The Odyssey of Culling Through Photos

Well, I started out planning to write this newsletter as an assemblage of highlights from our recent Greece trip, Of Myths and Moussaka.

By the time I had finished looking through what felt like thousands of pictures, I ended up pulling about forty. That's still too many for a newsletter...or is it? Perhaps for one, but not for two!

Hence I present to you in today's edition: Crete and Crete only.

Crete is not a part of Greece that is frequented by Americans, but it's a beautiful island, filled with history, and charm, along with beautiful mountain and coastal scenery. Its inhabitants are known for their warmth as well as their grit and toughness.

From the Minoans to the Romans to the Venetians to the Ottomans to Nazi Germany, Crete has been controlled by quite a few different cultures over the millenia. All have left their traces.

We spent about a week on Crete as part of an overall Greek itinerary of two weeks. Instead of bypassing Crete, I invite you to enjoy all it has to offer.

CHANIA

The port city of Chania has been one of the economic engines--and one of the strategic points--of Crete for thousands of years. 

The area around the waterfront features an Ottoman hammam as well as Venetian fortifications, but today the main action comes via a busy marina and the restaurants and shops that line the seaside promenade and winding alleyways. There's also a pretty neat little maritime museum that houses a replica Minoan ship that was sailed around the Greek Islands in 2004. The collection includes artifacts of the maritime trade in Chania as well as an exhibit of a ship captain's paintings.

CRETAN COOKING

Since Crete is a larger island with a temperate climate, its agricultural game is strong. From wine grapes to melons to tomatoes and zucchini, Cretan cuisine relies on fresh products. The landscape is replete with olive trees, some of which are hundreds of years old. Did you know that 5% of the world's olive oil comes from this one island!? 

We enjoyed a private outdoor cooking class in the crisp breeze of the White Mountains (after we fed the neighbor's sheep). Lesson learned? A Cretan "drop" of olive oil seems to be more like a quarter cup....

ENDLESS VARIETY

The day we spent crossing the island from east to west (moving our home base from Heraklion to Chania) was filled with adventures and discovery. 

Our first stop was the Arkadi monastery. This was the one of the last holdout sites where the Cretans were resisting the Ottomans. In November 1866, a large Ottoman force besieged the monastery, which was the headquarters of the rebellion. The Cretans fought for two days, and over 900 people, including women and children, sought refuge in the monastery. They chose to sacrifice themselves in the end. The monastery remains a pilgrimage site and a symbol of faith and freedom on Crete, and is today maintained by four Greek Orthodox monks.

Next, we visited the site of ancient Eleutherna, dating back at least three millennia as a city. Today its treasures--those that have been excavated thus far, anyway--are housed in a small but very fine museum. 

At the time of our trip there was a much-heralded special exhibit of certain Picasso works that were inspired by ancient Greek art, mythology, and culture. It was really cool to see his works side by side with the ancient relics (like the two thousand year old minotaur torso sculpture, below) that were so important to Picasso's creative process.

Our third stop was the village of Margarites, historically a center for ceramic production. We visited with a potter whose family has practiced this art for many generations. Giorgios creates at the kiln, his wife decorates the pottery, and his daughters work in the shop.

Finally we were rewarded with a delicious al fresco lunch at the Poliou House in the village of Asteri. On the way into the courtyard where we ate, I spied a small altar with Mary inside.

BEAUTIFUL HIKES

As you can see from the photo at the top of the page, Crete has spectacular but rugged coastal scenery. Inland, too, it's quite mountainous and dense with large trees and other vegetation. 

Mother Nature has carved several impressive gorges on Crete via water and erosion--the most famous Cretan hike is probably the Samaria Gorge, but we chose the less strenuous option at Imbros Gorge. 

Although the entire hike was mildy downhill, the creek bed left after thousands or millions of years of weathering is literally filled with rocks. So while this hike won't leave you panting, it does require careful focus on one's footing, and in order to truly enjoy the surroundings, you need to stop walking occasionally. 

Walking sticks provided by the hiking tour company were much appreciated, and I wore good hiking shoes, but I still wiped out on my rear end after a brief encounter with some smooth but slippery rocks near the beginning!

NEXT TIME: ATHENS AND SANTORINI

I hope you enjoyed this little peek at our time in Crete, and have a new appreciation of a less-traveled Greek island (the largest by far). 

In the next edition, I'll share scenes from Athens and Santorini, the bookends of our fortnight in Greece.

WHAT'S UP WITH THE MON VOYAGE SMALL GROUP TRIP SCENE FOR 2025?

Bravo, Berlin! March 16-23, 2025: Sold out, wait list only 

Irish Country Idyll, May 14-28, 2025: Sold out, wait list only

Gems of Southeast Europe: WHOA!! I checked the inventory and there are ONLY TEN CABINS LEFT on the entire ship for this luxurious late June 2025 river cruise aboard the AmaMagna (the ship I call the Queen of the Danube). The available spaces are on the lower deck (Category D fixed window cabin) or the upper deck (Suite SA and Grand Suite). If you have friends considering this trip, time is running out.

We'll visit countries that spent many decades behind the Iron Curtain, a change of pace from some of the more typical river cruise itineraries. This cruise will surely be both enlightening and educational, in addition to being relaxing and indulgent. Read more here.

One week in Hungarian wine country and Budapest: If you'd like to add a fabulous Hungarian wine tour (and Budapest) after the late June cruise, reservations for this specially curated land extension are very limited. We're staying at a castle. On a vineyard. Seriously. See the brochure here.

You are also welcome to participate in this Hungary tour even without the cruise. 

Wonders of Colombia: Looking for a new destination? How about Colombia's Magdalena River? Join us for this colorful new itinerary aboard the brand new AmaMelodia in late January 2026. Note that there are only about 30 cabins on this ship and two-thirds are already sold out. Take a look at this cruise here.