Corfu

I first visited Corfu almost twenty years ago as a high school student on summer vacation. Two friends and I packed my father's 1974 bright orange Opel Cadett with our sleeping bags , and we headed for the green island of Kerkyra in the Northern Ionian sea. We drove around and had a blast doing what you would expect high school students would do on summer vacation, and when fatigue set in we unrolled our sleeping bags wherever we happened to be and slept. We roamed Corfu until we completely ran out of money, then we boarded the ferry for Igoumenitsa before our long return drive to Athens.

I always remembered Corfu as a beautiful island full of green hills and azure seashores, with water so cool it made the hottest sun rays bearable in midsummer. So in the summer of 2002 my family joined my sister and her family for a week on the island of Kerkyra once again. We almost did not make it there, since we had waited a long time to make reservations and finding accommodations for Greece in the month of August is an impossible task.

We were looking for an inexpensive apartment around the Roda and Aharavi area in Northern Corfu, but my brother-in-law George found an apartment with three bedrooms in Canal D' Amour in Sidari for 120 Euro per night. From my previous visit I remembered Sidari as a beautiful beach town with lively night life. I had slept right on one of the fjord-like canals back in my high school days, and so I was looking forward to returning.

In early August 2002 we boarded the ferry boat from Igoumenitsa and we had a quiet 1 hour trip to the town of Corfu. The ticket for the car cost us €23.60 and each adult ticket - including the driver - cost us €5.oo (children 4-12 years old pay €2.50, while younger ones travel free). Although I knew Kerkyra was a beautiful town with traditional narrow streets and large open squares full of restaurants and life, we decided to head for Sidari immediately with the idea of returning to town at a later date. It turned out that we never really made it back to town, but that's another story.

Amazingly enough, the roads seemed to have remained the same as I remembered them from twenty ears ago! They are still narrow, and they tend to serpentine needlessly around small and large hills, making the trip even to nearby places a challenge for those not used to driving on narrow roads up the mountains. We stopped and ate lunch at the taverna "Anatoli" in Karousades and marveled at the amazing view of the valley and the ocean below. The food was good too, so we were off to a great holiday beginning.

We stayed in Corfu for a week and the island lived up to our expectations in every respect. It is the antithesis of the stereotypical Greek island with its lush green hills which tend to hang right over the rocky shores, and with its colorful architecture more reminiscent of an Italian influence. Corfu is a large island by Greek standards, and we barely had time to skim over the lush surface of the treats it had to offer. In fact, even with a vigorous daily driving regiment, it became evident very soon that we would not be able to see the entire island in our short visit.

Corfu is a gem of an island, and its beauty was evident in every place we visited. Beautiful beaches lace its every shore, and abundant joy drives the night life of every small town. Although its soil seems to be overrun by tourists, its size prevents it from feeling crowded, while its infrastructure has developed to such a degree that no one feels deprived of goods or services. Some beach towns in Corfu seem to have gladly accepted the role of the vacation resort for the large British (and other) groups that visit every summer to enjoy the hot sun and the beautiful beaches. If you visit from Great Britain, you would feel right at home in Corfu where all the televisions in the bars play live football games from the premiere league, and it is easier to find British newspapers than Greek ones.

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If on the other hand you just want to get away from the daily routine of every day life, Corfu also has much to offer. A few kilometers away from the busy resorts one can still find the small Greek villages that have remained unchanged for centuries, where life is slow, and traditions are strong. Within a short drive you can be lost in a lush forest, or on the verge of a small gem of a beach which has not yet been discovered by travel agents. Corfu is perfect for exploring and getting lost on its serpentine roads up the mountains in search of the perfect view. It is the perfect place to find the narrow dirt roads that could lead to the perfect landscape photograph, or to an isolated swimming spot.

It seemed like we spent our week doing absolutely nothing! We drove to a different beach every day, executing our plan for relaxation to a"tee", and we loved every minute. When we did not sunbathe at some beach, we relaxed at our apartment, or at the nearby swimming pool where we could have lunch while the children splashed in the swimming pool within a few meters. Family travel does not allow for extensive evening jaunts(as anyone with young children knows), so our nightly activities were confined to trips to the town's playgrounds or to a nice restaurant. Judging by the number of bars, cafeterias and pubs though, nightlife in Corfu does not lack anything in comparison with other Greek islands.

Our visit was short, but we had such an enjoyable time that we plan another visit next summer. We just cannot wait to experience the rest of the island and to return to some of our favorite spots.