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Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Trip Report: Low Key Greek Easter in Crete

Hello!

Last I left off, I was still in Kefelonia, catching a flight from Argostoli in Kefalonia to Chania, Crete. Turns out flying in Greece is my least favorite mode of transportation, thus far. There are really no direct flights between the islands… all of them connect through Athens. And the flights were less than an hour each. There is the time you get to the airport and check through security and then some times connecting flight delays and changing gates. So if there is an available ferry, I don’t know if it really saves that much time or stress. I just prefer bus or ferry travel, as once you are on, you are good. But I made it to Chania, a little later than expected but it was easy to catch a bus from the airport to the city. 

Little snafu at my hotel, as they sent me the wrong check in instructions, but checked in. The hotel is right in Old Town, a block from the Harbor lined with restaurants overlooking the Venetian lighthouse and temple turned mosque when the Venetians lost to the Ottoman Empire in the Cretan War. I make it for the tail end of sunset. The old town is nice to stroll around the narrow streets full of colorful shops, stonework, and food, and very busy as many Greeks come to the islands for Easter or come back to home villages. 

I, of course, wake up early. Greece is not a place for early risers and the streets are pretty much empty. Sit on the harbor and enjoy sunrise before more wandering about. Have a Greek coffee at a shop with a Greek man from New Jersey who came for a regular visit about four years ago and the morning of his flight decided he just wasn’t going to return. He built a house on the sea and happily lives here now. He invited me to an Easter lamb feast at his friend’s house, but I won’t be in town. But everyone says Sougia is beautiful and relaxed, so I am looking forward to it. I then follow the sounds to the church, which is very busy on Good Friday with bells and song and large Greek crowds. I pick up some groceries, as I am not sure what will be open and within walking distance of the village for four days. But I am fine eating olives, meat, and cheese for days! The woman in the grocery store shows me the old exposed stone wall as well as the remains of a lion carving that are just part of the store! Thousand year old relic in the crackers and tinned fish aisle? Sure! Why not! I head back to the bus terminal around 1pm after a fresh Greek salad to offset all the different cheeses I have been trying (there are some wonderful goat’s milk and sheep milk cheeses in Crete). Well, okay… maybe there was a huge hunk of fresh feta on the Greek salad so didn’t totally offset all my cheese consumption. And off to Sougia (pronounced SooYah, which much like all Greek words, I have been pronouncing incorrectly). 

The bus system in Crete seems efficient and wider reaching than other places, even in low season. The ride winds through the mountains, a few which can be seen from Chania to still have snow. Everything is so green with wildflowers and blossoming fruit orchards of oranges and lemons (which give way to olive trees at higher elevations). There is plenty of sheep and goat farms with occasional goats on the side of the road. I am still not sure how it escaped me how CUTE baby goats are, but they are so adorable and plentiful in Spring. 

My AirBnB hosts meet me as the bus pulls in to Sougia to give me a ride up in to the mountains to their guest house in Lividas, a village of supposedly 14 people in the white mountains. It is a lovely spot with a large, west facing terrace overlooking the mountains. The hosts occupy the back part of the house and there is a sweet cat named Cleopatra that has a cute, squeaky meow when she wants attention, but then she doesn’t like to be touched. But she loves lounging next to you or in her stone bed in the sun. It is the husband’s family house, the top floor is empty as it was damaged during WWII. My room is great and so cute with a fully stocked with coffee, tea, local thyme honey, thick olive oil, and more. They greet guests with homemade chocolates and mastica ice cream and it is delicious! There is a small church across the road with fresh spring water that the hosts say is okay when boiled for coffee or tea. I wander the road for a bit and head back. The hosts tell me they are cooking an early Easter supper for the French family that is checking out the next day and they each chipped in 15 euros if I want some. Sure! The French family doesn’t even say a word to me as they eat on the terrace next to me, but the hosts take great care of me. Greek salad with fresh myzithra cheese, bread and tzatziki, grilled veggies and lamb with dessert. The hosts keep apologizing for having to charge me, but it is well worth it and I totally understand. Plus, it is way more than I can eat and they tell me to put the leftover in my fridge. It is all fantastic dinner with a sunset view over the mountains and faint clanging of bells as the sheep and goats wander around the mountain. It is so peaceful as the only noise is from bleating goats and sheep with their bells. I reluctantly head to bed. 

The host wants to make me Greek coffee and treats in the morning, but I get up early for Greece and let her know it is okay as I plan to head out on an all day hike. She is such a mom and says that I have to tell her where I am going and to send her messages since I am alone. It is very sweet. I head down the road for a bit before taking the hiking path down to Sougia (part of the E4 European hiking trail). It supposedly takes about 45 minutes, but is takes me hours! Partially because I am not a goat and step carefully on the loose small rocks so I don’t slip or turn my ankle and partially because I am looking at everything, cooing at every baby goat and sheep, and taking pictures. There is a wild goat here called the Kri Kri and I am hoping to see one. They have huge curved horns and are thought to have been imported during the Minoan civilization times. They are considered rare and endangered, and are elusive and shy around humans. They now only exist on mainland Crete high up in the White Mountains. My hosts say they can sometimes see them at the top of the mountains. So I was looking at the top of the mountains for one along my hike and saw movement and then long horns. Then saw a smaller one next to it… a momma and her young one! Not great light for a photo, as it was backlight, but enjoyed watching them until they disappeared and I continued my hike. But as I rounded a corner, there they were, crossing about 100 yards in front of me! We both stopped and looked at each other briefly before they darted off. Got a few photos and hope at least one turns out!! Also along the trail is a huge stone property full of all kinds of animals (peacocks and deer, along with the goats and sheep,) which later my hosts tell me belongs to a rich local doctor who must also love animals. 

I finally arrive in Sougia and stop for a coffee and to pick up a bottle of water. It is a good day for a long hike as it is somewhat overcast and breezy. I head out on the path to Lissos, site of an ancient city, now uninhabited. It supposedly takes about 90 minutes to get there and there is sometimes a water taxi back, but the sea is pretty rough today and I don’t see it running. The trail first heads down through a gorge. There is the sound of bells and goats appear on the rocks above me. Occasionally, I am passed by a Greek family out for a group hike. Then the trail climbs back up and there is a beautiful meadow plateau of wildflowers. It smells so good! After walking through the meadow, I reach the viewpoint for Lissos. I had every intention of continuing the trail down in to the valley to visit the town, but the clouds are starting to look a bit ominous and I worry about making it back through the gorge if it really starts to rain, as I am unsure about flash floods. And I am getting tired so the thought of hiking back uphill out of the valley is not appealing. But the viewpoint at least gives me an idea of the ruins, including an amphitheater and temple. I stop in Sougia for some stuffed grape leaves before the long uphill trek home. 10.5 miles, some up hill and I didn’t even get lost and have to test out the theory I had heard that if you are lost, just follow the goats or sheep because they will always lead you to a village. 

When I return, my host has made some Easter stew called magiritsa with lamb offal (intestines, heart, and liver) with lemon, rice, onions, and pepper. She explains that the week before Easter, no meat, fish, or eggs are eaten. After late night mass, this traditional stew is eaten for the first meat after Lent. The flavor is delicious, but there is a lot of offal I it and I will admit I may have snuck Cleopatra some that I couldn’t finish, as I didn’t want to offend my hosts. She also has delicious homemade traditional Easter butter cookies straight out of the oven and eggs dyed red. My hosts head to the Easter Mass in Sougia around 9:30pm and I am absolutely exhausted and head to sleep. 

I wake up for Greek Easter and the husband has homemade pastries with a delicious cream filled one dusted with powdered sugar and cinnamon. He is an excellent baker! There is also a red Easter egg for breakfast. The morning has a bit of a chill and I am still a bit tired from yesterday’s hikes. My allergies are also kicking up here from everything in bloom. So I get a later start and head to the nearby village of Koustogerako. The village trails are faster then the road so I take it up the mountain. This trail is less clear and I often find myself in what appears to be goat or sheep pastures. At one point, I have to get through a herd of sheep and they seem a little like they want to charge me (lots of moms and babies). I back away and make my way very slowly and as non-threateningly as possible. I make it to the village, which is slightly larger than the one I am staying in but also very quiet. I have a coffee at a cafe where people are hanging out and they invite me for beer, ouzo, and/or food. But my hosts are saving me a plate of their Easter lamb and veggies, like my first meal at their place. I wander the road back, so as not to piss off the sheep again. I check out the WWII memorial. The village is so high up that the birds of prey (golden eagles, peregrine falcons and vultures) seem to fly right past you at cliff edges, at times. I make it back to a plate of Easter food that my hosts kept warm for me. More delicious local lamb! There are occasional fireworks throughout the day and Sougia has the bigger roast lamb on a spit celebrations (but my belly is already happy and I don’t want to walk all the way down and try to catch a taxi at night). 

The next day I have a delicious homemade cheese pastry drizzled with local thyme honey that was the BEST. Like, I may dream about it for years to come. I leave tomorrow and it was warm and sunny, and the guesthouse had a washing machine to use for only 5 euros for a big load. I clean pretty much all the clothes in my backpack and hang them on the line to dry, lazing about on the terrace with Cleopatra and reading my book in the sun. I enjoy sunset as the goats and sheep run past the terrace and the bagazillion night stars, as the only real light is a few twinkles from small villages across the mountain. 

I get up early and Cleopatra hears the door and comes running to greet me and squeaks her little “hello I need attention”. I finish last minute packing and enjoy the husband’s homemade chocolate pie that they delivered while still warm out of the oven the night before. My hosts offered to drive me back to Sougia to catch the 7am bus and Cleopatra runs to the car to say goodbye. Such sweethearts, all of them. 

The bus back to Chania takes about two hours, so I arrive a little before 9am and buy a moon bus ticket to the airport for my 2:30 flight. The bus station has luggage storage for 3 euro and I drop my big backpack before heading back to wander Old Town again. Meet up with the Greek nice man from New Jersey who tried to convince me to stay and go fishing with him after he gets off work, but after all the work I put into flights and ferries and buses that only run at certain times a week, I sadly have to decline. 

Then, my travel day turns stressful, which is what often happens and why I generally hate travel days. We board the flight late and then are told we can’t leave because Athens is too backed up. So then we just end up sitting on the tarmac until we get the go ahead from Athens. I land five minutes before my connecting flight to Karpathos (the only flight of the day). And the airport is a mess with tons of people that missed connecting flights. I thought by leaving two days after Easter, I might avoid this. I was clearly wrong. Luckily, the Karpathos flight was also unable to leave on time so I made it, as miraculously my bag did, too. But the stress of it all to literally go two islands over and then having to take a taxi to my hotel 10 minutes away that they charge 30 euro for left me a bit annoyed. Taxis here are horribly overpriced and the buses on Karpathos don’t run in the off-season. I had picked Amoopi as it was closer than Pigadia AKA Karpathos Town but apparently the taxi rate is the same for both. And Amoopi, while smaller and on a nice beach is pretty much still closed up until busy season, so there are no restaurants or stores or anything open. Oh well, planning error. But the room is nice, the bed is comfy, the family seems nice, and there is a purring little kitten that wants all my attention, so it isn’t all bad. In hindsight, I should have taken the 5 hour ferry trip that would have been longer on the bus tomorrow in Crete, but dropped me at the final destination I wanted in the same or less amount of time. But the ferry system on this route has bee In limbo and schedules weren’t finalized until a little over a week ago, which could have also left me scrambling. I swear, Greece transportation planning is worse than any other country I have ever been to. Oh well, I am sure when I wake up tomorrow morning, things will be better! Trying to get to the other side of the island by tomorrow night, without taking a stupid taxi and no running buses. But I have a plan that fingers crossed, will work. 

Love,
Betsy

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