Reminiscing in Corfu – Part 1

Corfu is among the greenest Greek island and, with its 600km2, also one of the most beautiful ones. It’s the second largest of the seven Ionian islands that consist of Kefalonia, Paxi, Lefkada, Zakynthos, Ithaca and Kythira.

The seven-day autumn holiday to the closest Greek island started at Ljubljana Airport. The flight to the city with the same name, Corfu, lasted an hour and a half, which meant that we quickly went from almost autumn to summer temperatures. We were greeted by the sun and a cloudless sky. After all the airport formalities, transfer to the accommodation that was 12km away in a place called Ipsos, was already taken care of.

Ipsos is situated in a long and wide bay with a beach that’s a mix of sand and pebbles and that slowly begins to rise in the north into the highest island peak, Mount Pantokrator. There’s a main road leading through Ipsos, connecting the coastal town in the eastern part of the island. Traffic is dense but not a nuisance for the beachgoers, except maybe when crossing the road. While there’s a beach on one side, numerous bars, small souvenir shops, a few hotels, as well as car and motorbike rentals line the opposite side of the road. Tourist quickly scattered in the town, so there were no crowds, not even on the beach or in the bar.

When still at home, we decided to rent a scooter in Corfu and go explore the island’s beauty. We were lucky to had found a cheap motorbike rental the very first day and, since time flies especially fast during holidays, headed to the northern part of the island the next day. That’s how we spent all afternoons, since our restless souls never allowed us to take a rest during out holiday.

The northern part of the island is very irregular with all the rock bays and beaches with a mix of sand and pebbles that are overlooked by a mountainous area. On the other hand, the southern part of the island is flatter and famous for its sandy beaches. Our first stop was the village of Kalami in an idyllic bay with small boats and maybe a yacht, a few bathers, and azure sea, like from a film where you ask yourself if it’s all just a dream. On our way north we had stopovers in other towns and villages that are just 3km from the Albanian part of the mainland by sea. Afterwards we stayed in a fishing village of Kassiopi for a while. A village that I didn’t visit during my stay in Corfu, but I was glad we visited it then. We walked down one of the cobbled streets that all begin or end in the bay or the harbour, protected from the high waves, restless sea and other troubles by stone breakwaters. I was impressed by the image of the village that opened up to us.

After a few kilometres we were already driving through the resort in the northern part of the island, a spread-out settlement of Acharavi and a place where we stayed when I first visited Corfu. There are quite a few paths leading to the sandy beach from the main road. The sea was very turbulent that day and it was very windy, so after a few short stopovers by the coast we decided to continue our path towards a very touristy place in the summer, Sidari. We came across several day-trippers who wanted to see the famous Channel of Love. It’s an opening between two cliffs and a girl is said to have swam across it thinking about her future boyfriend or partner, and her wish is said to have come true. At least that’s one of the stories going around. The sea in this area is often turbulent and it’s advised not to swim during that time. Sidari is known by its unusual sandstone rocks that were shaped by water and wind, subsequently making this part of the island even more attractive and interesting to visit. It’s worth walking down the main street of the town that’s full of small shops, bars, restaurants, and private hotels. I also recommend climbing up a slope or two but be careful of strong and sudden winds.

On our way to Ipsos we drove through the countryside, between numerous olive tree plantations and a few vineyards, through villages isolated from the tourist chaos and on roads with little traffic. People in the villages retained their traditional way of life and their values. Time has stopped for them and I was tempted to stay there and “stop” for a while as well. But we didn’t, and we decided to dive into the water at the end of the day, which felt really good.

In my next article you can read about what more this verdant Ionic island has to offer and what beautiful places we discovered and visited.