This is a part of the verdurous island of Madouri, a small private island which belongs to the family of one of the more important Greek poet, Aristotelis Valaoritis.

The house in this photo is the home of Aristotelis Valaoritis who died in this land, at the middle of the 19th century. Now, his grand-grand children has this magnificent place and conserve it to remain his memory.

Aristotelis Valaoritis was born at Lefkada at 1824 and died in the island of Madouri at 1879. He made jural studies at the universities of Geneva, Paris and Pisa and gratuaded at 1848.

His poetry is full of love for his country, freedom and full of admiration for the fighters of 1821. For many years he represented Lefkada to the Ionian Parliament, where from the line of Radicals had been fighting for the Union.

He made several trips to Europe, fighting for the annexation of the Ionian islands to mother Greece. When the dream came true, he became a member of the National Parliament.

It was a patriotic and romantic poet and his most famous poems was: Kira Frosini, Athanasios Diakos, Foteinos (semifinished) etc.

And here we are... the most famous island of all. Skorpios. This island has international fame. It is well known all around the world as the island of the Onassis family.

Aristotelis Onassis was born in Smyrna, at Minor Asia to a middle-class Greek family. At the time of his birth, Smyrna had a very significant and prosperous Greek population before the Genocide of Greeks by the then Turkish government. After being briefly occupied by Greece (1919-1922) in the aftermath of the allied victory in World War I, the city was re-captured by Turkey; the Onassis family holdings were lost, causing them to move to Greece as refugees. In 1923, Aristotle Onassis left his country to Argentina with allegedly only $63. After difficult beginnings, he revived there the family's tobacco business.

In 1925, he received Argentinian and Greek citizenships. After engaging in many different entrepreneurial activities with determination and passion for success, he finally managed to become a world-class businessman making his first million by the age of 25, owning commercial ships, tankers and whalers. In 1954, the FBI investigated Onassis for fraud against the U.S. government. He was charged with violating the citizenship provision of the shipping laws which require that all ships displaying the US flag be owned by US citizens. Onassis entered a guilty plea and paid $7 million. He founded Olympic Airways (today Olympic Airlines ), the Greek national carrier, in 1957.

Onassis married Athina Livanos, daughter of shipping magnate Stavros Livanos, on December 28, 1946 ; their son, Alexander (April 30, 1948 – January 23, 1973), and daughter Christina (December 11, 1950 – November 19, 1988), were both born in New York City. After their divorce, Athina married her late sister's widower (and Onassis's arch shipping rival) Stavros Niarchos.

Despite the fact they were both married, Onassis and opera diva Maria Callas embarked on a notorious affair. Onassis ended his relationship with Callas to marry Jacqueline Kennedy, U.S. President John F. Kennedy 's widow, on October 20, 1968. Kennedy insisted on marriage rather than an affair so as to not scandalize her children.

Callas was really the love of his life, evidenced by the short lived happiness he experienced with Kennedy, trying to end the marriage early but being unable to without an egregious offense, according to Greek law at the time; and the many times he tried to see Callas while married to Kennedy. He flew to Paris to see Callas after the death of his son Alexander in an airplane crash. Onassis never recovered from the death of his son.

Onassis died at age 69, on March 15, 1975 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, of bronchial pneumonia, a complication of the myasthenia gravis that he had been suffering from during the last years of his life. Christina inherited half his fortune pursuant to his will. The other half went to an Onassis Foundation set up to honor his son Alexander Onassis. Christina's share has since passed to her only child, Athina Roussel making her one of the wealthiest women in the world.

We sailed all around the island to see the houses of the Onassis family. Aristotelis had built home for each one of his children. So sad that now after all this glory of this family no one of them is alive to enjoy the beautiful island.

So sad to realize that money most of the time does not bring hapiness.
The two high speed boats are there... at the small harbor of Skorpios but the owners could not use them. The blue one belongs to Alexandros and the pink one to Christina.

Life gave them money. They had so many than no one of their descendant would not need to work but... life was so cruel for them. They are now burried at this small island... all together and the person who owns this place is Christina's daughter, Athena, who wants to sell it propably wanting to get out of the bad luck of her family. This young woman has grown up without meeting any of her ancestors from the side of her mother.

The people who have born and live in Nydri, the small town from where the cruise ships start their trip for the Prigkiponisia of Ionian Sea have placed a statue of Aristotelis Onassis at the main square. They have met this man. They feel proud because they had him there for a few years. He was one of them. He made their place famous around the world. He brought tourists and money to this unknown until then island of Lefkada and his fame and shadow will be always close to them.

This cruise ended in Nydri of Lefkada but next week it will continue in some other place. I prepare now my suitcases for another one trip.

Jo, one of my friends asked me if I would ever stay at my home. Well Jo... I will not stay at my home. I like to travel and meet the beauty which fills my horizon and goes beyond it covering all globe.