Can I use a Moodle 'API' or do I have to scrape it

I hate Moodle so much. I have to use it though so I figured I would create a new "front-end" to it. I'm wondering if Moodle has an API I can just hook. I'm hoping to get this to work with most standard Moodle's so I can't rely on anything that has to be enabled or added to Moodle. If there isn't an "API" I can use how would the best way to scrape it be? I'm best at PHP but I'm open to new ideas. Thanks