It begins . . .
Long ago in a land far, far away two young Chicks decided it would be a good idea to rent scooters/mopeds to better navigate the hills and narrow roads of Corfu, an island in the Ionian Sea off the mainland of Greece. Ancient cypress trees and olive groves, backdropped alternately by the vivid blue sky and sparkling sea, beckoned us up up up the hill via a narrow winding road. The hosts at the hotel in Paleokastritsa had recommended a visit to the unique Theotokos Monastery and we were glad to get out in the fresh island air and beautiful sunshine after being cooped up overnight inside a ferry (accompanied by some pretty “unusual” retsina wine) for the trip across the Adriatic.
But back to the scooters . . . having only experienced riding on street bikes in high school -- and occasionally taking a spill on one of the many country dirt roads – having this independence was thrilling -- if a bit dangerous. Thrilling, until I lost control of the bike and ran off the road into a ditch. And I didn’t even have other drivers or traffic to blame it on! Neither the bike nor I worse for the wear (except my pride, of course) we took in the monastery experience, thanked the Greek gods for our safety, and carefully made our way back to the scooter rental place and our hotel. For the rest of the trip we decided to rely solely on our own feet, boats, or 4+ wheeled vehicles but agreed that it would never be as much fun!
You can visit the monastery here: