Spilia Beach Bar - obviously with a cave

One would expect there to be plenty of caves in mountainous Greek islands, but it didn't seem to be the case for Idea. There are some beach caves, however, the easiest to access being right in the main village, Hydra, at the "Spilia Beach Bar". That, is the cave beach bar. 

Under the bar there are some swimming places, not really beaches but stairs leading to the sea. And right next to them is the cave. It is indeed a beach cave, carved by the sea forces. There's a gaping hole at the top of it, and the rock seems .. awfully thin at the top. Maybe that's why the hole has been covered by a net and signposted for no one to walk above the cave. Or swim into the cave either. 

Of course, I swam to the cave.

But please, please do not swim to the cave. It is actually dangerous. And walking above would be madness, the roof is going to collapse at any moment.

The cave is at these coordinates: N 37.352033 E 23.463300. The beach cave link is here.

And right next to the bar there's a restaurant, the Sunset Restaurant, and behind it is a bar, the Hydronetta Cocktail-bar that is the best place on the island for watching sunsets. Recommended!

There are obviously beaches also on the island, even one sandy one and another pebble beach, both near Hydra. See my other article (alt.link) for the details.

The island of Idea can be reached from Athens by ferries, e.g., the Magic Sea Ferries line runs there 1-4 times a day depending on season and day. One way tickets are around 40€.

Bar:

Sunset:

Ferry:

This article has also been published in Planetswimmer.com here. Read the full series of urban exploration stories from theurbanexplorer.net, and other underground stories from planetcaver.net, or all blog articles from Blogspot or Planetskier web site. And of course the full Planetskier skiing article series at planetskier.net. Photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved. 

Idra beaches

For more sauna and swimming stories, check out planetswimmer.com and saunablogger.cool websites! Or all blog articles from Blogspot or Planetskier web site. And of course the full Planetskier skiing article series at planetskier.net. Photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved. No nearby beachgoers have been photographed.

A Refreshing Dip at Åkeshov Swimming Hall

It was a dark and rainy night when I made my way to Åkeshov sports hall for a swim :-) but the journey was surprisingly pleasant. Stockholm's public transport never cease to impress, the bus ride was smooth and comfortable, complete with USB charging ports on every seat. 

Åkeshov hall itself is straightforward, you get to swim and there's minimal hassle. Except maybe for the locks. In Sweden the swimming halls don't have locks, you have to bring your own. They sell you one but I always forget to take one when I leave for a trip to Sweden, so by now I have couple of dozen locker locks home :-)

But back to Åkeshov. They have two full 25-meter pools alongside a dedicated children's pool, offering plenty of space whether you're doing serious laps or bringing the family. The water was not super warm but just right I guess for doing laps. There was a sauna.. quite decent one, for Sweden :-) They were hot enough, though I always wonder about the dress code. In Finland you are strictly required to have no swimming clothes in the (gender specific) saunas. But here apparently most people but not all have pants on.

Obviously, the swimming hall isn't a flashy spa or wellness center. Dressing rooms show their age a bit, but everything was still clean and efficient. The hall itself was opened in 1959, but there must have been several rounds of renovations in between, insides felt maybe late 1980s style, and dressing rooms maybe 1990s or early 2000s. There's a community swimming club who were this time busy setting up a competition or event.

Link to their home page is here. And the Wikipedia article is here.

For more sauna and swimming stories, check out planetswimmer.com and saunablogger.cool websites! Or all blog articles from Blogspot or Planetskier web site. And of course the full Planetskier skiing article series at planetskier.net. Photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.  Pool photo by Stockholm city (taken from here), all rights reserved by them.

Flying Finnair's washed A321s

Finnair has managed yet another unnecessary screw-up: washing their A321 seat covers using water, when dry cleaning would have been the approved method to avoid the fire repellent treatment to deteriorate. The previous screw-ups included ground collisions that damaged one of their wide body aircraft for instance. And this is on top of the incredibly long period of strikes and flight cancellations.

They had to manufacture new seat covers, and eight A321s were out of action. I was slightly inconvenienced due to this as well, as my flight to Stockholm was cancelled. Fortunately there was another flight that they put me on. 

Although it was an hour earlier... and I was coming in 1am from the previous trip. I left the airport six hours before returning back there again, managed to get a couple of hours of sleep and wash my clothes, but I was tired. Granted, I would have been tired even if the time was seven hours instead of six. So I can only look at the mirror.

This article has also been published in Planetflier.com here. For more flying stories, check out the Planetflier.com website! And of course the Planetcaver, and Planetskier blogs for other stories in Blogspot! The photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved. 

Kangasala swimming hall

Had to pick up the car from Kangasala, near Tampere, after the breakdown (alt.link). They had fixed it for mere 40€, though only a temporary fix: the heating system is now bypassed, so now heating in the rainy fall weather. But, on the positive side I managed to get a swim in a new place: the Kangasala swimming hall.

The swimming hall is quite nice. It is called "kuohu" or "sparkling". Nice name! 

Two saunas on each side, and altogether seven pools:

- main 25 meter pool

- jumping pool

- teaching pool

- kiddie pool

- cold plunge pool

- two therapy pools (they call them a multi-function pool and a waterfall pool)

The home page for the swimming hall is here. There's also a hotel called Kuohu as as well next to the swimming hall.

Back to the car: I managed well to get home, windows were easily clear. A visit to my local repair shop had them scrambling for spare parts for a proper fix. Let's see if that is even possible. And there's a looming deadline in a bit over a month of the next check-up, not sure I should invest in this car any extra money until I know what's ahead if it...

Photos from outside the swimming hall:

The hotel:

For more sauna and swimming stories, check out planetswimmer.com and saunablogger.cool websites! More car stories in the Planetskier blog series at Blogspot or Planetskier.net. And of course the Planetcaver, and Planetskier blogs for other stories in Blogspot and TGR! The photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.

Far-away breakdown, sigh

Another surprise Volvo breakdown. Beyond towing back home distance, so car is being towed to Kangasala. Coolant hose connector broken. Now on the train towards Helsinki, after riding first on the tow truck and then a taxi.

More car stories in the Planetskier blog series at Blogspot or Planetskier.net. The photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko.

Swim at the Neidonkeidas... a public swimming hall with food-fired sauna!

Decided to drive to Lohja for a quick swim at the Neidonkeidas, the local public swimming hall. 

Built in 1970s, it has stood the time quite well, and has also been modernized in 1998. It is located at the top of the sand ridge above Lohja, in a beautiful location. Next to it are a sports field, ice skating hall, walking and jogging paths, etc.

The swimming hall has 25-meter pool, therapy pool, jacuzzi, children's pool, small kid pool, and a deep pool with a jumping platform. And a water slide. There are several dressing rooms and saunas inside, and outside there's my favorite, a wood-fired sauna. It was wonderful, and a rare experience in community swimming halls! Open only on some days during the week, however.

But not only was it a great swimming hall and sauna experience, there was something for the astronomy and skiing enthusiasts: a telescope tower. And a pile of snow on a slope leading away from to the ice skating hall. I must return here soon!

More information about the swimming hall from the above link to the official web site, or from Wikipedia. 

For more sauna and swimming stories, check out planetswimmer.com and saunablogger.cool websites! And of course the Planetcaver, and Planetskier blogs for other stories in Blogspot and TGR! The photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.

Tivat Airport - Kai Tak of Europe

Had a chance to fly to Tivat, Montenegro. On Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, and Air Baltic. The airport is called the Kai Tai of Europe given the tight maneuvering needed to land there.

It is not a big airport. Outside there's just one cafeteria and bathrooms, and a few rental car kiosks. With just a couple of lights leaving, when I entered the secure zone there wasn't any seats to sit on left, not a single place to sit on the floor, and barely room to stand. No wonder the security checkpoint refused to allow me in too early before the flights :-) 

The official web page of the airport is here.

The fire trucks seemed a bit dated. Or maybe they've just been sitting in the sun, there was no storage house for them:

Airport from above:

Upon leaving, there was a bit of a crowd:

See also my caving explorations in Montenegro, here (alt.link) or here (alt. link).

This article has also been published in Planetcaver.net here. For more flying stories, check out the planetflier.com website! And of course the Planetcaver, and Planetskier blogs for other stories in Blogspot! The photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved. 

Swim by the fires

Another cottage swim, this time by the light fires and a sunset. Wonderful! A bit cold though.

For more sauna and swimming stories, check out planetswimmer.com and saunablogger.cool websites! And of course the Planetcaver, and Planetskier blogs for other stories in Blogspot and TGR! The photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.

Montenegro swims

A few quick dips into the Adriatic Sea and one hotel pool. Sadly missed a sauna on this visit, had a visit to the hotel sauna lined up but their sauna had closed earlier than the rest of the spa, so missed it on a busy day. Oh well, at least I got a new country to swim in!

The first swim was at the Bigova beach, a tiny spot, just few meters of gravel by the port. But an excellent place to view the sunset and take a dip in the sea! The coordinates are N 42.356315 E 18.704326. More information from Bigova here. I can also recommend the fish restaurant just behind the beach, the Grispolis. One photo at the top of this article, other photos below: 

The second swimming place was Queen's Beach in Pržno, a bit south of Budva. Also called Kralijčina Praža. The coordinates are N 42.263430 E 18.892401. A stellar place to swim at! 

This beach has been a private beach for the spa just behind the beach, accessible to non-guests as well by paying a nominal fee of 120 Euros. The spa had been part of Aman Sveti Stefan Resort. But since five years ago, the spa has gone into bankruptcy or at least is closed, and there are no more security guards or active payment booths, so ... free for everyone! Actually good that way, despite it being sad that the very nice looking spa building and the nearby hotel are not in use. 

More information about this beach here, here and here.

Photos:

There's also a next beach with a similar situation, the Milocer beach also in Pržno. Though I did not have time to swim there, but it was perhaps even better than the Queen's beach. 

This is where the hotel of part of the dysfunctional spa-hotel complex is, and the same deal applies here: you can swim freely! The coordinates are N 42.261094 E 18.892879. 

Photos:

Finally, a hotel swim at Avala Resort & Villas, a hotel in downtown Budva. The coordinates are N 42.278635 E 18.835208. Their website is here. Photos:

Some pictures from the old town of Budva, just next to the Avala:

For more sauna and swimming stories, check out planetswimmer.com and saunablogger.cool websites! And of course the Planetcaver, and Planetskier blogs for other stories in Blogspot and TGR! The photos and text (c) 2025 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved. No photos of nearby beachgoers have been taken, and the pool photos are taken when the facility is closed or reserved only for me.