A little trip from Greece to Italy. Crete - athens - italy How to buy a cheap flight ticket to Italy from Athens

Who doesn't love Italy? It is simply impossible not to love this country!

This time I was lucky to be in the South of Italy in the sunny city of Bari!

Pilgrims from all over the world tend to come here to pray at the relics of St. Nicholas the Pleasant, and I am no exception! I will say right away that it is really incredible when in the morning you are in Greece - in Halkidiki. In a moment you find yourself at the airport of Thessaloniki, and after 2 hours you ask for well-being for your family and friends, bowing to the relics of St. Nicholas!

But first things first)

We flew on a plane of the Greek company EllinAir, the flight took only 1 hour! At the same time, the process of arrival at the airport - receiving boarding pass- boarding a plane that you don’t even have time to understand anything! Just super! The planes are good, the service on board is very pleasant and unobtrusive, the flight goes absolutely unnoticed. You have time to drink coffee, have a snack with fresh sandwiches - and now you are already in Italy!

Bari is a typical southern city! The sun, palm trees, restless Italians - emotions capture from the very first minutes of your stay in this hospitable country! Literally in 25 minutes we reached the goal of our journey - the Basilica of St. Nicholas, where his myrrh-streaming relics are kept and where Orthodox people from all over the world aspire! The temple consists of two parts. Catholic services are held in the upper church, and Orthodox services are held in the lower church, and it is in the lower church, in the crypt, that the relics of St. Nicholas are kept. This is the only Catholic church in the world that has an Orthodox altar! Incredible!

It is difficult to convey in words the feelings that arise in this place and excite the consciousness of every believer. All minor problems fade into the background when you understand what a happiness it is to be in this place and venerate this great shrine! Prayer, notes, worship of the relics of St. Nicholas - no one is in a hurry, every believer asks for his own, for the most secret ... You don’t understand how tears well up in your eyes ... with joy to be here!

A reminder of this important event for me will be a consecrated pendant with the face of St. Nicholas, which (like oil and myrrh) I bought in a church shop. I believe that this small, but so valuable little thing will protect my soul and help in difficult moments of life.

Then there was a walk through the city center! An amazing atmosphere, narrow streets, the Cathedral, the French Quarter, emotional Italian speech around - all this cannot leave anyone indifferent!

Separately, I would like to say about our guide Sergey - he is a great guide who presents historical facts in an incredibly interesting way, which brings intrigue and makes the whole group languish in anticipation of the next story from the life of Barians and Bargrad! You don’t want to leave it even for a minute, so as not to miss something interesting)

Then there was a “modest” Italian lunch. After I destroyed the delicious snacks, as well as the traditional pasta, it turned out that this was only the beginning and the main course awaits us ahead - the most delicate fish! And, of course, I can't help mentioning the great wine and refreshing lemon sorbet for dessert! The dinner was a success, so it became a little more difficult to walk further than on an empty stomach ...

Further, after a short walk, we went to the Russian Compound - the largest Orthodox mission in Western Europe! Here everyone was able to light candles, write notes, and venerate the icons.

Then our guide gave in to the requests of the female half of our group and left us for an hour on the street with shops and delicious ice cream! So everyone found something to their liking. And everyone returned to the bus happy! Most - with some purchases in memory of this wonderful day in the capital of Puglia!

Remained in memory vivid impressions, no less colorful photographs and ... Italian sandals (it was not in vain that I went shopping for an hour!).

But after this eventful day, I really want to spend my next vacation in Italy! So, Bari, it is quite possible that we will see each other again!

Arrival. Acquaintance

On this day we arrived on the yacht. In general, it is necessary to say something special about this yacht. A successful compromise between a cruising yacht and a racing yacht from X-Yachts was embodied in the model of the IMX-40 yacht, an excellent example of which was waiting for us at the Athens Marine in Athens. The yacht seemed quite small in appearance, but once inside I did not experience any embarrassment. Strong, reliable hull, excellent handling, the ability of the yacht to go under sharp courses in close-haul, a higher mast compared to ordinary yachts of such dimensions and, accordingly, a longer fin, which gave us 2.8 meters of draft, as well as one large steering wheel (and not two steering wheels, as is often done), completed the picture. Here is this beauty called Jukebox.

The first day of the campaign, as a rule, is devoted to solving household and organizational issues and gathering the crew. Often people go to the yacht from different parts of the world and during this first day the crew gradually gathers on board and gets to know each other. Before the voyage, the ship prepares for sailing: the tanks are filled with fuel and water, the batteries are charged from the shore network, the completeness of individual life-saving equipment on board and other things is checked, bedding is provided, drinking water and food are purchased for the entire voyage, organizational issues are decided, the route is specified. In the evening, according to tradition, a gala dinner is held for acquaintance and informal communication of the team.

For me, this exit was special: firstly, until that moment I had not been on the high seas. And the thought was spinning in my head: what kind of captain would I be like this - and I haven’t seen the sea? In practice, we went only in the bays in sight of the shores. And I kept thinking: “And how will I then manage the yacht, be responsible for the life of the crew and the safety of the ship, for the safety of navigation, if I only splashed around the shore?” I needed real skills and real sea! Of course, they told me that quit, they say, soaring - people do not go out to the open sea for years, rinse off the coast, and in general, there is no need to strain. But either I have an exaggerated sense of responsibility, or my principle is that if you really do it, then strive to reach perfection, but, one way or another, I was looking for an offshore (open sea) transition. And such an opportunity presented itself. In accordance with the passage plan (in the picture), we had to leave Athens and, passing along the mainland of the Greek coast along the Saronic Gulf, enter the Corinth Canal, after which, passing through the Corinth Gulf and passing several islands, cross the Ionian Sea and moor at island of Sicily in the Italian city of Catania.

In this transition, I took the IYT Bareboat Skipper qualification exam and, to be honest, for some reason I was carrying a mountain of textbooks with me, including GIMS ones (which school instructor Dima Ivanov good-naturedly ridiculed at the airport, after which I didn’t look there anymore) :)

We flew perfectly, then I remember how the Greek considered my visa for a long time and I felt on the wrong side of the plate, as one of my acquaintances from a very cheerful part of society says. Although, of course, Aegen Airlines smelled a little of the world-famous Greek crisis. After all, crisis is a way of thinking. But, we will return to this later :) Then we rode in a cool Greek bus along very Greek streets with very Greek buildings. Who was in Greece, understands what I mean :) We realized that we had passed an extra stop, got out and went back through the Greek - very Greek - streets. But the Greek streets do not lead back :) I had to go around :) As a result, we caught a taxi driver (very Greek, of course), who took us along a very winding Greek route around the Athens Marine, obviously winding kilometers on the counter. What can you do ... crisis ....

On board it was clean and somehow immediately comfortable. We arrived together with Dmitry, an instructor from the Northwestern Yachting School, and Yuri, a man with extensive experience in sea trips. After some time, Alexei gradually appeared on board, who intended to go on a trip for the first time, Igor, a very experienced yachtsman, with whom I was later lucky to be on watch, and a cool guy Valery, who had just arrived from a Finnish campaign, who had previously arrived, it seems from India :) In general, the crew was excellent!

I really liked Athens Marine for its excellent shower, very smooth asphalt paths that are pleasant to walk barefoot on, such cool vegetation and beautiful views of Athens. Especially evening Athens. You can moor here - you won't regret it.

There are cool yachts in the marina, including these. I also saw a copy of my future ship.

In the evening, they gathered for a gala dinner - an acquaintance that Igor built. We got acquainted. Dima invited us to introduce ourselves in a circle, saying a few words about himself and his wishes for the trip. More precisely, he usually says: “expectations from the trip and what kind of experience do you want to get” :) Without going into details, because I did not receive approval for personal stories, in a nutshell I can say that Igor is very interesting person, the head of the company, the owner of two yachts and a racer, in the past - a pilot, an excellent cook. Yuri is a very sincere and calm person, just a soul! It often happens on sea trips. As far as I can tell, he spends about half of his time at sea. Out of the corner of my eye I saw his logbook (something like a sailor's record book - miles and watches that the sailor passed and carried, respectively, are marked under the captain's signature) - there, in my opinion, there is simply nowhere to add entries! We later turned out to be like-minded people in many respects, which I am very pleased with. Alexey is a dental technician, a very pleasant, good-natured guy, an excellent swimmer. He's on the road for the first time. Valery said that he went to sort out his life and desires. That he wants to buy a yacht and thinks about it, but for now his task is to listen to his own feelings. I would like to say a special word about Dima - he is our instructor. A man of amazing endurance, Olympic calmness, kind, strong, confident, attentive. Absolutely not soaring, no matter what happens on board, not straining the crew. We never heard him raise his voice. It is so comfortable with him on the ship that, to be honest, I am now wondering if he will be an instructor if I have a desire and an opportunity to go out as part of the crew of our yachting school. According to the rules of the school, a captain of the day is appointed every day on a hike. The next day, Igor was appointed captain.

After dinner, I wandered along the paths of the marina, looked at the lights of yachts of different types and sizes, sat on the forecastle (the bow of the vessel, my favorite place on the deck) looked at the lights of the marina and Athens. And the Greek moon. Beauty!

The morning began with a wake-up call at 6 o'clock. Igor was cheerful and fresh, which cannot be said, at least about me. I am a typical owl. Even, more precisely, not an owl, but don’t understand who: I sleep 2-3 times a day for 1.5-2-3-5 hours. When I want, then I sleep. I can't sleep at all for a couple of days. In general, the features of the lifestyle. At sea, by the way, it turned out to be very convenient: it’s not stressful to stand night watches, including the “dog watch” - from 0.00 to 04.00 :)

Dima and Igor bent over the iPad. The plotting I oversaw was exotic to me: no maps, no rulers, no protractors, no pencil. The main joke will come later, but for now I’ll say that the “Beetle” (as all of our people call this yacht, abbreviated from Jukebox) has an iPad with a cool iSailor navigation program (which appeared on my iPad after this trip). In the program, you choose the navigation area, assign new route, you put a point, the distance in nautical miles, course, coordinates are automatically calculated, then you put the next point and the next one and you get a track. All in all, navigation software is a leap of evolution! By the way, I recommend it to everyone. The piece is amazing. Easy, simple, convenient, fast. Comprehending the software with the help of instructions (in English) takes one evening. And then - only the pleasure of using.

They departed calmly, moved - too. Traditionally, leaving the marina, set the sails.

There was very little wind, but nevertheless, we walked. Wonderful day. Calm sea, many ships hurrying to Athens and from Athens and those that are waiting on the roads. On the way, I came across a container ship that looked like a children's designer - cubes and a warship that looked like a tin can. Creepy, shabby. It looked like he was just going to the landfill on his own. Crisis, however :) Then, however, it turned out that our ships look the same: apparently, army style - everything should be weird. It’s just that ours sometimes paint them for a couple of days, along with grass on lawns and a curb in the port before parades. The Greeks, probably, don’t have parades - well, there’s no need to paint.

I enjoyed photographing ships. I like them: each one is special. With its own character, mood, which is created by the lines of the decks and the colors of the hull, engine sounds and side lights.

Approximately in the middle of the day we approached the Corinth Canal.

You can talk about the Corinth Canal for a long time. This is definitely a miracle. It is located in Greece and connects the Saronic Gulf of the Aegean Sea with the Corinthian Gulf of the Ionian Sea. A canal was dug through the Isthmus of Corinth, connecting the Peloponnese peninsula with the mainland of Greece. The channel has a length of 6 kilometers and a wall height of up to 76 (!) meters. The depth in the channel is 8 meters, the width at sea level is 25 meters. The vessel traffic system is organized according to the semaphore principle: the movement is one-way, its direction changes when an appropriate signal is given, when all vessels moving in the previous direction leave the channel. A railway and three road bridges are thrown across the canal. They say that a real sailor must go through at least three main canals: Panama, Suez and Corinth. Well, it remains to go two :) We walked in a westerly direction, that is, from the side of the Saronic Gulf. The entrance to the canal is poorly visible from the water. Approximately, from a distance of three cables, you can distinguish its identification marks. In this place, there is quite dense navigation, you should approach at a very low speed and constantly monitor 360 degrees. The depths here are decent. On the port side in front of the canal entrance there is a mooring wall, where it will be convenient to moor while waiting for permission to enter the canal. Here, at a distance of about 100 meters, there is an office of coastal services and a toilet for those who wish.

While waiting for the signal to enter the canal, we went out to warm up and took a few shots. At the same time they helped to moor another yacht, the crew of which consisted of two people - a man and a woman. Yes, what could be more romantic than traveling together on a sailboat?! I believe one day it will begin in my life :)

Soon ships appeared in the channel, heading towards the Saronic Gulf. Then we went :)

It is difficult to describe the passage through the canal. The height of the canal walls starts at about five meters, and gradually increases as you move along the canal to 76 meters. Layered rock that has been here for billions of years, as if the standard of Eternity rises from left and right. Due to the height of the walls, at some point it becomes a little twilight in the canal, despite the very sunny Greek day. We go under the engine and look around in fascination. Grains of sand in the Ocean of Eternity. How many nations, how many epochs have seen these rocks? Lifeless Earth and dinosaurs, Achilles and Odysseus... who else? Majestic silence… At the foot of the rocks, the water carved small grottoes and creeks, slightly overgrown with moss. At the water's edge in these bays, sunny bunnies are jumping, as if inviting you to play with yourself, jump into this cave, find out how deep the rabbit hole is :)

Somewhere high above us, bridges float above us. People wave their hands at us, we wave back.

At the exit from the canal, the kind Greeks shouted to us through a megaphone: Faster! Faster! :)

On the left side remained the city of Corinth, and on the right - the town of Loutraki. Loutraki is located at the foot of a huge mountain. Compared with the five-story houses of the city, it does not look like a mountain, but simply a mountain!

While I was admiring the mountain, a cheerful bustle in the cockpit marked the beginning of tasting fantastic Greek cheeses, olives and wine. In Russia, I have not eaten anything similar in taste. It's amazing! I will also note that, according to our instructor Dima, in Greece it is considered somehow ugly to ask more than 2 euros for wine .... You can multiply by the euro against the ruble and figure out what you can buy for this money in Russia. At the time of this writing, this is, at best, a “monastery”, the quality of which is known to everyone :) Dima immediately arranged an educational game: in a circle we called the names of the components of the spars, rigging, winds and teams or courses familiar to us, and the next, after the one who named , had to say the English name of this term and explain the meaning or purpose of the tackle. And then - set the next term. It was interesting. In general, Dima is an amazing person and instructor. With him, you constantly learn something new, and very practical, but somehow completely unobtrusive, almost in a playful way. In the first half of the day we knitted sea knots just as cheerfully, and now we are playing with words. And all of these are IYT course materials.

When you go to sea around the clock, at night the crew is divided into shifts, usually four hours. Watches fell out in such a way that I had to stand with Igor, Alexei with Yura and Valera with Dima. We had to stand from 20:00 to 0:00. At 20:00 it is already dusk and by 21:00 it is completely dark. On the port side now and then one could see the coastal lights of Greek towns and villages, the lights of highways and lighthouses - a very beautiful sight! I was at the helm, so these photos are not available: (Yes, and it’s impossible to remove this from a rocking boat - you need a slow shutter speed and stillness of the lens. This is unattainable on a yacht.

The first night watch is like a first date. Everything seems interesting, but everything is not clear. What to expect? Hmm… :)) There were funny moments. I remember how I stand, steer, breathe ... and at some point someone kaaaaaak slams on the water! Plop! I tensed up. I looked around - there seemed to be nothing on the deck that could fall overboard. The only thing that could - but they are tied and they are light - it would not have flopped ... I just thought that it seemed, again - plunk! Igor went upstairs. He asked how things are going. I replied that there was someone clapping on the water. It should be noted that before that I had seen enough stupid videos on YouTube about how whales attack yachts, and I heard a tragic story a year ago. It became uncomfortable. Igor waved his hand, saying that it was, they say, tuna probably frolicking. “What kind of tuna must it be to plop like that,” I thought. In general, the sound gave the impression that someone had fallen overboard. But I knew perfectly well that the entire crew was downstairs in the wardroom. It sloshed again. And again ... dolphins! A flock of dolphins played around the yacht, somersaulting over each other, standing in a row and simultaneously changing direction, diving under the yacht and somersaulting again - it was a spectacle. They arranged a real circus for us, moreover, the circus would have rested - after all, it was THEIR decision, and not the will of the trainer ... We rejoiced at them, they rejoiced at us. Alexey tried to shoot them on video, and if he sends this video to me, it will be possible to place it in the article. Immediately there was a feeling of some kind of universal kindness around, a feeling that we were not alone in this dark sea. The show went on for half an hour, then gradually they moved away. Igor by this time took the helm and I went to the forecastle. At the very bow, three dolphins swam at our speed in a row, synchronously taking a little to the left, then again walked side by side, taking a little to the right and laying down on their previous course. This went on for a couple of minutes, then they waved their tails and scattered in different directions. The show is over.

After some time, the wind picked up, fanning a small wave. I again stood at the helm and tried to keep the course according to the instruments that were located on the mast. The yacht was tossed on the waves, the sky was slightly overcast and the light of the moon did not penetrate us. We went to the tack, and when the coastal lights were not visible along the bow, there was complete darkness around. The only thing that glowed was the instruments on the mast. I looked at them, keeping the course, and at some point my horizon "floated". I shook myself, shifted my gaze to something in the cockpit, but immediately left the course. I put the ship back on course and in a moment I was driven again. I called Igor and asked him to take the helm. Subsequently, they explained to me that this is the so-called pilots' disease. When you walk on the same instruments, you lose the understanding of where is up, where is down, where is right and left. That is, there is no fixed landmark on the shore, for which one could “catch on with a glance” and a “cuckoo” gets lost in the head. :)

On that watch, I remember, I was pretty cold. Going down to the wardroom, half a glass of whiskey was simply the best drink for me! Trying to get up in the bow cabin in this pitching, I somehow fell asleep.

Yes, by the way, about the bow cabin :) This, of course, is clowning. When a year ago I went out on several yachts along the river and reservoirs, I always happened to sleep there. I have since been convinced that it is - the best place on the ship. Judge for yourself: a spacious sleeping place, a tank hatch over your head - you can look at the stars, especially when you hug your girlfriend at the same time :) Somewhere downstairs, some water splashes a little, creating additional comfort - a heavenly life! Well, I took the bow one when Dima asked who wants to be where .... Oh, hot! I did not take into account that at sea the situation changes exactly the opposite: the forward cabin takes on all the shocks of the waves - one. For this reason, it is impossible to sleep there at all, unless you can no longer sleep. That is, if the body is not brought to a state of complete exhaustion. The blows are of such force that it seems comparable to the blows of an excavator breaking some ruins at a construction site. Secondly, all this happens during heaving and rolling. But that's not all. The fact is that "the yacht does not go straight." A constant list, plus drift, plus the windage of the side and sailing armament, plus the unevenness of the water surface, knock down the course and the helmsman all the time “taxis” back. That is, this very place in which you are trying to sleep is also ruled, constantly “feeling for the way”. As the Strugatsky brothers aptly put it, you feel like a "frog in a soccer ball."

In the morning the wind died down, the sea calmed down. Coming out on deck, I was pleased to see the rising sun, shining through the predawn haze over the water and straight ahead - the cable-stayed bridge Rion - Andirion, connecting the Peloponnese with the mainland of Greece. The length of the bridge is 2880 meters. The bridge is designed in such a way that it has the ability to move apart along with the distance of the Peloponnese from the mainland of Greece by 35 mm every year :) Rion - Andrion is the longest bridge in Europe. On both sides, the banks were clearly visible, as if we were walking along the Volga. Only nature is different. Perhaps it was the most pleasant morning of the trip :) Pleasant fatigue from yesterday evening, good coffee (brewed, of course), the water surface, like a mirror, and the cleanest air. Simply heaven! We went under the motor, passed the bridge, parted with a cheerful ferry with a bow on both sides and headed for the city of Patras.

Patras is the third largest city in Greece and the largest in the Peloponnese. At the time of this writing, the population of the city is approximately 170,000 inhabitants, with suburbs - about 230,000. Patras is the main center connecting Greece with Italy, and the Peloponnese with the islands of Corfu, Zakynthos, Kefalonia and Lefkada, located in the Ionian Sea, which we and were to be crossed. The Achaeans of Sparta founded Patras in the 6th century BC after the Dorians ousted them from a large part of the Peloponnese. The city is also known as the place of martyrdom of the Apostle Andrew, called the First-Called, whose temple is located in Patras and is the largest temple in Greece. The relics of Andrew are in the temple. The oblique cross on which Andrei was crucified is depicted on the flag of the Russian navy. Hence the name - St. Andrew's banner. Throughout history, the city changed hands several times, and as a result remained Greek. In 2006, Patras was elected the European Capital of Culture.

The city is picturesque, the approach to it is also. At the entrance to Patras is a lighthouse. On this day, the captain was Yuri, who, standing at the helm, was looking for the entrance to the marina. We, of course, also looked wide-eyed, choosing a mooring place.

Somehow Dima noticed that this whole Greek crisis was based on Greek spitting and unwillingness to work. So ... did not make a reservation? Greek ... it looks like something ... Well, okay. So, no one was waiting for us in the marina. No one helped us to moor, did not indicate the place of parking, and indeed, absolutely no one was interested in our arrival. Apparently, the Greeks are close to the saying: "I came - thank you, I left thank you very much." Needless to say, the marina's office was closed, and no one knew where the latrine was on land and whether there was a shower? Interrogation of the local population did not give anything, and Alexei and I went on reconnaissance. The shower was found, the key was obtained. There doesn't seem to be hot water... I do not remember. Well, this is Greece (c) It seems that the expression “everything is available in Greece” does not apply to yacht service. This is not Türkiye, guys. Helped a beautiful Turkish couple to moor on a beautiful yacht. He is charismatic and tactful, she is refined and feminine. One word - beauty.

I went for a walk around the city. I walked along a couple of flowering streets past white-stone Greek houses. In general, everything blooms everywhere among the Greeks. Even abandoned houses and what looks like landfills. Well, the embankment and flower beds - bloom by definition. The streets are clean (unlike Italy, as it turned out later). After some time, we went to have lunch at a local restaurant with Igor and Valera. They were satisfied. We are the most delicious dinner, the owners are the revenue. After our departure, they immediately closed and the owner's wife went somewhere, apparently with money :)

After a couple of hours, our Jukebox moved away from the boom. Refreshed. We were heading towards the island of Kefalonia. In accordance with the passage plan, it should have been left on the starboard side and continued through the Ionian Sea. But first we needed to replenish the water and electricity supplies on board. Therefore, we planned to go the next night, and the next - to spend the night in a marina, for example, in Kefalonia. Yuri, who was the captain of the day, ordered to keep the watch with the same composition, but to shift further according to the schedule. That is, Igor and I got a "dog" watch from 0:00 to 04:00.

The night was very calm and somehow very comfortable. All four hours of the watch I defended at the helm. The clear night sky, strewn with myriads of stars, the evenly "breathing" sea, the wind of 12-14 knots and the brightest Greek Moon created a fantastic picture and set it in a romantic mood. Igor, a racing lover, tried to pick up the sheet, then tighten the luff, then, catching the course deviation by a couple of degrees, drew my attention to the fact that I was slightly moving the helm. Although, even by car in a horizontal plane you go, constantly taxiing. Did you pay attention? And on a yacht that does not steer as easily as a car and walks in all planes, it also does not steer as accurately as a car - a couple of degrees - that's about nothing. In general, Igor pulled me out of romantic thoughts, until, finally, he gave up on further sail adjustments. Then we were replaced by Dima and Valera and I went to bed. Tomorrow is my turn to be captain of the day.

Woke up from dropping anchor. As I later thought, I should have woken up earlier. The fact is that the sun quickly heats up the deck and with the bow hatch closed it is hot and very stuffy in the cabin. In the morning I felt well, as they say in Odessa, not a fountain. Mutilo, did not want to have breakfast. I tried to swim - it's cold. In general, I got sick, after all. Although it seemed that this was impossible (the vestibular woman had been trained for a long time, with a certain type of physical culture). Gradually diverged and began to master the start and stop of the engine - today I captain. In the afternoon we planned to raise anchor and sail on. Ahead was a passage through the open sea and there was talk about when it is better to go, and whether it is worth going to Kefalonia. They were inclined to think that yes, it is better to go in, replenish water and electricity supplies on board, spend the night and go to Sicily. And then suddenly someone asked Dima about the man overboard rescue maneuver. Dima said that you can work on this business at any time, even right now, leaving the cove. Part of the crew objected, but I reminded that today I am the captain and my decision is to go out and do maneuvers.

The Man Overboard Maneuver, also known as the Wilson Turn, is performed under sail. The purpose of this maneuver is to approach a person who has fallen overboard as quickly and safely as possible to save him from the water. In fact, as a result of this maneuver, the yacht must change course, move about six hulls away, tack, lie on the opposite course, approach the fallen overboard in such a way as to close it from waves and wind, and then raise it to the deck . Before the maneuver, at the command “Man overboard!”, A lifebuoy is thrown to the fallen, an observer is appointed, and the helmsman and clew sailor perform a turn. I taxied first, appointing an observer and a clew; Dima was thrown overboard, who got the honorable task of playing the role of the one who fell overboard and away we go! Lie down on the beam-reach, set the sails, turn! We cheerfully wrote out a pretzel, changing places and raising a wave. Super! It is difficult to say how much time has passed, but at some point they decided to finish and Jukebox headed for the nearest marina.

And then surprise number one awaited us. The depths did not allow us to approach the booms. As I already mentioned, we have a draft of 2.8 meters, and according to navigation programs, the maximum depth was 2.6. It was deeper only at the pier intended for mooring ferries, but we could not get up there, because we would interfere with them. We circled for more than an hour, looking for a place for ourselves, but we never found it. The wind got stronger. They began to decide what to do. Igor offered to go across the sea into the night, which seemed to me not the best idea, but it just so happened that they decided on that. We turned around to exit the marina and began to bypass Kefalonia. I have assigned watches. This time the first watch was Valery and Dima, and Igor and I got the morning. From 04:00 to 08:00. We had dinner and wandered around the cabins. Night fell, we moved 50 miles from Kefalonia and then surprise number two awaited us: our batteries ran out and the instruments went out! Night. Wind. Open sea. And our course electronics do not work! As I wrote above, we could not enter the marina before leaving, and before that, Valera, who often sat with a computer, connected the inverter to charge the battery of his "poppy", as a result of which the onboard batteries ran out of steam. I said: "What to do, let's follow the compass." And then revelation number three awaited us. Dima said: “Well…ummmm…. we don't have a compass here....! And there are no cards. And there is no compass. Everything is in the iPad, but he also sat down ... "Well, great, I thought, I'll have to go back to fix the jamb .... but, on the other hand, it is night all around. And what difference does it make in which direction we should go without a compass ... And Valera generally stated that it was quite possible to steer by the stars :) battery charge and appliances returned to us. Uffff! Approximately 5 hours of engine operation and batteries were charged. During the transition, we started the engine several times to replenish the charge.

In the morning I went on deck to watch and took the helm from Alexei. There was about an hour left before sunrise. Here's what it looked like

The day went well. We sailed on starboard tack, keeping the same course. Dolphins came again, tumbled, pleased us. From the moment we left Kefalonia, we were constantly close-hauled, which gave us a list of 45 degrees to port and made the usual things not so simple. Cooking under a roll, eating under a roll (you can’t put a plate on the table anymore in this situation), sleeping under a roll, going to a latrine ... and I was still thinking what to do on a yacht! One trip to the latrine was a whole adventure, when this same latrine is about one and a half meters above you and your first task is just to get there. Somehow. Walk two meters, but uphill and during throws on the waves :) Well, if you jumped in there and closed the door, then you can rejoice: you won’t fly further than the space of the latrine! I won’t continue, but you can imagine that it’s also fun next :)

Sleeping under a roll is also interesting. If there are two people in the cabin, then one person unobtrusively sleeps on the other :) Considering the fact that the entire crew are men who did not know each other before, this is also fun. It was especially fun in my nose. Although I was alone, the cabin already seemed completely uncomfortable. By the way, it also flooded periodically. Apparently, the sealing gum did not provide tightness when battening down the bow hatch. I slept slumped about like a cow in a bomb bay in the famous film "Peculiarities of the National Hunt." Leaning my feet against the side, and picking up my head so that my neck rests on the opposite side, I, covering both ears with the muscles of my hands, could sleep like that for about an hour. :)

Upstairs was easier. In general, as I understand it, the best recipe for seasickness on a yacht is to look at the horizon and breathe while on deck. Or steer. You look and / or steer and it seems like it doesn’t stir up. And great. By evening the wind began to turn sour and at some point it became almost quiet. So quiet that I managed to steer on my watch reclining, putting it under my head and admiring the sea sunset. Then they had dinner. Igor and I's next watch was supposed to start at 4 am ship time. Closer to midnight it began to blow. Igor tried to send me to sleep, saying that I would have to work on the watch, not kemar, and I should be rested. I went to sleep in the aft cabin, because it was no longer possible to stay in the bow due to the heavy impact of the waves on the hull. At some point, the cockpit began to move: the guys took the reef, then the second reef. The boat was pushed hard. I passed out because I could no longer stay awake ...

I woke up at 04:00 from Igor's cry: "Misha, watch!" What I saw in the window, for me, who had not seen this case before, was a slight nightmare. As I remember now, instead of the horizon I expected, I saw some kind of fucking whirlpool in the window. Realizing that we have fun here, I ask Dima: “Stormyaga? How far to Sicily? "There's a little... about 50 miles," was his reply. Someone was broadcasting a tense Morse code on the radio. The wind howled in the rigging. I crawled up... yes... it was a tail! I haven't seen this yet. Never. 5-6 meter waves, wind in the range of 28-36 knots, in gusts up to 41.5 knots, foaming sea, all under bright moonlight. The spectacle is fantastically beautiful, but, to be honest, it horrified me out of habit. Yachting became more and more fun. It was no longer possible to stand, and sitting was also problematic. And Igor was great! Standing at the helm, he managed to maneuver in such a way that the boat stopped being hit by waves and we simply overcame these waves, successfully tacking thanks to Igor's piloting skills. Now, over time, I understand that I want to experience it again in order to learn how to steer like him. Within about half an hour, I was released and the ability to move around the deck returned to me and somehow more or less calmly perceive what was happening. The crew, with the exception of our watch, went down. We carried a jib and a reefed mainsail. I remember how, going upstairs, I asked Dima what course. “Now it’s not up to the course,” was the answer. Encouragingly :) I remembered our maneuvers to save a man overboard. I wonder how in stormy conditions you can perform such a maneuver? How to see a person among the foaming combs? What if you're alone on deck? In my opinion, there are not many options for surviving a fallen overboard in this situation ...

By dawn, I finally let go and I stood at the helm. I tried to steer like Igor. It seems that something even worked ... He, meanwhile, removed the reefs. By this time the sea was a little calmer. The wind was blowing in the range of 25-30 knots. With the dawn, everything around became more visible and clearer. Or maybe it all seemed so creepy to me when I woke up ... In general, I felt completely normal and felt and did my job.

A storm swept us south and Dima suggested going not to Catania, which was the end point of our journey, but to Syracuse, since we had time to spare. Around 11:00 we entered the Syracuse Marina. Cheerful and helpful Italians led our yacht on the radio and waved their hands affably showing where we should stand. Italy!

Having moored, Dima, Igor, and I went to the marina's office to pay for parking and clarify issues with the shower. Everything was great here. Finally, we can wash, put our clothes in order and walk on a flat surface that is not littered 45˚ to the horizon! After water procedures, refreshed and satisfied, we went to look for a local restaurant and a yacht shop. We needed a gas tank refill and a decent lunch.

The amazing thing is that we managed to wander into an Italian restaurant owned by a Russian businessman Vladimir, who moved to Italy a few years ago!

We had a very interesting conversation, and pizza and wine went with a bang. I was happy and smiled all day long. Then Alexei and I set off together to wander around Syracuse. A very pleasant city. Very. And, unlike Catania, clean underfoot. Narrow streets, nice people, flowering, bike parking….

Ferries from Italy to Greece are the choice for those who are not looking for simple ways. As for me, a ferry from Italy is not the most convenient way to travel to Hellas, however, you must admit, boarding a ship in Venice and unloading in Patras is a certain romance. Choose this route or another, we will consider the prospects of this route and try to provide information that may be very useful.

Ferries from Italy to Greece, as well as in the opposite direction, run like clockwork. The main ports of communication on the Italian side are Bari, Brindisi, Ancona, Venice and Trieste; V last years Ravenna was added to them.

On the Greek side, routes are received and sent by the ports of Patras (220 km from Athens), Igoumenitsa (500 km from Athens) and Corfu. Also, some ships call at the Greek islands of Kefalonia and Zakynthos, from where, if necessary, it is easy to get to the mainland.

As for the preferred destination in Greece, it should be based on the purpose of your trip. Igoumenitsa should be chosen if you plan to travel to Northern Greece, Macedonia and Thrace.

Patras is more convenient for those whose ultimate goal is the Peloponnese, Athens or Central Greece, which can be penetrated through the bridge in Rio very close to Patras. It is also easy to get from Igoumenitsa to Athens, just the road will be somewhat longer than from Patras. It makes sense to choose this option for those who feel more comfortable in a bus or car than on a ship.

Ferries from Italy leave almost every day (with the exception of Trieste, where the routes are more rare), and you need to have a rare degree of bad luck in order to be in one of the cities listed and not be able to leave for your destination.

In summer, the number of ships increases on the most popular routes, so the frequency of sailings can reach 6 per day, although for the most part it is still 1-2.

The shortest route to Greece is from Brindisi, the longest from Venice and Trieste. The last two options are akin to an extreme tour, since sailing to the Greek coast can take up to a day and a half. You can’t call this option cheap either: travel with plus or minus amenities, a la at least some kind of cabin, is no less than 100 euros per person.

Of course, you can increase the degree of extreme and choose the option just on the deck for 40 euros with a penny, but spend more than 30 hours there, including almost 2 nights - well, it's not for me to judge. If you are traveling with a car, then add on top also the cost of its transportation. Well, how do you like 300 euros for a trip? Maybe by plane...

The shortest route to Greece from Italy is from Brindisi, the longest from Venice and Trieste

A question that may be of interest to many is visas. Greek National website tourism organization it provides the following information.

If the ferry goes from a Schengen member state to another member state, bypassing third countries, then there is no passport control for such a trip. That is, having a one-time visa in hand and worrying about possible meetings with the police or border guards, it is better to clarify when buying a ticket whether the ferry will make stops in Croatia, Montenegro or Albania, otherwise you never know.

As for tickets, they can be purchased both at the box office on the day of departure, and in advance online. If your route falls on the summer season, then the second option is preferable. Tickets can be purchased in advance through the Ferriesingreece website.

We reviewed the purchase procedure in detail in the article.

Corfu is one of the most popular routes from Italy

Estimated travel time: From Bari: To Corfu - about 11 hours

To Igoumenitsa - about 10.5-12.5 hours

To Patras – about 16 hours
From Ancona: To Igoumenitsa – 16-17 hours

To Patras - 21-23 hours
From Venice: To Corfu - 28 hours

To Igoumenitsa - 26 hours

To Patras – 35 hours

Cheapest way to travel on deck - no cabin

From Brindisi: To Corfu - 7 hours

To Igoumenitsa - about 8 hours

To Patras – about 16 hours

It is clear that due to the duration of the journey, routes from Brindisi to Greece will be the cheapest.

In addition, if the journey takes 7-8 hours, then you can do without a cabin, and just take a place on the deck or a seat like an airplane seat, thus further reducing the cost of the trip. However, when calculating this option, keep in mind that the path from Venice to Brindisi also costs money, and therefore, in fact, I think you will get the same cost.

Hello.
In the summer I will be in Crete, I plan to move to Italy. There are several questions.

Initially considered route:
From Heraklion to Athens by ferry at night, arrival in the morning, day in the city, sightseeing, check-in at the hotel for 1 night (pre-booked). The next day is also in Athens, and in the evening by ferry (or bus) to Corfu, from there by ferry to Venice.
Criticize, please, the route. First of all, I am interested in the budget of the route, I can sleep everywhere, this is not a problem =))

I would be grateful if someone would suggest a more budgetary and less resource-intensive (in terms of time) route to Italy from Athens. Maybe by plane from Athens? I chose Corfu only because there is a ferry to Venice from there. In principle, I don’t need Corfu, the main thing is to see Athens and go to Italy (to some one Big City, Rome, Venice, Milan, etc.)

Will there be any problems with entering Italy from Greece if you have a Greek Schengen visa?

Thank you!

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It will not, if you meet the deadlines for your Schengen visa.
And as for the flight, this is an idea if you "catch" cheap tickets. Look at the offers of Greek and Italian airlines, for example http://en.aegeanair.com/special-offers/flight-offers/

There are no ferries from Athens to the Ionian Sea. You need to take a bus to Patras, from there you sail to Ancona or Venice.
Or, as already mentioned, by plane. Previously, the Aegean had a connecting flight from Heraklion to Milan via Athens. Those. who flew to Italy did not even get off the plane. I flew on such a flight to Athens somehow.

About the budget. We traveled by ferry from about. Crete to Athens. He arrived at the port at 6 o’clock in the morning. It’s far from the port to the city. Or there is no transport to the city, except for a taxi, or it didn’t exist at that time (that year or at such a morning time). Just in case, look on the ferry for some -any group of sightseers who are met by the bus and agree with them. This is how we arrived.

We were also going by ferry to Venice from Corfu, but as a result we postponed this expensive and very time-consuming undertaking. For example, from Athens it is better to fly to Venice. The Greek Aegean, if you play with dates, has VERY cheap tickets from Athens to Venice. For 50 euros fly there (100 euros per person with all taxes!! Athens-Venice-Athens, I looked at June a few days ago).
Look at the plane tickets, I don’t know about Crete, but my friend now has 84 euros for June. Route Athens-Korkyra Kerkyra-Athens!

When booking tickets, there is such an option:

Search options:
* Must travel on these dates
* Flexible with dates

The price of tickets with "mandatory dates" and "variable" dates varies up to 20 euros. What is the difference? Can the flight be rescheduled to another day or what?

adult x 1
€ 32.00

Service fee
€ 4.00
total:
€ 84.64

Tax is a type of fuel surcharge? Why is it more expensive than the tickets themselves?

Was it the website of any one company? Or can you tell me some site for comparing prices for tickets of foreign airlines? Well, or some other cheap airfare from Greece to Italy?

2 sergreece
Thank you, I'll study

2 Thatcher
Um, how do I "offer" myself to them as a company? :) How much to pay and to whom?

So far, the following is emerging:

Heraklion - Athens (night ferry)
Arrival in Athens, check-in at the hotel, day in the city
Night at the hotel, day in the city.
In the evening, flight to Rome, check-in at the hotel, overnight at the hotel, day in the city.
In the evening flight to Athens.
Ferry at night to Heraklion from Athens. In the morning arrival in Heraklion, transfer to the hotel.

I counted everything about everything ~ 250 euros, if you take the Deck place on the ferries (38 euros), the hotels are the cheapest (but with breakfast, central location and decent reviews on booking.com).

If you don’t spend the night in Rome and take a morning flight from Athens to Rome (all day in the city), then you can save money, but then you don’t get a full-fledged second day in Athens, because. in the morning/afternoon we already have a flight to Italy.

What do you think about the route? :-)

Question about booking a ferry. Is there any confirmation email when booking? Where to get ferry tickets? Surely this has already been discussed on the forum, can you throw a link to the disclosure of the topic "ferry booking"?

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We were taken for "thank you". I don't know any special words. Try different options :)
I looked at your itinerary. I wouldn't ride back and forth. For example, we flew to Crete, rested for ten days, then by ferry to Athens, and from there by plane to our homeland. Maybe you fly to one place and fly away from another?

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Well, for example, there is stupidly Ryanair (from the series "much cheaper") - about 30 euros. But they fly to Italy from Greece from Thessaloniki, Rhodes and Kos. Maybe I missed something else, but, alas, they don’t fly from Athens and Crete yet, so it’s probably not your option.

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