Well, what can I say about our rather lovely holiday this year? Other than what a fantastically beautiful, if a tad hot, island! This year saw us taking a couple of weeks off to totally de-stress on the mountainous island of Kefalonia. The island (
Κεφαλονιά in Greek), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece.
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Blues skies and Bougainvillea |
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The Greek island has many wonderful beaches with fine sand and turquoise waters specific to the island. |
The island is said to owe its name to Kephalos, the first king of the area during the Palaeolithic era. Kefalonia participated in the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars on the side of both Athens and Sparta. Throughout history the island suffered heavily and frequently from invaders and pirate raids. It has been under Frankish rule, then consecutively conquered by the Normans, the Orsinis, the Andeans and the Toccans. Later on it was dominated by the Venetians and the Spanish, with the Venetian rule ending in 1797 when the French arrived. They were later defeated by the allied fleet of the Russians, the Turks and the English. After a huge popular demand, democratic elections were organised in 1802 and a new Constitution was established in 1803. Kefalonia fell again under French domination in 1807 but the new Constitution was maintained. After the Treaty of Paris, in 1809, the Ionian Islands came under the rule of the English again. Kefalonia was finally united to the rest of independent Greece in 1864, the same time as the rest of the Ionian Islands. So the people of Kefalonia have seen many nations come and go, and yet they remain a stoic, relaxed and happy people!
Splendid clear waters with fish nibbling your toes...
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Feeding the fish! | | |
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We dived down to collect urchin shells, and even cheekily stole this one off the back of this spiky fellow |
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Beautifully clear warm seas |
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Olive trees everywhere, olives being the main commodity of the island |
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Fishing boats in the harbour of Katelios |
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On the way to Poros |
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An evening stroll to the beach |
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Two of my very lovely boys! |
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That's probably enough for now! There'll be more to follow, so watch this space....
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