“Other countries may offer you discoveries in manners or lore or landscape,” wrote Lawrence Durrell. “Greece offers you something harder – the discovery of yourself.”

And so it was in Greece that the Durrells, like countless other wanderers throughout the ages, discovered themselves.

Both Lawrence and his younger brother Gerald wrote highly successful memoirs of their family’s life on Corfu, circa 1934 to 1939.

In 1945, Lawrence published Prospero’s Cell: A Guide to the Landscape and Manners of the Island of Corfu.

His poetic narrative captures “this brilliant little speck of an island in the Ionian” and paints “a portrait inexact in detail, containing bright splinters of landscape.”

First published in 1956, Gerald recalled his idyllic youth an “the unexpected isle” in The Corfu Trilogy.

“My childhood in Corfu shaped my life,” Gerald wrote. Those transformative years led to Gerald’s lifelong work as a naturalist, established his reputation as a beloved author, and also inspired a delightful PBS / BBC Masterpiece series, The Durrells in Corfu.

These Corfu classics by the Durrell brothers, plus other travel books such as The Greek Islands, continue to motivate new generation of literary travelers to discover themselves in Greece.

Nowadays, you can further discover the Durrell brothers in Corfu Old Town.

Hidden in beautiful Bosketo Garden, between the verdant lawns of Spianada Square and the ancient stones of the Old Fortress, rise two bronze memorials to Lawrence and Gerald. Their noses and chins have been rubbed clean by countless hands, including ours.

Until next time, Reader,

Travel on, sparkle on, meaningfully✨

Marilee + Paul
​Spotlight Sojourns® | Slow Travel
with the Hidden Gemologists®

PS: If you’re dreaming to discover yourself in Greece, click HERE to read our article, “Plan Your Trip to Greece.”​

PPS: Do you know friends or family who’d like a little inspo in their box? Please forward this email. They can subscribe by clicking the button below:

When you book or make purchases through some links, Spotlight Sojourns may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

All opinions are always our own. We recommend these companies because we actually use them, like them, and believe in them. And we think you’ll like them, too.

Thank you for using our affiliate links which support original writing and original photography for you.

​​​​​