Two months at the Aegean sea

I write this while we wild camp in a lovely place, the Vathy – or Rina – port of Kalymnos island to celebrate two months of travel around the majestic Greek islands.

First I would like to thank Blue Star Ferries,  ANEK LINES Οfficial Fan Page and Hellenic Seaways Official Fan Page for this unforgettable experience. Without their generous sponsorship we could never do this trip, which is like a dream for us despite we are born Greeks. This is a 100% Greek dream actually.

We had this idea primarily for Anastasia. We wanted her to know better her country before hitting the roads of central Asia but it proved a revelation for ourselves. I can now say that we didn’t know our own country perfectly before embarking on the F/B Έλυρος / Eliros to Chania, Crete.

Previously, we had travelled in different Aegean islands but this time it’s off-season and we lived them without the hordes of tourists that arrive in summer. Greek islands feel so different during winter but still we feel we haven’t experience each place at full every time we leave it. The reason is we travel pretty fast. We should have more days in each destination, so we have to do this some years later slower.

We hop from island to island every 3-4 days and time is never enough. We wish we could stay for at least 2 weeks in each, instead of driving around to find photographic spots to fly our drone while we work hard in the IVECO and homeschool our daughter. Anastasia enjoys it since we manage to introduce her in different local schools like we did in Crete, in Syros, in Chios and now in Kalymnos. 1-2 days in class is a great experience for the child but imagine if we could introduce her for a week at least each time.

The ferry is an essential part of life in the islands. It brings life each time it approaches the port providing food, post, newspapers and people. If the ferry stops – something that happens very often for harsh weather conditions – the island simply can’t survive because local produce is never enough.

What is incredible is the speed and efficiency of disembarking and embarking in every port. You see the huge ferry arriving sideways to the dock and the rear door opens simultaneously. After 2′ the first vehicles and passengers exit the ferry, while camion tractors enter the garage to take the trolleys sent from Pireaus. In a matter of 15-20′ tens of vehicles and hundreds of passengers get on board and the ferry departs. 

At the most distant islands the ferry arrives late at night or even after midnight and the traffic is remarkable at some ports, like the Evdilos of Ikaria. From Ikaria to Samos and from there to Rodos we got used to stay awake very late after midnight or wake up early in the morning to take the ferry to our next destination. 

Now that you read this, we should be at Symi island. And then we proceed to Kastellorizo, Nisyros, Rhodes for the orthodox easter and then to Santorini. 

Believe it or not we don’t want to give an end to our island offroad tour, especially now that is spring time. We leave in a genuinely Greek dream and don’t like the idea of waking up!  Thank you Blue Star Ferries and ANEK Lines!