Tag: Heraklion

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A Cretan recharge – day 7

The wind and the sun, or fifty shades of blue

We woke a little worried – the forecast had suggested rain (again!) this morning, but on rising, although the sky was peppered with big grey and white clouds, it wasn’t raining (yet) as we headed out, hopeful in shorts, T-shirts and fleeces (but leaving other coats behind) for breakfast. We chose an indoor setting to eat, and were glad we did as we saw umbrellas open against rain that began to fall. But by the time we had finished, so had the showers, and as the day wore on, the clouds got fewer, and the sun got stronger.

It was a day of wind and sun, which meant finding a sheltered spot and lingering, whether drinking coffee, or eating local pastry delicacies for lunch. We did walk some of the walls of the old town, affording a good view across the roof of the city and to the mountains beyond. Heraklion is not pretty, but it has grown on me over the last 48 hours. Everywhere is better when the sun shines, and today the sun shone and when sheltered from the wind it was very warm in the spring sunshine.

Blue is the colour of Greece, and we enjoyed fifty shades of blue, from sea and sky, to the painted woodwork of classic Greek fishing boats.

The sea, blown by the north wind into a small swell, did not entice me in.

A lone olive tree, against and azure blue sky rising from the infinity of the deep blue sea – the epitome of Greece.

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A Cretan recharge – day 6

And the sun shone …

After a couple of days of rain, and cold, we were overjoyed to see the sun shining and the sky blue, and with no definitive plan in mind, we set off to amble around Heraklion. First stop was, of course, coffee; given the city is on the north side of the island, finding a breakfast spot in the sun was not straight forward, but we did and settled down to sup coffee and soak up so sun and warmth.

We then headed through the city and began to stumble on some impressive buildings, like the Cathedral above, before hitting the (old) city walls, turning right, and heading towards the sea, and we began a pleasant stroll along the sea front. Although the sun was warm, there was a stiff breeze blowing in from the north and although we spotted a good, small, swimming beach, I was not to be persuaded to enter the cold looking sea.

We found this driftwood “boat” that I have called “Dignity”. One of my favourite songs – as much for the wonderful lyrics as the tune – is Deacon Blue’s “Dignity” and it was written in Greece (hence the line ‘sipping down raki’)

And then we reached the old fortress and harbour wall, the latter providing shelter from the wind. It is a long, long (too long in Becky’s opinion) harbour wall, and we walked its length in peace and sunshine, the blue sea to one side if us, blue sky above us, and in places along the wall, murals and art work to break the grey concrete facade.

I also read of how Zeus transformed himself into a bull, seduced Europa, and rode with her down to Crete. She bore him three sons, including Minos, who came to rule the island. The lands above Crete were named for her, and that is why Europe is so called.

The mermaid sculpture at the top of this blog post was found halfway along the harbour wall.

Wandering in the sunshine, it was a lovely way to spend the day.

And I’m telling this story
In a faraway sea
Sipping down raki
And reading Maynard Keynes
And I’m thinking about home and all that that means
And a place in the winter for dignity

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A Cretan recharge – day 5

Happy Greeks, and angry Greeks

Almost as soon as our alarm went off this morning I was booted out of bed. Sent to the door of our apartment, my task was to see if it was raining – thankfully it wasn’t. But in the time it took to shower and shave, rain had begun to fall, another damp day beckoned. We were, of course, disappointed, but all the locals we encountered, whilst sad for us, welcomed the rain , knowing the olives need the water, and the punishing summer to come will be eased with full streams and rivers and reservoirs, so they were all happy.

I bought myself a practical “souvenir” – an umbrellas for 5 euros (Becky, had of course, packed one in her luggage before we left the UK) and found ourselves a warm, indoor coffee shop to while away an hour or so. Whilst sipping coffee and looking out on the damp streetscape in front of us, we heard hollering and hooting, which heralded a hundred or so protesters marching down the road.

Worried that there signs may say “Tourists go home” and that their ire be directed at us, we asked some Greeks in the coffee shop what the protest was about. It was the workers protesting against the government, that wages are not keeping up with the cost of living, that they have endured years of pain following the financial crisis of 2008, and bailout from the EU, but now the Greek economy is growing faster than many in the EU, but wages are too low to live on.

And whilst all flights in and out of Greece were cancelled today by an air traffic control strike, and many ferries and trains also didn’t operate, fortunately our onward travel plans – by bus from Rethymno to Heraklion – were unaffected by the strike (OK, we left circa 20 mins late, but I think that that was just due to traffic) and around 3.30 pm we arrived back in Heraklion and made the 10 minute walk to our apartment just before it started raining again.

We headed back out to explore, but our endeavours were a little half-hearted, thwarted by the rain and cold – which stung even more knowing that back home everyone is enjoying something of a heatwave. Even some very pretty trees festooned with spring blossom did little to lift the mood.

A good meal in a wonderfully warm restaurant did raise our spirits, and there was a little more spring in our step as we walked through the streets back to our new apartment, with plans hatched for what the forecast promises to be a warmer and dryer day tomorrow!

Kalispera!