The Adventure begins: Corfu

Although we were tired and hungry and nothing was yet open, I had a sense of pure delight, as it finally sunk in that we were really, truly, in Greece. That far off adventure that my dad and I had talked about throughout my childhood, that dream of exploring the Greek islands, discovering the archaeology, exploring the wild landscapes and becoming enthralled with the friendliness of the Greeks and their beautiful food, that was all about to become a reality. We had made it!
 Although 3:30AM in Corfu town wasn't fantastic as everything was shut, it felt worthwhile simply to watch the sun rise over the venetian fortress and the silent harbour.

After a wander around the silent town and a coffee and croissant to fill our stomachs and pass some time, we headed up north to follow the coast and see what we could find. We were on the lookout for a snorkel for me, and sandals for dad. As we entered a little village called Ipsos we began to drive along the waterfront, affording us views of clear, calm waters and green mountains.

We stopped so I could capture a photo of the sea and the clouds and the mountains beyond (is it any wonder that views like this inspired such writings as the Iliad and the Odyssey?) And as we walked along the beach we spotted a little shop that seemed to be selling all manner of things, so we popped in, successfully buying the items we needed as well as some fruit. The owner, an elderly Greek man, became rather cheerful upon finding out that dad was french and they soon began conversing in french. It turned out our quiet little town had once been home to a Club Med and thus the older locals still remembered their rusty french. 

With a smile on our faces from the light exchange, we headed further up north for Agios Stefanos, a tiny fishing village that was utterly adorable. There was a lovely restaurant on the water that looked rather tempting, but as it was only 10AM by this time, we drove on.

Avlaki was our destination for our first proper stop, as I had heard it was lovely (I would soon learn during this trip that relying on Lonely Planet for tucked away villages and beaches was usually an excellent option, with only a few misses along the way). Not only was the water crystal clear and the pebbles blindingly white, there were barely any people, making it a glorious place for our first swim of many in Greece. After exploring the whole island, I can happily say that this was my favourite place to swim on all of Corfu, and we returned a number of times for just that reason.

As it was still too early for lunch (you can accomplish so much when you wake up at 3:30 in the morning!) We decided to stop skirting the coast for the moment and head into the mountains to see an old Venetian village. Something I would notice as we explored the Ionian islands was how strong the vestiges of Venetian rule were, lingering strongly in the architecture and creating a rather uniquely different style to the rest of Greece.
Old Perithia is the oldest surviving village on Corfu (the others were unfortunately destroyed in an earthquake - a problem we would see recurring again and again throughout our travels in Greece) Built around the 14th century (although it may have been inhabited before) this ruined village was beautiful in a rather sad way. I had expected it to be full of tourists, however we had the place almost to ourselves apart from a couple of German tourists who looked ready to pass out from their cycle up the mountain.

The village at its largest had about 130 houses as people left their coastal homes and retreated here high in the mountains to escape from pirate attacks. Now most of it is entirely derelict (although it is slowly being renovated) as people began to live there only during the summer and the rest of the year descend down the mountain to tend and harvest their olive groves. Today only six people live there year round (some stay there only in summer to cater to tourists, having set up tavernas in the village)

Many of the buildings were sad with their second stories caving in and the roofs half gone.Some had the beginnings of being repaired but the attempt had clearly been abandoned some years before (perhaps with the financial crisis). Just as we were leaving, busloads of tourists turned up and, pleased with our timing, we happily fled.

We decided to follow the mountain road deeper into the centre of Corfu and cut across to reach the west coast. On our scenic journey we spotted a fortress (Venetian of course) looking out to sea. At the foot of the castle was a small carpark and an olive grove. Stopping to stretch our legs and admire the castle far above, we spotted a little stall backing into the olive trees, selling locally made honey. Never one to say no to local produce, and knowing it would be delicious on our thick Greek yogurt for breakfast, we bought a pot. (After trying it, I wished we had bought two; it was the best honey I tried on our entire trip).

Honey in hand, we headed to Palaiokastritsa as although we knew it had become a tourist resort, dad remembered it as a magnificent place and we were curious to see what it had become. The view from above was utterly breathtaking, the water crystal clear. It was easy to see why it had become such a tourist destination.
We did go for a quick dip here as we were feeling the heat of the day, but it was so crowded that although the water was extremely beautiful one almost couldn't enjoy it. I would take our quiet swim at Avlaki over this any day! One thing that was really positive was that although we had heard Corfu had become fairly overrun by tourists and thus had low expectations, this place was really the only one where we saw it. Every other place felt like true Greece, full of locals and beautiful beaches and lovely food and overall, surprisingly unspoiled.

Speaking of food, it was finally lunch time, and after our quick dip we were rather hungry. Having no idea where to eat, we decided to simply stop when we saw a likely looking place. We turned off at a sign for Sunset Beach as dad had a good feeling about it.

And like he always somehow does, the decision worked perfectly. The taverna perched on the edge of the cliff looked like nothing special, but the views were something we couldn't refuse. The view from our table was utterly spectacular.

To top it off, the food turned out to be absolutely delicious. We ordered far too much in our excitement at Greek cuisine, unable to choose.
Hummus and tzatziki, breads and dips, baked feta, stuffed aubergine and capsicum, the selection was to die for. And the beer! It was here that we discovered Corfu Beer, specifically the Red, one of the nicest beers I've ever tried. Local of course, it was to our dismay that we discovered we could only find it on or around Corfu (we of course took advantage of it while we could). Marketed as Greece's first brewery to brew 'real ale', it was unfiltered and unpasteurized and utterly delicious. I would happily come back to Corfu just for their beer!

Stuffed to the bursting, we meandered our way back to Ipsos to see if we couldn't find some accomodation for the night. Using trusty Booking.com we soon found reasonably priced apartments 5km out from Ipsos with beach views and balconies to sit out on. Could life get any better?