Wacky
Martin Joined: October 18th 2006
Logged in: November 26th 2007
Logged in: November 26th 2007
Martin
Travel Blog Posts
Chapter 33 Bed rest and a long walk to the monastery After fetching Maya’s breakfast, Martin headed back out on his own, wishing Maya could also see the places but wanting to capture as much as possible to relay back to her upon his return. He was off on his own adventure today, though he didn’t really want to go to far so Maya would not be left alone for too long. He left the old town from the south and headed towards the airport where he wanted to find the bay they had been unable to reach a few days before. Passing Corfu Town FC ( the equivalent of Kingstonian ground), he glimpsed the single runaway of the airport. A sign at the fenced off runway rather amusingly read “ Danger Aeroplanes above”, which made ... read more
Corfu
Chapter 32 Martin plays doctor on a beautiful day Martin arose at around midday, having already told the cleaner to come back the following day, and went to fetch Maya some cream, bandages and more painkillers. He also managed to pick her up some pop, croissants and a coffee. She had managed to sleep during the night but was still in a lot of pain, though the bruising had come out and it seemed she should be back on her feet within a few days. Having applied the cream and the bandage she told Martin to go and enjoy the sunshine as it seemed today was to be the hottest day so far on their trip. Martin felt a little hesitant to leave her but she insisted she was fine to read her trilogy and saw ... read more
Corfu Town
Chapter 31 Prince Phillip’s beginnings and a vision come true! They were still catching up on sleep and eventually arose at midday, a gentle day was required so they purchased a book on the island and some new socks (The old ones had died and gone to hell), and headed for the harbour area once more. This time they walked right around the bay, though a little overcast, the sea and its islands took on a very serene look but provided a very tranquil walk. Little birds entertained them as they took coffee by the bay before continuing their walk and coming quite unintentionally at the gates of Mon Repos. A wooded peninsula which happened to be the place of birth of Prince Phillip, where he came into the world on a kitchen table. A jogger ... read more
Corfu Town
Chapter 30 Corfu - Time to chill with not a pizza in sight Corfu They finally arrived in Corfu at 7.00am (an hour late) and were awoken just after 6.00am with a gentle knock and a timid voice pronouncing just one word “Corfu”. Maya was absolutely shattered and looked worse for wear when she joined Martin up at the breakfast bar. Cheryl had been telling Martin a little about her life on the island, pretty much selling the island to him yet warning him that out of season, Corfu is very much in a state of hibernation. They walked up onto the deck as Corfu welcomed our two with open arms as they pulled into the harbour surrounded by hills and mountains. Corfu is the largest and principal island of the Ionian island group which consists ... read more
Chapter 29 Ciao Italia - a sleepless Yasas to Corfu At Bari, they caught the bus to the port, having received very friendly advice from a tourist agent. At the port they were told there was a ferry to Corfu at 19.00 that day and they could board around 17.30. They bought their tickets which included a 2 berth cabin with ensuite toilet and shower. They were able to leave their rucksacks at the other terminal and began contemplating how they were going to pass away the next 8 hours. Feeling totally shattered already after the train journey, having to waste another 8 hours was going to be a challenge. Martin had the idea of going to a cinema, but after searching and finding three of them, all closed, they gave up on that idea. Bari ... read more
Messina
Chapter 28 Goodbye Sicily - Sleepless in Bari They arose at midday and caught the 14.00pm (stopping service) to Messina. The journey had been described as a scenic route. The reality was a little different, upon leaving Toarmina and pretty much all the way to Messina, run down suburbs presented the only views. Once in Messina, they wanted to leave as soon as they arrived, like many transit towns, there were several undesirables staring at our two around the station area, this town needed to be transited quickly. In town, there were some nicer area, especially the main square with a fabulous (Swiss like) bell tower. They soon realised they would not be able to get on the train and had to catch the ferry instead, eventually leaving Sicily at 17.30pm. Martin at this point had ... read more
Toarmina
Chapter 27 Paradise island and a little too much vodka The night before meant they didn’t actually get up until 2.00pm. Today was never going to be fruitful. Everything was shut, the medical centre didn’t do vaccines (which they needed to boost) on any other day but Monday. All the travel agencies were shut on Saturday, and even the internet was closed. It was fairly fresh and windy in Toarmina thought the sun was shining so Martin suggested having a lazy day at the beach. There was a beach they hadn’t seen yet, which was desribed as very picturesque and a post card paradise. Another cable car nightmare for Maya, and a short walk of 132 steps brought them onto a truly scenic beach, with no sand but the surrounding little islands made up for it. ... read more
Toarmina
Chapter 26 An amphitheatre, a cable cart and a kind of magic They arose at a reasonable time and headed for the Greek amphitheatre in Toarmina. A huge theatre appeared around the corner, half the size of the one in Syracuse with Mount Etna and the Naxos sea providing the backdrop to the stage; truly stunning. The only negative was that there were no stairs, they had placed wooden seats enforced by metal to complete the semicircle, taking away the genuineness of the place, unlike Syracuse which maintained its original charm. Toarmina’s amphitheatre easily outweighed the other on beauty grounds, Athens shall have to wait for judgement time. The Theatre in Taormina is the second-largest in Sicily after the one in Siracusa. All the Romans did later, in accordance with their well-known ostentatious nature, was enlarge ... read more
Toarmina
Chapter 25 Toarmina - paradise in the hills of Mount Etna They managed to catch the 10.55am train from Syracuse to Toarmina which travelled along some majestic coastline; passing Catania as Mount Etna loomed forever closer. Two hours later they arrived at Toarmina, where no accomodation had been booked yet. First stop, the tourist office, who rather brashly suggested the Youth hostel, but did provide a list and map of the hotels. The bus took an eternity to come and when it did, the driver turned out to be a real nutcase. The 15 minute journey up the hill was terrifying enough, especially as the driver was more concerned with chatting and singing to his passengers. He did however know the size of his bus as he wound his way safely up the hill and dropped ... read more
Syracuse
Chapter 24 A Greek tragedy and the mines of Moria They arose at a reasonable time and headed for the archaeology park about twenty minutes walk from the town (having bought another map and consumed breakfast). A section of the park, right next to the athletics track, was a Greek amphitheatre. Set in well-kept grounds, the theatre lay in front of them. A cosy well-preserved theatre dug from the rock arose from the stage, with steps rising up onto a hill. At the top of the hill, small caves and a natural spring provided the backdrop. An excellent place to visit, though not quite on the scale of the Coliseum, more a second division kind of ground. Around the theatre, the Greeks must have had an incredible view of the Naxos sea. Unfortunately nowadays, the view ... read more
