Well we made it to Tuscany! Before I give details I'll go back to where I left off when we were off to the Crete Botanical Gardens. The botanical gardens are located where the oldest olive orchards in Crete (oil) were and they lost 60,000 trees in a fire in 2004 (400 year old trees). They decided to create this beautiful garden in its place. We started the day with the most amazing meal at the garden's restaurant and shared three different specials. This was one of the best meals we had in Crete. They use many of the products grown right there. At the end of the meal, there was the traditional food gift and in this case it was the most beautiful plate of fruit (figs, blue lilly pilly, fresh gogi berries, oranges, grapes, Suriname cherries) and then we paid our 5 euros received a frozen bottle of water each and started out trek into this stunning garden. Most of the plants are also grown in Hawaii so it was fun to recognize many of the trees and bushes.
The next day we drove around in the morning and looked at the beaches that were quite close to Chania Town to the west and then returned the car. The beaches all have the traditional umbrellas and lounge chairs for rent. After living in Hawaii the beaches were pretty unimpressive.
One of the things that struck me about Chania was the transition between town and city is so quick. When we walk over to the bustling city to grocery shop in the produce store, the bakery, the grocery store, it is a big city with traffic all over the place and people filling the sidewalks. The pace of the world changes dramatically when you walk a few blocks into Old Town with the meandering alleys and little old ladies dressed in black sitting in chairs watching their very small world go by.
On October 9th we woke up and Randy had not really turned 60 yet as it was still October 8th in Hawaii, but we decided to celebrate anyway. We started out with a breakfast at our favorite waterfront restaurant, Porto Veneziano, which is a small hotel and exquisite. They had a delicious buffet for 10 euros that included cappuccino, espresso, and everything you would want for a breakfast (fresh oj, local cheese and olives, goat or cow yoghurt, fresh breads, pasteries, eggs, wild sage honey, etc.), then walked over to Dr. Fish. Their slogan is "For once, you're the fish food!" Just to give you an idea of what I'm talking about, there are two or three of these shops on every block on Crete. They have tanks of little fish which eat the dead skin off of your feet. Susan and I dangled our feet in a tank each (it tickles) and Randy received a birthday pedicure by a charming young Greek woman. We walked home for a lunch of baklava and then headed back to the harbour for a sailing trip with Captain Nick. BTW both Dr. Fish and Captain Nick were number one on TripAdvisor, deservedly so. Captain Nick has a glass bottom boat and took us on a two hour cruise with people from Finland, Prince Edward Island, Argentina, etc. (Crete has 85% of their tourism from Scandinavia). We sailed out to Thodorou, the nature reserve island where the wild Kri Kri goats are being protected. Susan and I went for a swim (we started out snorkeling but we're from Hawaii so it was ....). The water was clean and clear and really quite warm. Captain Nick found an octopus and put it on our shoulders so Randy could take a picture. It was pretty exciting to be swimming in the Cretan Sea in the Mediterranean. We safely returned to the harbor, made our way through the alleys back to the house to rest and get ready for dinner. Another number one on TripAdvisor, Chrisostomos, which was so ono we were giddy eating. Susan and I had lamb and it was bar none the best lamb either of us had had in our lives. Randy had delicious goat. Both slow cooked in their wood-burning oven. The bread was unbelievable!!! We kept trying to get the other patrons to join in our pleasure. They were a serious group and probably thought we were annoying, but we didn't care. Besides it was a very important celebration!
The next morning we walked up to the car rental agency and rented a car for the last two days. We had a bit of a late start and headed out to see the most beautiful beach in Crete and some people say in all of Europe, Elafonissi. This was the beach that we had been searching for at the beginning of our trip and couldn't get there from where we were. This time we took the coast road and twisted and turned our way south through a road that changed from one to two lanes at random with amazing views all the way to Elafonissi. We parked at the beach, walked down a short boardwalk and rented three loungers and an umbrella. We took a tasty picnic lunch, enjoyed the scenery, Susan and I swam in the warm Libyan Sea, Randy enjoyed conversing with the money collector and it was a blissful afternoon with the pink sand. We walked out through the shallow water past the lagoon and swam in the ocean as well. I had asked the money collector if there was another way back to Chania Town as the trip there had been a little more adventuresome than I like and he had suggested going through the greenest part of Chania (Chania is a town and a prefecture (like a County - there are four prefectures on Crete). This route was the way the locals went home so I imagined it would be less harrowing and faster. WRONG! Talk about adventure. The main highway is partially closed for work so this is a temporary detour. We were aware of the closure but didn't expect the experience of narrow roads, twists, steep ups and downs, goats, rocks, potholes, little teeny towns where you are driving a few feet from the houses on either side. We slowly made our way, changing juxtaposition with a few cars as we headed for Chania Town.
Now, the claim to fame of Elafonissi is the only time where TripAdvisor steered us wrong. We certainly enjoyed our day, but there are several beaches on Kauai that rival Elafonissi. We discovered the most beautiful beach that any of us had every been to on our last day in Crete. Balos Beach rivals The Beach in the movie. There are very few ways to describe this magical place. This last day made the fantasy of Crete become reality. It has shallow waters, the sea is warm with bright blue and turquoise, every shade of blue imaginable and then some, pink hued sand. What word describes breathtaking with heavy breathing? There is a trick to Balos though. The average person would take a ferry and arrive in the early afternoon with hundreds (thousands in the summer) of other people. The adventurous would take the car on a road that some claim need four wheel drive (obviously have never driven to Mahaulepu in a Porsche). We headed out early down along the north coast, the same way as the day before, stopping for the most scrumptious pastry on the way, turned up a peninsula, drove through a town (estimated population of ten), paid our two euros each, and drove down seven kilometers (about 5 miles) of dirt road along the coast, parked (we were car number four) and started the "twenty minute" trek. Probably more like forty after talking to the goats, listening to the chimes from their bells, and suddenly reaching a point where you are overlooking the most incredible beach you can imagine. We walked down hundreds of uneven stone stairs, snapping pictures the whole way, and arrived at the beach. Some of the staff were walking down with us and we picked our place while the loungers were being set up under the umbrellas. The water is shallow and warm and colorful. Hawaii's ocean color pales compared to this sight. I just hope we captured it in our pictures (to be posted soon). We enjoyed the day, ate (left-over) lamb sandwiches, drank wine, bought beer at the taverna and just walked around, swam and did what we envisioned in our dreams of Crete before the reality. Now, with a lighter load and after the large ferry kissed the shore so the hundreds of "ants" could descend upon us by walking off a gangplank. It was pretty interesting to watch a ferry come so close to shore that people could actually walk off to the beach. They were in the distance. About 2:30 we decided that most of the cars would be heading out as there were parts of the seven kilometers that would be interesting to say the least if passing on the road was necessary. We started our walk up which was reminiscent of the Battaan Death March we experienced with Reg and Sarah in Santorini in 2001. I've got to say we three old goats did pretty well and even some of the young'uns were having their own challenges. When we reached the car there were at least a hundred cars left in the parking lot. What an amazing day! We drove home, packed, ate a dinner made up of some of the wonderful items in the fridge and headed back to our favorite little hotel to have a drink of Ouzo and toast our 12 night adventure on the island of Crete and anticipate the week in Tuscany.
Now, I've rambled long enough so I'll fill you in on Tuscany soon. We LOVE the house, the awe-inspiring scenery, the little town and in some ways wish we had stayed here the whole time, but then I wouldn't have had the adventure to share of Crete.
By: Linda Sylvester
