Corfu

Our ship docked at the small tropical island of Corfu at 8:00am Eastern European time. Not having anything resembling a plan, we exited our boat and followed everyone else onto a bus. The bus dropped us at a larger bus station where hordes of tourists hurried about looking stressed about having to be somewhere very soon and not being entirely sure how to get there. Amidst this chaotic scene we spied Dave and Brittany who suggested we rent a car together. A British tourist with a large group overheard us, looked flustered, and warned that there weren’t any rental cars left. Undeterred, I asked a man behind a counter if he wouldn’t mind renting us a car for the day. As luck would have it, there was one car left, and it was a convertible. The man gave us a map, circled some places we should go, and we were on our way.

Convertible

Our first taste of Greece, Corfu feels like a cramped, Tijuana-like place for a few miles before breaking out into a sort of run down island paradise that reminds me of the 2^nd Jurassic Park movie for some reason. We head to a beach on the other side of the island recommended by the gentleman who rented us the convertible. Hopefully, it’s far enough away from the port that we won’t run into too many of our sort (tourists). 

On the way, we look for a place to buy water. A gas station with a sign that says MINI MARKET looks promising so we stop. An old woman comes out to pump our gas and is so efficient, she has our gas cap removed before we can tell her we are only interested in water. As we walk into the “Mini Market” we notice there is only car oil for sale. The woman, confused that we are leaving without purchasing anything looks at Kim for an explanation. Kim points to the sign and say “Mini Market” to which the woman responds “No, no mini market.” Welcome to Greece.

As we get closer to the opposite coast, the road narrows, people in Vespas try desperately to kill themselves squeezing between cliffs and large tour busses, and I try not to drive off of or into anything. The coastline is beautiful. There are 3 coves with white sand beaches surrounded by cliffs.

Our Cove

We park at one and a man approaches us about a boat tour of caves along the coast. Apparently, the boat is just now leaving. It seems like the only boat in the cove, and we didn't have any better ideas, so we decide to go for it. It turns out; he always says the boat is just now leaving. 20 minutes later, when the boat is a few people beyond its reasonable capacity, we set off.

Is that how loud boat engines usually are? Is this the top speed? Were those twenty other boats giving tours, moving faster, at a much lower decimal level all hiding when we signed up for this? The tour isn't a total bust; there are caves all around the place, most of the coastline belongs on a post card or a screensaver.

View from the Boat

View from the Boat

We were a little depressed though when we saw a paddle boat floating around with a freaking slide on it that it turns out we could’ve rented for a quarter the price of our tour.  After a quick dip in the ocean, we got a table at a restaurant that overlooked the cove. We see a few things you only see in places like this:
- A man in a captain's hat, with a giant white mustache, smoking a cigar while treading water in the middle of the cove
- A herd of goats being guided down the right lane of the main road, causing a traffic jam
- Did I mention there was a paddle boat with a slide on it we could've rented had we been more savvy tourists?

By the time we finish eating we realize our time on the island is running short. We get back in our awesome convertible and drive the 30 minutes back to the correct side of the island. After a bit more exploring in a decidedly less visually appealing part of the island, we decide to head back to the boat.