October 19: Last Full Day On Crete

Last day here. Off to Santorini tomorrow for the weekend then fly to Amsterdam Monday. 😔 I can’t believe that this adventure and the Camino Compestella started way back 21 August, although I started my Camino training way back in February. I know, I look awful here. But you have to know that pilgrims have to suffer. We are not allowed to have fun and….no swearing…damn!

The second part of the adventure started when the Camino ended. I mean, why come all the way over here and not explore the area? So Dot met me in Lisbon 03 October and our adventure began as this blog attests to. And the blog serves a dual purpose. To entertain and inform you (hopefully) but also to serve as a journal and course of record for me. As you may or may not know I have written 4 books (see menu or top of the page), so these short snippets provide me with valuable resource material for my stories.

Heavenly intervention.

So today Dot and I are going to further explore Heraklion and visit their natural history museum, among other things.

It was a nice day. Returned the rental car, went to the bank then walked up to Liberty Square. From there we walked along the car free roads and alleyways all the way down to the old Venetian port. Stopped and had lunch at a place on the water before heading up to the natural history museum.

Spent about 2 hours in the museum, which was interesting and fun, as this photo shows.

Afterward we walked some more, killed some time and then had dinner at one of the cafes around freedom Square.

Nice final full day in Heraklion and Crete. Loved it here. Back to our hotel, pack and leave early tomorrow morning for Santorini by  fast ferry.

Read ya later.

 

 

 

 

 

October 18: More On Crete

Drove to Crete’s south coast today. A distance of about 30 kilometers as the crow flies took over 4 hours to cover. What started out as a very slick beautiful highway morphed into weaving, rolling curves and cutouts over narrow and sometimes rough blacktop. After a few hours of maneuvering the car right then left, up and down across stark, barren but unbelievably incredible landscapes. I have never seen such rock formations, or deep and narrow gorges of huge proportions. This was coupled and broken by broad plains that are filled with olive groves and vineyards. You also see herds of goats and flocks of sheep on the slopes and cliff faces. The rocky mountains at home do not come close to the frightening  and spectacular views that these formations afforded. I can tell you that after 3 hours of driving through this I was exhausted. This is a rugged and beautiful terrain.

I wasn’t able to take any pictures as my hands were locked on the wheel. Dot had to use pliers to unlock them. You will just have to visit Crete to experience this. My drive today was from Heraklion to the Frangocastelle area on the South Coast. When we left we drove to Rethymon.

Then lunch.

Read ya later. Pictures cannot do the area justice.

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October 17: Crete At War

I am referring to the second world war but it is more than that. Crete has been under some form of occupation since 1350 BCE. The Greeks followed by the Roman’s, followed by the Saracens, Moors, Venetians , Ottomans and then finally the Germans. They are a resilient people, fiercely proud.

I rented a car here so Dot and I drove down to Souda Bay, which is near Chania or Hania as the c is silent. Here lies over 2,000 allied war dead in the island’s Commonwealth Military Cemetery. It is a silent, emotional and beautiful spot befitting of the ultimate sacrifice of the military men, some women and civilians. Some as young as 19 years of age. SAD! To be brought down at such a young age.

The Germans conducted an airborne assault on Crete in May of 1941. Crete was considered strategic due to German military operations in the Mediterranean and North Africa. The island had  military garrison of about 42,000 strong consisting of British, Australian, New Zealanders, Greeks, some Canadians, Jewish and  handful of non combatants. They were no match for the Germans however who soon overran them. When it became clear that all was lost the allied troops retreated to the southern coast to be evacuated by the Royal Navy. This was Crete’s version of Dunkirk. There is too much to cover here. Google The Battle of Crete or expand the picture below for an overview.

THANKS!

The grounds are maintained beautifully.

Crete is such a grand,magical place.⁹

 

October 16: More On Our Crete Visit

We spent the day exploring the Minoan culture and civilization by visiting the Palace of Knossos and the Heraklion Museum of Archeology. These two places are a must see if visiting Crete. On top of that Heraklion, the capital of Crete, is beautiful in its chaos. It has an historical Harbour, whitewashed concrete or stucco buildings, beautiful fountains and a vibrancy that is hard to describe. Most of the inhabitants that we came across speak English and they are very friendly. Food is fantastic and the Mythos beer is very tasty.

There has been a great deal of speculation as to what happened to the Minoan civilization. Popular consensus states that the massive Thira (Santorini) volcanic eruption and subsequent tsunami around 1600 BCE as the beginning of the end for the Minoans. After these events the Minoans no longer believed their priests and that, coupled with climate changes as a result of the eruption, reduced harvests and growing temperatures. The advent of the Greek Mycenais contributed to their demise. They just gave up.

Another interesting thing about Knossos is that it was home to King Minos and the Greek mythological half man, half bull Minitaur and the Labyrinth. If you were caught in the Labyrinth there was no way out and the Minitaur would devour you. Greek mythological hero Theseus eventually killed the beast.

To end this magical day Dot and I had a traditional Greek dinner in the vibrant city center, on a terrace watching all of the locals enjoying a balmy Sunday evening. Fantastic.

Mythos beer.

More tomorrow. Exploring the island.

Oh, and did I tell you? I love this country.

 

October 15: Crete Greece or Creta

Arrived on the 13th from Faro Portugal via Amsterdam. Dot was happy because she got to tick off another airport on her list.

    Our room is in a boutique hotel not far from the port and city center. Yesterday we spent exploring the old city. We will do a hop on hop off tour today and visit Knossos, the Minoan Palace, which was discovered by an archeologist named Evans. The Minoans were the very first Eoropean civilization that prospered here from 4,000 BCE to about 1300 BCE when they were wiped out by the huge Thira (Santorini) earthquake and tsunami. More on that later.

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