Sailing the South Ionian

Welcome aboard the beautiful Lead boat Athina! Not only is she a gorgeous boat with plenty of character, but she also plays home to Faye, Ali, and Jake from March - November. 

One of my best friends Faye is currently working her second season with Sailing Holidays, leading two week floatillas around the Ionian islands in Greece. When she returned home last winter with her new boyf Ali and told us all of their stories, the offer of visiting this year was too tempting for Joe and I to resist. 

Although we had seen their photos throughout the year, I was still unsure what to expect from the week ahead; would sailing be for me? Would I be overcome with sea sickness and hate every minute? I just wasn't sure, but as we got further away from the airport and approached Lefkas island, the nerves were replaced by excitement and anticipation at being reunited with my bestie and embracing life "at sea" for the next week!

I will never forget the huge squeeze that Faye gave me as I ran off the coach, trying to remain composed and allow her to stay proffessional. It was lovely to see her and Ali, both looking extremely bronzed (my Turkey tan now seeming completely non-existent!). 

As we headed towards Athina and chatted away, I couldn't help but stare in awe at the gorgeous surroundings, even more beautiful than I had expected. 

I won't lie, our first attempts at getting on the boat in Sivota were pretty ridiculous, and I began to worry if my recently sprained ankle would survive the next week. To my relief, if became second nature after a few days, and I found myself clambering over the boat a little less clumsily than before! 

Faye, Ali & Jake lead the first briefing and introduced us to the other ten boats, allowing us to meet the people that we would see on our travels for the next week. This was a great opportunity for Joe and I to listen out for the dos and don'ts of being on the boat, and to get a rough idea of what the week ahead held in store. To our excitement, we found out that almost every day we would travel to a new place and explore some hidden treasures. 

The first day sailing lead us to Little Vathi, Meganissi island, where we were welcomed by the locals and treated to some beautiful views.

I also got to spend some quality chill time in Faye's favourite hideout - the hammock!

The next day Joe and I helped Faye shop for the evening's punch party, before setting sail and heading for our next destination; Frikes on Ithaca island. This place was one of my favourites - It was stunning! The surroundings were lovely, the water was so clear, and Joe and I even went for a little swim:

Not only was the place beautiful, the food was also out of this world! I had the nicest Salmon and sundried tomato pasta that evening, as well as my first portion of Sagnaki fried cheese, aka heart attack on a plate! The next morning, I also enjoyed my favourite breakfast from the whole holiday - a giant heart-shaped fluffy waffle, topped with Greek Yoghurt, honey and finely chopped nuts - if even the thought of that didn't make you salivate, I am slightly concerned! 

After stuffing our faces, we enjoyed Jäger Bombs and drinks in the bar, along with a bit of table dancing thrown in for good measure!

The next day took us to Efemia, Kefalonia, which was very cute. We were treated to lovely steak and lots of relaxing, taking in the surroundings and recovering from the late night before.

We even learnt a little bit of Greek from the tablecloths!

Sticking with the beautiful Kefalonia, the next two days were spent in my favourite of all the places that we visited - Fiskardo. 

Another helping of amazing food was enjoyed on our first night here, this time with front row seats for the epic thunderstorm that had been creeping in all evening. 

That evening was a little bumpy on the boat, but a combination of the Sauvingnon Blanc and the rocking of the boat sent me to sleep in no time, allowing me to happily awake the next morning to blue skies and a day of adventure ahead. 

Faye and Ali suggested we took a roadtrip and explored Kefalonia, as they rarely get to travel via any mode of transport other than boat. We hired this little beast, named her Poppy the Panda, and headed off to explore Kefalonia! 

Firstly we drove to Assos, a gorgeous little town that Faye and Ali are yet to visit by boat. 

The rest of the day took us on a trek to Mirtos Beach. Faye and Ali had visited before, and told us it was a must-see. Unfortunately, the usual route was closed due to recent earthquakes and dangerous roads around the mountains. We thought it would be a great idea to follow the diversion; after all, we had to visit this beach, we'd heard such great things...

We found ourselves in what I can only describe as rural Kefalonia, with no tarmac, skinny roads, and goat jams. Yes, you heard me right, goats upon goats stood in the middle of the road.

And around our car, refusing to budge for a good 10 minutes...

We laughed a lot during that car journey, finally arriving at Mirtos beach, and believe me it was worth the wait!

That evening, we cooked and ate fajitas on the boat, drank ice cold Corona and then headed to Greco's for more Jäger Bombs and lots of dancing. 

At around 3am, Ali and I discovered that our wallets were not magical and were certainly not producing anymore money, so we all stumbled back to the boat to head for bed. Jake seemed to have had a pretty good time that night, falling asleep the minute his bum hit a seat on deck, resulting in Joe and Ali starting a game of "Jakearoo". 

The next morning we discovered that he had no recollection of the game, but the photos helped prove what a great success it had been! 

Unfortunately, our last day was now upon us. All feeling slightly delicate, we headed towards the caves just outside of Fiskardo to swim off the hangover.

Little did we know, the journey ahead to Nidri was going to hold something spectacular, the best hangover cure that you could ask for...

Wild dolphins! We must have spent about half an hour chasing them and gazing in awe as the played with the front of the boat, showing off by doing flips and jumps right before our eyes. Ali and Jake were brave enough to jump in with their masks on and were lucky enough to have at least 20 dolphins swim underneath them, and Ali described it as one of the best moments of his life! It was something that we couldn't have planned, and were so lucky to experience, making the hangover and the last day a little easier. 

The evening flew by, laughing about the week that was behind us and eating British food (a luxury for Faye, Ali and Jake!) in a little restaurant tucked away from the main bay. That day really was a lovely end to a wonderful week. 

Our departure was all very rushed the next day, which was probably for the best, and we said our goodbyes leaving Ali and Jake to help out some of their boats, and Faye to give us a quick wave as we boarded the coach. 

As I sat there and waved back at one of my best friends, I felt my chin wobble and tears spring to my eyes. The last week was the most quality time we had spent together since we were at college; when are any of us lucky enough to spend 24/7 with our best friends for a whole week? I thought about how lucky we were to have experienced such an amazing holiday, so different to anything that we had ever done before, and realised that I had to say goodbye to Faye and Ali for at least another couple of months. Safe to say, I cried for the next 10 minutes under my sunglasses!

I'm already counting down the days until they are home, and am definitely going to make the most of their time in England, before they head off to their next destination and start their next adventure. 

So thank you so much to Faye, Ali and Jake for being the perfect hosts, letting us gatecrash your home for a week, and for making our holiday amazing. We tried our best not to be too much of a pain, and we hope that you're missing us half as much a we are missing you! Here's to planning our next adventure...