We arrived in Corfu at 8 AM after sailing from Dubrovnik, Croatia at 6 PM yesterday. We transitioned from the Adriatic Sea, past the coastline of Albania and into the Ionian Sea to the Greek Island of Corfu.
Our tour "Corfu on Your Own" left early. We walked around the very picturesque pedestrian-only city of Corfu Town from 10AM to 1PM. We enjoyed seeing many of the recommended sites, including The Regency Palace, St. Spyridan Church, and the Explanade. We spent much of the time looking for a light jacket for Jim since he lost his yesterday. The weather today was unpleasant. Heavily clouded all day, it poured rain and became windy from time to time and was very chilly. The sun came out once for about half an hour, and I was amazed how much warmer it got for awhile.
We sailed at 6:30. After dinner, Jim and I went to a magician show. I can't remember his name right now. It was good (as magicians go -- not my favorite.) It was certainly not in the league with the superb comic pianist we saw last night.
Here is information I gathered about Corfu before we left Atlanta:
Corfu weather in November: The weather is unpredictable. It may be sunny, but there are plenty of rainy and windy days too.
Corfu History: The earliest mention of Corfu in history was in Homer's Odyssey when Odysseus's last stop was Corfu, or island of the Faiacs, where he was washed ashore after his ship had sunk. Later, in the 8th century BC the island was colonized by the Corinthians. The Venetians ruled the island from 1386 to 1797, then it fell into French hands; then for a few years it was occupied by Russian-Turkish forces. In 1815 the British were the regents of Corfu and they stayed for almost 50 years. The Italians occupied the island for much of the 1920s through the 1940s. Corfu was bombarded by the Germans and the Allies during World War II. The island became part of Greece in 1864 after being ruled by other nations as well: French, Russian and British.
What to See :
- The citadel in the harbour was made by the Venetians.
- The Regency palace in the town was built by the British
- Pretty villages and deserted beaches - Sidari, Aharavi, Dasia, Ypsos, the channel of love, the fishing villages Benitses, Moraitika - From Kassiopi you can see Albania if the weather is clear enough.
- Spianada - the most popular square in the town
- The palace Achilleon - where the empress Sissy lived
- St. Spyridon - with the tallest bell tower of the island.
- The palace of Ag Michael and Georgiou
- The church of Vlahernas
- Pontikonisi - an area which not only is beautiful, but also has a church dedicated to the Virgin Mary from the 13th century. This is probably the most photographed spot in Corfu.
- Paleocastritsa - on a cliff just by the most popular beach, there is a 13th century monastery, which holds the huge bones of a whale.
1 comment:
I am so jealous!!! Seriously, I am thankful you and Jim have the opportunity to do this. What a joy to travel together and see the beautiful world God has given us.
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