine it being expensive living here. I mean, a whole lot of it is empty, so that means uh people are happy to rent it out or maybe even sell it. Um, yeah. And if it’s your thing, again, there are worse places to get uh to live for sure. This is going to be fun. All right, let’s give him a call because they need to come and get me for sure. This car is not going anywhere by itself. Well, a bit downhill, but that’s the end of it. Here we go. Well, just made the phone call. So, they do have in uh phone service here. That’s good. Uh and the lady on the line was not happy. Uh I said, “Well, it’s not my fault. uh a hose is leaking, but she was like, “Uh, let me make some phone calls and I will get right back to you.” So, she’s not really happy with her job or something. I don’t know. Well, there’s my replacement car, a little shoe box, a Suzuki Swift, and it’s not a convertible, so this is a downgrade. Well, I’m in my Suzuki Swift. Compared to the other one that Opal, this is a piece of bleep. It’s no convertible. It’s bouncy as hell. But that’s what they got. So, I’m going to turn this in this afternoon. I’m going to go back to uh Vita Horio place my hotel is in and go to the rental place and see what the deal is. I mean, I’m not paying top dollar for this. I mean, the other car is more luxurious. It’s a convertible and this is way smaller, cheaper. So, we’ll find out what the what the deal will be. I’m going to wait here for a bit so that local or other rental is gone. I mean, look at those cars. Nice little hair turns, hair paint turns, and of course in the dashboard. The warning light is burning already. So, I’m taking bets, guys. How long will it take me to to to wreck this one? My god. It’s But it’s something else is right. Plenty of space. Okay, guys. I’m in car number three, and it’s a lovely coastal drive today. I’m loving this, guys. Really, I do. [Music] Nice little convertible. Lovely weather, amazing drive. Oh, and they have really good beer here in uh on Samos. It’s called Alpha beer. Really good. So, of course, Heineken bought it for sure, right? Um yeah, I’m going to continue driving. Morning. Well, today I’m going to try and get to Leadaki Beach Bar in Samos. Well, it’s called Leadaki Beach Bar Samos. It’s not in Samos. It’s on Samos. Well, so much for Leadakus Beach for me. I had a look around. Um, it’s one commercial trap. It’s a bar, it’s a restaurant, it’s this, it’s that. Uh, the sun beds crammed together. Busy as hell. I mean, I get that, but that’s not my vibe. Not my thing. It’s beautiful, but no, too busy for me. Too uh too crowded, too commercial. So, that’s the end of Leaf Duck Beach. Believe it or not, I have an issue with the car. There is moisture dripping on my right foot. And I think I know what it is. It’s um the little radiator is leaking for the the little radiator for the the heater. There is a heater in here of course, but I felt it dripping on my foot again. So there it is soaking wet. Jesus Christ. Well, it is what it is. It doesn’t smell like uh cooling liquid or whatever. So, I’m not going to taste it for sure. But again, well, I’m going to turn the car in today. Uh anyway, I will let them know. But it doesn’t need uh it needs to stay stay contained like this and not get any worse because then my uh my foot can get really wet and slippery and that’s dangerous whilst driving, of course. Right. It is again beautiful though. Okie dokie. Right. So I felt another drip drizzle on my foot. Liquid again. And I heard like an electric noise. So let me make sure I’m not on fire this time. I mean, you never know. This is fine. That’s fine. That’s I don’t know. I do hear something, but that is just the heat from the engine, I think. I don’t smell anything burning, so that’s good. But I rather be safe than sorry. I mean, that that little when you put two electric wires together. That’s what I heard. Only a bit longer, a second or two, three, and then click and it was gone. No other warning lights came on. So, I’m just checking here. I’m not on fire. So, I’m going to go back and turn this car in. I’m done. I supposed to turn it in today anyway. It’s now uh a4:4 to 1:00 in the afternoon. Uh I should uh I can keep it till around 5, but I’m done. This uh this car number three. This is not trustable. Oh, look here. [Music] Oh, that that looked like uh moisture, but it wasn’t. Well, I’m going to go back to uh my little village, turn the car in, and see what else I can do. Okay, that’s it for this video, guys. It’s now Monday, the 8th of September. Um, I’m a little bit behind on my videos. I know that. Um, I’m going to try to upload this this this video this this day, today, Monday. And the next one will be on coming Wednesday. And hopefully I have another one for you coming Friday. I will get back to um yeah, real time as as close as possible. So guys, thank you for watching. It was a bit different. I know. Uh that was because of my big fall. I broke my hip. Well, I broke a stress fracture. Don’t overexaggerate things, dude. Uh, I hope you liked it. Um, yeah, the next one will be the same about Samos. Uh, and the second video hopefully coming Friday will be boat work because I’m going to start it today. Yeah, for sure. Guys and girls, thank you for watching. Um, if you like my content, give me a thumbs up. Just say what you think in the comments. Uh, I will take it all the good, the bad, and the ugly. Uh, be nice. Uh, don’t be rude or whatever. Uh, there’s no need for it. Uh, if you don’t like it, don’t watch it. Um, if you do like it, maybe you might consider hitting the subscription button. Uh, it’s totally free. Um, you can do it anytime you like, but you won’t. Hit the like, the thumbs up, and yeah, I will see you next time. Bye.

In this video I share why I sold my old boat Serenity and what happened next. A few weeks ago I had a bad fall onboard, which led me to take a much-needed holiday on the island of Samos, Greece.

This trip turned into a vacation vlog full of challenges, setbacks, and a streak of bad luck you won’t believe! From travel mishaps to unexpected surprises, it almost felt like I was cursed — but I kept my spirits up, bought a lottery ticket, and kept moving forward.
If you enjoy videos about boat life, Greece travel, and real stories from the water, this one’s for you. Don’t miss part two of my Samos adventure coming this Wednesday. After that, I’ll return to my usual boat projects content.

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Take care 🙂