Blogs from Heraklion, Crete, Greece, Europe - page 5

July 26, 2009 Iam sooooo exhausted! All this travelling have really tired me down. So Iam booked at this beach resort called Aeolos Beach Hotel. It is rated 3 star and been recommended by Uniglobe. It is my first time getting out of an airport and waving down a taxi to take me there as there is no shuttle to this hotel and I have no idea how far or how long it would take to bring me there. As I was looking for a taxi, I realized that I had forgotten to exchange money in the Athens Airport, I was so tired that I opted to sleep instead of wandering around. Heraklion airport has no money exchange bureau and the ATM machine does not work! So I asked the Taxi driver if he takes U.S ... read more

Tuesday 5th May Goodbye Santorini........Hello Crete We both awoke several times during the night as you do when the wind is blowing plastic furniture around.While there had been steady light rain yesterday it wasn’t accompanied by wind but this had changed during the night and we opened the shutters at 7am to find a strong wind blowing the palms around and making little waves on the pool we had not got to use. The rain had stopped so after breakfast we decided to check out what time our transfer to the ferry port would be and then factor in an activity for the day which we hoped would be enough time to bus to the northern town on the island called Oia and walk back to Fira along the rim of the caldera.This walk should take ... read more

The Republic of Crete? This is the biggest of all Greek islands and Heraklion is the capital. From the port, it is just a few minutes to the city center where protests or rallies seem to be the order of the day. Our guide warned us about it, while at the same time telling us that we would be heading straight for the Palace of the Knossos before coming back to explore the rest of the capital. Palace of the Knossos This is the most important Minoan site excavated in Crete. Our bus parked in some corner and we walked towards the area discovered by Sir Arthur Evans whose bust welcomes all visitors to this tourist site. A civilization with extensive trade routes as far away as Afghanistan and Scandinavia was found here. The traded goods ... read more

Sunday, 28th December, 2008. We drove down to the town just after twelve and popped into Gecko Bar to say hello. Whilst there we updated the blog. We had arranged that we would watch the Liverpool versus Newcastle football match at Status. Jonnie supports Liverpool and Steve supports Newcastle. Liverpool sadly won 5 - 1. It rained again during the afternoon, and we left the bar shortly after the game finished. We popped into the supermarket on the way back, for a few bits and pieces. Pat then cooked the Bolognaise, made the other day, with some pasta and a Greek Salad. Monday, 29th December, 2008. Very windy overnight. We took a walk into town just before twelve. Pat wanted to see if we could get some of her Asthma medicine. It is available only on ... read more

Wednesday, 10th December, 2008 Another peaceful night, with a good night's sleep. We weren't up too early and sorted out our Christmas email picture. Eventually we left the villa about twelve thirty and headed for Ag Nick. We bumped into Bob the electrician on the way out and stood talking with him for a while. He was telling us all about the utility costs and how things work in Crete, very interesting for us. We parked on the back road we knew from our time being at the Hotel. The Tourist office was shut with a sign saying it would be closed due to the strike. We decided on some lunch and ended up at the restaurant La Casa, which is alongside the sea water lake. We had a kleftika and mixed grill, with a Greek ... read more