Our first exposure to Corfu was watching the BBC comedy, The Durrells in Corfu. The pictures from the island were beautiful. Now we had a chance to visit the island.
Corfu is the largest of the Greek islands. The population is 120,000 plus tourists and/or students. There are 4 universities on Corfu. Greek, English, and Italian are all spoken. The religion is Greek orthodox Christianity plus 20% Catholics. It is just off the coast of Italy and Albania. The closest distance to Albania is 3 km. It is quite mountainous—the highest is 900 m.
The economy is primarily tourism, olives, and olive oil. The day we were in Corfu, there were 4 cruise ships in port. The olive economy is because of the 4 million olive trees on the island.
The climate is mild. In the winter the highs are usually 30°C (about 75°F in old units). A very cold day would be 5°C (40°F). The summer is hot. Last summer was unusually hot with highs in the low 40s°C (105-110°F). It never snows and rarely freezes.
The island is very historic. It is featured in the epic poems of Homer and other myths of the Greek gods. In medieval times it was the first line of defense against the Ottomans. The Venetians ruled Corfu from 1401 until 1797. Since then it has been ruled by France and England. The island was gifted to Greece the British in the 1900s.
During WW2 2,500 Jews were sent to Poland. After the war only 100 returned. So appalling.
On our way to visit a monastery we drove through a 16th century village. The age of Europe is always eye opening given the youth of America.
The Greek Orthodox monastery was near the top of one of the mountains and had incredible views. The drive up the mountain was very narrow. There was one stretch where the driver had only a few inches on both sides.
The Monastery itself was small. The chapel was full of icons and art. Here are some pictures from the inside.
On the ceiling A depiction of Jesus feeding 5,000.
We went down a different route which was not as difficult. We got to the Corfu town and had a short guided tour. Caroline, Maureen, and I left the tour to explore on our own. I told Caroline to walk into the pigeons so I could get a picture of them flying around her. All they did was walk a few feet away and continued to eat.
The old town was very interesting. Shops, cafes and restaurants, bakeries, etc. Caroline and Maureen did some shopping Below are some pictures from the town.
A good time was had by all.
