Another day, another port; this time Souda near Chania (the 'C' is silent) a town on the north coast of Crete, the largest Greek island due north of Libya.
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| Souda Port, Crete |
This time we disembark for good. Aron had arranged for a "full size" rental car and at the appointed hour, the car company rep stood at the gate holding a sign with Aron's misspelled name. He led us to our 4-door Ford Focus (not our definition of "full size"). We were dubious that four adults and a child in a car seat would fit with all our luggage, but the man was a skillful packer and made it all fit! Some doofus in our group (who shall again remain nameless) had forgotten to remove all the contents of a drawer in her cabin where all the electronic gear, cords, batteries and bluetooth keyboard had been stashed. So there was a delay as we petitioned the ship's security to send staff to retrieve the gear. The doofus hairbrain [*sheepish grin*] expressed relief that at least she realized her oversight before we had driven away from the ship or, God forbid, the ship had sailed away! Perish the thought.
It was after 10 when we finally drove away, headed toward the west coast town of Elafonisi, a popular beach resort area. The drive along the north coast was easy, although there were only occasional scenic vistas of the shoreline. Like most major highways in our country, the landscape was dotted with mundane buildings and houses, not the picturesque kind featured on postcards. This is Greece and there is an economic crisis ongoing, which was in evidence by many half constructed, but abandoned buildings. Without its tourism and export of olive oil, things would really be bad. We would discover later that this area along the north coast was the least appealing of what we saw. Looking at the interior of the island shows dramatic scenery: incredibly rocky, mountainous and arid landscape, similar to parts of the American southwest.
After we left the main coastal highway, we drove along winding, steep and narrow (down to one lane in spots) roads, which made us appreciate that we were not in a full-size American car! Along this interior route, we found ourselves sandwiched between a high bluff and a deep canyon with sheer cliffs and craggy outcroppings. Photos really can't do justice to this landscape, but I captured countless images anyway.
By 2 o'clock we had made our way to the west coast where we dined al fresco (our standard) at a hillside cafe overlooking the beach, a very popular spot--too popular for my taste.
After our Greek lunch, we drove to the beach area, parked and walked to the edge of the crystal clear pale bluegreen water at the quieter end of the sand beach. The water was chillier than I expected, but plenty of people were swimming and frolicking in it. We saw a few people on sail boards, but virtually no power boats.
Soon it was time to make our way to the south side of the island to the village of Myrthios where our rental rooms with a view were located. Taking the slower, scenic interior route, it took several hours to traverse the mountains with photo op pauses along the way.
It was after six before we were settled in our hillside retreat with the million dollar view overlooking the bleached town of Plakias on a quiet cove of the Libyan Sea. The scenic vista was even more spectacular than advertised on the website. I could happily sit here gazing at the sea for the rest of our stay! Perfect weather, constant breezes and altogether relaxing and refreshing. Ahhh...this is living!
Around 8:30 in the evening, we walked a hundred yards or so up the road to the sound of Greek balalaika, guitars and voices emanating from a popular eatery, the Panorama Taverna.
There we spent a memorable evening with a mix of locals and foreigners enjoying the festivities that included impromptu dancing a la Zorba the Greek: a set of steps and kicks moving in a line with arms extended clasping shoulders or waist of the ones dancing next to you. It was country music and line dancing with a Greek twist! Opa! I so wanted to get up and join the line, but did not after a group of German tourists tried and mostly embarrassed themselves breaking a glass in the process.
A satisfying feast and into our second bottle of Greek wine, the manager brought out a medium cruet of Raki, a local beverage similar to Ouzo, but with a milder, slightly less licorice flavor. Aron and Hapny left with Sofie after 10:30, but Carol and I stayed past midnight until the Raki was all gone! Amazingly, the 4 member band played nonstop for at least four hours that we know of! (Are you seeing this Frank and Beverly?) We finally cashed in around 12:30, but the band was still going strong when we left. I'm happy I had presence of mind (something I seem to lack recently) to record some sound and video of the occasion. This night will be on the highlight reel of this vacation!
(This is not the best of the two videos, but it is shorter and not too big. I shot this while we were waiting to be seated. This is before the dancing began....)
One last event for me happened after everyone in our household was asleep. I realized my shoulder bag with all its precious contents was missing! Oh, the horror! I slipped out after 1 am and dashed up the hill to the taverna hoping the place would still be open and my bag still there. In it was my passport, driver's license, three credit cards and all my cash ($300+)! Yes! The taverna was still open, but the music had stopped and the band members were enjoying their meal with friends. The manager and wait staff were also there, but my bag was no where to be found! This was a devastating turn of events. Dejected, I returned to our quarters with a heavy heart dreading the prospect of spoiling the rest of our vacation! Then, voila!! I found the bag, which I had inadvertently stashed in the bathroom when Carol and I returned earlier from the taverna. I was, afterall, a little fuzzy from all the wine and Raki....O frabjous day! I was saved and so was our trip! I must find a way to contain these doofus tendencies! Hoping for the best!
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