XC 1X2

 I’ve been on the run since leaving Rome and today I arrive at my destination. Probably. I woke up with no bookings for the day, time to relax and get on Greek time. Over breakfast at the hotel I snagged a room on the island and a ferry sailing. Easy peasy. Now to figure out what to do there. It’s a big enough place that I shouldn’t have problems with that at least. Also, I’ve finished my supply of books and need to restock. It seems the island may be able to help with that. Renting a scooter or motorcycle for the day is also definitely in the cards. Traffic The boat pulled in and after a 90 minute puddle jump I found myself on the island. Corfu is an odd place, Ionian but it was occupied by the Venetians for some time. They left their mark on the local cuisine and architecture. It is Greek here, but there are fingerprints from Italy everywhere.  Old Venetian fort My host, Spiros, is helpful. Maybe too much. When I arrived I got a 30 minute guide to everything I could or shoul...

Breakfast happened in Angelo’s kitchen. The first question of the day was coffee or tea? The second was Italian coffee or American coffee? The answer was obvious. When an old man named Angelo is holding a moka pot and asks you if you want Italian coffee, you say ‘si Grazie’. I walked Brindisi’s main drag to the water. This is a small port city, reminiscent of Santa Barbara with actual seafaring and regular people or a small Long Beach with clean streets. Take your pick. I walked to the water and read, watching the water taxi drop people off. The way out  After a grocery run and bus ride, it was time to check in and board my ferry. This boat is huge, while I checked in I was watching this thing swallow semi trucks whole. We have a simple coastline in the US and this very few ferries. We have even fewer car ferries and I don’t know of any that can take an eighteen wheeler. On this nine hour journey the truckers will drink beer and rest in their cabins before driving off in Greece. My...

 I woke up and checked the train schedules to see when I could next go to Brindisi, the town on the heel of the Italian book with a ferry to Greece. The next departure was a little after one which gave me time to squeeze in a site before leaving. Everything feels easier now. Rome was weighing on me and I feel lighter knowing that I am leaving this place. The devil take it. It’s not for me. I booked my train ticket and packed myself in a crush loaded bus to the city center. The city is doing roadwork that has blocked access to both tram depots. Since they are unable to run any trams right now they’ve replaced the service with busses but on the same frequency. Yikes. Every bus I’ve gotten on has been packed to the gills with people. The only upside is that these routes are fareless, not that you’d be able to pay anyway with how many people are crammed in. Today’s stop was the Jewish museum. The best was to do this city might be to see the history that nobody cares to see here. I tend...