To back track a little....

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I like to think of myself as very good with directions, travel, getting about and the like. Ask anyone I really can find my way around in foreign places as if I had lived there all my life. However, today I made a bit of a mistake....and now Suzanne and I find ourselves in Foggio, Italy instead of in Rome! Maybe it was the lack of sleep or sheer anxiousness to get there, but there is no going back now and no use worrying - if anything, the gelatto we found here made up for it! We are wasting time in the internet cafe, that also serves as a bootleg cell phone store, until our train to Rome arrives. So I thought I would take a moment and back track, tell some stories I have been neglecting to post.....

The Real Story of Crete (July 24 - 28)

The past four days in Crete were a blur and I felt as if we were there much longer. To start with we went to Chersonissos - a town about one hour east of Heraklion and considered the Cancun for Dutch people. Chersonissos is the perfect example of successful marketing. It is considered a beach town and all the young party people go to the beach, yet it actually had very little sand. Instead there were rocky areas, but terraces and restaurants, bars and pools were built to compinsate. Then they advertise "free admission" but charge plenty for drinks, food, chairs, umbrellas, and the list goes on.

We headed to this area to meet up with my friend Nico, an old classmate from DePaul. Originally from Holland, Nico was headed to Chersonissos for his summer holiday with six of his friends. We had hoped to stay with them, but there was a glich in that plan!
Despite that, the time in Chersonissos was fun. Most of it was spent on Star Beach, which literally looked like a scene from MTV spring break. Music was always balring, the drinks were freely flowing, and the amount of activities were endless - for a price of course. It would not be a place I would normally think to go, but had a great time anyways. The water was crystal clear and cool, and that was all that really mattered to me. It was also the only way to stay cool since the temperature reached over 100 degrees most of the days we were there! The second day on the beach, after hours of suntanning and frisbee, we walked through the main bar area an ended up in a foam party! A bubble machine was spewing foam all over and people in bathsuits were just dancing and rubbing together! The downside to this was that you get soap in your eyes.

Due to the issues with lodging and a want to see more of the island, Suzanne and I decided to rent a car and drive, somewhere, around the island. Nico and his friend Vinny decided to join us. Our original plan was to hike the Samarian Gorge, but due to the heat (that day it reached 110 in the sun!) we decided against it. So driving inland we first went to the Larissa Plateau. Crossing the mountains we had to drive around sharp curves and switch back up and down and up and down. The view was amazing, but Suzanne got a bit car sick. We pulled oer for some fresh air (which was really very hot and not refreshing) and to give our stomachs a minute to stop churning. I went over the hillside to pee and, while squating, was approached by a goat who just stood and stared while I pissed.

After the plateau we went to Agious Nicholaos for a late lunch and quick swim. The difference between there and Chersonisos was incredible - it was like entering a different world. Here we were surrounded by mainly Greek people instead of Dutch, there was no real crowd and everything was much more calm. The next part of the plan was to head to Sitia where we would spend the night on the beach.

We arrived in Sitia just in time to see the sun disappear being the hills and the main part of town. We stolled into town down the main boulevard just meandering until we felt the need for dinner. We ate at a very nice and reasonably priced taverna - one where you knew the food was made to order - and took our time eating in the Greek way; slowly and enjoying every bite. By the time we finished and stolled a bit longer, it must have been after midnight, so we headed to the beach where we planned to sleep. Suzanne quickly retired while Nico, Vinny, and myself played cards, chatted, watched for shotting stars, all the while sharing a bottle of ouzo. Around 4 am we decided sleep was necessary and I fell into one of the best and most solid sleeps I have had the entire trip! We awoke just after 6 am to watch the sunrise. We were all struggling to wake up, but it was worth it as the sun peaking over the hills in the northeast and spread streaks of oarnge and pink across the water.

Our next step was the head to Vai, almost as far NE as you can go in Crete. Vai is known for its palm trees, the only place on the island where they grow naturally. Also you find some of the largest expances of sand, since Crete is a very mountainous and rocky island most beaches are a bit rocky. We were the first people to arrive, other than some morning maintainance crew. We hiked up to the main view point, gazing onto the water and sand. The winds were extremely strong, but it was a good way to wake up in the morning! I continued climbing for a while around the bend, only to discover another smalled beach that was completely deserted - probably due to the lack of umbrellas and chairs, and that some minor rock climbing was needed in order to reach it. I called back to Suzanne and she followed me down to this "secret beach" leaving the boys to sleep in the morning sun. As soon as our feet hit the sand we stripped down and went in. The water was very cool and felt amazing rushing over my skin. It was crystal clear and I could see all kinds of tropical fish swimming around our feet. It was so nice to have a secluded paradise, to actually feel alone for once after our whirlwind tour of large cities.

It wasn't till 11 am that any other people started to show up on "our" beach, but the numbers were so low it was barely noticable. The boys swam around the bend to join us for a while, but we unfortunately had to move on. It really is indescribable how beautiful and peaceful it all was. That morning as we drove towards Vai with the windows down I looked around and realized how happy I was in that exact moment and that exact place.

From there we headed south to see what it was like on the other side of the island. We found it too hot and not very green and lush, though nothing really could compare to the morning we had. So we just drove - Nico doing most of the driving - and headed back to Chersonissos, refreshed from our break from all of the partying.

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