New Games

The holiday started at 04:30 on Monday morning. It had been a restless night, probably caused by the desire not to sleep through. The routine had been mapped out the day before and for once everything went to plan, which meant that at 05:00 we were in the car heading for East Midlands Airport. By 06:30 I had dropped Dragon and Dragonette, and the luggage off, parked the car and returned to the Check-in Hall. We were now, at the front of the queue, ready for when the check-in desk opened at 07:30. So far, so good, the plan was working well. We had a brief chat with a Thom. Cook chap who promptly reserved three seats on the plane together for us, which had been our main reason for arriving early. They started bang on time and by 08:00 we were at Burger King in Departures having our breakfast. It struck us walking through that some people must be total pissheads as they were drinking despite the early hour.

Breakfast over and it was time to wait for the flight. A browse round some of the shops and a few visits to the ‘anti-social twat' area, and we were pleased to be boarding the plane at about 10:00. Push back was on time at 10:30 and by now I had started chatting to the guy on the other side of the aisle who told me they were caravanners and it was the first time they had holidayed by plane.. His wife in particular was a little nervous of flying. I tried to reassure them the best I could, and didn't mention ‘The Diving Board' the popular name among air anoraks and pilots for the runway at Corfu Airport. Take off was uneventful enough and the flight passed without incident. The only thing that bothered me was that we didn't get a meal on board. Now that might have something to do with me cancelling the in-flight meal, to save money, when I booked. But I cancelled it last year and the year before but we still got them. Maybe Thom. Cook are feeling the pinch.

It was about 13:30 British time when we landed. The couple next to me, with their two sons and the girlfriend of one of them may have been put off flying for life. I have had a worse landing, a Ryanair flight to Dublin which I swear was shot down, but this was by far the worst landing I had experienced other than that. The final descent was made in a series of drops, some seemed positively violent, until eventually the plane seemed to be slammed down on to the tarmac. It is amazing the punishment the Airbus A320 can take. I have seen vids on Youtube of crosswind landings and I wonder if that was the cause as when we got off the plane although it was hot, it was also very windy.

The crew seemed determined to get us off the plane quickly which I understood the reason for as it actually took off having loaded it's passengers and luggage, just as we were leaving the airport on our coach.. Our coach wasn't at the airport by the time we had cleared customs so this gave us plenty of time to replenish the body's supply of nicotine before the transfer. Fortunately everybody on our coach was destined for the same resort, Sidari, in the north west of the island, which meant the transfer was as quick as it could be. We were the third party to leave the coach, and very soon were shown to our accomodation, Ektor Apartments..We were expecting an apartment but were pleased to find we had a bungalow with two bedrooms. Very impressed initially is the only way to describe how we felt..

Having put our watches forward the requisite two hours, and having sorted the initial requirements like making sure we had tea, coffee, sugar and bottled water in and the mozzie killers plugged in, it was time to head off for our tea. We've stayed in Sidari on both our previous visits to Greece so we knew that the only place we were going to eat on our first day was Face Taverna. This entailed about a forty minute stroll from our accomodation from our side of the resort to the other. On the way we had to pass Dimitri and Manos Car Hire. As we were passing here, a familiar face was sat behind the desk, just as we remembered from our last two visits. A look of recognition showed on his face as we approached and it was obvious he remembered us from when we have hired cars in the past. A nice chat ensued followed by him cashing the first of our travellers cheques and we went on our way to Face.

Face is our favourite eating place in Sidari. In fact it was the first place we went in on our first visit eight years ago. The day we arrived that year they had the worst rain they had had for years, with thunderstorms knocking out the power. As Face is the closest place to the apartments we stayed in that time, we spent much of our first day there. But that was eight years ago. Dragon also developed a passion for the apple pie they serve and when we visited four years ago it was the first thing she asked for.

Panos also recognised us as soon as he saw us, and seemed genuinely pleased to see us. The lovely Barbara came in while we sitting at the bar enjoying our first drink, Dragon punched me on the arm and seemed to take umbrage when I declared that if I was single I‘d probably make a play for her. A table was grabbed and we ordered. Spag Bol for Dragonette, Moussaka for Dragon and yours truly went for Lamb Kleftiko..

Once dinner was finished we decided to take a steady stroll back and then had an early night as we were all knackered from the travelling.

We decided last night that today was going to be a quiet, relaxing day. After rising about 08:00 the first hour or so was sat on the verandah drinking cups of tea , smoking and chatting.. The sun was out, the wind had dropped and even at this early hour it was hot. During our previous visits to Corfu we had looked at the trip to Albania but never gone, so we decided to check out the local tour companies and get the low down on it and check the prices.

It was now that we discovered the only problem with our gaff. Personal needs were required and the shower although at waist height, uncharacteristically for Greece had a mount for the shower head above head height. When placed on the mount though, the head just flopped towards the wall and no amount of persuasion could make it do otherwise. Also if by-products of the digestive system were the size of a battleship, much flushing was needed to sink it.

As one particular tour company is recommended by people on a particular website I go on and after looking at many who had a price showing of sixteen euros we called in ValuePlus who advertised twenty euros. A bit daft you might think but no, it wasn't. This was the only one that said there was extra to pay, which you can not get out of, and said that a trip in Albania, which is the point of us wanting to go, was extra. Honesty goes a long way where we are concerned. Honesty was what we got when we sat down to talk to her and she convinced us that the trip was a must. As we didn't have enough cash or travellers cheques on us we said we would be back to book it.

Another call to a supermarket meant that we could buy something for sandwiches after which we went back to Ektor to continue relaxing. Sandwiches were eaten and at the request of Dragonette, we headed for the pool. Dragon, not being a keen swimmer or lover of water generally, settled down with her cross-stitch while Dragonette and myself went to check the temperature of the water. Dragonette found out very quickly when she had a helping hand in to the pool.. I quickly followed and a few minutes later swimming towards the deep end with my head down doing my best impression of Michael Phelps, I found out the hard way that the pool edge, not being painted, was difficult to see. I swam straight into it hitting hard just above the bridge of my nose.

Dragon didn't see me hit, but soon guessed something was wrong when I stayed hanging on the edge for a while. Climbing out she inspected the damage and immediately rushed back to the room for our first aid kit. We always carry one but this is the first time it has been used. I had taken a chunk of skin off the top of my nose which was bleeding well. Dragon patched me up with a plaster and I settled down on a sunbed to read. Medicine was duly fetched and although probably not recommended by doctors, the large Mythos went some way to making me feel better.

A short while later we went back to the room and wile Dragonette had a siesta, Dragon and I sat once again on the verandah and chatted away. Once Dragonette awoke, we decided to go and book the trip to Albania., so heading back to ValuePlus, we found that they too were having a siesta. And were closed till 17:30. A quick conflab ensued which resulted in us heading for the beach and we would return when they opened. The beach is quite long when approached from this end and we strolled all the way to where a small river runs in to the sea. This river can be waded through or can be crossed by way of what is called by most the ‘Smelly Bridge'. We walked up the side of the river to get on the road at the bridge and headed back the way we had come to go and book our trip. As it was so hot we felt the need for liquid refreshment and after a nice cold Guinness we continued on our way.

Back at ValuePlus it was now staffed by a refrigeration engineer from Essex who proved to be very chatty. He just confirmed that we were aware of the extras to pay, another sign of how good this firm is, and the booking process was duly completed. Their exchange rate was also the best we have seen so far at 1.28, so a cheque was cashed and the cost of the trip handed over. All we need to pay now is the port tax for Albania and the cost for the trip to the archaeological site at Butrint. So on Thursday we need to be up early for an 08:00pick up.

On to Face where a couple of leisurely hours were spent over dinner, Dragonette ordering a burger, Dragon had Beef Sofrito while I opted for grilled Swordfish. Dragonette and Dragon eventually shared a Fondue and then when we were all tired we walked back to Ektor and called it a night.

Wednesday started with Dragon and myself getting up about 08:00. Dragonette managed to slumber on till 09:00. By which time we had had toast and Kumquat marmalade, plus of course the obligatory couple of cups of tea. By 09:00 it was so hot we just couldn't be arsed doing anything so while Dragonette watched a DVD on my lappy we just sat there reading and watching the local wildlife. Dragon had thrown some surplus bread down for the birds as in Greece it is considered important that bread isn't wasted. If it isn't eaten by humans then it should be given to the animals. It wasn't the birds that came for the bread but ants. By watching carefully we could se the ants biting off large pieces (by comparison to their size) and carrying it back to their nest. This seemed to come to a halt though when a lizard chanced upon their orderly column and started eating them. Life's a bitch as they say.

We eventually tired of doing nothing and went back to ValuePlus to cash a couple of cheques to make sure we had enough cash for the Albania trip. Enquiring about the local buses he got us a local bus timetable which showed a bus due to leave for Corfu Town at 13:45. However what we didn't know is if the bus went via Roda which is where we decided to go. Roda is the next resort along the coast from Sidari heading east.. We made our way to the bus stop where we found a local timetable showing the same time, and also a bus to Kassiopi, the next resort after Roda due to depart at 14:30. The time now was 13:30. By 14:00 we decided we had had enough of sitting in the blazing sun and decided to head back to Ektor to see what they had on the menu for lunch. However we were thirsty by now and stopped on the way for a nice cold pint of Guinness.

Back at Ektor I ordered a burger for Dragonette and bacon cheeseburgers for myself and Dragon along with a large plate of chips for us to share. Drinks too were ordered, two cokes and a small Mythos. Much to my surprise he said they didn't have any small Mythos so I declared I'd better have a big one then.

Once lunch was finished we headed back to the room, where on arrival Dragonette found a small lizard in front of our door. Dragon managed to catch it and the photo's were duly taken. Nothing much was done in the afternoon apart from me going to fetch some water and fags after which we once again went to the pool.

Our plan for the evening had been to go to Face for dinner fairly late on so that we could watch the England Czech Republic friendly there and then to get a Joe Baxi back after the match. However Dragonette had made a friend in the pool and asked if we could stay there for dinner. Having looked at the menu for lunch neither myself or Dragon fancied that so we compromised and said we would go for dinner to a Taverna recommended by the guy at ValuePlus. Bavias Taverna is situated just one hundred yards or so from Ektor so at 18:00 we headed back to our room to get ready. 19:00 saw us heading for Bavias and after perusing the menu we decided it did look okay.

We were their first customers of the night and once seated we further perused the menu before ordering a small margarita pizza for Dragonette, Gyros (doner kebab) for Dragon and Kondosouvlia, spit roasted pork served with onions, chips and pita bread for me. It showed that it pays to listen to those with local experience as the food was fantastic. Mine was washed down with a couple of large Amstels while Dragon sampled a local beer, Royal Ionian, which is brewed just up the road from Sidari at a place called Arilas. Fairly sweet as lagers go it was a very nice drink.

We finally left Bavias at 21:00 and after picking up yet more water, this time small bottles to carry with us tomorrow, we made our way back to the bar at Ektor in good time for the kick off. Feeling rather stuffed from the food and Amstel my choice of poison was Jack Daniels and coke while Dragon had a Greek Kiss (Ouzo, Sprite and Grenadine) and Dragonette had a non-alcoholic cocktail.

With ten minutes left of the match and England trailing 2-1 we left and headed back to the room to have a not too late night in view of our earlyish start in the morning.

Today we had to be up for an 08:00 pick-up. Luckily it was only five minutes walk away, but to be safe we set an alarm for 07:00. Albania was the one thing we regretted not doing last time we came to Corfu so we were determined that this time we would. It is apparently still the poorest country in Europe, a public sector worker earns about 250 euros per month. We were expecting to see much deprivation but it didn't seem that way.

Our coach arrived shortly after eight and whisked us off to the port at Corfu town. The coach had picked up others going on other ‘Ionian Cruises' trips and after dropping them off at their boats continued round to the international departures section of the port. We were quickly through passport control and on to our boat which left about 09:30. The trip over took one and a half hours and as soon as we arrived at the port of Saranda we were shepherded on to coaches and driven a short way to the Palma Restaurant. Here those that had opted not to join the trip were free to do as they pleased. Lunch was included but the drinks were not so a visit to the money exchange, a chap sat at a table, enabled us to change 30 euros for 3300 leke.. It would be rude not to sample Albanian beer while in Albania so while Dragon had a coke and Dragonette an ice cream, I availed myself of half a litre of Kona. I was very surprised to find that it was most agreeable.

We jumped back on the coach after half an hour and began the journey to Butrint. Butrint is an archaeological site that has benn designated by UNESCO a world heritage site. We have been told that only 30% of the site has been uncovered but even so it is still a big place. But more of that later as the journey there proved to be very interesting in itself. Once clear of Saranda the road headed off towards a place called Ksamil. Here it showed how tolerant the country is as a church and a mosque have been built side by side. In fact our tour guide told us that many places of worship are shared by all faiths. Before reaching Ksamil however, the road wound it's way along a ridge overlooking Lake Butrint. The lake is state owned and various parts have been rented out by the Government to Mussel farmers. The road though proved to be not wide enough for a coach and car to pass comfortably, so when we met another coach going in the opposite direction, it got interesting.. By the time the two buses had passed each other queues of traffic had built up in both directions and a local trucker took it upon himself to guide the oncoming cars past our coach. The rest of the journey was a little less uneventful and our tour of Butrint began. Here I will let pictures do the talking.

We travelled back to the restaurant where a buffet lunch was awaiting us, which proved to be very tasty.. More Kona beer was drunk and as the temperature at Butrint had been close to forty degrees was very welcome. We decided to have a walk on the promenade to see if we could spend our remaining leke as although we could have changed it back we preferred the idea of contributing to the local economy in some small way. A couple of mugs were purchased and we made our way back to the coach for our return trip.

Back on Corfu, having arrived back in Sidari we opted for the barbecue at Ektor which of course meant that we didn't have to walk too far once we'd eaten. A bottle of red was bought and after our food we returned to the room and sat for an hour or so on the verandah finally calling it a day about midnight.

Once again we rose about 08:00. The early morning cuppa was taken on the verandah and we realised that either we have become complacent, or the mozzies have found a way round our defences.. Before leaving Britain we spent a small fortune on products designed to, or by accident found to, deter or kill the little b******s.. This even included Bounce tumble drier sheets which are apparently used by Canadian postmen to great effect. Although we realized later it was the mornings when they were striking and our efforts had been largely directed in the evenings.

10:00 saw Dragonette and myself heading off on foot to pick up our hired Jimny. The walk to the Canal D‘Amour are took the usual 30 minutes, the drive back took five., but we returned with a gleaming white open topper that was to be ours for the next seven days. A debate followed over another cup of tea and the decision was made to head off to Corfu Town. This meant travelling via the main north /south route on the island which takes us over Trumpet Pass. It is reputed that when they were building this road the start and end of meal breaks was signalled by the foreman blowing a tune on his trumpet, however the fact that a village called Troumpeta on the route leads me to doubt it. The route goes round the lower part of one of the mountains and exposes Dragon to be a sometimes nervous passenger. The style of driving employed by the locals, and the presence of many Italians on the island doesn't help her at all.

Our arrival at Corfu Town seems to have coincided with the busiest part of the day and parking looked like it was going to be a problem. We joined a queue for a car park near the port area and though fifth in the queue we were fairly quickly directed to a spot. Three euros foe a full day's parking seemed reasonable enough..

As soon as we left the car we realised that we hadn't changed any money so our first task was to find a bank. We found the National Bank of Greece but the queue inside was humungous so we went to the Emporiki bank. After about ten minutes of waiting here we gave it up as a bad job and Dragon used the cash machine outside.

Our next port of call was for lunch as none of us had eaten breakfast. We found a diner with some shaded tables and we realised we had eaten at this place eight years ago on our very first visit to the island. The menu showed the vast difference between the prices in the capital and the resorts., but club sandwiches and a burger with fries were ordered along with two milk shakes and an iced coffee. Once we'd finished here it was an expedition to check out some of the shops. We finished off at a bar near the car park before driving to Kanoni. This is an area of high ground which has a couple of hotels one of which has a vast terrace area overlooking the runway at the airport. For those interested in aircraft this is a fantastic spot for watching landings and take offs.. At the foot of the cliff that this terrace sits on is Pontikinisi. Here it is possible to get a boat to Mouse Island which we didn't bother with having done it before. There is also a concrete wall separating the lagoon from the sea and again it is a very good spot for those interested in planes. The big problem here is that quads and motorbikes are ridden over here despite it being only just wider than a quad.

In Britain it would have barriers and signs to prevent it. It would also have a barrier to stop you from falling off the edge.

Once we'd finished looking round here we decided to make our way back to Sidari. We stopped off for a drink at a taverna on the way up the hill to Trumpet Pass. They say they have the best view in Corfu and I have to agree it does take some beating. From here you can see the cruise ships in Corfu port which must be at least ten miles away. From here it was on to Sunset Beach at Avliotes where we have seen some quite stunning sunsets in the past. Tonight's though proved to be a bit disappointing. Once the sun had gone down we took the short drive back to Face where Dragonette had pizza, Dragon had Moussaka and I had the home made beef burgers stuffed with bacon and Gouda cheese. We managed to get Panos to put the cricket on and spent the rest of the evening relaxing. We left here about 23:45 and made our way back to Ektor where a friend Dragonette had made was awaiting her midnight pick-up for the airport. Again we got the tv changed to the cricket just in time to see England win. After that it was back to the room and bed.

Today we had plans that came to nought. We'd seen a sign for a festival at Agrafi so we decided to visit Roda before heading up there. Roda was quiet and by the time we had walked the length of the front , had a snack, and back it was still too early for the festival. We decided to carry on down the coast road to Kassiopi. Here it was difficult to park the car. We had been surprised on the way in to see a sign proclaiming ‘Train Station'. As we know there are no trains on Corfu we were a little bemused by it but all became very clear shortly afterwards. Driving towards the sea front we gave way to a road train, the sort seen in many amusement parks and seaside resorts in the UK. There were no parking spaces available near the sea so we backtracked and parked in a car park some way away. This car park was near the train station though so we decided to save our legs and take the train. A bonus was that the car park was free and so was the train ride. Match that then Blackpool !

Here I started having problems with my digital camera. This was in no short measure due to it being dropped on to concrete twice already, so today didn't see many photos.

We left Kassiopi after stopping for a drink and headed off to find the festival. We found the village with no problems and sure enough they had the bunting out but alas there were no other signs of a festival. Driving back to Sidari we passed by our site just to see where the road took us and after climbing a rather large hill with many twists and turns we found the village of Kavadades. A very quaint place with nowhere to park with the roads being so narrow. We carried on and parked eventually at Arilas Beach. Going for a stroll we bumped in to the caravanners I was talking to on the plane.. This is the first time they have been on this sort of holiday and already the were talking about booking for next year. I think they regretted only booking for one week.

After our chat we decided to head back to Sidari and spend a bit of time by the pool for Dragonette. The pool is the best way to cool down as everybody knows but even more so when you find out the temperature has reached thirty nine degrees centigrade, which equates to one hundred and two fahrenheit. It was the hottest day so far. The prediction is for Sunday to be even hotter. Dragonette was messing about as kids do and after throwing a ball at me from the edge of the pool ran off to avoid the backlash. Of course her feet were wet and in no time at all she was on her back having banged her head on the floor. This cut short our stay at the pool and we went back to the room so she could sort herself out.

About 19:00 we headed off to Face for dinner. A drink was taken first, of course, and then we dined. Dragonette ordered a Hamburger, Dragon had Gyros while I ordered the Face Mixed Grill. And very nice it was too. Dinner over we headed back to Ektor and went in the bar for a couple of drinkipoos and Dragon decided to buy a ticket for the bingo. Then she managed to share the prize for a full house with another punter, only fifteen euros each but better than a kick in the teeth.

Shortly after midnight we made our way back to the room for a cuppa and bed.

There are two waterparks on the island of Corfu. Aqualand is the oldest and biggest, Hydropolis is the one we chose to go to. I don't remember seeing this last time we were here so I suspect it is less than four years old. We chose Hydropolis mainly because it is fairly close to Sidari..What we didn't know was that it didn't open till 11:30 so purely by accident our arrival time of 11:50 was perfect.

We were early enough to find a parasol for Dragon to cower under while I went off to sample the first of the slides. My first choice left me feeling like I understood what it is like when we swill spiders down the bath plughole. A short drop leads to a wall of death type construction round which the slider travels before gravity deposits you through the hole in the bottom. Next Dragonette and myself chose what looked to be the tamest of the slides . Two slides side by side with a couple of dips o the way down. The instructions at the park are that you must always slide on your back with your hands behind your head. Not only do they consider this to be the safest way, it turns out that it is also the fastest way to descend and on this slide this meant that when I hit the second of the drops I did actually take off momentarily before the final stretch prior to splashdown..

All the other slides were duly tried out by myself though Dragonette bottled it and didn't go on any more. Much of the next four hours or so were spent just lounging in the sun which once again was very hot., broken only by the occasional game of catch in the pool and in my case the occasional trips back to the slides. Only one of the slides managed to make me utter an expletive, this being the fully enclosed spiral slide. As soon as you launch yourself it goes into a near vertical drop before hitting the first of three spirals. This slide did disorientate to such an extent that it felt at one stage as if you were going uphill.

Dragon isn't a great water lover so to relieve her boredom we left about 16:00 and with no firm plans headed back to the car. Once in the car though, Dragonette complained of a headache and said she felt sick, sure signs of a touch of sunstroke so we returned to Ektor to sort her out, and to apply lots of after sun to parts exposed to the sun Plenty of fluids were the order of the day and we decided she should have an early night. We needed to restock on bottled water and pick up one or two other items so off we sloped, in the car of course because six bottles of water is heavy, to the local supermarket. This being Sunday and the local supermarket being just that and not a touristy type shop, was closed. We knew where we would get our supplies from and drove to the supermarket next to Face. Luckily Dragonette had come with us rather than stay at the room so we decided to have an early dinner at Face and then retire back to Ektor to watch a film on the lappy. Bottles of the local beer that Dragon tried the other night were bought and we settled down on the verandah to watch Messrs Clooney, Pitt, Damon and Co outwit Al Pacino in Oceans Thirteen. Not the best film ever made but good enough to sit and watch on holiday.

Dragonette went off to bed and Dragon and myself enjoyed a nice cup of tea before retiring ourselves.

We had chosen today to travel to the far south of the island to find Lake Korrison, the only nature reserve on the island. It is, by Corfu standards, a long journey and several times the roads did not seem to correlate too accurately with those marked on the map. Many would suggest that we got lost, but we prefer to say we were exploring in the great British tradition. I had studied the map at great length last night and this morning and selected a route avoiding the ‘yellow roads' as Dragon refers to them. The legend on the map says that the yellow roads are dirt racks, but reality isn't quite that bad in most cases. While they are narrow with many twists and turns I think most of them do have some tarmac on them.

Having left the main road just north of Corfu Town we embarked on our adventure and about half an hour later we found ourselves back on the outskirts of the town, although to give us some credit we were on the southern side of the town. Re-negotiating our route we headed once more off the beaten track. This time we seemed to do a bit better and eventually reached our destination after about two and a half hours. As the island, I believe, is about sixty to seventy miles long, north to south, I'll leave you to work out our average speed. I really thought when we arrived that we should have planted a flag in the tradition of explorers throughout history.

We parked the car along a true dirt track, but this one was flat so Dragon didn't mind it, between the lake and the sea and headed off towards a beach bar intent on buying a snack for lunch but as we approached it we could see that they only served drinks. The guide book says that Lake Korrison is home to much wildlife but with the weather so hot I think they must all have been sheltering. The place seems more a home to those who are intent on doing nothing but sitting on the sand, and at risk of offending those who do it, I fail to see the attraction of spending all day sitting on the sand. The beach though was the best we have ever seen on the island.

Just before hitting the dirt track, we had noticed a couple of tavernas so we drove back to one to have some lunch. The pace of life is shown here as ten minutes after sitting down we did eventually have the proprietor come to see us. She seemed surprised that all we wanted was a snack and as she doesn't do sandwiches, toasties and the like we eventually ordered three plates of chips, two cokes and a Mythos. The chips took a long time to come but were worth the wait. They were some of the best chips we had ever tasted. We spent an hour and a half here just for one drink and a plate of chips. Perfect.

While it turned out that there was nothing to see when we got to Lake Korrison, what we had seen was the numerous villages on the way down there. This to us is what a foreign holiday should be about, seeing new places and experiencing the culture of those places. If we wanted to get a tan we could save loads of money and go to our local tanning salon.

Once we finished our lunch we were back in the car and heading back to Corfu Town. This time we travelled the easy way along the coast road up the east side of the island. Fortunately we able to miss Kavos, the place seen on TV as the louts destination. The road runs up through the resorts to the south of Corfu Town and the last part of the journey was done following a police bus. This was a coach all dressed up in riot gear and we wondered about the necessity of it on the island, but then we thought about the louts in Kavos.

We made our way to Kanoni for a drink and for Dragon to play with the new toy I bought her off eBay, a camcorder, and she had great fun filming the planes landing and taking off from the airport. It will be interesting to see the results.

Back in to Corfu Town we parked near the port area and had a wander through the back streets before stopping for yet another drink right by the side of the cricket ground. It would have been great to sit there and watch a cricket match but unfortunately the team were away playing a game on another island, and as they play on Mondays only, we won't get another chance. We had thought about eating in Corfu Town but instead had a wander through the shops before heading back to the car and driving back to Sidari for a late dinner.

The drive back demonstrated that there are few categories of driver on Corfu. There are the tourists who don't know where they are going, there are the old Greeks in their banged up, overloaded pick-ups , there are those like me that get frustrated by the above mentioned categories and then there are the young Greeks who seem to think that flat out is the only way to travel. As mentioned before Dragon is a nervous passenger on Corfu since on our last visit we were shunted in the back by one of those young Greeks, so the journey for her over Trumpet Pass was a quiet one. I can think of one person who might say that is a bonus for me.

Back at Ektor we were discussing where to go for dinner and decided as we were all fairly tired and as it was late we would go back to Bavias. A short walk got us there and food was ordered. Pizza for Dragonette, Beef Stamna for Dragon, although the Feta cheese was left on one side, and a mix grill for me which was sensational. By the time our food arrived it was after 22:00 so once we'd eaten we went straight back to the room and it wasn't long before we were all asleep.

It seems I can't get rising early out of my system. Today I was up at 07:15. We decided last night that today we would go to Paleokastritsa on the west coast, and Achilleon Palace not too far from Corfu Town.

The journey to Paleo is pretty straightforward if you go via Trumpet Pass. However I don't always do straightforward and Dragon was cursing me when she realised the route I was taking. There were some very twisty roads that climbed high in to the mountains on that side of the island, with very steep drops often on her side of the car. The beauty of this route though is when you get certain photo opportunities.

The final twenty minutes of the route has you descending the mountain via a series of hairpin bends after passing through a village whose only road through is wide enough for only one car. It is so narrow that traffic flow through the village is controlled bt a set of traffic lights at each end. A sign on the lights proclaims that the waiting time is a maximum of six minutes. Hopefully if the camcorder footage works out it will be available on you tube eventually. I will let you know. The best thing about hiring a car is that these are the sights you don't see if you rely on coach trips.

Paleo is probably my favourite part of the island but I wouldn't stay there as it is inhabited through the summer mostly by Germans. There are three bays to Paleo each of which has it's own charm. Climbing a hill on the far side leads to a monastery which religious or not is well worth a visit. We parked at the bottom and walked up the hill, traffic flow again being controlled by lights. Once we reached the top we made straight for the bar for light refreshments.

While there we noticed the doors to the monastery being closed and wandering over I saw a sign telling us in five languages that the monastery was closed to the people between 13:00 and 15:00. We walked back down the hill and headed to a taverna which we last visited eight years ago for lunch which proved to be a somewhat leisurely affair. About 14:30 we headed once more for the monastery. Dragonette wanted to buy something she had seen at a shop at the foot of the hill so while Dragon and Dragonette went off for that I returned to the car fully expecting them to join me once they had done. I waited some considerable time even driving round in circles till I gave up and drove up the hill to the monastery. They were there at the top waiting for me. Women !

We have been to the monastery before but like I said it is worth a visit and once they re-opened we entered to have a wander round. I don't remember seeing it before but in the museum there is an icon, painted in the seventeenth century, of St George slaying the dragon.

Once we'd finished there it was back to the car and we made our way to the Achilleon Palace. This palace was built in the eighteenth century as a tribute to Achilles. It has changed hands many times since including being used as a military hospital for Greek and Serb troops during the first world war and as the headquarters of the German/Italian occupying forces top brass during the second world war. Luckily it survived that period and is now owned by the Hellenic Trust, or something like that. Achilles himself occupies a position commanding one of the best views of Corfu Town.

Although only a few rooms on the ground floor are open to the public it is well worth a visit should any of you fine readers ever visit Corfu.

When we had finished there we made for a café once more to enjoy a quiet drink before making our way back to Sidari. Dinner once again was taken at Face, Dragonette choosing lasagne, Dragon had the moussaka again and I opted for the Sofrito. Tonight we also indulged in dessert with banana splits for the ladies and a Chicago for me, a rather delicious and very large chocolate ice cream with lashings of chocolate sauce.

When Coventry went two nil down to Newcastle we decided enough was enough and after picking up cigarettes for Dragon at the supermarket next door we returned to Ektor to retire for the night.

It's amazing how tired doing nothing can make you. Today was just like that.

We left Ektor this morning and took a short drive to the Canal D'Amour area. A short walk on the cliffs followed after which Dragonette and myself took a pedalo out for an hour. It was very relaxing having pedalled so far out just to put the feet up and drift. After this we joined Dragon on the beach on sunbeds and read. We then retired to a taverna at the top of the cliff for lunch which wasn't rushed. Another hour or so on the beach and we returned to Ektor where after a nice cup of PG we spent a couple of hours by the pool. I said earlier that this is not what we go on holiday to do but having driven so much over the last few days it made a nice change for me.

We returned to the room to give us a chance to tidy up for dinner and about 19:30 we drove to a taverna that is highly recommended on the Greek forums I go on. The Orchard is a little out of the way and as the car goes back tomorrow, tonight was our last real chance.

The recommendations were sound. The food was superb, Dragonette opting for chicken with barbecue sauce, Dragon chose Pastistado and I went for the Kokkinisto. Dragonette was the only one to have a dessert choosing a special of the house, Quince crumble, the fruit having been grown on their own trees.

Driving back to Ektor I once again noticed how most people when they come away to somewhere like here pack everything they need apart from that essential piece of kit, their brain. Walking out of shops without looking, walking down the middle of the road, it just seems they don't think at all. Muppets !

We were back very early tonight Dragonette being tired went to bed and Dragon followed not long after with the start of a migraine. Yours truly settled down with a bottle of beer to watch Wild Hogs on DVD.`

God I hate shopping. Especially on holiday when the shopping is for gifts. They reckon Greece is good for jewellery but I'm not so sure. OK it might be good quality but that means high prices in anyone's book.

Weleft Ektor about 11:00ish and drove to ‘The Strip'. Our intention was to walk down one side and back up the other. This worked but Dragon and Dragonette insisted on looking in every shop. Gift buying for other people is a chore where I'm concerned, and very soon I was bored shitless. The only consolation in my book was that I got them to stop long enough for a sandwich and a Guinness.

We called at the local Co-Op, yes they have a Co-Op out here, for water, milk, sugar and biscuits and then headed back to Ektor, where eventually the ladies watched a film while I was well and truly immersed in my book.

As this was our last day with the car ,at about 18:00 we decided to return it to Manos. We fuelled it up and took the short drive back through the centre to Canal D'Amour where we dropped it off. We then took a short walk on the cliffs before heading to Shooters Bar for a drink before going for dinner. Shooters is part of the complex where we stayed last time we were here, and it hasn't changed a bit. Apart that is from the management. Dom and Barbara who used to run it have left and it is now run by Dave who used to run the pool bar and do the breakfasts. Dave wasn't there when we went in, there was just one young English lass who we felt lacked the necessary attitude. She wasn't a patch on her Greek counterparts elsewhere. This is the first time I haven't left a tip.

It was just a short walk once we left Shooters to Face where we were met by the lovely Barbara with a smile and the right attitude. Dragon and Dragonette shared a large pizza and a plate of chips while I went for the Gyros Special which was up to the usual standard for Face. The Tsatziki served with it was the best I have ever tasted. No more driving meant dinner was washed down with a couple of large Mythos and these were followed by a couple of JD and cokes.

We left here for the forty minute stroll back to Ektor about 23:00.

The end is nigh, and with not many days to go we have actually started relaxing.

Those that know me know that technically when I came away I was unemployed, but that a new start awaited my return. Having been made redundant in April when the firm I worked for went bust, I had been making do with what agency work I could get. In the final two weeks before travelling though I had been making more of an effort to find something, which resulted in two job offers to start after my hols. As a result I had been starting to have one or two sleepless nights wondering which job I should actually go to.

Today was to be the start of a new era. Dragon knew I hadn't been sleeping well and this morning we sat for a long time and discussed the pros and cons of the two job offers. In my world money isn't everything, a job should be not only about providing but also about being happy. I have never understood the mentality of anybody going to a job they hate day in and day out. Several cups of tea and lunch time rapidly approaching saw me finally making my mind up and so we trotted off to the pool bar at Ektor for some lunch.

Lunch proved to be very lengthy as the latest one day international between England and South Africa was being shown and so we sat there all afternoon returning at the conclusion of England's innings. Like I said we have started relaxing properly now and so for the next couple of hours we just sat, I was reading Dragon doing her cross-stitch and Dragonette watched a DVD. Just before we got ready to go for dinner my phone signalled the arrival of a text message. It was from a mate of mine known in our little circle as ‘Gizza job for two weeks' Shaun. Having spoken to him the day before we came away he had shown a marked interest in working for the firm I had finally made my mind up to go to. His message simply said he would be starting with this very firm on Monday 9 September.

It was now that Dragonette realised she couldn't find her purse. The rooms were turned upside down with no sign of it and I knew what had happened, or at least I think I knew. The last time she remembered seeing it was in Face last night. If it hadn't been found in there then some thieving bastard had lifted it from her bag on the walk back. I despise these scum and it did sort of knock our ducks off for a while. I suspect it will have been one of the Romanians who are on The Strip every night trying to flog roses and other crap.

We went to Face for dinner where it was confirmed Dragonette's purse wasn't there. The ladies both choosing Gyros Special while I went for the Swordfish and after we decided that as Panos had put the Man U/ Zenit St Petersburg match on the telly we would leave. We sort of regretted that later when we found out Man U had lost.

Back at Ektor I saw, having left my phone while we went for dinner, I had missed a call from Shaun. I sent a text apologising for missing his call and told him to try again tomorrow. His reply was immediate so I knew he was awake and probably sober so I gave him a call and the resulting conversation confirmed that I think I have made the right decision.

Again today is a day to just relax and take things easy. As yesterday the morning was spent sitting drinking tea and reading. This was helped by Dragonette not waking till about 10:00. Once she was up our main task today was to change some cheques and go and buy cigarettes to take home.

We have been changing most of our cheques at ValuePlus. They have consistently had the highest exchange rate we could find. Yesterday though the rate had dropped with a real bang and now we could find a slightly higher rate elsewhere. We still went to ValuePlus though as with the drop in rate they had also dropped the commission they charged to zero percent, which meant that we still got nearly as much as those that still charged it.

From there it was only a short walk to a supermarket and gift shop and as we didn't want to be carrying 1000 fags each around with us it meant we could pop them back to the room. We then had another cuppa before going to the pool bar for lunch. Not long after we'd eaten the telly was switched from the news channel to Spongebob Squarepants so it seemed as good a time as any to vacate and go back to the room.

Sat on the verandah, I was reading while Dragon and Dragonette played draughts until Dragonette got bored and I finished that game off for her. After this I took on the job of teaching Dragon the rudiments of backgammon.

We'd promised Dragonette we'd spend some time at the pool so a couple of hours were wasted here. I'm the sort that will read at these times with just the occasional dip to cool down. However other forces were at work and once in the pool I was bombarded with balls thrown by Dragonette and another girl she had befriended, Dragon joined in shortly after and all out war began.

We returned to the room later to get ready for dinner and by the time we set off we realised we were not going to get to Face before the results started coming, this being Saturday of course, so an impromptu stop was made to see the results and consume a pint of Guinness, before carrying on to Face.

We sat and watched the Arsenal/Newcastle game for a while before ordering dinner which consisted of pizza (again) for Dragonette, Stuffed Pepper and Tomato (yuk) for Dragon and I chose Lamb Kleftiko.

Last night we saw a guy in Face who we'd spoken to during our last visit both in face and at Shooters Bar and Dragon wanted to say hello so this she did. Panos knows we go home on Monday and asked if they would see us tomorrow night, we confirmed they would. We can't come to Sidari and have our last dinner anywhere else.

We missed the strip out tonight by walking along the beach. The strip this year is worse than it was on our previous visits. The PR's are a pain in the arse trying to coax you in to their bar but generally if you say no thanks they then leave you alone. The biggest problem are the Romanians with their seemingly endless supply of roses and crap. I wouldn't trust them as far as I could throw them and quite frankly I wouldn't trust any Romanian which in a way is sad because as with all other different social groups I'm sure there will be good as well as bad. We had a bit of this with the kids in Albania but at least they were Albanian kids.

Back at Ektor we had our usual cuppa and it is amazing how tiring doing nothing really is. We were all completely knackered so it was an early night. Party animals ? No, not us.

Once again it was a day of taking it easy. As always I was the first to rise and sat reading, drinking tea till Dragon joined me. Dragon mooched about a bit packing stuff up and eventually we decided to go and spend a bit of time on the beach.

With three sunbeds located and paid for we popped off to The Rock for lunch before returning to the beach. After about an hour or so Dragonette and myself went off in a pedalo. Dragon wouldn't entertain the idea of joining us as anything less than a cross channel ferry is too small for her comfort.

An hour later Dragon was complaining of feeling sick having been in the sun too long so we made our way back to Ektor where we did the bulk of the packing. Dragonette went off to the pool and we sat for a while on the verandah with another cuppa.

At about 17:30 we all showered and got ready to go for dinner. The only stop off was at Dimitra and Manos Car Hire to say bye to Manos. He asked if we'd be back next year but we couldn't say yes as we don't know how the money situation is going to pan out. From there it was on to Face for our last supper.

Dragonette chose chickenburger and chips while Dragon and myself had the Gyros Special. This was washed down with a couple of Royal Ionians before we moved to the bar to watch the end of AEK Athens versus Panathinaikos. At the bar Dragon had a shot of Kumquat Liqueur and I had a JD and Coke. When I ordered another of each Panos refused to take my money saying they were on him.

The time came to say adio and surprisingly no-one cried. We set off on the walk back to Ektor but Dragonette complained her ankle was hurting so for the first time ever on Corfu I flagged a taxi down which got us back to Ektor in five minutes.

The final bits of packing were done, just our toothbrushes to go in and that's it, we're ready for the off.

Today started vert early. About 04:00 to be precise when a pair of twats walked up the road chanting as loud as they could "Oggyoggyoggy, Oyoyoy". It pissed me off no end. Not just the fact that they woke everybody up but more because they were British. If they had just arrived I wasn't so depressed at going home.

I rose again at about 08:00, Dragon was already up. The usual morning cuppa was partaken and we made sure Dragonette was awake by 09:15. The last few things were packed and about 09:45 we set off for the very short walk to Bavias for breakfast. I had a full English the ladies both opted for a small one. Just after 11:00 we settled up and headed back to the room. 11:30 we were sure we were done and we dragged the suitcases down to the pool bar for our 11:55 pick-up. Here we sat and waited till 12:40, we honestly thought they had forgotten about us. While we were waiting I managed to get through to my new boss and arranged to start on Wednesday instead of tomorrow.

Corfu airport was Corfu airport and organised chaos as usual. At least since our last visit they have expanded a bit and there was room to sit. Our plane arrived on time and though we were due to depart at 16:40 the plane was loaded and ready to go at 16:20. The captain advised over the pa that he would try and get an earlier slot but he wasn't holding his breath. A good job he didn't because unless it says Olympic on the side of the plane you've got no chance and it was 16:50 when we finally took off.

The flight was uneventful enough apart from a couple of bits of turbulence and we touched down at East Midlands at 17:50 local time. By 20:00 we were home having called at KFC on the way.