A much-needed break in Corfu

BANG- BANG-BANG! We weren’t taking fire but the knocking on our door was just as furious. It was our wake up call. In the truckers lounge for breakfast we discovered we were lucky; this messenger had entered at least one room in his fervent conduct of this duty. More likely he was hoping to get a sneaky peak at some of the girls. But any stories were a welcome distraction to what was our worst breakfast yet. It consisted of little more than boiled egg and maybe a coffee but the full truth has been lost in the drunken haze. Or maybe it was the fumes we were all choofing on in the cargo hold waiting to jump off at the port that makes it hard to recall.
Either way it was a short bus ride to our hotel overlooking the Corfu airport. We only had to make it through a briefing from the Corfu Contiki rep before the day was ours to do as we wished. Within a few minutes we were dozing by the pool, at all of 9am, stirring briefly as the group noisely made for the bus on an excursion to Corfu town. We took the chance to shift into the sun and get chatting with London-based Aussie, Brittney, and Claire, from Scotland. Between lunching by the pool and rehydrating the afternoon passed quickly with several dips in the cool, relaxing pool. Not even the return of the group at about 2 could spoil the day. Only some rowdy interlopers brought our stint by the pool to an end. These local teens were out to impress all the sunbaking women with their diving and bombing “skills” but only succeeded in flooding several backpacks and handbags. And pissing off the hotel manager. Thankfully our room was ready for check in by that point. And we had to get ready for our traditional Greek dinner.
It was a shortish bus ride to the Greek dining hall yet we managed to scoff at some road rage and get a laugh from some of the Greek signs. We could only speculate as to what we might buy at China World. The food landed on our tables with impressive speed. Flaky-skinned baked potatoes, salad and tzatsiki (cucumber yogurt) were all well received followed by generous servings of well-seasoned lamb. The only distraction was the traditional Greek dancing. To borrow an often used phrase from Lonely Planet, the evening reached its “zenith” with the fire dance. Around the rim of the dance floor staff squirted some sort of incendiary setting it on fire. The men would then take turns doing their best to impress the ladies with their dancing skills. One of them spun around with a table between his teeth. To cap off the evening everyone joined in the traditional dancing.
Sam (August 23)