About a month ago, we made the decision to change course and head back to the Ionian. The main reason was simple. This is where many of the family boats gather during the summer.

Looking back now, it may well have been one of the best decisions we’ve made this season.

After crossing the Cyclades, it only took a couple of days before we reunited with Joanna2, a boat with three children on board. From that moment on, we travelled west together, and almost immediately life became more colourful. The children found each other again, and as adults we reconnected too.

Picking up where we left off

What makes this year even more special is that many of the boats we’re meeting are familiar faces from last summer.

Last year, we arrived here as complete newcomers. We hardly knew anyone and had only just discovered this wonderful community of sailing families.

This year is different.

Instead of introducing ourselves all over again, we simply picked up the conversations where they had ended twelve months ago. It almost feels as though no time has passed at all.

There is something incredibly comforting about that.

A birthday far from home

Yesterday was Philou’s birthday.

Birthdays always carry a little extra emotion when you’re living far away from family. No grandparents popping by, no cousins around the table, no familiar traditions at home.

Of course we miss them. We had wonderful video calls with the grandmothers and heard from so many friends and family back home.

But what we have found here is something incredibly special too.

Everyone understands how important these moments are when you’re living this way. Especially after spending such a long period sailing as just the three of us, with children just popping by now and then.

For Philou, simply being surrounded by other children again already feels like a gift. At the same time, it’s also an adjustment. After months in our own little world, joining a large group again takes some getting used to. We can see that sometimes. But she’s doing amazingly well, and watching her grow into it is beautiful.

The most wonderful celebration

The day itself couldn’t have been more perfect.

We found a beautiful birthday cake and shared it together.

Many of the presents were handmade, which somehow made them even more meaningful. One of my favourite gifts was a handmade string of flags, with every family creating their own personalised flag for Philou. It was such a thoughtful gesture and filled us with gratitude.

After that, we spent the afternoon playing traditional games across the boats, on the beach and in the water.

When it became time for drinks and the prize giving, another family, from Kaya, immediately offered their much larger catamaran so everyone could gather together. We had planned to host everyone on Simon Hendrick, but as you can imagine, space is rather limited.

It was one of those moments where nobody hesitated. People simply stepped in to make it work.

Our boat family

As we looked around at the end of the day, surrounded by laughter, conversations and children running barefoot in and out of the water, we realised just how lucky we are.

We often call this our boat family.

It will never replace the family we miss back home, and it isn’t meant to.

But out here, it is the closest thing to it.

You look after one another. You celebrate birthdays together. You help when someone needs a hand. You share meals, stories and sunsets. At the same time, everyone has their own little floating home to retreat to whenever they need some quiet.

There is a wonderful balance between togetherness and independence.

Grateful for what we’ve found

Over the coming weeks, the group will naturally spread out. Some boats will head one way, others another. We’ll probably continue sailing with a few, before meeting the others again somewhere around the islands.

That’s one of the things we love most about the Ionian.

The distances are short, and somehow everyone keeps finding each other again.

Watching Philou so happy fills our hearts. But the truth is, we’re enjoying this community just as much ourselves.

We came back for the children.

What we found was a family.

A floating one.

Thanks: Kaya, Kidani, Joanna2, Smile, Andromeda and Maire!

Sometimes home isn’t a place. Sometimes it’s the people who make you feel at home.