Erikousa Explorations Continued
During the night another thunderstorm landed over Erikousa. Like the storm that arrived at lunchtime, the thunder appeared first followed by lightning. I could see brief flashes through the gaps in the storm covers at the window. Later came the rain pounding down on the pantiles of the roof above my room. Then there was silence. A few minutes later there was a scuttling sound. I checked the time and it was 3am. For my sanity’s sake, I tried to figure out what creature would be making such a noise at this time. So I ruled out snakes as they don’t scuttle. They glide silently and don’t announce their arrival. It wasn’t a bird as they usually hop or walk but they don’t scuttle. It could be a rat or a mouse as they definitely do scuttle and are prone to prowling in the quiet of the night. On my first foray around Erikousa, I’d seen several dead frogs squashed flat in the middle of the road. Frogs as far as I know haven’t yet mastered the art of jumping onto roofs. Lizards – I think it would be lizards because several have been running around the interior of the apartment. Only small ones mind. One with half a tail – probably a run-in with one of many cats on the island. It likes to hide under the doormat and then run into the apartment as soon as I open the door. Another two like to take it in turns to scale the voile curtains in the living room. If it was a lizard it must have been the mother of all lizards because it made quite a racket. Best to try and put the thoughts of ‘guess the nocturnal creature’ to the back of my mind. I switch on the aircon to mask out the sound.
As dawn broke, I decided to try the water again. I ran the shower for 10 minutes hoping that something resembling ‘warm’ would finally filter through. Amazingly it did and I was able to have my first shower since arriving 24 hours ago. After getting my act together I took the short walk to Oasis Bar/Taverna/Minimarket for breakfast. There are just several locals (all men) having their morning coffee. What a completely different dynamic to last night. I order yoghurt with honey and fruit and toast with jam and a cup of tea and it goes down a treat. Now on to explore Erikousa just a little more.
Erikousa was known as Merlera as far back as the 16th century AD. Locals still refer to it by this name today. The island is 4.5 square kilometres in size and the area around Porto is relatively flat so perfect for walking and cycling. Behind the village, the hills begin to rise to a height of 130 metres accessed by a network of narrow concrete roads. I started my walk around the village at Porto with its neat, modern houses with manicured gardens. At the entrance to the village was what looked like the main minimarket of the island which had closed for the season. Next to it is Aida Sul Porto which did come up on b.com as an accommodation option but now this also looks closed. There are several accommodations on the island including the only hotel, Hotel Erikousa set back from the beach.
Sitting up above Porto is the small Chapel of Erikousa. It was up a steep but short road and on the way up offered views over to Porto Vecchio. Once at the top, I had the best view over the beach at Porto. Beyond the turquoise green waters surrounding the island is the little island of Mathraki and in the far distance is the Northern coast of Corfu. Although Erikousa is the Northernmost island of the Ionians, being able to have sight of the neighbouring islands lessens that feeling of remoteness. Just above the chapel is the all-important Helipad.
A little rain shower interrupted my explorations so I retreated to the apartment and tried to catch up on some of my diary entries. After an hour or so I noticed a colony of ants marching through the living room like a platoon of soldiers. I hadn’t eaten anything inside so I don’t know what they were seeking out. There were so many of them that I couldn’t let it slide so I went outside and scouted around the other apartments until I found a mop and bucket. A couple of swipes with a wet mop seemed to do it.
Later that evening I made my way to Oasis Bar/Taverna/Minimarket, a little earlier than his opening time of 7pm. Again the place is nearly full of Yachties but thankfully this time I didn’t have to beg for a table. When he brought the menu to me he told me they had a very nice stuffed aubergine cooked in the oven. It sounded good so I ordered this along with a Greek salad and a jug of white wine.
I was quite impressed by how quickly meals were brought to the table. There was just one lady cooking in the kitchen who passed the plates through a small arched hatch and the man who spent most of his time running back and forth. It’s obviously a well-oiled machine. The photo of the taverna was taken early one morning before it had opened.
After the meal, I took a walk down to the harbourfront. As I prepared to leave Erikousa the following morning I felt as though I had barely scratched the surface of this little island. TBH, the yachting fraternity seemed to outweigh the local population and it did bring a completely different dynamic to the place and for me, not for the better. It brought too much sensory overload for this introvert. There didn’t seem to be many locals about. Maybe they all retreat to the villages when the taverna gets deluged with people. I don’t know.
The following morning I left the apartment shortly after daybreak. I hadn’t made any arrangements with Mr Christos about getting a lift to the port but I was able to manage. I’d allowed plenty of time so I could stop and take in the last few vistas of Erikousa. I trundled my suitcase along the edge of the marina to the square platform at the end of the walkway. Soon after I was joined by a couple of utility trucks waiting for supplies and then out in the distance came the Evdokia almost in silhouette against the rising sun.
I’ve enjoyed my 2 days on Erikousa but the frenetic activity in the one and only taverna was quite stressful. However, that aside, the island is truly beautiful and I wish that I’d been able to see more of its interior.
