Playing Beach
Beeline to Myrtiotissa Beach - Corfu
There’s a bee in my oily mousaka! It’s not moving. It just slid off onto the plate in its own pool of Olive Oil. I ought to complain, but after a week in this undiscovered backwater of Corfu I had become used to the enterprising antics on Myrtiotissa beach. With characteristic gusto Yannis solves my problem with a finger and thumb. “Its one of mine” says Yannis “I keep them up in the cliffs in hives and sell the honey” pointing to his jam jars. “They just want their honey back”
Yannis shack; of bamboo, elephant grass and driftwood is situated on Myrtiotissa beach on the west coast of Corfu. Myrtiotissa beach is not easy to find a driftwood sign nailed to an olive tree was my only clue. Walking down a dirt track meandering between the olive trees I found myself standing on a cliff overlooking a tranquil bay. Fresh water from the 200ft cliffs trickled over the rocks and down onto the beach below. Looking out to the west I could see a clear blue horizon Italy being 70 miles away. Myrtiotissa beach lacks the commercialization found on Corfu’s other beaches its isolated location means a walk of at least half an hour is needed to get down to the beach. However commerce is vibrant, its northern end is for clothed or partially clothed sun seekers but its southern end is where the backpackers, travellers and the islands gypsy minded residents reside. A hippy persona emanates everywhere. Artists selling their paintings, jewellery and friendship bands sit naked in the sand sheltering from the sun. Everyone is brown, a procession of bathers walk from the mirror sea to the fresh water shower flowing from the cliff onto the beach. Many using olive oil to enhance their tan whilst others play beach ball in their birthday suits.
As unspoilt beaches go, Myrtiotissa beach is hard to beat. Sheltered on three sides by vertical cliffs with a snake path that no vehicle can follow, its fine sandy beach gently slops into the sea. Standing at the waters edge toes disappearing into the sand I find Joanne (Yannis wife and rival to Ursula Andress in Dr No’) back from her afternoon diving adventure displaying a pile of black urchins glistening in the sun, a real pain if you stand on one and Joanna’s self-appointed mission to rid these pests from the beach. Opening one Joanna shows me the orange food inside then eats it raw passing some to me. Tasting similar to mussels I was pleasantly surprised.
Brown bodies abound I could still distinguish between Germans, Scandinavian and Brits. The Italians are a category apart; cultural backgrounds can manifest themselves even on a nudist beach. Fashion conscious Italians, beer swilling Scandinavians, territorial Germans and lobster coloured Brits can be distinguished with ease. Yet the difference between the residents and hardcore travellers was harder to judge. ‘The best time to get to know who’s who is in the evening” says Joanna. “As quite a few sleep on the beach overnight.”
As the sun gets low in the sky the day visitors begin to leave, a precession of coloured garments snake there way slowly up the winding path and disappear from view. “Quality time” as Joanna described it, starts about now.
Ambling along the waters edge, wearing a sarong in ‘Beckham style’ I stumble into the travellers’ encampment hidden from view of the main beach. Attracted by the aroma of grilled fish, life here looked primitive, yet I could see there were plenty that had chosen to camp on the beach for weeks. Familiar faces sitting in the shade only hours before were grouped around a campfire. Rhythms of ‘Cat Stevens’ strummed on a guitar mingle with the evening heat. Sleeping bags arranged in groups, logs arranged around the campfire all were changed and ready for the evening to come. At such a perfect moment it seemed a shame to leave.
Getting there from Corfu Town & airport.
Myrtiotissa beach is 15km west of Corfu town. Take the Glyfada (Via Vatos) green/cream bus (45mins) from the New Port central bus station in Corfu Town and ask for Myrtiotissa beach bus stop (40 mins), you will be dropped of by the side of a road next to an Olive grove with a dirt track. Follow the signs to the beach (The last bus back to Corfu town is 20:30). If you take a car make sure you park in the parking place half way down the dirt track in the olive grove. Beyond the parking area the dirt road becomes really steep a 1in3 incline. Taxis direct from the airport can cost up to 40 euros so ask the price first and then haggle. The Green Bus station from the airport is 4 km so a local bus to the bus station is needed.
Sleeping on the beach…
In Greece, it’s illegal to camp on a beach as there is no revenue earned through its tourism, at Myrtiotissa those that chose to sleep overnight on the beach take their tents down during the day and only put them back up in the dark, others just have their sleeping bags and netting. Myrtiotissa’s isolated location makes the policing of unofficial campers, difficult. As long as no tents are seen it’s possible to become one with the beach and the sea without paying for any accommodation.
Accommodation…
Panorama rooms. Are located in an olive grove at the top of the cliff, overlooking the sea and a 5-minute walk from Myrtiotissa beach. The accommodation is private but you share the communal showers and kitchen. On the main road 300 yards north/south of the bus stop are a lot of apartments to rent. Villa Myrto, Villa Natassa and Villa Capella are only just a few of them. They offer average to high standards.
http://www.panorama-rooms.gr
panoramarooms@yahoo.gr
Vatos Camping is a 30 min walk from the beach and on the outskirts of Vatos village. (The same Corfu-Glyfada bus takes you there) They provide free regular coach transport to Glyfada beach stopping at Myrtiotissa from their campsite.
Tel 0030 26610 94503
Eating out & nightlife…
Mythos bar, Labis bar, Spiros 97 are all within a 30 min walk from the beach and are located in and around Vatos village. There is a local disco ‘Pam Pam’ (Operated by Vatos camping) that opens from July.
About the Author
David is a Commercial Photographer, Travel Writer with a passion for sailing amongst the Greek Islands. He has spent 4 years living in Corfu and 2 in Athens.
Track Back: http://www.greekisland-hopping.com/
Playing Beach
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Beach Volleyball: A Truly Versatile Game
Beach volleyball is a great impromptu game. Almost anywhere that there is sand and a net; groups of friends, acquaintances, and sometimes even strangers will gather for a few rounds of beach volleyball. A playful game of beach volleyball doesn't have to be too strenuous, so it is easy to have teams with people of all different ages and with mixed levels of fitness. This makes beach volleyball an ideal family game for a lively summer afternoon.
Of course, beach volleyball can be also be a very strenuous game in a competitive setting. When serious athletes get together for a beach volleyball tournament, the ball flies through the air fast and viciously.
To play beach volleyball, you only need a minimum of two people per team for a total of four players. However, the less experienced and skilled the players are, the more people you will probably want to have on each team in order to keep the ball in the air. The more players that are involved, the less ground each player will be responsible for covering. A game with just a few participants is likely to be quite a workout as everybody scrambles across the sand to reach the ball; whereas in a game with a large team different players can concentrate on their own areas of the sand, enabling them to rest a bit when the ball is elsewhere. The fact that beach volleyball can be a fun, low-key game for a friendly crowd of casual players or a serious endeavor with a quartet of accomplished athletes makes it one of the most versatile sports.
The rules of beach volleyball are the same as the rules for any form of volleyball, but play on the sand tends to be a bit different than play on a court. It is much more difficult to move quickly on sand than it is on most surfaces, so play is generally slower than in court volleyball. To train for beach volleyball, athletes must spend a lot of time developing their lower body strength so they can move quickly and accurately across the ground despite the friction and resistance of the sand. While powerful legs are an important part of successful volleyball play, the ability to jump high and hard and land without injury are substantially more vital in beach volleyball than in court volleyball.
Even experienced court players often don't anticipate how difficult it will be to run and jump on sand, so volleyball players who are new to the beach often sustain injuries because they misjudged how much resistance the sand would give them. Skinned knees and elbows are par for the course among players at all levels of the game, especially because a player often forgets to protect him or herself when diving for the ball in the heat of the game.
About the Author
Gray Rollins is a featured writer for VolleyballAdvice.com. To learn more about beach volleyball and for more information on how to play volleyball, visit us.
Kigurumi Girls Playing on the beach