Corfu: My Ionian Paradise

We stepped off the ship into a fortress and immediately smelled jasmine and espresso. The Liston arcade was made for people-watching — old men playing backgammon, waiters in crisp white shirts, the cricket ground (!). We climbed to the Old Fortress at opening and had the entire Byzantine museum to ourselves. The view over red roofs to Albania is insane.

We rented a tiny Fiat and drove to Paleokastritsa — six perfect bays, monasteries on cliffs, water so clear you can see fish from the road. We swam at Rovinia beach (pebbles, no facilities, perfect). We had lunch at a taverna reached only by boat or steep path — grilled sea bream and Corfiot pastitsada that tasted like the chef's grandmother was hugging us.

The island feels richer, greener, more sophisticated than the Cyclades — the Venetian influence is everywhere in the architecture and the food.