Today we made a conscious decision to set aside the tour book, shun the bus station, ignore the beach and relax. We slept in, enjoyed a leisurely breakfast in our hotel’s tiny dining room, and took the rest of the morning to sit in a shaded outdoor bakery/cafe’ and drink coffee and watch the world go by. We created a list of all the things we’ve done and marveled about how fortunate we are. We are happy to be here and be together and have this opportunity. Crete, even Greece, was never on our “to do” list, but we’ve loved it. Life just brought this to us.
We have enjoyed the perfect weather, the beach and the sunshine. Our local beach provides people watching entertainment like I’ve never seen. We have opted for bus and boat tours rather than renting a car because it is so easy and affordable. We hiked the Samaria Gorge in 5 hours and took 300+ photos, stopping once for a water break and once for lunch. The terrain was rough–rocky to man-sized boulders throughout the entire route. After the hike, we devoured a Greek salad and moussaka and enjoyed a swim in the sea at the black sand beach while awaiting the ferry ride back to the bus. We met a fun group of Canadians who entertained us the entire bus ride back. They had killed time waiting for the boat to the bus with pre-celebration of a 40th birthday with plenty of Greek beer. We are still a little sore in the calf muscles from the hike but it was well worth it. I’d do it again tomorrow!
We visited Elafanisi Beach yesterday, the most beautiful beach we’ve ever seen. The water was crystal clear, aqua blue and shallow—perfect for swimming. One beach was coral or pink sand and the next was a black sand beach. There was a huge lagoon with bath water temperatures, perfect for wading to the sand dunes on the other side. We walked and waded and swam, making our way from one beach to another. Huge lava rocks jutted out of the sea and tiny clear fish swam by our legs. There was never a time that we couldn’t clearly see the floor of the sea and it was surreal enough that the fish swimming by me didn’t freak me out.
Crete has much history and we spent an entire day visiting museums and cathedrals. The old town is charming. We love our small “boutique hotel,” which is much like a bed and breakfast. The food here is indescribably delicious. Tons of fresh vegetables and herbs in fine olive oil, oven baked meats with lemon sauces, served with fresh Cretan wine and freshly baked bread is an all-round winer. We haven’t had a single meal that we didn’t love.
We have enjoyed our day of rest and reflection and now we are headed out to enjoy another fantastic dinner. We are slowly adjusting to dining at a proper Greek hour. We try not to go out before 8:30. Even then, we are always the first table. I think BF and I are the only Americans on this island. When we do overhear English, which is seldom, it is with an Australian or British accent.
Our day of rest was appreciated, Tomorrow is Balos: Bus, boat, beach.