Monday June 4th - Elafonisi
Time for a long trip again. To Elafonisi, the colorful beach and lagoon at the south-west coast. We took a breathtaking route through the mountains and a beautiful coastal road back. Through some incredible valleys, gorges and even a tunnel we drove through the mountains, and if you look at those old villages you think you went centuries back in time. Very impressive, this is typical Crete! Near the coast we had a look at and in the Chrissoskalitissa Monastry, it was white with turquoise accents and situated on a small hill. On the beach of Elafonisi we only stayed for an hour, for a swim and to wade to the island. It was nice, but was this supposed to be so fairy-like? We were more impressed by the route to get there! But hey, we're not really beach-people anyway;) We had something to eat at a taverna far above the beach, so it had a great view.
This night was the last night we could (partly) spend with our new English friends Anne and Norman. We made some pics, also with Elena and Sakis, and promised to stay in touch and to look each other up some day! We usually saw them at night at Elena's and we were captivated by their silly motor- and holiday stories. It's obvious why we all clicked.... all completely nuts! :)
Tuesday June 5th - Chania
In the morning Norman and Anne left. We went to our beloved Chania, to Roka Carpets, where we would be able to get that booklet of Tony Fennymore that we borrowed from the English. Mihalis of Roka called Tony and arranged for us to get a tour the next morning. We stayed at Roka for 2 hours! He offered us coffee and we talked about how he dyes his own wool with natural materials, weaves on a 400 year old loom and makes carpets etc. in traditional Cretan colors and patterns. With all those colors I could already picture a website haha! Wonderful craft and a very nice man. If you ever go to Chania, visit the store and sit down on the bench near the loom. With his wife Anya we left an order for a pillow case, although it can take a year or so before it's our turn!
Wednesday June 6th - Tony's tour in Chania
We got up early for Tony's tour. We got a privat one!! Because we already knew the booklet, he took us to other parts of the city, among others through the narrow streets above the (now dry) city moat. There are small houses that will have to disappear soon (bad state, no sewer etc), which will be a loss for the city's heritage. The streets are so narrow that you practically walk through people's houses, so he wouldn't take a whole group of people there for privacy reasons. We also visited a Jewish synagoge. Tony was a fascinating guide and a real nice man, a must if you want to learn more about Chania! He was not a guide that rattled off his story, he's a historian and archeologist and knows a lot about the town, its history and the people. We didn't get to hunt for souvenirs anymore and settled on Dionysus' terrace instead for some frapés. At home I finished Elena's watercolor and we went to Kalives to get a frame and passepartout. When we gave it to her, her jaw just dropped and Nico made a picture of her astonished face, priceless!
Thursday June 7th - Aptera - Galatos - Chania
The last day. We drove to the old fortress of Aptera, from where you have a great view over the Souda Bay and Akrotiri. We also drove through the mountains and some villages towards Chania and stopped at a breathtaking viewpoint. Unfortunately it doesn't come across as spectacular as it really was. We went on to Galatos, to visit Areti of Kalamaki Travel/Smart Holidays. It's probably not a usual thing to do, but we had some nice email correspondence and we wanted to tell her in person how great the holiday had been. The afternoon was almost over, so after visiting Areti we drove straight to Chania to meet with Victor and Manos one last time. We also said goodbye to Mihalis and Anya at Roka and of course they didn't let us go for a while. We also made pics for a little Roka corner on the internet.
Friday June 8th - back home
One last breakfast at Elena's and that was it. She gave me a handmade vase! Time to go to the airport. We saw Maria there, who we met at Dionysos. The flight was good, until we were landing. For the firsttime I experienced an air pocket (wrong term, it's actually just a downdraft), I shuddered and my organ of equilibrium wanted to leave my head! Luckily it was only for a short moment. In Brussels we had to wait for our luggage for an hour and we had to search for the spot where the shuttle bus should be. But at 5pm we arrived home. We got the cats back from the Animal Farm and cuddled them for the whole weekend:)
So it was a wonderful holiday! It was much greener, because it was spring, but we liked the west better anyway. And Chania totally stole our hearts! I didn't write much about the evenings, but we spent them at the numerous taverna's in Almirida and Plaka, for long dinners with great Greek food, white whine for me and Mythos beer for Nico. Then we'd usually sit at Elena's café for a bit. The mornings of course started with a good breakfast on the balcony or in the apartment if it was too warm in the sun. We will be back... in Almirida or maybe Chania if we'd be able to hop over for a week or so next year! See ya then!
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