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Our Trip to Greece Part I: Chania, Crete

After spending some time in Greece in 2019, we had a phenomenal experience of visiting historic sites, hiking, and enjoying the Greek culture. This year, it was on my bucket list to travel back to this country to see if the TikTok hype of Greece’s beaches lives up to reality. So, this past August, we embarked on a trip to the Greek islands of Crete, Paros, and Mykonos.

Days 1-3 Chania, Crete: Hikes, History, Olives, Water and Wine

Our time in Crete was split between two hotels around the town of Chania. The three days were at Giorgi’s Blue Apartments, which had a relaxing swimming pool, onsite access to the sea, gave us spectacular sunset views, and was away from the hustle and bustle of Chania.

Some of my favorite memories at Georgi’s Blue Apartments included:
~Waking up to local church bells ringing on Sunday morning.
~Watching fighter jets roar overhead in the morning.
~Night time relaxing on our room’s balcony, sipping on raki and watching airplanes taking off into the star-studded black sky.
~Listening to night-time soft Electronic music coming from the bar area below our balcony, combined with the sound of the sea’s waves lapping against the rocks.
~Watching the pool’s lights at night silently rotate from pink to green in color, as if awaiting a night party to happen in the placidity of its water.
~Hanging out with the cat Pedro, the local whiskered resident who joined us for breakfast.

Giorgi’s Blue Apartments

The entryway to Giorgi’s Blue Apartments.
<alt>Seaside view at Giorgi's Blue Apartments Chania Crete</alt>
The quaint sea cove at Giorgi’s Blue Apartments.
Sunset at the pool. The picture above and also below are cell snaps from our balcony. You can see the sea access close to the pool. Below are people having a placid night swim in the pool.
<alt>Seaside view at Giorgi's Blue Apartments Chania Crete</alt>
Sunset view from our balcony.
A container ship silently floating on the sea at night, the view from our balcony.

Hike #1: Gouverneto Monastery to Katholiko Monastery

<alt>Mountain goats galore around Chania, Crete</alt>
Mountain goats galore in Crete! The above and below pictures depict the hike between the Gouverneto Monastery and the abandoned Katholiko Monastery.
The trail begins at Gouverneto Monastery, pictured above.
<alt>Hiking at the Governeto Monastery Chania Crete</alt>
Same hike. The above is the entrance to Arkoudospilios Cave, which is famous for a stalagmite formation that looks like a crouching bear (below). The goddess Artemis was once worshipped in this cave, according to archaeologists.
The end of our hike; pictures from the abandoned Katholiko Monastery, which is rumored to be the oldest Monastery in Crete, possibly as early as the 6th or 7th century.
Above is the cave of St. John the Hermit at Katholiko Monastery.
After our hike to the Katholiko Monastery, we stopped by Monastery of Agia Triada Tzagarolon. This monastery owns vineyards and olive groves. We sampled some wine and olive oil here in a little cove under the steps.
The wine tasting cover under the monastery’s steps!

Hike #2: Sarakina Gorge

The picture above is a tavern nestled amongst old trees in the town of Meskla. This is where our hike up the Sarakina Gorge began.
Two miles *straight* uphill!
If you look towards the top of the mountain, you will see houses in the town Zourva. We hiked all the way up the gorge to those houses!
The picture above is at the top of our hike in the town of Zourva, looking towards the bottom of the gorge where we began the hike.
Farm animals and their owners share the same residence in Zourva, which is the town at the summit of the Sarakina Gorge hike.
We happened upon a quaint little restaurant called Rizinia Taverna on our hike down the road between Zourva and Meskla. It served authentic cuisine from Crete and had a phenomenal view of the gorge!
“What do you say to them?” The owner asked her little son who was serving us the above dish at Rizinia Taverna.

“Thank you!” her little son sheepishly replied, with a hint of pride because of his proper English vocabulary.

This picture above is of a traditional Cretan dish called Dakos, which is rustic bread topped with olive oil, vine-ripened tomatoes and feta cheese. Delightful!

The World’s Oldest Olive Tree and Local Life

We ended our first few days in Chania visiting the world’s oldest olive tree. Afterwards we enjoyed a seaside restaurant, Almyriki, to enjoy the fresh catch of the day, and watch locals lapping through sea waves during the final hours of the sunset.

The world’s oldest olive tree in Vouves, estimated to be 3,000-5,000 years old.
Obligatory cell snap at said olive tree.
Cell snaps of (above) locals in Stavros wading during sunset outside of the seaside restaurant, Almyriki, and also (below) the catch of the day for dinner, barracuda!

Stay Tuned for Our Trip to Greece Part II: Days 4-6 in Chania, Crete!

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