Greek Islands

Next stop: Greece and the Greek Islands. Where three days of sailing, sunbathing and swimming in the Ionian Sea awaited. We left Ancona, Italy on an overnight cruise boat bound for Igoumenitsa, Greece.

Once we arrived in Greece we were horrified to learn two things: 1. We were only able to drink bottled water rather than tap water as the water is not potable on many of the smaller islands in Greece and 2. Toilet paper cannot be flushed in Greece as the pipelines are thin and the sewage and drainage system is unable to cope with waste paper. Instead locals are required to dispose of toilet paper in bins next to the toilet. This was a very strange concept to us and one that we often forgot to follow.

A short drive on the bus along the rugged Greek coastline from Igoumenitsa to Plataria and we met up with our sailing leader Ben and our brand new flotilla of yachts. We were pretty impressed to hear that each yacht was worth $100,000, making that over a $1 million worth of yachts in total. After a quick crashcourse in how to sail a yacht, we were off!

The chance for a swim stop was welcomed each day. Although the water was cold, it was the clearest and bluest water I have ever seen, easily being able to see the ocean floor. Due to its high salinity levels, it was also very easy to float on.

Our first night, we moored at a harbour in a small village, consisting of nothing more than a few houses and a tavern. After enjoying an amazing spread of seafood, we were treated to authentic Greek table dancing by the locals, where they had us supporting tables with our teeth and spinning around in circles. In Greek, Yiamas means Cheers. I found myself shouting this phrase quite often throughout the night. Too many shots of Ouzo later and we somehow stumbled safely back to our boats, waking up with a horrible hangover the next morning.

The second night, we stopped at the more populated island of Corfu. The coastal views of Corfu are dominated by the New Fortress, also known as The Fortress of Saint Mark. The fortress was built by the Venetians with construction starting in 1576 and finishing in 1645. The fortress was known to protect the town from the invasion of enemies and pirates and became increasily important during the Second World War, where it was intensively attacked by bombings. The island is also known for its endless beaches and according to the legend, lovers that swim in the Canal d’Amour, will stay together for life. Our night in Corfu kicked off with a pirate party on the pier, including tug of war, before making our way into the narrow streets of Corfu Town in search of a pub and waking up with yet another hangover in the morning.

Day three saw us making our way back to Plataria on the last day of our sailing tour. Before we said goodbye to our boats, we stopped off at a beach on the way home where I jumped at the opportunity to participate in various water activities including jet skiing, parasailing and a ride of a banana boat. Driving the jet ski through uncharted waters and admiring the views from above whilst parasailing was definitely the highlight of my Greek Island experience!