departing St Maarten

The draw bridge lifts for our departure from the harbor at St Maarten

St Barths, Tortola, Virgin Gorda

We enjoyed a brief visit to Kauhale Kai in early December 2007 with friends, Neal and Nancy Rabin and Stan and Sally Witnov. We flew into St Martin boarded our vessel, then headed out to St Barth's on our way to Tortola and Virgin Gorda. We did some hiking, snorkeling, scuba diving, windsurfing and generally enjoyed the beauty of the Caribbean for 10 glorious days.

Ibiza

Our Ibiza experience was NOT the debauchery of late night disco clubs with half naked people parading about.....we arrived a week too late for that! Instead, we found a charming old town with many hippie/head shops as well as the ultra hip fashion stores. Between the rain, lightening, thunder and hail storms that descended upon us, we managed a ferry trip to the island of Formentera where we rode bicycles all day and managed to stay dry until we were safely back on Kauhale Kai. We leisurely had our last delicious paella lunch with Boomer before leaving for the familiar comforts of home......Santa Barbara home that is!

Back on the boat in Mallorca

While circumnavigating the island of Mallorca, we encountered pods of dolphins who swam in front of the bow of the boat to our delight and entertainment. We hiked out to the peninsula de Formentor, visited the Coves del Drac with its stalagtites and stalagmites and visited an aquarium. We said our goodbyes to Jon Lee at the southern tip of the island, rode for miles along the beach path on our bicycles, swam for the last time in the crystal clear Mediterranean and walked along endless white sand beaches.

Mallorca, Spain

We spent 3 days at the beautiful Hotel Valldemossa where we met up with Jon Lee and Larry Milliken aka "Boomer". We experienced all kinds of weather from a tornedo which hit an hour before we landed at the airport to beautiful sunny days where breathtaking views from mountain tops were our rewards for hiking up the majestic terrain. Delicious paella was enjoyed by all on one long lunch excursion.

Mallorca, Spain

San Sebastian

Larry and I took some time off from Kauhale Kai while it made its way to Mallorca from Athens. We spent a week in San Sebastian, Spain......ate tapas, walked, shopped, visited Biarritz and the Guggenheim in Bilbao. Unfortunately there wasn't any surf happening, but there was plenty to see and do otherwise.

The Corinth Canal and Greece

After passing through the Corinth Canal which took about an hour, we spent 4 days on the island of Poros with it's white washed buildings accented with colorful doors and shutters. We caught up with our friends on Keiki Kai, toured the entire island on scooters and found many idyllic beaches. Our last island stop was quaint little Hydra where no motorized vehicles are allowed. Hiking up behind the town to the old monastery afforded us spectacular views of the Aegean sea beyond.

Delphi: The Center of the Ancient World

Delphi:
In the 6th century BC, this place was considered the center of the earth; the place where Zeus' eagles met after flying around the world. It was the setting for the original athletic competitions within the large stadium, it contains an amphitheatre, and also the famous oracle. There were buildings from every region of the world where its citizens would come and leave offerings after getting the advice they had come so far in search of. We toured the museum and the grounds and decided we should race accross the ancient stadium. We weren't exactly prepared for a serious race (notice the lack of shoes on my feet), but it was fun none the less.

Colorful Kefalonia