Dedicated to Crete

Departure....

July 24, 2009 - Pescara 5:40 departure for Heraklion Crete A new trip begins, a bit sleepy but very excited and above all great enthusiasm from everyone. A smooth flight lasting 1h and 40 and here we are in Crete, our first time on Greek soil Rental car and off to Kissamos, our first destination, the radio plays only Greek music but the continuous singing of the cicadas covers any sound even with the window closed; we arrive more or less at lunchtime and here the owner of the Manolis apartments welcomes us with great enthusiasm and invites us to lunch...we're a bit perplexed but we accept At 14.00 local time (be careful because local time is one hour ahead of Italy) we find ourselves at the table with other Italians, French and Mr.

Manolis who for the occasion has had typical Cretan dishes prepared: stuffed tomatoes with rice, Greek salad, seasoned feta, sausage, rabbit, zucchini and potatoes...all very good but above all the friendliness of Manolis, who offers Greek wine and toasts for everyone Hospitality seems to be one of the virtues of the Cretans and we had the chance to appreciate it

Kissamos: “starting with a bang” destination Balos

without doubt one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen, a unique natural setting where the water takes on the most diverse colors from green, to light blue, from turquoise to deep blue.. getting there isn't easy, or rather if you prefer convenience you can arrive by boat... but we (including my two children) opted for the route by land. You drive along the Gramvousa peninsula, about 12 km of dirt road, in some stretches single-lane and sheer above the sea, it takes 1h but the panorama is splendid, of course you have to hope not to meet other cars; luckily not many are as crazy as we are. Along the way you're accompanied by goats and sheep of every kind and bees, the promontory is in fact full of beehives, and then a pleasant scent coming from various kinds of bushes including a species of oregano.

The road ends in an open area where we park the car, if you don't want to find goats on the roof of your car leave it a little away from the low wall, and we begin the descent (about 20 m... something like 3 km) to be covered on foot, it's not particularly difficult but having comfortable shoes is better. What appears before our eyes leaves us speechless, the only thought is to capture this natural spectacle in photos and of course dive into the crystal-clear waters. A large lagoon with white sand, a very small equipped area and a small tavern, very few people...an unforgettable day ended with a delicious dinner at the taverna da Joanes in Sfinari whose specialties are stuffed cuttlefish, shrimp saganaki and to finish apple fritters with honey Balos won our hearts...we don't know how the rest of the trip will be

Falasarna a few km from Kissamos

today we chose a quieter destination...but what a sight! Before our eyes stretches a very large sandy beach, with several coves, the water is crystal clear and here too it takes on indescribable colors On the shore you notice that in some spots the sand is pink, the sun's rays create a surprising effect. We rent an umbrella and sunbeds..the day is long, in fact we decided to wait for the sunset...on the beach there are mostly Greeks, there aren't many tourists and we stay there between swims and games until the sun goes down. A shower and off we go, here we are at "Sunset" on the hill of Falasarna, under the leaves of a large fig tree we spend our 3rd Cretan evening with souvlaki and moussaka and the inevitable Greek salad Ah! I forgot, every meal ends with Karpùzi (our watermelon) and Raki kindly offered by the taverna owners who sometimes sit with you to enjoy a glass of raki

Elafonissi about 50 km from Kissamos 1h drive

the road crosses the mountains and is very beautiful; of course if you suffer from car sickness you arrive with your stomach in turmoil but what appears before our eyes makes up for the discomfort of the road. And here we are at one of the most beautiful beaches in Crete, natural pools of crystal-clear water interrupted by dunes of very fine sand, sunbathing and swimming accompanied by a light breeze characterize our day On these beaches there are a few more people, the two small bars are a bit crowded but all in all not comparable to our beaches.

Kissamos

this first part of our trip ends here, in fact we leave the apartment and the friendliness of Manolis to head to Plakias in the southern part of Crete. We stop in Chania, a cheerful little town that bears much of its Venetian past, rich in tavernas and small local craft shops, and here we take our leave, do a bit of shopping and enjoy a good Pita with Gyros and tzatziki In the afternoon we arrive in Plakias where Giorgos and Maria await us in their property with a cup of Greek coffee... well unfortunately coffee isn't among the best things... far from our espresso but the property is very nice and clean and they are a very nice couple

Preveli

After a day without the sea we are already feeling nostalgic, and here we are ready for this new beach; different from the others we've seen so far but very special. This beach can be reached by boat from Plakias or from Agia Galini, or you have to drive 7 km by car, leave the car near the monastery and go down the cliff walking about 460 steps. We choose this second option and from the top we can immediately enjoy a fantastic view; the feature of this beach is the presence of the Megàlos Potamòs river flowing into the sea; here you don't need an umbrella to shelter from the sun, you just lie down in the shade of one of the many palm trees on this beach. The sea is splendid, there isn't much sand, there are small pebbles especially on the shore, the water is freezing cold, you can swim in the salt water or in the fresh water of the river...

and then it's wonderful to go up the river along one of the two paths and discover little waterfalls and pools. Actually at first the path is marked but then you walk on the stones; it's not very tiring but it's very scenic. Evening with fish cooked personally by Giorgos

Plakias

Up early and off by car to Hora Sfakion, from where we take the ferry that takes us to Aghia Roumeli, and from here we walk uphill through the Samaria Gorge; it's a really nice walk, a bit demanding, it's best to have trekking shoes and bring some water; at times it's sunny and you can splash yourself to cool off directly from the stream. It feels like being in the mountains! The entire route is 18 km; with the children it wasn't possible to do it, also because they recommend doing it downhill; you'd have to take a bus from Chania that takes you to Omalos about 42 km away, and from there start the descent to Roumeli, where a ferry takes you to Hora Sfakion where the bus that takes you back to Chania is waiting. Well! Another year, Crete has won us over and I think we'll be back soon...

but this holiday isn't over yet! After the nice long hike (about 10 km on foot there and back) we take the ferry again and stop at Loutro, a little village reachable only by boat or on foot... there are no roads, no cars..... It's very romantic, just a few hotels in the classic white and light blue, a few tavernas and a splendid bay of crystal-clear water

Quiet in Plakias

A quiet day on the beaches of Plakias and Damnoni; too bad the wind picked up, but despite everything the sea is always clear and not at all rough. We spend the evening in a taverna in Mirtos that has a fantastic terrace overlooking the sea; we eat well and don't spend much

Matala

Destination Matala (about 90 km from Plakias) This beach is known above all for the caves dug into the sandstone walls and used by hippies. Once we arrive and leave the car in the car park, we follow the sign for a smaller beach, the "Red Beach"; we start climbing a little hill along a path that turns out to be quite rough... actually this hill takes a lot out of us, about 40 minutes of walking under the sun and quite difficult. From the top of this hill, though, the view is fabulous; we stop to look at it and why not, to rest a bit... the bay is very beautiful, here too there is sandstone and the beach takes on colours from red to yellow; the sea as always is fantastic. There aren't many people on the beach and there are quite a few nudists... oh right, I forgot, often on the beaches we've visited so far there are nudists, who don't necessarily have reserved areas....

this too is part of the folklore of Crete For the first time we don't find any taverna on the beach, but in the little village there are several characteristic places, so in the afternoon after leaving the beach we treat ourselves to a cup of ice cream or Greek yogurt with fruit and honey

FrangoKastello

FrangoKastello The name belongs to a Venetian castle built in 1300; next to the fortress there is a beautiful beach with facilities, the water is crystal clear and shallow for about 50 metres A quiet day livened up by the wind, which in the afternoon was quite strong... Evening at Giorgos's, Maria prepared a kind of moussaka for us... delicious! And then into the village to taste kalitsounia (Cretan sweets) and watch a sirtaki show

departure from Plakias to Ierapetra

After the goodbyes and a bit of melancholy we head towards Ierapetra, almost 3 hours of driving await us; in fact we arrive at lunchtime, exactly at Koutsounari, and after taking possession of the new apartment we go to the beach where we grab something quick and enjoy the sea of this new beach, Agia Fotia Now we are still in the south but further east... from here and along the whole east side of Crete a definitely more touristy area begins and, personally, a bit less beautiful. The sea is always clear, the beaches a bit more crowded, music, beach volleyball courts..... more entertainment. We're a bit tired; we ask for directions to a taverna near the hotel and so we go to "Rodos"... the place isn't exceptional but the owner is very friendly, he takes us into the kitchen and lets us choose what to eat and then gives us a little Greek lesson

Chrissi Island

From Ierapetra we take the "Fun Booat" to Chrissi Island An hour of sailing and here we are on this little uninhabited Caribbean island. There are several beaches; after a 10-minute walk (from where the boat left us) we reach one where the sand is white and fine and mixed with tiny shells; the sea is light blue near the shore and turquoise further out. It's hot, there's little shade but the sea is enchanting. The only downside is the boat times; the return is scheduled for 16:00 and we couldn't tour the island, where there is also a small chapel of St. Nicholas.

Evening in Ierapetra; it doesn't seem very characteristic to us, although in reality we didn't explore it much, but along the seafront there are numerous places and lots of people; here too we taste other specialities of Greek cuisine, keftedes (meatballs), saganaki (fried feta), Giemista (peppers, courgettes, tomatoes, zucchini flowers stuffed with rice), tiganita (fritters).

Vai

In the easternmost part of Crete lies Vai, a beach whose main feature is the presence of the largest palm grove in Europe, about 5000 palms. We get there after a little over 1 hour by car, the palms are present right up to a few metres from the shore, the beach is pebbly and very crowded.... buses keep arriving and perhaps for this reason we all remain a bit disappointed. There are, however, other nearby coves where you can be more relaxed and where the sea is, as always, splendid. When we get back to the car from the car park we find a flat tyre, a small mishap that can happen though, considering the condition of Cretan roads. Evening in a "psarotaberna" (fish restaurants on the beach). We dined practically on the beach under the full moon, the place very pretty, the decor strictly light blue and blue, a few lanterns here and there and the dinner very good.

After finally tasting dolmades (stuffed vine leaves), we enjoyed some good grilled fish and fried calamari.

Heraklion

Last day in Crete; we left Ierapetra and headed to Heraklion, the capital city; we visited the port, the central area with the Morosini fountain, the Venetian walls and then in the afternoon we went to Knossos to visit the remains of the palace of Minos. After so much sea, a bit of culture! After resting a bit at the hotel, here's our last Greek dinner

Heraklion - Pescara at 9:20

8:45, we are comfortably seated in the hotel having breakfast, a bit melancholy and convinced that it's 7:45. Suddenly calm gives way to a kind of storm; we casually realise that it's 8:45 and our plane is at 9:20. We think we've missed it by now but we give it a try... I still don't understand how we made it out... we get on the plane and the plane closes the door and leaves for Italy. In those 20 minutes we did everything, paid the hotel, returned the rental car to Europcar and checked in. A stormy goodbye to Crete; unconsciously we wanted to stay so we could keep wandering and appreciate even more everything this fantastic island offers.