You Me and Tuscany: Corfu, Greece

Arriving at the Corfu Airport was by far the most laid back airport arrival we've ever experienced. After a rather ...bumpy ride in on our RyanAir flight (a storm was sweeping through onto the coast from Italy. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared at times. The man sitting beside me definitely didn't help the situation- telling me things in broken English about how bad of a storm this really is, using hand gestures to elaborate big flashes of lightning) we all crowded off the airplane into the emptiness of the airport. In a crowd of British tourists, we were waved through customs by two men in jeans and running shoes. I followed the crowd, holding up my passport in the air (like everyone else)until at the last possible moment, one of the men in jeans noticed my passport wasn't of the European Union. It was only at that point that any sort of "official-ness" went on, and he gave my passport a big ol' stamp. Oh, Greece. We arrived rather late, so we had made reservations at a budget hotel in walking distance from the airport. It was raining, however coming from a cold few days in Amsterdam, we were delighted with an evening temperature of 13 degrees Celcius.

Let the Greek adventure begin. I've decided to separate this adventure into categories: Corfu Town, Corfu West, Corfu North, Corfu South, and Easter in Corfu Town. In this post I will begin with Corfu Town and Corfu West and you can expect another post in the near future. There's really so much to tell! We made our way around the entire island (over 7 days) and have different experiences depending on where we were. I'll start at the beginning.

Part One: Corfu Town

We woke to sunshine and views of orange trees, corrugated tin roofs, and wandering stray cats. After a quick breakfast at the hotel of thick greek yogurt, fruit, sweet bread (they love sweet bread here! Bakeries are everywhere), we headed into Corfu Town to do some exploring. Corfu Town is the main town on the island, making up 40,000 of the island's approximate population of 120,000 (the rest of the island consists of many tiny villages. I'll get to that later). What a beautiful town. With the sun shining down on us, we couldn't have been happier taking in the coastal views and wandering through the narrow streets of Corfu Town.

PART TWO: Corfu West

Later that evening, we were picked up by our hostel hosts and given a ride all the way to the west coast of the island. Again, this could not have been any more casual. We were told what the vehicle would look like and that was it. When we saw a vehicle that fit the description, we gave a wave. He pulled over, said "hey guys!", and we were off! Spiro, which we would learn is probably the most popular male name on the island, chatted to us along the way, telling us about the geography of the island, and finally after making stops at the grocery store and the butcher shop, we arrived at his family owned hostel. To drive straight across the island would probably take 35 minutes, though in this case it took closer to 60 minutes with the stops we made (which was totally okay with us, we were just happy to be given a ride). We would soon learn that this was how things operated here. For instance, if the bus is scheduled to come at 9:15, I wouldn't worry at all if it still isn't there by 9:25... it's coming, don't worry. Spiro's hostel was located just past Pelakus village, down some winding switchback roads, nested on the hillside, looking out over the Ionian Sea. Though the hostel itself may have seen better days, the view was worth a million bucks. Spiro took us out onto the large sun deck, and pointing at the water he said, "See, beautiful view for beautiful people!" Haha, thanks Spiro.

We loved staying on the west coast of the island. We stayed here three nights in total and filled our days with a LOT of walking, and enjoying home made breakfasts and dinners (I'd say one of the best things about this hostel was that Spiro's wife would cook for us authentic Greek meals). The main downfall was how cold it got at night and the lack of heating in our room. By the second night I was fighting an awful cold...my sinuses were clogged and at night I felt like I could barely breathe. Luckily we were left with a four bed room to ourselves 2 out of the 3 nights, so I used the extra bedding from the other beds to keep warm. Other than that, all was good. The family farmed their own vegetables, goats, and made their own wine and feta cheese, which we were able to indulge in each evening. There weren't many other travellers (being it still off season... the tourists definitely come by middle of May), however we made friends with two middle aged ladies who were sisters (one living in Germany, the other in Switzerland) who were staying near by and came to the hostel for dinner each night. It's crazy how you can connect with people of different ages and cultures but somehow still are on the same page about so many things. It's the like-minded travellers that you meet at small little hole in the wall places, that can really make your experiences memorable. They gave us tips on walking the Corfu Trail and where to find gyros and souvlaki for 2 euros (after long days of hiking, we would treat ourselves to gyros from a small grill house in Pelakus village. Oh my gosh. So. good.).

Above: Pelakus Village, Below: Dinner at the hostel

On our first day of walking, we headed north up the coast, attempting to follow the Corfu Trail. Sadly, the trail is not clearly marked, so half the time we weren't sure we were even on a trail at all. Occasionally you'll see a yellow "CT" spray painted on a tree, which then gives you a great feeling like, "We're totally on the right track!!", only then to go another couple hours without any signs at all. My best advice would be, if you're serious about walking the trail, buy the guide book (our German and Swiss friends were smart enough to purchase one). Aside from not having much direction, we loved exploring the west coast by foot. We walked through many small villages, olive groves, and lush rolling hills. The island of Corfu is known to be one of the greenest islands in Greece. The landscape reminded us of Tuscany. And you know how much we love Tuscany.... *note the name of this blog. We also encountered donkey's, horses, sheep, and many dogs (some friendly, some not very friendly). We turned around to head back once we reached the village of Giannades. We tried to find somewhere to eat in town, but since we were there late afternoon, the whole town seemed to be sleeping. Seriously, it seems like it is a requirement to take a siesta (which doesn't seem so bad, eh?). We covered 20km that day and were happy to sit and relax that night, enjoying homemade Greek Moussaka. Dinner was so good that I've already made Moussaka since being home. Definitely didn't compare to the moussaka we ate that night though.

Above: Roasted red peppers with an olive spread on a fresh baguette. Quick lunch stop in Ermones.

On our second day of walking the west coast, we headed south. And we gained a best friend for the day. Meet Susie:

Susie lives at the family hostel. Such a sweet dog, I wish I could go back and see her. She spent some time with us at the hostel, and when she headed out with us in the morning, we weren't too concerned because the family let her roam free, and she often would walk up the hill with people, and then turn around to go back on her own. Although, we took a different route today, and she never turned back. We tried telling her to "go home" (we had plans to walk a far distance again today), but she insisted on staying with us. Again, we walked through villages and olive groves, twisting and turning up and down hills along the coast. We attempted again to follow the Corfu Trail, however were lead astray.... we knew we needed to find the main road when we found ourselves in an abandoned resort with multiple spray painted signs saying "Beware of Guard Dog" and "Do not go any further- Guard Dog ahead". We had no choice but to cut through the resort (with Susie, of course), and get yelled at by a man who emerged from the top story of one of the abandoned rooms. Our hearts were pounding and I cannot express how relieved we were when we finally found our way out (of course through the most prickly bushes ever. But at the time, I was just concentrated on getting out of there). Sadly, we encountered many abandoned hotels and resorts on the island. Sometimes we couldn't tell if they were just closed for the winter season or if they had run out of money and were forced to shut down. The island itself is breathtakingly beautiful... sadly it's the economy that isn't so pretty.

Our end destination that day was Agios Gordios, a beautiful beach where we sat and ate our packed lunches. Zack even tested out the water (brave soul) while Susie and I relaxed and soaked up the sunshine. I did have to purchase a ridiculously expensive sunscreen while we were there. Though the temperatures weren't HOT, the sun was still so powerful and I could only find sunscreen in small tourist shops (which of course are outrageously priced). I tried every mini mart in the small villages and could not find sun screen any where.... apparently the locals don't need it? Me, being in England all winter on the other hand... I was slowly turning into a tomato. Getting back that evening we were exhausted. Susie had given us many "almost heart attacks" by running out into the middle of the road and we were relieved when we all made it back in one piece. She did however add something to our day that we never would have expected... the unconditional love of a dog. I know that may sound cheesy, but it's true. For one day, she was our adventure companion and we'll never forget her!