Bruce and I just spent a much-needed week’s holiday. We went to Corfu, thus fulfilling a ‘bucket list’ item for me – always wanted to visit the Greek isles! Well, one isle counts, surely? We were very fortunate to have relatively good weather the whole time, though overcast frequently, but no rain. Apparently the week before it had rained solidly most days.
We had an interesting time watching people, both in groups and individually. Our tour group was Irish (as you might expect, having left from Dublin!) but at the hotel there were lots of English, Scottish and German people as well. When checking out the hotel before coming, we had looked at the lovely sun loungers all around the pool, and down on the beach that the hotel ‘owns’, and imagined ourselves lying out on them. What wasn’t in the photo – for very good reasons – was a typical population of the hotel guests. I have to say they made Bruce and me feel pretty good about ourselves, and we’re hardly sylph-like these days. There were HUGE numbers of women who were really well past their bikini-wearing best, lying completely unselfconsciously around in quite skimpy bikinis. The blokes, full of puku (stomach) and saggy in figure, were likewise unselfconscious. When we were down on the beach one day I was somewhat flummoxed to see one older guy come out of the water (which was lovely, actually, warmer than the hotel pool) and do a full whakapohane (google if you don’t know the term) while changing his swimming trunks for a tight pair of budgie smugglers, which he then proceeded to lie out in to get his tan. My mother used to have an expression, not very kind, that went “The sights you see when you haven’t got a gun!” It came to mind on that occasion.
It was also fascinating people-watching at the evening social events – non-mandatory of course, but you could sit down at the bar after dinner and listen to various types of entertainment. We didn’t do it much, but one night we were down there the DJ/cum singer was coming up with numbers from Buddy Holly and Little Richard, respectively dating back to the fifties! You should have seen the faces of the VERY few young couples, watching their elders twitching on the dance floor to that lot. The guy did move ‘forward’ to Elvis and a few other people, but it gives you a good idea of the demographic he was pitching to. Off-key at times. Bruce commented that he wouldn’t be surprised if there was a high rate of artificial hip replacements after the holidays. He claimed to be able to smell them burning and melting down as he watched the dance floor.
Off-site, there were great shots to be had, both in Corfu township and on a couple of our bus trips. We’d gone with a group, and had three bus trips, each separated by a lazy day at the hotel, a formula that worked well for us. I had expected to see lots of older ladies wearing black head to toe, but there were very few of these in Corfu town, although more in the villages. Bruce got permission via our guide, to photograph two elderly cousins. They were delighted that he was prepared to send the photos back via the guide, which he has now down. See below…
I caught this snap (from the bus window, on my iPhone) of two chaps having a chat on a street corner – do you reckon the one on the right is saying, “I swear it, Nico, the fish was THIS big!”?
And the n
ext one, in one of the villages. The house the guy had come out of was decorated with ribbons, and our guide had just explained that this is the custom when a wedding is being held. Then your man comes out with this gun – we did wonder if he was off to scare the potential groom awa
y!
And then just a few other shots of Corfu people from Bruce:
Great to hear your Corfu trip went well and you managed to dodge the rain. Cracked me up Bruce smelling the hip replacements burning. Ha ha. Sounds as if you looked like Twiggy in comparison. Really enjoyed reading your colourful blog.
Love this episode… The three gentlemen could be our uncles!