Three days before our arrival, a chunk of the cliff side broke off and crashed down onto a beach full of about 1000 people. The beach was completely closed while they assessed the situation, as well as the road down to the scenic overlook. But of course, that didn't stop us ;) Just past the turn off for the overlook is a little monastery, so we parked there and bushwhacked down the mountainside to the paved road. I was wearing jeans which wasn't ideal and it was about 94 degrees and humid with absolutely no shade whatsoever, but within about 45 minutes, we were standing on the tiny metal grate looking out over the little bay's unbelievably Azure blue waters. It was pretty breathtaking and not at all overrated, which can be the case with famous sites. I just wish that there wasn't so much trash everywhere. It boggles my mind when people go somewhere beautiful because it's beautiful and then trash it, but I digress.
Just look at all of the plastic cups and bottles lining the bushes along the edge...grrrrrr.
We couldn't help but notice that there was a bit of a trail continuing on past along the ridge to a narrow point on a peninsula with a Greek flag. Of course, we had to check it out, even though it looked really sketchy. The cliff below is incredibly high (about 700 ft) and steep and not secure by any means and knowing that the land had literally broken away in that very spot just days before was a little nerve-wracking, but it was definitely worth it to venture out there.
Luckily, at the base of the road down was a little concession stand for any rebels that wanted to sneak in and needed so refreshments. After enjoying iced tea and a Magnum bar, we hoofed it back up the road and mountain to the monastery. By the time we got back, we were hot and sweaty and ready to crash at the hotel. We met the owner who walked us to our room...the master suite with balcony overlooking the water and pool. It was such a crazy nice room, we were on cloud nine! I can't believe the deal I scored. We settled in on the patio bean bags with the complimentary bottle of local wine and enjoyed our afternoon just soaking in the view and relaxing. After a few hours, we made our way to the little beach town nearby for dinner on the water and then walked around town for a bit.
The next day, we grabbed breakfast in the lobby and then opted to just hang out around the resort. The pool was perfect and I spent many an hour lounging on the massive pineapple pool float and basking in the sun on the lounges beside the pool with greek yogurt. The grounds had steps that went right down to the sea and it's own little private pebble beach, so Brian combed the area for treasures while I basked.
Later, we cleaned up and hit the road to explore a bit more. Feeling especially relaxed and lazy, we decided to just have dinner at the resort and then took half of it up to our room for the evening.
The next morning, we'd rented a boat for swimming and to take to some remote beaches, but it ended up being too windy, so we just explored on land instead. We stopped at an old Venetian castle with incredible views of the entire island.
After lunch, we continued to the southern side of Zakynthos to a beach where sea turtles nest in hopes of seeing babies hatching and making their way to the water. We ended up just relaxing on the beach and swimming for a bit before heading back to our room for leftovers on the patio.
We absolutely loved Zakynthos, though it was totally different from Crete. It was much smaller and a bit more resort/tourist oriented, but absolutely gorgeous and full of warm, amazing people <3