Blogs from Heraklion, Crete, Greece, Europe - page 3

Well that was a very short night! We rested until about 8:30 and then went in search of an internet connection. Found one close to the apartment and I completed our Venice blog, checked emails and searched online to make sure we knew exactly what to do for our flights to Greece. Spent about 1 hour there and then wandered down the street. Heard a lot of singing and clapping so checked it out. It came from a little restaurant so we stopped to eat and join in. Was a great family experience for our last evening. 3 of the servers/owners? were the entertainers. The one man had an incredible booming voice. Such a warm evening so no jackets or sweaters needed even at 10 o'clock! Packed everything up and set out clothes for tomorrow. Set ... read more

Souvlaki, tzatziki, moussaka and ouzo are all obvious reasons to spend time in Greece. The other main drawcard to Greece (in favour of the close runner-up, Italy) were the "Crisis Prices" - a term not coined by us, but by an inordinate amount of souvenir shops in all of Greece's tourist meccas, normally to advertise their sales. Along with the amazing food, we were also excited to explore the pristine beaches and ancient ruins - all on a remarkably small budget. We also managed to time our trip during the perfect overlap of "end of tourist season" (i.e. reduced crowds and even further reduced accommodation prices) with unseasonably warm weather. Most locals we spoke to commented that the weather wasn't normally this sunny and warm at this time of year (October) so we were very lucky ... read more

You always reach a point where you're just done with a country, like you've wrapped it all up and are ready to move on. Today that best explains how I've felt about Greece for a couple of days now. Yes, I enjoy the new places and sites, but I'm sick of classical architecture and ruined palaces. I need pyramids and the tombs of pharaohs now! And if I have to eat another moussaka I might throw up. I need to go to Egypt! That being said, today was a nice, basic day, travelling around my last few sites. Started in the morning with the famous Palace of Knossos, which is about a 15 min. bus ride from Iraklio, and is really the entire reason I came to Crete in the first place. This was probably the ... read more

Today is a full day at sea as we sail ever closer to our next port of call, Heraklion. The clocks went forward 1 hour last night so we are now +2 UK time (BST). The weather hasn't gotten any better. The ship was tossed around quite a bit during the night and the forecast doesn't look that good. I knew I should have packed that sou'wester!! We learned yesterday that there has been a policy change regarding the tips on board. Tips have always been discretionary. Although Cruise companies recommend a daily amount that is automatically added to your bill, this has always been able to be adjusted. Not any more!!! The 'tips' are now referred to as a service charge and is a compulsory addition aboard MSC cruise ships. The rate is €6 per ... read more

Sunday 15th May 2011 Our friends Pauline & Malcolm had very kindly offered us a lift to Larnaca airport - about a two hour journey from Pegeia - and they were picking us up at 1100. We did our final packing and closed the house down. The journey to the airport flashed past as we nattered in the car and the journey only took an hour and a half. Traffic was very light. We had some lunch at the airport before wishing Pauline and Malcolm a safe journey home. We checked in and went through to departures with no hassle. The flight was an Aegean A3 913 to Iraklion, Crete. It turned out that there were only about 25 people on the flight, I haven't been on an as empty plane for years. A pasta hot ... read more