We entered Greece having had a great sail from Syracuse in +30knot winds. Cordelia sails at her best when when the winds are +20-25knots due her weight of 18tonnes. There were times when the wind dropped to nothing and we had to motor, but before we knew it we had Corfu on our horizon.
The UK has left the EU so this means we now have to check into each country we visit, just as we would if we were anywhere else in the world. With this in mind we headed for Gouvia to find immigration and customs. We had already paid for our Tepai cruising tax and once we had checked in, which took about 2hours, we were free to move around Greece.
We had never been to Corfu, even as holiday makers so we were excited about exploring the island. Corfu main town was delightful with old and new buildings standing side-by-side. Nothing seemed to be out of place though as the old buildings have been artfully and subtly changed to accommodate either restaurants or shops. We had not had lamb for over 18months so our first mission was to find a taverna that offered lamb. Our meal was absolutely delicious and well worth a return visit if we come back to Corfu at some time.
We spent a couple of days provisioning and exploring Corfu town and then started our exploration of the hundreds of anchorages that the Ionian Islands have to offer. There are over 600 greek islands of which over 220 are inhabited and we are only going to see part of the Ionian area.
We are now in gin-clear water, something we had read about and never imagined that we would sail in. We have been told by other cruisers that in our 2-month stay in Greece we will only scratch the surface of what it has to offer and already we understand why. You only need to move 20mins and you are in a different anchorage with a different view and if you're lucky a different taverna.
In our first couple of weeks we went on to visit the anchorages of Sivota Blue Lagoon, Giaos, Two Rock Bay, Lakka and Preveza before we entered the Lefkas Canal that took us to yet another beautiful part of the Ionian Islands. You can read about this in our next blog.
What we have noticed so far is that Greece is set up for cruisers. Most of the anchorages have pontoons that lead to tavernas and in some cases a few pontoons. You can either leave your dinghy if you are anchored or you can take your boat and moor stern-to to the pontoon. Most places have electric and water, which can be as little as €10 for the night. Very few pontoons charge you for the berth as long as you use their taverna. All places have large rubbish bin areas so that you can dump your rubbish. There are supermarkets or mini-markets that cater specifically for cruisers, some even deliver to your boat. Eating out though is reasonably inexpensive with a meal for 2 with wine that can be had for €30. Launderettes are the norm in every port. We have even found local people offering a laundry service from their home. Greece has fast become a favourite of ours.
