ASIANOVERLAND.NET WINTER EUROPEAN DAY 20/193:  CORFU, GREECE TO ALBANIA

Motorbike riding around the island shows that the northeastern edge of Corfu lies off the coast of  Albania, separated by narrow straits of only 3 km. The Ottomans occupied Albania, only 3km away, for over five centuries, but never managed to occupy Corfu, despite numerous attempts. Hence, the main religion in Albania is Islam, whereas Orthodox Greek is the main religion in Corfu and the rest of Greece.

Corfu’s shape resembles a sickle, to which it was compared by the ancients. The concave side, with the city and harbour of Corfu in the centre, lies toward the Albanian coast. Corfu’s length is 64 km long and its greatest width is 32 km. The southeast side of Corfu lies off the coast of Greece.

The earliest reference to Corfu is Mycenaean Greek , c. 1300 BC, and Corfu was the island of Scheria described in Homer's Odyssey.

Apollonius of Rhodes depicts the island in Argonautica as a place visited by the Argonauts. Jason and Medea were married here in 'Medea's Cave'. Apollonius named the island Drepane, Greek for "sickle", from the sickle-shape of the island.

The Tomb of Menecrates (pictured), was built around 600 BC. The tomb and the funerary sculpture of a lion were discovered in 1843 during demolition works by the British army, who were demolishing a Venetian fortress.

The lion is dated to the end of the 7th century BC and is one of the earliest funerary lions ever found. The tomb and the lion were in part of the necropolis of ancient Korkyra. According to an Ancient Greek inscription found on the grave, the tomb was a monument built by the ancient Korkyreans in honour of their ambassador Menecrates.

Kardaki Temple is a Doric temple in Corfu, built around 500 BC, in what is known today as the location Kardaki. The temple at Kardaki is unusual because it has no frieze, the only Greek temple of Doric architecture that does not have a frieze.  The temple at Kardaki is considered an important and mysterious subject of early ancient Greek architecture.

New Year’s Eve preparations involve buying a clean rubbish bin and filling it with copious quantities of alcohol, fruit and a bit of soft drink, for the time-honoured Top Deck sangria. When we’re all sufficiently pickled, it’s time for a National Meal, which mostly comprises Ouzo, retsina, wine, chicken, and a full lamb cooked on the spit.

Our 1980 Trip Book reads:

“DAY 20, 31.12.80 CORFU (DAY 3) NEW YEARS EVE!!!!

“WELL, THERE YOU GO!” said GARY

7.00pm came around eventually after a day of scrambling and daredevil motorbike riding on Korfu. Before we arrived at the “Brothers Restaurant”, 60 + crammed on GOLLY and sipped Sangria. Our National Meal of Wine served with hor’s dóuvres and chicken was exciting when our host “Spiros the son of Zorba” picked up the table with his teeth and used it as a toothpick.

On the stroke of midnight Flex scored well with the native mosquitoes and the next big question is   “Was this a set up?”

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

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