Exploring the Town of Mykonos

After spending the day lounging around at the fabulous Saint John Resort, we made a quick pit stop in the heart of Mykonos to eat a late lunch, shop for souvenirs, and find ourselves some authentic Greek baklava. We only had about 3 hours until we needed to be back at the ship, but we were still able to get a good feel for the slow-paced Mykonos life. Walking through the narrow streets of this sleepy Greek fishing village reminded me a lot of Sanotrini, except less hilly and a little more run down. It was easy to see that tourism is the main focus of Mykonos these days. With 2 to 3 cruise ships dropping anchor in the Old Harbor each day, much of the town caters to its hundreds of visitors from all over the world. Thankfully, we were the only ship in port that afternoon...so, we meandered through the town with ease. While not as awe-inspiring as some of the other Greek islands, Mykonos still had a unique charm all its own with lots of quaint shops and cafes and arbors overflowing with colorful flowers around almost every turn. Not to mention some pretty stellar food. D and I scarfed down our chicken slouvaki & gyros with homemade tzatzki sauce like ravenous animals. And later, we hopped from bakery to bakery to find the perfect bites of baklava. The winner? Patissaries Mandarini. Might I recommend the chocolate baklava? It's mouthwatering and practically oozing with sweet honey. I stay up late at night still lusting over those tiny drops of heaven. If only I could have brought an entire pan home! All in all, Mykonos would definitely be a place I'd visit again. Even though the town is small, there's still a few things we didn't get to do. Next time, we'd hike to the windmills along the back side of town and hunt for Petros the Pelican, an old "celebrity" of the town's waterfront. I'm actually not quite sure how we missed him. Supposedly he's huge! All the more reason we'll have to save our pennies and come back someday. Darn, right? ;)

Next stop on our cruise recap...ISTANBUL!

If you've missed anything from our recaps thus far, you can catch up right here.

Fresh Face Friday: Meet Jenny & Melyssa

I recently had an epiphany about blog advertising. Since opening up my ad spots last October, I've steadily had good response and have met a ton of fun new bloggers. It's been a real win-win in almost every aspect. That being said...I don't know about you guys, but taking on sponsors kind of adds a whole other level of pressure and paranoia to the blog game. Every blogger wants their sponsorship program to be the best...worth paying for...yielding strong results for the people who shell out their hard earned cash to support your creative space. I want you to gain readers! I want you to have traffic JAMS on your blogs! Dear Lord, drive their numbers up! I'm sure all you bloggers who accept sponsors can relate to those thoughts. I've been thinking a lot about it all lately and wondered what I could be doing better to give my sponsors the best experience possible. What my soul searching gave me was a real headache, because I realized there really is no perfect way to do this sponsorship thing. Mostly because the effort doesn't lie solely in the advertiser...but also on the advertisee. Truth is, I can only do so much. That being said, I still wanted to offer my best to my faithful sponsors, so a few things needed tweaking. Through all of my brain wracking I came up with this...streamline my sponsorship options, take on less sponsors (so I can really spoil them) and I gave birth to the FRESH FACE FRIDAY advertising option! 

The concept is simple. Each Fresh Face spot includes:

-300x175 ad placed below my one Feature spot in my sidebar for 30 days-

-Gratuitous social media love from me throughout the month to spoil you rotten-

-Just 2 bloggers showcased each Friday for optimum exposure--less competition for traffic!-

-They share ALL of their social media links so you know exactly where to find them-

-They share their gold star post picks AND I share my gold star post picks from their blog-

(if I like it, you're gonna like it...promise!)

-I write a honest, heartfelt bio on each blogger, showing off all the things I've learned about them since I took a good look around their blogs and started building a relationship with them-

-A duo giveaway option may or may not be added later on...is this something people still want???-

Sound good? I hope so! All YOU, the reader, have to do is go visit and say hi! I know, I know. You hate reading sponsored posts. To that I say, INSANITY! Meeting new bloggers gives way to building relationships and NETWORKING. Remember this post? You all seemed to agree building relationships in blog world is important. Sponsor posts are just another way to do that, ya know? So, take advantage of these opportunities, y'all! Go make friends! Funny thing is, I don't know who's actually getting more out of this...me or my sponsors. I've had TOO much fun putting all of this Fresh Face Friday love together! It's all still a work in progress (meaning if something's not jiving, I'm changing it), but I think it will continue to be a win-win for all parties involved. Now that you all know what's up...come meet my Fresh Face Friday guinea pigs, Jenny & Melyssa! And happy weekend, everyone!

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This is the lovely Jenny Highsmith. Or who I affectionately like to call "my genius blog design guru." Jenny is one of the amazing brains behind the best friend design duo of Maiedae. She's also the artist behind the beautiful blog design you're currently looking at. Stunning, right? I'm still fawning over it myself. ;) Jenny is not just a fantastically talented graphic designer, but also a great writer, photographer, and creative soul who just oozes sweetness and charm. A true Southern belle and girl after my own heart! On her blog, aptly named Jenny Highsmith, you'll find tons of life inspiring posts, super cute outfits, and the compelling need to be her friend. I was sold the second we swapped emails. Jenny, you can't get rid of me now! Head on over to her little slice of the interwebs and get acquainted, y'all! And if you're in need of a fresh new look for your creative space, look no further than Jenny & Maiedae. WARNING: be prepared for all your design dreams to come true!

Jenny's Favorite Posts:                                My Favorite Posts:

   Things To Know About Me                                        The Story of Maiedae   

           Make It Happen                                     DIY: Stone Welcome Mat  

      DIY: Rustic Headboard                               Uniquely You: Body Image

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The Nectar Collective is a blog thoughtfully founded and curated by the super sweet Melyssa. Originally hailing from sunny Southern California, Mel currently lives a life of adventure abroad in Tokyo, Japan! Sounds dreamy, huh?! Aside from exploring the wonders of Asia, Mel shares lots of other exciting and inspiring posts on her blog including what life's like as an expat, the importance of spreading positivity to others, and how to cultivate a little adventure in your own life. She's also pretty crafty in the DIY department. Pinterest worthy for sure! There's lots of love going on around here, so if you're looking for some fun, bubbly, attitude-adjusting content, Melyssa's your girl. I can't get enough of her! Spend some time exploring her blog today and stay awhile. Tell her Casey sent ya!

       Melyssa's Favorite Posts:                         My Favorite Posts:

The Best Decision I Made This Year                       Guide To Adventure

             Adventures in Hanoi, Vietnam                     Explorations Through Thailand

   24 Lessons From 24 Years                             Musings By Monja

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Want to be a part of my newly launched Fresh Face Friday series and sponsorship option? 
Click the button below to learn more and join in on the fun! 
I'd love to showcase you and your blog or shop!

Mykonos: Day Pass to Paradise

I found this Saint John "day pass" absolutely by chance. Shortly after we booked our Mediterranean cruise, I joined the Cruise Critic forums (also known as the most helpful time suck I've ever experienced). I added myself to our sailing's Roll Call forum and started chatting with other people who were going to be on our ship. We exchanged info about ourselves, passed around the research we'd done on our ports, and shared tours we were doing while in said ports. We saved so much money and met so many nice people via these forums...but I'll save that humble brag-fest for another post. Long story short, this is where I stumbled across the glorious resort day pass. Saint John doesn't advertise it anywhere on their website...it's kind of just become this "cruise insider excursion." I emailed the hotel and they sent over the day pass info and reservation request. €30 later, BOOM...we were in. D and I now like to think we're part of some elite group of fortunate souls. The Greek gods smiled upon us there on that tiny island. And now if you lucky ducks ever find yourself in Mykonos, you're also in the know. You're welcome.

Upon arriving to Saint John (via our air conditioned shuttle bus that conveniently picked us up at the cruise port...sa-weet!), we checked in for our day pass and were promptly handed chilled glasses of champagne. Right then I knew we were in for a treat. The concierge gave us a map of the property, a brief synopsis of what facilities we could use (which was basically all of them...spa, pool, private beach, restaurants, etc.), and pointed us in the direction of paradise. You couldn't get me out that patio door fast enough! I was giddy as a school girl walking down the long, tree-lined walkway (or the stairway to heaven as I affectionally dubbed it) to the pool. When I first laid eyes on our tropical oasis for the day, I almost died. Too stunning for words! From then on, this is pretty much how our day went:

Lounge around, read a book, and tan.

Order a drink.

Snap some photos.

Order another drink.

Dip our feet in the Mediterranean (was still a little too chilly for swimming).

Order homemade tzatziki sauce and pita bread. YUM.

Take a dip in the pool.

Gratuitous infinity pool ledge photos.

Munch on free pistachios.

Annnnd order one last drink.

Sounds like a pretty amazing day pass, doesn't it?  Good Lord, it was. Beyond amazing.

True story. A PREGNANT woman walked across the ledge of the infinity pool and took some pretty stunning photos of her and her cute bikini clad bump. She took full advantage of the gorgeous locale the seriously cool infinity pool. Genius, right? D and I thought we'd be awesome too and get a few of us out there. If a pregnant woman can do it, we surely could! Nope. Bad idea. I was shaking like a leaf the entire time. The drop on the other side of the pool ledge was much steeper than one would think, and all I could think about while I baby stepped across the pool was broken bones and a ruined vacation. We only made it a few steps further before I declared that was good enough! Snap the friggin' picture already so I can get the heck off of here!! I'm only a little afraid of heights...but I look 70 different kinds of uncomfortable in this photo. I HAD to show you, though. 

I mean, I risked my life for it, after all. ;)

D, on the other hand, HAMMED IT UP on that infinity pool ledge. I think he thought he would "show me how it's done," so to speak. Little did he know that the photos I took of him strutting his stuff would eventually end up circling their way around the ENTIRE squadron (big wigs included) while we were still cruising. I may or may not have uploaded one to Facebook (oops). They subsequently showed up in the Monday morning briefing slides upon his return back to work. OH and that's not even the best part. Let's just say that the guys at work decided to take a few liberties with one of the photos. Photoshop is a dangerous thing. Serves you right, show off! Everyone got a good laugh out of it...including D. All in good fun. :)

I feel a "Hunks of Mykonos" calendar coming on.

Ahem...back to our relaxing day.

 Dear Lord, take me back! After lounging and soaking up the sun all day, the nice people of Saint John kindly loaded us up in their shuttle bus and dropped us off in the heart of Mykonos (per my request) so we could do a little sight-seeing. We got our relaxing pool day AND our sight-seeing all rolled into one great excursion. It's the vacationer's dream, right?! More of our afternoon exploring the lovely town of Mykonos--coming soon!