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Published: September 22nd 2017
Reminder: the panoramic photos at the start of the blog change every 7/8 seconds and give a larger and clearer image than when viewed with the other photos. Also, there are more photos below the text if you want to skip the diary details; and if you double click on any of the photos you will get an enlarged, clearer, image. You can return to the text anytime.
Sunday 17th September: the transfer from Plakias to Rethymno. This involved very little driving as Rethymno is only 22 miles from Plakias and I knew the route pretty well. Accordingly, we had an easy day in Plakias and although we had to check out at midday we were allowed to stay in the very pleasant central courtyard of the hotel, and make use of the swimming pools, until we departed later on in the afternoon. The drive to Rethymno took us only 40 minutes and we checked into the Marcaris Suites Hotel where we'd stayed 5 months previously; and were allocated a lovely suite on the top floor. Later on we had dinner on the roof terrace only to discover that it was the (barely adequate) Room Service menu that we recalled
View from Macaris Suites Hotel Rethymno
Chania Peninsula in the far west (left) and the Fortezza: Venetian/Ottoman Citadel on the right side of the bay from our April visit. Even so, it's a super place to stay and their breakfasts are excellent, so we don't understand why they can't seem to do good dinners also.
Monday 18th September: not having enough of the south coast of the island, and being too hot to try any mountain walks, we headed back to Damnoni Beach which is just around the eastern headland of Plakias Bay; and probably the nicest beach we know of in Crete. We visited Damnoni on our April visit and the first place we went to this time was the Mesogeious Restaurant which is across the road from the beach and serves some of the best food we've eaten in all our visits to Crete. After a refreshingdelicious glass of fresh orange juice we went on to the beach and rented a parasol and two loungers (€5 for the day) - it was a hot day and we needed the shade. A couple of swims later: a walk along the beach and some light reading and it was time for a late lunch at Mesogeious. Summer salad and vegetable lasagne, with wine for Jane and (a small) draught beer for me. Fabulous, freshly
Kourtaliotiko Gorge
On the way from Rwethymno to Damnoni Beach prepared food, wonderful setting, good service and friendly helpful staff, very reasonable prices = gastronomic Nirvana.Then back across the road to the beach to digest the lunch, then another swim in the clear warm water, more reading, another walk (maybe a brief snooze) and it was 6.30pm and time to leave. Unfortunately we didn't know that Mesogeious closed at 6pm so we were unable to arrange for a take-away, so we called in at a supermarket near our hotel in Rethymno and bought some bread and tomatoes to for supper in our suite rather than face another hotel dinner.
Tuesday 19th September, not broken therefore don't fix or change. So it was back to Damnoni and a repeat performance except that this time we arranged for a take-away at Mesogeious while enjoying another great lunch there. We picked up the take-away meal, green beans in tomato sauce, just after 6 pm drove back to Rethymno and had another quiet evening in the suite before reheating and enjoying the delicious take-away.
Wednesday 20th September, disregarding my previous policy of no changes we headed a bit further east of Damnoni to a place called Triopetra (three rocks), which is mentioned
in the guide book as having a large sandy beach, clear water and a couple of tavernas on the beach i.e. it ticks our boxes. After a very scenic drive there (even by Cretan standards) we found the place to be exactly as described in the guide book. The sea was, if anything, clearer and warmer than Damnoni and the beach was very big, around half a mile long; and with probably around 100 visitors there. So it was another hot, barely active day. The only let down was the lunch at one of the beachfront tavernas: plain salad and average (mediocre) meatballs and chips. We've clearly been spoilt at restaurants in Plakias, Damnoni and in Western Crete. We didn't risk ordering a takeaway so instead we stopped off at a good taverna that we knew of on the way back to Rethymno. On returning to our hotel I had a message from my son Gareth saying that his French grandmother (Meme) had passed away in Bamako (Mali). Very sad news as she was a lovely lady and devoted to her family and especially her grandchildren.
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