Month: September 2023

September 23-26, 2023

The Windows of Berat

Berat, the city of a thousand windows, lies on either side of the Osum River in the interior of Albania.

Technically speaking, according to Bruno, our free walking tour guide (we tipped him at the end of the tour), there are not a thousand windows. In fact, he said that the windows have been described, in the Albanian language, as “one over one” since they look layered.

Apparently, this Albanian description of the windows, when translated to English, sounds a lot like “a thousand”. So there you have it. Some English speaking tourist overheard incorrectly and started the rumor of a thousand windows, and it stuck.

Both sides of the city are full of whitewashed ancient dwellings dating back to the fourth century. And, as noted above, both have lots and lots of windows. It’s quite a sight to see, especially at night.

Historically, one side of the town is Christian and the other is Muslim, split by the Osum River. The two sides of the town are practically mirror images of the other.

The Berat Castle

We visited the Berat Castle that resides on a very high mountain above the city of Berat. It’s still a living Castle, with a few hundred people still residing within the Castle walls.

There were sweeping views from the castle. We could see all of Berat and the surrounding mountains.

Early in the afternoon we started our way down from the Castle towards the town very far below.  It had just started to rain.  The only way down is on a very steep cobblestone road.

The cobblestones, especially the flat, white stones, can be very slippery when wet. We were carefully watching every step and taking things slow.  

The Frenchman

After just a couple of minutes, a very nice car pulled up next to us. A man leaned over and asked, through the opened window, “Want a ride down into town?”

I looked over at the thirty-something year old driver. He was clean cut, and didn’t look like a serial killer, as far as I could tell. He was driving a very nice and newer model Audi. 

“Yes, for sure”, I happily replied.  

Hitching a Ride

From behind me, I heard Steve ask, “Who is that?”  

“I don’t know”, I replied, as I wholeheartedly jumped into the backseat. Steve was close behind me, skootching on in.   I immediately noticed how pristine the car was, and the beautiful, tan leather upholstery.  For some reason that was reassuring. Bad people don’t usually drive such a nice car, right? Unless they are a very successful bad person, I suppose. Anyway…

Turns out our savior is a Frenchman who runs a tour agency for people in Kosovo.  He lives in Kosovo eight months a year and Berat, Albania, the other four (during the tourist season).  

Our Savior

He drove us all the way to our hotel and dropped us off.  He saved us from slipping and sliding down the side of the mountain for thirty minutes, getting into town wet and most likely, quite ornery.  What a nice guy.

He had pointed out the “only shop” in town that sells authentic, handmade souvenirs, so later in the day, when the rain had subsided, we took a walk to check it out. There wasn’t much of interest to us there, but we did notice a cool antique store close by. 

The Antique Store

Old jewelry, crowns, military uniforms, knick knacks, and political propaganda and paraphernalia covered the walls and floors of the store.  The owner had been sitting out front.  After we’d been browsing a few minutes he entered and asked where we were from.  

Pro-American

There aren’t many people from the United States here, and people are always a bit surprised by us.  Albanians have a special affection for the United States, which they credit with ending their country’s Cold War isolation.

George W.

George W was the first US President to visit post-communist Albania in 2007. He was instrumental in helping them join NATO in 2009.

In appreciation of W’s efforts, a tiny Albanian village (Fushe Kruje) even erected a statue in his honor and named their square after him.

The only picture I could find of the statue has George W’s head cut off. I’m not a W fan, so I’m ok with that.

And Now, Back to the Antique Store

The antique store owner seemed genuinely pleased to get to know us, and asked if we’d join him for some Raki. Soon enough we learned his name was Meril.

I’d read quite a few warnings about Raki, mainly to be darn careful because it’s very strong. But I’d also read that it’s a great Albanian tradition, and I didn’t want to be rude.

Raki For Three

Raki is a sort of fruit brandy typically made from grapes, but also made from plums, mulberry, or even walnuts, depending on the region. It’s the Albanian drink of choice every time. 

Raki can be distilled normally or left to age in oak barrels, and its strength varies from 30% or more, sometimes much more. Many Albanians brew their own at home, in fact, the shopowner’s mother made the Raki we were about to imbibe. 

It Looks Harmless

Meril walked to the front of the store and bent down behind his desk. He brought back a clear glass bottle, the size of a wine bottle.  It was almost filled to the top with a clear liquid that looked just like water. 

On the tray with the Raki were three very tiny glass cups that looked exactly like tiny beer mugs. He filled one and handed it to Steve.  Steve’s was filled to the brim.  I looked at Mirel, and, pointing part way up my tiny cup, motioned for him to pour me half.  

Pick a Language

Meril started objecting in Albanian (at least I think he was…he is a French Professor, but also speaks Italian and English, so it could have been any language really).  In any case, he was definitely objecting in one of his four languages, but I’m sure it wasn’t English. 

An Albanian Treat

He immediately started motioning with one hand, starting up at his chin, then dragging his hand methodically down his neck, further down across his chest, finally stopping at his lower belly.  Up and down, up and down, he repeated the motion several times.  He was trying hard to make a point. 

He then stated that Raki is good for digestion (that seems unlikely).   I was afraid that I understood all too well what he was trying to communicate – that feeling you get when you drink high octane alcohol, and that’s exactly what I was trying to avoid. 

Cheers!

Then we clinked glasses and shot our little cups of Raki on down the hatch, so to speak. And it burned…and it burned…and it burned…all the way down.  It was just as Mirel had motioned repeatedly.  From the neck on down to the base of the belly.  You really could feel the Raki doing its thing. 

Even though I could barely catch my breath, and portions of my body were on fire, I’m very glad we had an authentic Raki experience.  Nothing could be more Albanian.

The Past

We were looking at the propaganda posters and magazines dating from the 1940’s through early 1990’s when Meril told us about his family’s past.  His father was the original owner of the Antique Store, but passed away during Covid.  So very sad.  

Propaganda

Meril volunteered that his father had a hard time seeing the propaganda in his own store. In 1946, Albania had just become a communist state under The People’s Socialist Republic of Albania.

Meril’s father, age 35 in 1946, was suddenly imprisoned for ten years.  His “crime” was having a father (Meril’s grandfather) who had been very wealthy. 

It didn’t matter that his father had passed away when he was just a baby, he had to pay for the “capitalist greed” of his father with ten years of his own life. 

Ten years!

One-Party Rule

Albania was ruled by the one-party communist state for forty-five years, 1946 to 1991. The Republic of Albania was proclaimed in spring of 1991 and the country’s first parliamentary elections were held in March of 1992.  

Albania is currently a parliamentary republic.  The country has applied to become a part of the European Union. Before being accepted, they have challenges to overcome in the fairness of the judiciary, media independence, and corruption in politics, although they are making great efforts in these areas. 

Religious freedom and freedom of assembly are generally respected. 

The Albanian people we’ve met are very proud of their country and all the hardships they’ve overcome.  We’ve found them to be very kind and friendly.  

Chance Encounters

When traveling, it’s the unexpected, the things you can’t schedule or plan for, that are often the best and most cherished memories.  

We are so thankful that we met Meril and that he chose to share some of his family stories, as well as his homemade Raki with us. What an unexpected, up-close peek into Albanian history from a first person source.

Cheers!

Wins & Losses

Wins

All Are Welcome: The Albanians are very tolerant of religious differences. The Christians and Muslims have coexisted in harmony in Berat for centuries. In fact, during WWII, the citizens of Berat hid (and saved) over 600 Jews.

Costs: We are happy to report that the prices in Berat are about 25% less expensive than the southern coastal towns.  Good news!  We can eat a meal, with beer, for 700 to 1000 lek, or $7-10 US dollars.

Medieval Towns: Berat reminded me of another town I fell in love with years ago in Spain, namely Toledo.  Both are medieval towns.  They both have hilly, cobblestone, winding alleys clinging to a steep hillside. 

And you never know what you’ll find around the next corner.  Sometimes you even find a cute little dog sticking his face out of a hole in the gate.

The Teddy Bear Factor: Albanians hang teddy bears or dolls on their fence or outside their home to ward off evil spirits. Here’s one huge teddy bear in a window, way up high on the hillside.

Losses

Rain, rain, rain…we got caught in a torrential downpour with thunder and lightning on our second day in Berat.  We had made our way on foot in a light rain to a highly rated, family run, pizza place about 10 minutes from our hotel. 

We’d been served our pizza at our outside table, under an umbrella, when the sky opened up and the deluge began.  Even though we were under cover, the rain was coming at us from all directions.  

The proprietor, pizza-maker extraordinaire, frantically motioned to us to come into the cramped restaurant. where she threw the dough from scratch.  We, along with two other couples, one with a baby, rushed into the small space. 

We were in close quarters, but were all happy to huddle together and finish our pizzas out of the rain and wind. The heat from the pizza oven kept us all warm & cozy.

The TV: We haven’t had any English speaking TV stations in a month, until now. There’s one tv station available at our hotel that plays all guy-movies, all day. They’re in English with Albanian subtitles. It’s been very rainy, so we’ve watched a bit more than we normally would. War movies, car-chase movies, Sylvester Stallone movies, and Star Wars. Not a Rom-Com in sight.

TP: Just wanted to update you, the reader, that we are still unable to flush our tp down the toilet. So there’s that. And we have another wet bathroom here in Berat (see Himarë post). So be it.

Next Up: Tiranë, Albania

September 19-23, 2023

Himarë

I just got done reading a book I’d downloaded on my kindle called Mother Tongue: The Saga of Three Generations of Balkan Women, by Tania Romanov. I often look to read historical fiction or memoirs about the country I’m visiting. It really helps to gain insight into the people and history of a region. 

The story follows three generations of women that lived in Croatia, Italy, Serbia, and what was once Yugoslavia from 1911 through 1992.

They lived with ethnic hatred and fascist dictators that rose to power, such as Mussolini. There were constant fights over land, and the resulting wars. They were forced to lose everything and relocate more than once in their lifetimes.

The Balkans

We’ll be traveling north to some of those regions soon. But for now, we are here in the small seaside village of Himarë (pronounced Himara), Albania, in a small hotel on the sea.

We have a refrigerator in our hotel room, so we stopped at a mini-market to pick up some drinks and fruit. 

The Mini-Mart Incident

The tiny market, only a minute from our hotel, has fresh fruit out front in crates.  We grabbed a few bananas, then went inside and collected several sparkling waters from the cold case. 

We brought our own bag and set it on the counter. Steve was taking care of the payment. I took that opportunity to check the notes app on my phone, to refresh myself on the Albanian word for thank you. 

The Albanian Language 

I still hadn’t come anywhere close to mastering the word thank you in Albanian. It certainly wasn’t just rolling off my tongue. I was still having a hard time even remembering it.

The previous day at lunch I had successfully said thank you in Albanian to our waiter. I was happy for this opportunity to try it out again. 

Faleminderit (Thank You)

“Fal-eh-meen-dey-reet“, I said, directly to the shopkeeper.

I tried to say it as quickly as I could. I wanted it to sound like the one word that it is, rather than several disconnected sounds. It went pretty well. I felt pretty good about it. 

Did I Do Good?

I looked up from my phone, ready to see an understanding smile and appreciation for my efforts. 

Instead, I was greeted by the scowling face of the older, dark haired shopkeeper.  He had stopped everything. His brow was furrowed in deep lines and his head dipped forward and down in my direction. He pressed his dark, bushy eyebrows out somewhat aggressively towards me. I could tell he was almost fuming. He just glared at me.

Before I could gather myself, the shopkeeper puffed up his chest and, quite passionately, said “No, nooooo! I am Greek. Do not use that word here!”  

I was in shock. There was a momentary pause where I just stood in disbelief. Was this really happening?  I had been so proud of myself. 

A Quick Exit

Flustered, I shoved my phone into my fanny pack, turned, and left the store, hoping Steve was following close behind. He was. 

Looking back it was somewhat humorous. We did get our bearings rather quickly, and had a bit of a laugh about the whole thing. So much for ingratiating myself with the locals by using the local language. 

A Google Search

I decided it was time to do some research. There was obviously more going on here than I was aware of. Yep, time to delve a bit into the local history of this region.

A quick google search and I suddenly had a whole new perspective on the area. There was a long and sordid history of ethnic tensions between the Albanians and the Greeks specifically in this region of Himarë. There has been controversy over the lands and between the residents forever, and it continues to this day. 

I’m making no judgements on who is right or wrong here, I’m just trying to get myself a bit more educated.

Who Came First?

Greeks say they are the original Himarjotsa and the majority in the region, and Albanians claim the same. The 2011 census, the last reliable data, has the Albanians as the majority, but the Wikipedia page has the Greeks as the majority. But the Albanians claim that Wikipedia page was written by Greeks. And it goes on and on. 

I’m obviously oversimplifying.  It’s very complex and goes back years and years and years. And it’s still going on. 

The Major Scandal

As recently as a few weeks ago, in mid-August, a scandal with national implications erupted here in Himarë involving the newly elected major. The major was accused of buying votes and was arrested. He is currently being detained.

The Greek authorities were horrified and claimed the major, who is an Albanian citizen with Greek nationality, was only arrested because of his Greek connections. This ultimately led to the mayors of both Athens and Thessaloniki, Greece, joining a protest in the little village of Himarë. 

There are far reaching implications with this entire incident. Albania has applied for European Union status and is under scrutiny for its justice system fairness, so now the Albanian Prime Minister is involved too.

Just as in my book, there is a very long history of ethnic tension here in this quaint, idyllic seaside village.

And yes, I had to jump right into it with both feet with a simple wish to say thank you. 

Seasonal Shutdown

I knew mid-September was getting towards the end of the summer season in this seaside town. Even so, we were surprised to find only 2-3 restaurants still opening up for service on the south end of town, where we are staying. 

The streets are pretty empty. Not much traffic to contend with.

If we walk 10-15 minutes, following the main street up and over a small hillside, we reach the northern part of town. It has a more touristy feel and is more built up. There are also more open restaurants, but still only about half are providing service.  

There are numerous, large beach bars along the beautiful waterfront here. Many have cool mood lighting and sophisticated sound systems (for a D.J.), but only a handful of sedate patrons were in the bar, and all was quiet for our stay.

There’s hundreds of lounge chairs and umbrellas too, but most are folded up for the winter.  Maybe 10-15% are being used this week.

We just barely made it in time before the whole town closes for the winter and we’re so glad we did.

I’m sure our experience here would have been very different in the busy summer season, but we were happy to have a slow & quiet retreat. 

The Beach 

Himarë is located on the Himarë Gulf of the Ionian Sea, surrounded by the treed Llogara mountains. 

At our hotel, Mare Bed & Breakfast, we have our own tiny private beach cove. It’s surrounded by jagged white rocks on either side that open to a perfect little entrance into the clear turquoise water. Our “cove” readily connects to a much larger beach, but it’s easy to pretend it’s all ours. 

Bunkers

Our amazing view from our ocean front third floor hotel room includes an odd sight.  Just to the right of our little beach area are two round, cement and steel, pod-like bunkers. 

They measure maybe 10’ across and appear to be only 4-5’ high. These particular bunkers have a nice view of the Ionian Sea.

The mushroom shaped bunkers are unique to Allbania. They were built during the Cold War, in secrecy, in the 1970s and 1980s, by Albania’s Communist dictator, Enver Hoxha, who ran a paranoia-fueled regime. 

There is a bunker for every 14 square miles all over Albania. Estimates put the total number of Bunkers at up to 750,000!

Getting Around

It’s almost time to head out of Himarë , so it’s time to try to get our ducks in a row, so to speak.  Public transportation is an interesting adventure here in Albania. Similar to Turkey, getting from town to town is best done by the mini-bus system. In Turkey the small vans are called Dolmus. Here, in Albania they’re called Furgons. 

Time to Plan?

It’s a bit of a puzzle to plan transport to the next town.  The first step is to figure out where the furgons gather. There’s not a bus terminal in the towns we’ve been in so far. Instead, the buses gather in an area on the side of the street where they stop to load & unload. The location is typically in the center of the town, but you have to know exactly where.

It’s a bit hit or miss because if you ask around, you often you get conflicting answers. It’s best to ask many sources and get a consensus, then actually walk to the designated spot to vertify the furgons are actually there!  

We’d ask at our hotel, at lunch, in a mini-mart, or approach someone that looks friendly on the street. We’d also pose the question on a travel forum.

The Bus Schedule

Sometimes there is a schedule posted on an A-Board where the furgons have amassed. Unfortunately, the schedule seems to have no discernible connection to reality.  And it’s not like you can check an online bus schedule either – those don’t exist for furgons. 

Each furgon has a large sign posted in the front window listing its destinations. So it’s just a matter of searching around until you find your ride.  The drivers are typically hanging around somewhere in the close vicinity. They’re usually smoking a cigarette, and are happy to help direct you to the right rig. 

The Actual Event

The morning of our departure from Sarandë (to Himarë), the furgon with “Vlore, Himarë ” in the window was the first bus we encountered.  Steve walked to the back by the trunk area and the driver loaded up our backpacks.

I’ve read over and over that the furgons leave for their destination when they’re full, but that hasn’t been our experience.  More typically the driver knows the exact time of departure.

Our driver, in his skin tight, dark purple pants and bright white polo shirt, had gone over to the shady side of the street, opposite the furgon.  He was hanging out, yelling out to the occasional friend that drove by.   I approached him and asked what time the bus leaves.  Thankfully it was in about 20 minutes (9:00 in the morning). 

I’d also read that the furgon can be jam-packed (standing room only), with no air conditioning, and basically miserable. Maybe it’s because we’re in the shoulder-season, but we each had a seat and our furgon had decent air conditioning too.  It’s still in the mid-80’s, so we sure were thankful for the A/C. 

It’s not in my nature to wing-it, so traveling by furgon (or dolmus in Turkey) is a bit out of my comfort zone, but that’s ok (not that I have a choice – haha).  And we’ve been incredibly lucky using both the dolmus system in Turkey, and, so far, the furgon system in Albania.

Let’s hope that continues. 

WINS & LOSSES

Wins

It sure was nice having four lazy, relaxing beach days in Himarë . Half the days we had our beach all to ourselves. Soooo nice. 

Losses

The Wet Room

We were first introduced to a wet bathroom in Thailand years ago. And now we’re getting a refresher here in Himarë. 

Yes, it’s a bathroom with toilet, sink, and shower, all in one 4 foot by 4 foot space!  So when you shower, it’s in one happy, condensed, multi-purpose, wet room! Good space saving idea and mighty functional.

Oh, and a gigantic squeegee almost the size of a push broom is provided so you can help dry things up a bit faster when you’re done showering. No instructions necessary. Just finish up your shower, grab the squeegee, and push the water towards that center drain. There’s nothing to it!

The success to having a wet room involves careful planning. Just make sure all your travel companions have used the bathroom prior to your shower. You’ll need a good 30 minutes plus before re-entering!

Next Up: Berat, Albania

September 16-18, 2023

The Hydrofoil

We arrived in Sarandë, Albania, on a hot, muggy afternoon via a hydrofoil on the Finikas Boat line from Corfu, Greece.  The boat looked pretty ancient.  It was completely enclosed and looked like a submarine that had just surfaced.  A really old, somewhat beat-up submarine.

It had two smoke stacks, both with thick black smoke puffing into the blue sky. Kind of a polluting hazard.  But it did get us to Sarandë, albeit one hour late.  

Little did we know that Sarandë’s time difference is one hour earlier than Corfu-time (our origin), so we actually arrived on time!  Life is funny like that sometimes.

The Hotel Kaonia

Our hotel has a balcony with the classic white plastic table & chairs.  It’s not too elegant, but the view looking straight out to the Adriatic Sea is worth a million dollars.  There’s a lovely, wide, pedestrian only (mostly) promenade along the water, with large palm trees, green wrought iron benches, a non-functioning fountain and a lovely, pebble beach. 

The Sarandë Public Beach

The water is a gorgeous turquoise, and is crisp and cool.  It feels wonderful on these hot and sticky days we’re having now in mid-September. 

Turns out our hotel lends out beach umbrellas, so we are happy as can be.  We have our Turkish towels, multi-purpose woven delights we purchased last fall in Turkey, plenty of sunscreen, our kindles, and can borrow an umbrella. 

Butrint National Archaeological Park

We really enjoy visiting archeological sites so made a point of scheduling The Butrint National Park in our Sarandë itinerary. 

Butrint is the most famous attraction in southern Albania and the UNESCO World Heritage site. It’s also the most visited archaeological park in the country.  

The ruins at Butrint are 2,500 years old. Some are the best-preserved Roman ruins across all of Europe. Butrint was an important stop along a major trade route in the eighth century and was controlled by various empires, including the Romans, Byzantines, Venetians, and Ottomans. 

In order to beat the heat of the day, we made sure to catch an early morning bus to the archeological site.

The ride takes about 40 minutes, and costs 200 lek each, or the equivalent of $2 US dollars each.  

Butrint National Park is 36 square miles and includes wetlands, marshes, reed beds, coastal waters, rocky shorelines, sandy beaches, and Mediterranean forests. Thankfully it’s very shady on most of the trails that wind through the ruins of the city.  

The Roman theatre of Butrint is among the best preserved buildings of the town.

Beach Day

We spent our last day in Sarande lazing around on the beach. We borrowed our colorful, but faded, beach umbrella from the hotel clerk (owner?), who speaks virtually no English. But we are in Albania, so that’s fair.

The Umbrella

I approached the elder clerk, saying “May I please borrow a beach umbrella?” He gave me a blank stare. I probably would have just given up then, but we knew they had beach umbrellas to lend, since we had talked to his adult son the night before (who does speak English).

Again, “Do you have a beach umbrella?”

Another moment of blank staring, then he assertively pointed his finger at me, almost poking me dead in the stomach, and said as a forceful statement, “You want an umbrella.”

“Yes, that would be great!”, I said with much delight, so happy to have made a connection.

If only we could have some small folding chairs… but beggars can’t be choosers, and we were very happy to have an umbrella to protect us from the blazing heat of the day.

A Bed of Pebbles & Rocks

That being said, we were really feeling our age as we sat for three and a half hours on the pebbles and rocks, since there is no sand. I did have the great idea to bring along my inflatable plane pillow, so at least when I laid down to read my head was comfortable, even if the rest of me wasn’t.

But the water was glorious, and I visited it multiple times. And the umbrella kept us in the shade and comfortable. What a great way to spend a lazy day on the Adriatic.

We knew it was time to go when our trusty umbrella made the decision for us by suddenly flying into the air when a gust of wind came up in the early afternoon. Yep, time for lunch.

Wins & Losses

Wins

Sarandë has a cool vibe. It’s a bit of a party-town, at least here at the hotel & restaurant laden promenade along the waterfront. There are several bars playing loud music in the night, and a crazy party ship that cruises the bay every evening with an incredibly loud sound system and wild lights outlining the ship.

There’s much more to Sarandë , I’m sure of that. We barely scratched the surface. We didn’t make it very far from the waterfront area, except to a great little eatery in the downtown area, Pita e Qytetit. Good food and phenomenal prices. Dinner for two and beer under $10. Was nice to see at least a little bit of the real town.

Money

This is one of the very easiest conversions we’ve ever had in a country.  The Lek is 100:1 USD.  It’s so nice to calculate the costs so quickly and easily.

New Friends

We enjoyed meeting Janny and Greg on the local bus as we returned from Butrint. Kindred spirits for sure. They are Australian, around our age, and are in the process of buying a 2-bedroom apartment with a beautiful water view and will live here for 10 months out of the year (they’ll travel in July & August to beat the heat and the tourists).

They obviously love Sarandë and Albania. I can’t wait to see more of the country that won their hearts.

Unique Chip Choices

You’ve got to love it when your chip choices are Oregano or Ketchup flavored. I picked Oregano.

Losses

As I entered the washroom at Butrint Archeological Park, an Albanian attendant there looked at me and said, in a subdued, almost grumbling tone, “Problem….problem”.

Hmmm…not sure what that means, but doesn’t sound great. Turns out the water wasn’t working in the sink – or the toilet, but thankfully I was able to do my business and headed out.

As I left, she looked at me apologetically and again said, “Problem….problem”. I appreciate her effort. That’s more than I can say in Albanian.

Next stop: Himarë, Albania

September 13-16, 2023

Southern Albania

We just finished up our quick, 3-night stay in Corfu Greece. Truthfully, the only reason Corfu ended up on our itinerary was so we could catch a ferry to Saranda, on the Albanian Riviera.

After some research back home, I found that a ferry from the Greek island of Corfu is the best and most direct way to get to the far south of Albania.  So, Corfu it was.

And besides being a convenient gateway into Albania, Corfu just happens to be a UNESCO World Heritage Center, so we knew it had a lot going for it, besides its cute white cats.

Historically, Corfu goes back to the 8th century BC and to the Byzantine period. It’s been subject to various influences and a mix of different peoples. From the 15th century, Corfu was under Venetian rule for some four centuries, then passing to French, British and Greek governments.

Because of it’s long Venetian rule, Corfu is unique in Greece due to the pastel buildings seen everywhere, rather than the whitewashed buildings usually seen in Greece.

Corfu Town

I certainly cannot complain about our detour to this small Greek island. It was certainly a bit more glamorous than Istanbul, in an upscale shopping, beautiful-people kind of way.  It’s not our typical scene, and a bit more pricey than we would have liked, but it was picturesque and had a lovely appeal.  

We stayed in the heart of Corfu Town, in a comfy and cozy apartment in a very central location. 

About Town

Corfu Town is a shoppers paradise, with lots of unique and trendy little shops dotted all over the waterfront part of town. The charming, narrow streets looked more like paths from a ferry tale, with ivy and flowering plants draped everywhere, and old stone buildings with lots of character. 

Here and there we’d see colorful laundry hanging high above us, strung between buildings or across the narrow streets, which just added to the charm of this magical place.

There was a shoemaker, an incredible bakery, unique jewelry shops, coffee shops, and lots and lots of restaurants. There were also lots and lots of tourists, all dressed in cute gauze dresses and sandals, with their tans and cute accessories. 

A Fashion Icon

And there I was in my Columbia quick-dry shorts and one of five tops that I packed for our 53 days.  Not so cute or trendy, but I’m also not lugging a giant suitcase everywhere I go. 😂 Oh, and I do have my new blue hat that is pretty cute, if I do say so myself.

The Old Fortress

We meandered through the very crowded streets over to the Old Fortress, a mammoth fort built on a peninsula that juts out into the Ionian Sea.  

As impressive as the fort looked, when we saw multiple huge tour buses waiting and/or dropping off their passengers, the very long line for tickets, and the masses of people milling about out front, we decided it would be best to return tomorrow morning, nice and early. 

Turns out the port of Corfu is a cruise ship stop, and obviously the Old Fortress was a big draw. 

Next Day, 9 am

After cooking up some breakfast and making some delicious espresso in our very own kitchen, we headed back to the Old Fort and had it practically to ourselves. 

We climbed all the way up to the top of the fortress, and the views we were rewarded with were mesmerizing. Towards the Ionian Sea, the clouds decided to cooperate and made a canvas like no other. In the opposite direction we had a sweeping view of the entirety of Corfu Town.

After a thorough romp around the Fortress, we were more than ready for a swim. Our Airbnb host gave us the goods on a nice swim spot in town where many locals go, so off we went. 

A Dip To Cool Off

The water was beautiful. It’s cool as you get in, but when it’s 83 and muggy out, it feels great. I’m so glad I brought my $5 water shoes that I bought last year in Turkey. They really saved my tired out feet on the pebble shoreline, even if they are dayglow green and a bit cheap looking.  They get the job done. 

Wins and Losses

Wins

Having a kitchen was such a big win! 

Getting a quick taste of Corfu was great fun. Now we have to come back and visit the whole island to see all the beautiful beaches up north that we missed this time. 

Losses

It’s day 16 of absolutely no toilet paper in the toilet. As in, do not flush the tp ever. The Turkish, Greek, and now Albanian sewage systems are not equipped for any paper products.

I will say it’s usually not a big deal, but sometimes it is. Haha…I’ll leave that to your imagination.