Day 13 of this extraordinary land and sea adventure. Today we are in Corfu, Greece which is just another stunning location on our bucket list of places to see. The weather remains decent but with a little variation – somewhat cloudy, still warm, and a wind that no longer qualified as a breeze. It is still a massive improvement over what my security camera from home shows – my awesome son-in-law shoveling the snow from my walkway and driveway.
This is a much more laid back day. First it is our dear friend Larry’s birthday. As we had no definite plans, making our way off the ship and on to a quick shuttle into town happened somewhat later in the morning. After a modest walkabout, we find a HOHO bus and went on a delightful sightseeing tour.
Meandering through impossibly narrow streets, we see everyday life mixed with ancient ruins. Several inconceivable, yet somehow manageable corners later we arrive at a charming restaurant with a stunning view.
The view below suggests a closer visit. It does present a bit of a challenge in that there is clearly no elevator. Numerous steps, an occasional decline (which naturally turns into an Incline for the return trip) followed by more steps which eventually deliver us to a small church at the end of a pier. As can be seen, the wind is creating rather interesting waves pounding on the rocks. The church itself is very small with a room for service and another for lighting candles.
It also has, in it’s small courtyard, another curiosity. Given it’s appearance a funny suggestion was made as to what it was with no real expectation of reality. Clarification with the local (in the mandatory gift shop) yielded a surprising answer.
I present to you…the TurDuck
Yes it is indeed the result of a turkey and duck union and they are now quite well known throughout the region. (In a more likely universe it is a Muskovy Duck, but we liked his version better.) The unpronounceable Greek word simply means ‘the bird that can’t speak’. This amicable fellow posed but he also had a number of friends.
That long and winding road back up to the restaurant left us somewhat tired and certainly thirsty. Seems like a good excuse to stop for a glass…or two.
Our friendly hostess met our request for some white wine by pulling small bottles out of a nearby refrigerator. Not what we anticipated but nothing has been yet, so why start now? As it turns out, it was quite enjoyable.
Without warning she also put down a very nice plate of snackies. Which changed with each order of wine. What a delightful surprise. And totally delicious!
Fully sated and facilities used, we made our way back to the HOHO bus stop. Another soon arrived and our journey continued. Our friends had been to Corfu before and suggested we make a stop at the old fortress of Corfu.
Several hundred years ago it was where the old town of Corfu was located. A sea moat (Contrafossa) was created to help protect the town and it did so very successfully against 3 Ottoman sieges.
This is a very large fortress overall and again, given the time of its original construction, the city dwellers were quite used to steps. My wife and I were not as…ambitious as our friends although I was a little more so than she was. They went to the very top where the lighthouse is located. I made it about halfway and dear Rose held back somewhat more.
In the yard below the massive cliff (with the lighthouse of top of that!) is the Church of St. Georges. It is an Orthodox church built in 1840 and has an ancient Doric appearance.
Back out we go finding the HOHO once more. Our final stop was more centrally located.
Time for a little shopping but first, more importantly, thirst to be quenched. Oh Look! This seems like a perfect spot given that it seems to be full of local traffic. And apparently another lesson to be learned. With our wine once again came a plate of goodies. Seems to be quite common here in Greece. Ok. No Problem. 🙂
Ok…shopping done we’re off to discover a place for supper befitting Larry’s monumental occasion. 🙂 We must have done ok because he certainly seemed pleased with the choices made.
Larry and I each had (big mistake) ‘spicy donuts’. These were 6 deep-fried cheese balls consisting of 4 different cheeses. I say mistake Only because it turned into just too much. They were totally delectable. The ladies, wisely, each had a Greek Salad. Char had a perfectly done grouper (that almost looked lobster like in presentation). Rose had Lamb Shank surrounded by couscous. Larry and I each had Cuttlefish Ink Risotto topped with excellently prepared Calamari. Marry the entire meal with a fabulous Greek 1879 Boutari Nouassa (being the name, Not the vintage…might have been a strain on the pocketbook for something that old).
Way too much food to even remotely consider dessert, we waddled back out to the street, found a taxi and made it back to the ship. They didn’t even charge us for extra weight. 😉
A sea day tomorrow. M A Y B E I can try to catch up on some writing. But the workout on all the steps I am sure will have an effect.