Travel |
|
Janet Vogel Perkins
|
After a smooth flight via Belgium, France, Italy, and Brindisi, we landed at Chania on the west coast of Crete. We were met by Anastasia who owns the villa and lives next door in a typical Cretan house. The villa was a lovely place - two terraces, swimming pool, fig, olive and orange trees and magnificent flowers. All this high in the mountains and in the middle of nowhere.
After a breakfast of figs, Greek bread, peach jam and thyme honey, we drove to Chania, the capital of this region. It took us an hour to find the old town. Hardly any street signs and after getting lost and almost driving out of town, we finally found the old harbor. Parking, as in the rest of the world, was a hassle. We finally found a space but was it FREE? To our amusement, we found a sign that read, "PARKING IS FREE-DON'T ASK ME AGAIN." We wandered through ancient, narrow Venetian streets. The harbor was dominated by a Venetian lighthouse. On our way to the villa, we stopped at INKA, a super market of sorts. In small towns, it takes patience and kindness to do any kind of marketing. Nothing is in English and Greek is almost impossible to learn. There are several kinds of Greek - ancient, modern and a combination of the two. The pool was a pleasant interlude. We watched the swallows dip into the pool for a drink, leaving a few ripples as evidence of their visit. The closest town was Kolymbari. It had a row of tavernas on the shore plus a bakery and a post office. We took the coast road - well paved but with hairpin bends and sheer drops to the Cretan Sea. We stopped to watch goats of many colors as they came down the rocky slopes to cross the road and head on to the rocks along the shore. Along most of the roads in this part of Crete, there is a profusion of miniature churches of all types. One can almost write a book on the variety of these miniatures. Off to Samaria gorge on a road that can rival anything the Swiss Alps can throw at you. Wonderful hazy mountains in the distance; olive trees growing on the slopes; isolated villages and domed churches. The drive was over an hour and occasionalloy, the road became a construction site. The walk down the gorge is ll miles and estimated to take eight hours. You can't walk back - you take a ferry to another village and try to organize a return. We were content to have drinks and appetizers in the dappled shade of the taverna and watch the light changing. On the winding road to Veni, we saw a motorbike lying on its side in the middle of the road and a young man alongside. We first thought that he was dead but fortunately, just hurt. We flagged down a jeep for help. It turned out that he was drunk as a skunk. He got up, put on his helmet, and after two attempts, righted the bike and rode off. So much for Cretan life. After that experience, we went to Kolymbari for dinner. As mentioned previously, the entire beachfront is occupied by tavernas. In all tavernas, it is customary to serve the diners raki (colorless but extremely potent drink) with either freshly picked grapes or melons. The "meltemi" (Cretan wind) blew furiously all night but by morning, it was quieter and we were on our way to Knossos. The Minoan palace is an imaginative reconstruction, since no one knows what the original looked like. We found a taverna with an unpronounceable name, tucked up a narrow road off the main road of Knossos. It was built into the cliff just underneath a viaduct. The lettering on the menu defeated us. It was a scruffy place, packed with local families out for a Sunday lunch. The waitress, with her deep, gruff voice and muscular physique might have been a waiter. We couldn't figure out for sure. One of life's mysteries. After the howling wind of another night, we awoke to warmth and sunshine. We headed for Ravdouha. Another journey from high up, down to the coast on a hairpin bend road. There were the usual shrines on almost every curve. Ravdouha is a little gem on the Rodopou Penninsula. Difficult for swimming due to strong waves and large rocks. It's a completely rocky beach but isolated from the wind with a beautiful view of Gramvoussa. There was a rocky pool, deep enough for dunking. From there, one could swim through an opening to the Cretan Sea. The beach at Falasarna was beautiful. White sand, turquoise water, sun loungers, tables and umbrellas. Witnessed some drama - a woman screaming in Greek from the water while her husband talks on his mobile phone from a lounger. Two men raced into the water and rescued her. There was a great deal of shouting from both parties, but we were surrounded by sand daffodills and they too listened. The drive to Samaria Gorge was child's play compared to the road to Therisso Gorge. A paved but much narrower road made up of one hairpin bend after another. Rocks from boulders to gravel size were strewn across the road. This road is impassable during the winter. Lots of goats along the road scrambling up the mountain sides where there appear to be no toe (hoof?) holds. We even saw one standing on a branch of a tree. Came across a gorgeous taverna between two bends on the way to Zourva. It was called Rizinia. Beautiful flowers and a delightful shaded area at the back with tables and a wonderful view. Arrived in Therisso to find a tour bus but we wandered into a beautiful little church and then asked for the Museum of Resistance. It was closed but then a child of about ten came with her friends and the keys. Her great grandfather had been in the Resistance. Although most everything was in Greek, she spoke enough English to enlighten us about some of the photos and items on display. We stopped for lunch on the terrace of a pleasant looking taverna. The "papa" of the establishment had a black, bushy beard and mustache. His butcher block was outdoors and he would chop bits of meat as required. His wife seemed to be cook, washer-upper and baby minder. We decided to try Chania again. This time, we sought out the restored 14th century Etz Hayyim synagogue. There are about seven Jews in Chania - twelve altogether in Crete. According to the guide, Daniel, some Israelis are talking about coming to Crete to live because they have become disillusioned with their government. Daniel had been a museum director and has traveled giving talks and raise funds to restore the synagogue. He received large donations from the Rothschild Foundation. On holidays such as Pesach and Succoth, they have multi-denominational gatherings in which Muslims and Christians participate. On our way to Elafonissos on the Libyan Sea, we passed the cave of St. Sophie which looked like a shrine carved out of sandstone rock. The entrace was free. Maybe that's the reward for climbing all the steps. This beach was HUGE and the water was warm and safe for swimming. There were many topless ladies who shouldn't be topless and also some of the largest German ladies in bikinis we'eve ever seen - not a pretty sight. Visited the village church which looked large from the outside but small inside. Paintings, icons, gold incense holders and a microphone. Cemeteries in Crete are usually attached to the churches. In this one, a woman was removing the oil holders from the glass cabinets of the coffins, refilling them and replacing the wick. On our last evening in Kolymbari, we saw a strange sight. Outside this taverna was a washing line to which octupi were attached with clothes pins. Before we left for the airport, the owner,George, gave us some lovely flowers. Did I mention that he gave us freshly picked grapes almost every day? With souvenirs and memories, Crete will always remain fresh in our minds.
|