Northwest Greek Odyssey - Korfu

Igoumenitsa and Ferry

We left Ioannina via bus, dropping down steadily from the highlands to the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Stopping in the busy little port town of Igoumenitsa, we boarded a ferry for Korfu. Or Corfu. Or...

The day was hot, the sun bright, a perfect day for a ferry ride. The boat slid out of the port, passing rocky, sun-drenched shores. As we moved into the open water beyond the harbor, the rugged mountains of Albania came into view to starboard. Dead ahead lay the island of Korfu, its undulating spine a dusky green against the vivid blue of the sea. I do love traveling by boat.

Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, Korfu, Corfu: Take your pick

Korfu is a place from ancient history, from the Peloponnesian Wars, a great naval power along with Athens and Corinth. There were pirates, Ottomans, Venetians, battles upon battles. The British took control following the Napoleonic Wars, finally ceding the place to what would become modern Greece. 

Today, Corfu (Korfu for us folks from a German-speaking region) is one of the busiest tourist destinations in the Greek Islands. It is one of the closest islands to Europe, and is served by direct flights from European mainland, as well as the UK. Even in the shoulder season, Korfu is chock-full of tourists intent on getting in a lot of sun, and a lot of partying.

The ferries dock at the New Port, just outside the fortified Old City. Corfu Town was once one of the most fortified places in the Mediterranean, a testament to its violent past. Our digs were further down the coast, on the east side of the island. To get there, we had to walk through town to the San Marcos square, then catch a city bus down the coast.

Korfu Rubbish Piles - Politics meets Landfill

The first mystery of Corfu presented itself immediately. There were piles of rubbish everywhere. Every dumpster was accompanied by a huge pile rubbish, bags and boxes of it. Were the garbage collectors on strike? The scene repeated itself down the coast, with roadside dumpsters almost invisible under a small mountains of trash. 

The key to the mystery lies in the political upheaval in Greece. The short answer to the trash piles is that the landfill on Kérkyra is full, plain and simple. The rest of the answer is a bit more complicated. The EU, trying to help out the struggling government, made a grant of Euros to build a proper new landfill. The Corfu folks will tell you, if you ask, that the local government then pocketed the money. Instead of building an approved landfill, they tried to open an unapproved landfill down south near Kavos, the main area for the British party crowd. There were protests, police in riot gear, and damaging headlines in the UK papers. As it stands, the piles of trash remain uncollected.

The subject of pirates has come up more than once in our travels. There is a new 'special' tax on tourist accommodations, fifty cents (Euro) per night, per person. Our hosts generally apologized for this, explaining that they were forced to collect the fee, and that they believed the money went straight into the pockets of the officials collecting it. I do not know the truth of any of this, except that we had to pay the tax. For the locals, times are hard here in Greece. The economic struggles of the Greek nation are well-documented by many sources far more knowledgeable than I. For my part, what I heard were tales of low wages, high prices, and rising taxes to cover the national debt and the flight of capital out of the country.

Benitses, Korfu - The Strip

The coast of Korfu is dotted with resort towns at regular intervals. Wherever there is a bit of level ground, or a bit of beach, there is a resort. Where the level bits are bigger, there are resort towns. Our spot was Benitses, a smallish town about forty minutes by bus from Corfu Town. Only venture a little way inland, however, and one will find a very different island.

Corfu is a bit schizophrenic, at least to my eyes. There is the coast, and then there is everything else. Running up and down the rugged spine of Corfu is the Corfu Trail. Winding back and forth through quiet villages and forested hillsides, the Corfu Trail is 220 kilometers long. While there a certainly hikers that come here to walk the trail, I would say the vast majority of tourists do not know the trail exists. 

The Other Korfu

Our evening was spent along the busy beach strip, eating grilled octopus and watching the party folks gear up for another night of revelry. Before they could get into full swing, we were back at our digs, enjoying the warm night from the privacy of our balcony. 

The next day found us following a hand-drawn map, supplied by our host, which purported to lead us up the rough hillsides to the spine of the island, and the Corfu Trail. After just a few hundred meters, the bustle of the coastal strip fell away. We climbed in the hot sun, under wild olives and junipers. As if with a wave of a magic wand, we were suddenly back in Greece proper.

Village Church, Corfu Trail

The map proved true, leading us to trail signs that pointed up, always up. We climbed away, the blue Adriatic shimmering below us. The steep, green ridges climbed above us. Lizards skittered across the trail, song birds flitted through the shadows, and the climb continued.

Hot and sweaty, we broke out onto the top of the main ridge and into a quiet sun-drenched village. We were now on the Corfu Trail itself, welcomed by the village cats.

Village Traffic Jam

Voices and laughter led us to a café, which we were happy to take advantage of. Thick Greek coffee, a shady table, all on a quiet village lane. What else does a wanderer need? We chatted with the locals, rested our tired dogs, and let the world take care of itself for a bit. Our travels across Greece had become a hiking journey. My Heart and I are both serious walkers, but we had not specifically planned this trip to be a hiking sojourn. Yet this is what it seems to have become, and we are not sorry for it.

Rock Walls, Stone House

Leaving our café behind, we wandered south, following the road which makes up this part of the trail. It is the sort of road that can be walked two abreast without fear of traffic. There simply isn't any. Our way led past stone houses, some still in use, some crumbing to rubble, some a combination of the two.

The Trail Back

We walked as far as our legs would take us, letting the sun bake into us. With the advantage of the trail signs, we were able to find a new route back down the ridges to the coast. What can I tell you about hiking on a beautiful, hot day? There were rocky viewpoints, the welcome shadows of wild olives, the stony trail beneath our feet. It was altogether wonderful, and more so that we could hike directly out of town without resorting to any transport other than muscle power.

Classy Souvenirs

The souvenir shops and bars were right where we had left them, enticing the tourists out of their Euros. For today, it was Corfu Trail: 1, Beach: 0.