Mykonos on my mind

Ok, “party island,” we need to talk. Unfortunately, Chuck and I lost a day in Mykonos — on our Turkey & Greece tour — due to some weather/ferry situation that was never properly explained to us. We could never make sense about it as the weather was perfect the entire time we were in Greece. But we heard there were earthquakes happening further away, so maybe that was the reason? In any case, we didn’t arrive in Mykonos until after 5:00 a.m. losing a full night and extra day.

Once off the ferry, we quickly made our way to the absolutely charming hotel, Rhenia Mykonos Hotel & Bungalows, took a few snaps of the island from our bungalow’s terrace and immediately shut the curtains and went to sleep.

A morning at the hotel

After doing all my research of Mykonos, compiling a comprehensive list of iconic spots and fun bars, it all flew out the window with that ferry situation. So all we had time for was a nap, breakfast (never miss a free breakfast), another nap, a stroll around the hotel, then off to the harbour for a sunset cruise.

Even though we had limited time on Mykonos, what we did see was much different than Samos. This island wasn’t all lush, bold greenery, but instead, awash in soft pastel tones. At least our day there had this hazy, lazy look and feel to it. And being tired af, we fully embraced that feeling.

And you know, sometimes you need those hazy, lazy days on a trip to reset and reconnect. We had been going full tilt on our tour and this day kind of stopped us in our tracks. In a good way.

We just enjoyed the lovely hotel and its surroundings (Chuck found a little chapel up the hill) and lounged about until our driver arrived to pick us up. It felt good.

The hotel itself had a great vibe. It was busy with folks, but spread out nicely enough that you didn’t really notice. And the view from every angle was a pretty one.

Sailing the ancient seas

Before arriving to the island, we booked a sunset cruise on the ‘Aerial Catamaran’ via Nostos Mykonos Yachts. And since this would be our only chance to party while on the “party island,” we decided to make the most of it. And boy did we. 🍻

There was nine of us in total, plus three crew. We arrived strangers from all over, Britain, India, U.S. and Canada and we became the best of friends in like an hour.

They first sailed us to the sacred island of Delos, which is the mythical birthplace of the God Apollo and Goddess Artemis, before dropping anchor for a few hours alongside the shores of Rhenia Island.

Swimming in the Aegean

Before this cruise, I’m not sure I’ve ever done an excursion where every single participant was literally having the time of their life. By the time we dropped anchor along the shores of Rhenia Island and jumped into the crisp blue sea we were completely smitten with each other.

For over an hour we swam, floated on noodles, and caught beers from whoever was tossing them at us. We swam hard, we drank hard and we laughed the hardest. Ah, life is beautiful.

Cheers to the crew!

We couldn’t have asked for a better group of guys to take us boating. Georgios, Giannis and Antony were not only great guides — sharing the history and geography of the area with us — but they never let us be without a beverage and made an exceptional meal for us while we frolicked in the sea.

We also drank that boat dry. I guess we were nine thirsty bitches.

The golden hour

After dinner, comes the show. We moved ourselves up to the top deck of the catamaran to continue chatting, laughing like crazy and take in a glorious sunset as the crew started our journey back to port.

As we made our way back to Mykonos, my mind was becoming frazzled what with all the laughter, drinks and lack of sleep. But it was clear enough to look out at the horizon and feel insanely blessed. As I sat beside the love-of-my-life, looking out at a striking sky burning away over an ancient sea that has been privy to so many epic Greek tales, all I could think about was how I now have one of my own.

So, Mykonos, we didn’t think we would get a chance to properly enjoy one of your epic parties, especially at Negrita, but I think we still kinda did.