178 PLATAMONA. 



tamona, and to run over to Salonica, across the 

 gulf, by which means we should save a good 

 many miles of land, travelling over what we knew 

 must be an uninteresting country. However, it 

 was a Greek festa or holyday, and no boats were 

 going, so we agreed to remain at the khan at 

 Platamona for the night, and proceed the next 

 day to Caterina, where, or along the coast on our 

 way, we calculated we should certainly find one. 



The khan at Platamona is on the top of a hill, 

 and near it is a Turkish fortress. There cannot 

 be any great number of inhabitants, and those 

 that are there I imagine to be principally Turks. 

 Boats came from Salonica to a good many diffe- 

 rent places along this coast, to carry away the 

 timber which is cut in the mountains and brought 

 down to the water's edge. I saw some very fine 

 timber being shipped at more than one place 

 along the coast ; but there is no harbour, and the 

 boats run risks in bad weather. As it turned out, 

 we were unable to procure a boat anywhere, so 

 we deemed it best to continue our journey by 

 land, although it might make a difference of a day 

 in our arrival at Salonica. 



I had to wait a considerable time by myself in 



