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Published: July 15th 2013
Chania market
Has the dignified look of a rail stationA light day. At 10:00 we met Kriton to walk through the market across the street. The need for group interaction immediately disappeared, so he gave us 45 minutes on our own. Shops for daily needs were interspersed with tourist shops. Lots of places sold big packages of herbs and spices. A sample of oregano smelled so aromatic, I fell into temptation and bought both the oregano and thyme. The prices seemed reasonable at €2.90 and €3.50 respectively. Another scarf caught my eye – the selection was wide ranging in this market. This one was woven stripes of many colours with the overall impression of pink to mauve. The cross aisles (Kriton compared the building to a large church) held fish and meat stalls on one side and the local café on the other. The fish looked wholly fresh – glistening.
We walked into the adjacent old Venetian and, in turn, Turkish quarters. Narrow medieval streets, cobble stones, balconied buildings, many shops. One street was for leather shops and smelled rich. Along a ways, Kriton led us into a walled courtyard.
The Light of God Synagogue has a unique story, told to us by a London Jew who visits
Turkish Style
We learned that Turkish style building were narrow and multi-storey with living on the upper floors. twice a year. A New York Jew chimed in at various points if the story lacked details. Essentially, there was always a small Jewish population in Crete; when the Jews were expelled from Spain (1492), more migrated to Crete. (Most went to North Africa.) The building had been a church and was changed to a modest synagogue. During WWII, all but a handful of Jews (in hiding) were put on a ship to the mainland; it was bombed and sunk by the British, unaware of who was on it. After the war, nothing much happened until the 1990s, when the community was re-established through many visitors and a few locals restoring the building. Many different people regard it as a spiritual place, and the Jewish community doesn’t enforce many rules about who comes or how they share in worship. The building is modest but attractive, with the main fittings made of dark, carved wood.
Back through town, Kriton led us to the Venetian ramparts, where the former barracks-then-prison is now the Maritime Museum. The most spectacular treasures were the hand-made models of ships through the ages – all made by one man, each a labour of love. The details
Light of God Synagogue
Beautifully refurnished were entirely accurate and all parts worked, such as the ratchets for sighting the guns. After our tour, the director happened to come in. He and Kriton were so enthusiastic they engaged us too. He showed us the man’s workshop where he makes and assembles all the tiny parts. We saw the WWII photos for the ship he is making now. I also enjoyed reading a magazine article from a London publication – it was so laconic about the loss of Crete in 1941.
John, Nancy and I wanted to go sea bathing, so we walked around the edge of the ramparts to check out the beach. The wind was blowing hard and cold away from the shelter of the port and bay. The beach looked a bit ratty and no one was there, so we abandoned the idea.
We joined Joi, Suzanne and Jean to walk all the way around the harbour to the ramparts on the other side, and to a fish restaurant that served squid stuffed with feta-like, local cheese. A specialty in Crete. We had a rollicking lunch. The cheerful waiter (born in New York but losing his English, he said) drew a couple
Chania Harbour
Classic feel of a well-protected Mediterranean port of tables together so we could sit on the seafront patio sheltered by plastic “windows” – a compromise of outside but not too breezy. I ordered the special – sea bream grilled delicately, served with lemon and Greek salad. We enjoyed white wine and bread (and water). To our delight they served us a “free” dessert - apple slices with cinnamon (common here), cheese-filled filo pastry, and pistachios soaked in honey and heavy syrup ( we had to ask about these one), plus a little carafe of raki.
The others went shopping, but I went back to the hotel by joining John and Nancy on a portion of their walking tour, self-guided from a free map. We followed back streets to some very intriguing sites – no guide to explain unfortunately!
A little snooze, then I reorganized my luggage yet again. This time we need to have an overnight bag for the ferry, plus whatever we need for tomorrow’s bus touring and the first half of the day after tomorrow in Athens. Then I went down to chat with others before dinner at the hotel. This is such a good group that at any time people are either
Street scene
Looking over our shoulder brought this scene to our eyes, lit by the late afternoon sun. gathering or going their own way. No need to plan ahead.
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Isabel Gibson
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Multiculturalism
Boy, we sure don't have a lock on multiculturalism - here are signs of Turks, Jews, Greeks and Italians (yes?). A fascinating melange.