Kefalonia, Zakynthos and Ithaca .. jewels in the Ionian Sea

I've been wanting to go to the Greek Island of Kefalonia for quite some time and this year that dream became a reality.

Every year in June my girl friends and I go to an island within a four hour flying radius of London. The pandemic stopped us going for 2 years and last year we finally got to go to Corfu in September. This year we looked at a number of island  options but connections didn't work out with flights and ferries so we booked an EasyJet holiday to Kefalonia. It was a great deal and an easy process. Flights, accommodation and transfers all organised and paid for in advance.

We took a super early flight out so that we could make the most of our first day. We arrived around lunch time a little before check in so went and had a lovely lunch by the pool. 

The hotel Apostolata is set into a hillside and all rooms have a view of the beautiful Ionian sea. The location is lovely but it is about 3kms outside of the main town of Skala so if you like to be in the thick of it this is not the place for you. The hotel offers a free shuttle service every day except Sunday - twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon, the last one being at 5.30pm.

Our first full day was a Sunday, so as there was no shuttle service, we chose to walk to the town to get a sense of the area. Mostly downhill on the way there, it took about 40 minutes to our first stop at Nautilus restaurant which had a beach which you could access on a stepped path down the hill. We had a coffee and booked lunch for later on, giving us free use of the sun beds and umbrella. The beach was quite stoney so we walked further into town and bought beach shoes as we had forgotten to bring ours with us.

The water was crystal clear and relatively warm and it was such a joy to be on the beach and in the water again.

Lunch was delicious fresh fish with Greek salad and local wine. It was such a perfect location with views of the beach and sea. A great start to what was to be a fantastic holiday.

We went back to the beach for another swim and decided we had enough energy for the walk back. I have to say, that last kilometre or so up the hill was a struggle particularly as we didn't have suitable footwear (flip flops are really meant for the beach) but we racked up about 13,000 steps that day!

We booked 2 days of boat trips - one to Zakynthos or Zante as it's also known, and one to the island of Ithaca. Both trips were fabulous and we we went with Valsamis Cruises. It took about 90 minutes to get to the beautiful Shipwreck beach which was wonderful to see but crowded on the day with other boats dropping tourists off. The sea was too rough for us to get off and swim but it didn't matter as we had about 20 minutes to take it all in before going on to see the Blue Caves. I couldn't get over the myriad variations of the blues of the sea, it was just amazing. 

Cruising onward around the island we stopped at St. Nikolaos for about an hour and a half where we had a leisurely lunch overlooking the sea and the small harbour. On the way back we dropped anchor in a secluded bay for the chance to swim off the boat and enjoy the peace and tranquility.

Similarly, the trip to Ithaca was about an hour's sail away from the port of Poros but the island was charming and different to Zante. It was an enchantingly beautiful place, just as you'd imagine a Greek island would be. 

The capital Vathi, which was our first stop, is situated around a deep natural bay and retains all the charm and traditional architecture that is typical of the Ionian Islands. We got off there to spend an hour or so wandering around the
town with its water front shops, cafes and restaurants. 

Our second stop and where we had lunch was Kioni, also set in a sheltered bay with restaurants and cafes on the beach. This is an island I would love to come back to explore more. 

On the way back we stopped again at a beautiful secluded beach to swim in the crystal clear turquoise sea.

Mid week we got the local bus service for a trip to the capital of Argostolion on the other side of the island from where we were based. At a cost of €4.50 each way it was a bargain.

The journey took almost 2 hours as there were a number of stops along the way but it was an interesting trip on winding roads through little villages and seeing a great deal of the island which is surprisingly quite mountainous. The roads are generally quite narrow so there's no hurrying the process.

Argostolion looks relatively modern with a pedestrianised area filled with shops, cafes and restaurants. It was fairly quiet while we were there but apparently can get quite busy at times as it's a cruise ship stop. We checked out the shops and stopped for a Frappe - iced coffee - outside a typical Greek cafe.

We headed down to the water front and had lunch in a restaurant Aristofanis recommended to us by a local resident and it didn't disappoint. I love the Greek diet of fresh fish vegetables and salad. I could actually live on it permanently. 

The rest of our time between the day trips was spent at the beach in Skala, right in front of what became our favourite, Milos beach bar and restaurant. Two sun beds and umbrella plus two bottles of water was €8 for the day. The beach is mostly sand so not too many rocks to contend with and there is also a shower and changing hut.

We stayed there for lunch and went for drinks in the evening as we loved the location and the hospitality of the owner and his staff. We even got to see the strawberry super moon rise over the sea one night. A magical, serendipitous experience to remember. 

We met so many lovely people who also appreciate the beauty of this region and return every year without fail.

I think I may have left a little piece of my heart in Kefalonia and would love to come back to this beautiful island again one day.

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A long weekend in Beaune, France

I love a road trip, and recently at the end of May, had one with 3 friends. We drove from Zurich where they live, to Beaune in France, a three and a half hour journey on the auto route.

Beaune is situated in the heart of the Burgundy wine region and there is so much to see and do you would be hard pressed to get it all done in a few days, but try we did. The town itself is relatively small with an abundance of restaurants, bars and wine shops. We went on a holiday weekend so it was particularly busy with tourists from all over the world. We stayed in a gîte right in the centre of the town with easy access to everything. It is surprisingly quiet at night.

We had planned in advance to hire electric bicycles to cycle through the vineyards. The cycle route is off the main roads but occasionally we would have to navigate through villages with fortunately very little traffic to contend with. We stopped en route in Meursault for a coffee before continuing our journey to the Hotel Le Montrachet where we had a gorgeous lunch with accompanying wine from the region. 

The ride back was slightly more arduous, again stopping in Meursault for a drink, but we managed to get the bikes back by the agreed time of 6pm. It was a fabulous experience and one I would highly recommend. All that fresh air and open country was an utter joy.

We spent most of our time in Beaune itself. It has a great array of restaurants and bars to choose from. On the Saturday morning, there is a lovely French market with local produce, crafts, clothing and antiques. Its a bustling place full of atmosphere and definitely worth trying all the lovely fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as cheeses, meats even fresh pasta from an Italian trader.

Our favourite wine bar was Le Bristrot de Coin, a small bar on
the edge of a small square with a fab choice of local wines. The owner is very knowledgeable and recommended some great wines for us to try. 

We also ate lunch twice at a lovely restaurant La Superb, Bar à Manger, a Michelin guide recommendation. An unpretentious family run business, the food and wine paring was perfect.

We hopped on the train for the 20 minute journey to Dijon, the capital of the Burgundy region where we spent the afternoon. It's a picturesque town full of gothic and renaissance  architecture. Known primarily for producing mustard there is also the Musée des Beaux-Arts, housed in the Palace of the Dukes. 

We strolled around the town, stopping for a glass of wine right in front of the gothic church of Notre Dame where a wedding had just taken place. The bride and groom drove off in a Mini - how romantic!

A beautiful four days in France spent in predominantly late spring sunshine, we couldn't have asked for more.

Back to Switzerland and a day trip with a difference

Going back to my last blog post I alluded to the fact that once you're in Europe it's relatively easy to get around to visit another country. Switzerland borders three European countries - Germany, France and Italy and they can all be accessed via train or by road.

Fortunately for me, I have a friend who lives in Zurich so I was able to go back again and do a bit more exploring. On the day I arrived we spent time walking around the city centre and relaxing with a glass of rosé at Mövenpick in the early evening. 

We had planned a trip the next day to Lucerne and bought a day pass ticket which covered trams in Zurich, the train there and back and boats on the lake. Such good value at 75CHF, approximately £60. 

The train journey took about 40 minutes and we wandered around the town for an hour or so until our ferry to the Bürgenstock Hotel was ready to depart. I had seen this luxury hotel perched on top of a mountain with it's amazing views featured on a tv program. Although it's way out of my price range to stay there, going for lunch at one of their restaurants is perfectly doable and reasonably priced. 

It was so relaxing gliding along the lake taking in the mesmerising view until we docked at the pier to take the funicular cable car up to the top of the mountain. This was an extra cost of 50CHF about £40 for the return journey, but totally worth it for a truly spectacular experience both ways.

We had also booked in advance for their Spices Kitchen restaurant, which offers a mix of authentic dishes from Thailand, India, China and Japan. The magnificent panoramic view is like nothing else I have seen and the food and service was exquisite as you would expect from a hotel of this calibre and it's unique location.

After our wonderful lunch we were back on the funicular and the ferry to Lucerne where we picked up another boat and spent another 2 hours cruising on the lake and witnessing the fantastic scenery and lakeside towns till we reached Brunnen where we disembarked and caught the train back to Zurich.

Coming up next - a four day long weekend to the Burgundy region in France.

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