Blogs from Crete, Greece, Europe

Wherever you are in Crete – in the region of Chania, Heraklion or over on the eastern shores in Lassithi -you’ll find an irresistible story of beaches, culture, mountains, valleys, villages, wine routes and people. And somehow, once you’ve sampled it all, it becomes part of your story. With incredible countryside and rich history, there are so many things to do here. The island of Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek Islands, with approximately 700,000 inhabitants - the capital and largest city is Heraklion. Crete, a tapestry of splendid beaches, ancient treasures, and landscapes, weaving in vibrant cities and dreamy villages, where locals share their traditions, wonderful cuisine, and generous spirit. Here is where you will discover centuries-old ways of life, magnificent Ottoman, Byzantine, and Minoan ruins, with an Old Town (in ... read more

That’s all folks, the fat lady has sung, there are no more, mind your p’s and q’s, call it stumps, pack up your marbles and it’s time to go home. And that’s what we are doing tomorrow except home for a while will be Singapore. Last night was souvlaki time. Can you have too many souvlaki? We don’t think so. Here they are different to the wrap we get at home, here are souvlaki are gyros and souvlaki is skewered meat on a stick (our kebabs). It whatever the answer is probably no. They always represent good value, although not as good as gyros that we have paid as little as €3.20 for good ones. The souvlaki is usually about €8 which when compared to my shrimp dish the other evening at €18 works out pretty ... read more

Yesterday was sort of cancelled because I’d had too many ‘metaxas’. With 17 km already walked we thought with only 3 km to go we deserved a quick lemonade and maybe an expresso (read Lipton’s tea for Julie). We got the lemonade, we missed the expresso and we had 6 shots of this metaxa. Fortunately the flavour is pretty good, it’s quite sweet but still scary to be having mid afternoon. The taverna was packed, it was Sunday afternoon, rowdy with banter and people just having a good time but as soon as we were identified as Australian it was on. To compound the situation I drunk one before the compulsory ‘salute/cheers/here’s lookin up your old address’ so I had to pour the next round for everyone. Very convivial and very friendly and absolutely refused to ... read more

We’re walking again. That’s good because less can go wrong when really your well being and comfort are in your own hands. The official start of the trail, and a use that term loosely, is a the village information center. The centre appears to be a front for a couple of hotels and enterprises in the village but that is sort of irrelevant to us. We went there then immediately started to follow the exhaustive set of directions I received from the walking company. There are turn by turn directions meaning in the villages there may be instructions each 10m or so! Over the 13 km today the directions proved very good. Bit frustrating continuously checking the iPad but still effective. The trail is not a circular track, like the Juliana Trail or even a continuous ... read more

You may or may not follow the Frugal Expat. Neither do I, but once in a while, something strikes me. Here are some of her controversial opinions about solo travel. See if you agree or not. Make a big deal about every activity This applies to any kind of travel. Some activities and historic sites will underwhelm or feel like a waste of money. It is nevertheless part of the history and culture of the place you are visiting. I cannot imagine choosing root canal or cleaning the toilet as a better alternative. Some places surprise, and some disappoint. It applies to the new restaurant you tried last night, or that highly touted bottle of wine. No need for a budget When I travel solo, or the fabulous Mr. Mike, I (we) never have a budget. ... read more