Gaios, Paxos Island - Greece

Legend has it that the island of Paxos was created when Poseidon struck off the southern tip of Corfu with his trident to make a retreat for himself and his mistress, Amphitrite. Circe, the siren in Homer's Odyssey, who detained Ulysses and turned his men into pigs, also hailed from Paxos.


Located 10 miles south of Corfu, Paxos and the mainland city of Parga, can be easily combined into a one-day trip. Paxos, at 7 miles long and 3 miles wide, is the smallest of the Ionian Islands. The island is known for the quality of its olive oil, with fruity and honey notes. The sweetest, most glorious olive oil I've ever tasted. There are only 2,438 residents, but more than 300,000 olive trees.

It's a 1 1/2 hour boat trip from Corfu, which dropped us off in the town of Gaios.






Walk around. Explore the quaint town. And definitely buy a bottle of their famous olive oil. In fact, Paxos makes more money from olive oil than tourism.

Most tourist offices in Corfu offer a combined day-trip to the island of Paxos and the mainland town of Parga. It's about a 1 1/2 hour boat ride to and fro, with several hours for you to explore each town. I paid about $50 euros for the package with pick-up from hotel, not sure what the cost is now.

You can read all Europe posts with the tag Series: Europe, but I suggest reading this particular trip in this order:
"Meet-Cute" Stockholm - Sweden
Helsinki - Finland: A Two-Night Cruise and One Day
Sigtuna - Sweden: More Rune Stones Than Any Other Town
Gamla Uppsala (Old Uppsala) - Sweden: Beowulf and Burial Mounds
Uppsala - Sweden: Birthplace of Celsius
Tallinn - Estonia: A Two-Night Cruise and One Day
Eger and Sirens Valley - Hungary: Floral? Fruity? Woody Notes? What Notes?
Agios Georgios, Corfu Town, and Vidos Island, Corfu - Greece
Glass Bottom Boat, Corfu - Greece
Gaios, Paxos Island - Greece
Parga - Greece
Autostitch of Parga - Greece
Paleokastritsa, Corfu - Greece
Butrint and Saranda - Albania

*****
1 year ago today, letters from lil' sis.