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Published: April 29th 2013
Friday April 26th, 2013. Kerkira (Corfu), Greece
We awoke to find that we had already docked in Kerkira. D had been here a number of times before and was a little p****d off that we had docked so far away from Kerkira Old Town. We took the free shuttle to the cruise terminal where we caught a local bus to the old town for 1 euro 50. Amazingly the first thing we saw was the locals playing a game of cricket. This is a hangover from the period of British rule between 1815 and 1865. Thereafter Corfu was incorporated into the recently formed Hellenic or Greek State.
Next, we visited the Old Fortress which dominates the east side of the city of Corfu. It is the City's most well known monument and is linked with the most important phases of Corfu's history during the Byzantine and Post-Bizantine periods. It is built on a naturally strong site which, for defensive reasons, was converted from a peninsula to an island by the digging of a canal during the 15th Century when the Venetians ruled the Island. The fort was used as a refuge by the whole of Corfu during times of
St Georges Church
The Old Fort, Kerkiraconflict.
D took great delight at being able to read Greek even though he had no idea what it meant. He commented to M on how surprised he was to find that someone else who he met could also read Greek. It wasn't until later that M confessed that she was talking to the aforesaid's wife and had discovered that he was a lecturer in Ancient Greek at one of the Australian Universities. D promised he hadn't been too patronizing and know it all (only he knows!). We saw the lighthouse and St George's Church (one of the largest on the Island) built by the Brits, the barracks and various other buildings including the Music Department of the University. We then visited Palace of Saints Michael and George a former Royal Palace and now a museum which is located just outside the Old Fort entrance.
We then strolled around the old town and posted our blog for the last two ports of call. Then we continued to the Venetian part of town (a World Heritage Site) where D bought two leather belts (bargain 6 euros). The properties in this area were very striking. We took another photo of
the cricket team before walking the mile or so back to the ship on the way passing the new fortress and a memorial to the 2000 Jews who perished at Birkenau and Aushwitz in 1944.
We sailed away on time passing very close to the coast of Albania (the closest we will probably ever get!). We sat in the sun and watched the coast from Deck 10 (the Observation Deck).
M went to see the 6 p.m. show alone. It was an English girl called Annette Wardell, a diminutive girl from the North East of England, - but boy did she have a BIG voice. She is a soprano and she sang some well known operatic and musical hits. She received a standing ovation from the audience. We went to see the second show together after another very good dinner with pleasant company.
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