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The Island of Kefalonia
Captain Corelli's Mandolin was shot at Kefalonia the largest Island that is part of the Ionian Islands of Greece. The movie, starring Nicolas Cage, gave the Island a large boost in tourism as it put the place on the map as a top holiday destination.
The movie Captain Corelli's Mandolin was filmed in the summer of 2000. In order to shoot this movie the town had a large makeover, Hollywood style, to recreate a Kefalonia during the time of the war.
Kefalonia is the area of choice to experience Greece the way it was in the past. The Island is famous for the quality beaches that it holds along with a very tolerable climate.
The Island has a wide variety of scenery with an abundance of bays which are shaped in a remarkable way due to the many inlets. To the north a rocky coast holds many pebble beaches, and to the south there are gorgeous sandy beaches. Due to a good infrastructure throughout the entire Island all parts of it are easy to reach by car, bike or even on the back of a horse! The other Islands surrounding it are accessible by ferry or other type of boat and are just waiting to be explored.
From the group of Ionian Islands, Kefalonia is by far the largest covering a 750 square mile area. The Island holds a population of approximately 42,000 and throughout the whole of Greece the Island is among the top six largest Islands. On the Island, Mount Ainos is among the highest mountains on all the Islands in the Ionian Islands group with a height of 1640ft.
Besides the beautiful beaches that surround Kefalonia the Island is also famous for its inner beauty in the form of caves which make up for an entire water network underneath. With its subterranean lakes, the caverns are a must see for anyone visiting the Island.
The Island holds two castles placed strategically throughout the Island. Originally the castles were built for protection against pirates, and they are both open to the general public for viewing.
Kefalonia is much more than just the setting of Captain Corelli's Mandolin, with a wealth of fortresses, monasteries and beautiful scenery to visit and explore.
More recently, archeologists have discovered several Roman artifacts in the area of Fiscardo on the Island. The process of uncovering the site is currently still in progress and is slowly revealing settings like a Roman theatre and much more.
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