Blogs from Ionian Islands, Greece, Europe - page 11

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Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands » Meganisi May 15th 2012

Well, after a wonderful couple of weeks of warm weather and no wind the gods have had a change of heart! We heard the weather was coming in so we decided to head for our favourite spot - George's (Karnagio) - on Meganisi. We had a force 5 wind (about 20 knots) on the nose down to the bridge at Levkas (about an hour and a half's sail) and then more wind down to Meganisi. We had to resort to weather gear as waves (spray) were coming over the boat and it was pretty chilly. But oh, was it so lovely when we got to George's! So calm and welcoming. ? We had rain in the afternoon and through the night, and more wind is forecast. So we have decided to stay.... It's probably about 18 ... read more
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Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands May 13th 2012

After spending a few days in Preveza we decided to really extend ourselves and go to Vonitsa (about a 2 hr sail), which is in the Amvrakikos Gulf, for a few days. Vonitsa is a quaint little town on the mainland, with the remains of a big, old fort overlooking it. Our few days extended to a week... It was really nice just chilling and we did a few chores - sometimes. Our routine consisted of a late rise, breakfast, lunch and then sundowners at our 'local' taverna Remezzo's. Then dinner and another late night. Oh, I forgot - there was always an afternoon nap too! All very tiring. I'm sure you can understand why we needed a week there! ? However, I did manage to do my first bit of exercise - about a 5km ... read more
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Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands May 11th 2012

I finally found a way to download pics from my Sony onto the iPad! So here are some of my pictures from our few days of respite in the mountains before we hit the hard work of getting the boat spic and span and ready for launch! The farmers work really hard to earn their living. They milk the sheep 3 times a day and the goats twice! This means walking up the mountain several times a day to herd the sheep and goats back to the pen, so they can be milked. And believe me, that mountain is no hill! They also have to cart several tons of water up the mountain for the animals. Once the milking is done they then take the cans to a designated point on the side of the road, ... read more
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Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands May 4th 2012

Yesterday was D-Day! Up early (well, 7 am is early, isn't it?!) and last minute finishing touches and preparation before the boat was launched! I scrubbed the decks while Kevin lifted and placed the passerel. Bikes were pulled on board and Yannis (pronounced Janny) arrived with the launching trailer. Time to launch...! We had a long hard sail (about 15 minutes) across the bay to Preveza and immediately went across to Bicento's for a frappe and a glass of wine! Now the holiday has really begun. ;-)... read more
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Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands May 4th 2012

What a wonderful day out we had with Sofia and Costa! Apparently it is customary on 1 May for people to pick the wild flowers and make garlands and place them on their doors, as well to give bunches to friends and even place them on cars and motorbikes etc. The idea, it would seem, is "to catch May"! What a wonderful and colourful tradition. After enjoying the festivities of Vonitsa - we arrived just in time to find an empty table and have some mouth wateringly delicious lamb and bread served to us a few minutes later! - we set off to the mountains of Levkada. (Not very far from Vonitsa) Sofia and Costa have an old caravan which they keep, in the olive grove of a friend, on Levkada. So we headed for that ... read more
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Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands May 1st 2012

Yesterday we worked hard. I sanded the passerel (gang plank) and Kevin put up sails and began polishing the boat. Even tho I used an electric sander it was still back breaking work! Today we are joining friends at Vonitsa for the annual May Day Celebration. :-) Locals from near and far bring their horses, with beautifully braided manes and tails, to race on the beach. And farmers from surrounding areas donate sheep which are roasted on spits! The meat is then carved and served on newspaper, with hunks of fresh bread. Of course there is also music and liquid refreshment to boot! Party time here we come! A well deserved day of rest!... read more
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Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands » Zakynthos » Tsilivi October 13th 2011

Hello reader, For those of you who don't know, we decided to start our odyssey with a wedding. With an expected 60 guests coming mainly from the UK, Australia, Israel and Holland the perfect location was clearly Greece. So we arrived on the island of Zakynthos on Sunday October 9th 2011. The first five days were mostly spent planning the wedding and greeting our guests, but here are a few photos taken while we had a break. Josh and Yaz ... read more
Alexandra Beach Hotel

Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands » Corfu October 11th 2011

Hello Everyone! Sorry we've been so slack in writing this blog! I don't know why it's taken this long to get organised, seeing as this is my birthday holiday! But oh well, here we go: October 4th we left London - bit of a frustrating journey to Gatwick airport, rather forget that one (but thanks to my complaining skills, I managed to get credited the fare paid for that bus journey) We arrived in Corfu (one of the many Greek Islands) around lunch time, checked into our ALL INCLUSIVE hotel and changed out of our London clothes and into our beachwear! All inclusive hotels are awesome! Buffet meals, snacks, drinks (including alcohol) and entertainment all 'free' (as in included in the cost of the holiday) We cetainly made good use of that in our week there. ... read more
Our hotel
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FISH BITE

Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands » Corfu September 30th 2011

Geo: 39.6178, 19.9196After a week of total indulgence we were all feeling worse for wear when the ship pulled into Corfu. The result of this meant a much curtailed visit which is a shame because I am sure it has lot to offer. We did manage to visit the Museum of Asian Art which has some beautiful objects in it and it is peaceful, cool and far from the madding crowd. We looked at the Old Fort from the entrance and decided that it would be too much effort to climb up, so apart from a regulation beer in the colonnade that was Corfu for us.... read more
sail away
museum of asian art
sunset from the ship

Europe » Greece » Ionian Islands » Corfu » Ipsos September 24th 2011

In both Bosnia and Romania I had been told by people that I needed to do the "UFO tour." In Bulgaria, just outside of Veliko Tarnova, rests the middling remains of a communist conference center, once the biggest and most unique building in all of Bulgaria, now the relic of a repressive time. And, you guessed it, it is shaped like a flying saucer. I arrived in my hostel in Veliko, the one that was meant to provide said UFO tour. They provided it, yes, but I found almost instantly that interest in it was rather low from the other guests. They all preferred to do rock climbing and horse back riding; you know, normal stuff. I like weird stuff. A shame, because I had come to Veliko solely so that I could see communism in ... read more




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