Peeking outside our little box

“I’m both a Cretan and a Greek”

Posted on by Jules & Verne
Reading time 7 minutes

“I’ll have a Greek Salad, please”, I asked. “How about a Cretan Salad instead?”, replied the waiter. “It’s a Greek salad with extra vegetables, a dash of herbs and our own goat cheese”.

Rethimno’s old Venetian town (16mm, 1/60s, f1.4, ISO 1250)
Chania’s old harbour (16mm, 1/1600s, f1.4, ISO 200)

Cretans, much like their culinary interpretation of a salad, are Greeks with a twist. The island’s rather unique path through history certainly has something to do with that.

More than 5,600 years ago, the island of Crete birthed the Minoans. Minioans were highly literate and Europe’s first advanced civilization, but these days they are best known for the legend of King Minos and the Minotaur labyrinth. As advanced as they were, the Minions were eventually overrun by the Mycenaeans, the first ancient Greeks.

Phaistos ruins (16mm, 1/23000s, f1.4, ISO 200)
A welcome shade near the Phaistos ruins (16mm, 1/300s, f5.6, ISO 200)

Long after that, just a few decades before the birth of Christ, came the Romans, taking more than three years and heavy losses to conquer the island. When the Roman Empire collapsed, Crete became part of the Byzantine Empire, the Eastern portion of the once great Roman Empire that still endured. The Byzantines ruled over Crete till the beginning of the 13th century (with an interlude in the 9th century when the island was conquered by the Arabs).

Agios Titos Church, Heraklion (16mm, 1/400s, f8, ISO 1250)
Agios Titos Church, Heraklion (16mm, 1/60s, f1.4, ISO 250)

Next came the Venetian Empire. At that time, the Venetians were a powerful force that extended far past a sinking city. They ruled Crete for over 400 years, and their fortifications can still be seen throughout the island.

Chania (35mm, 1/125s, f2, ISO 200)
Venetian fortifications, Heraklion (16mm, 8s, f13, ISO 200)

In 1669 Crete fell over to the Ottoman Empire. The religious and cultural tensions between Greek Orthodox and Muslims endured for centuries, eventually leading to the creation of an independent Cretan State in 1898. It wasn’t independent for long, as in 1908 Cretans unilaterally declared they were now part of Greece. The Greeks were not entirely convinced but eventually warmed up to the idea and formally welcomed Crete to the Kingdom in 1913.

Heraklion’s old Venetian harbour (16mm, 20s, f3.2, ISO 200)
Heraklion’s old Venetian harbour (16mm, 1/14000s, f1.4, ISO 200)
Venetian Loggia, Heraklion (16mm, 1/40s, f1.4, ISO 6400)

Today’s Cretan rich culture and architecture show traces of all these civilisations. It’s also a large and economically important island (Heraklion is Greece’s fourth largest city) that lives off from much more than just tourism. If you’re still not convinced it’s a worthy visit, there’s also plenty of spectacular beaches and mountains.

Kalathas beach near Chania (16mm, 6.5s, f14, ISO 200)
Stavros, near Chania (16mm, 1/8000s, f1.4, ISO 200)
A secluded beach only acessible by jumping off a cliff, Agia Pelagia (16mm, 1/400s, f5.6, ISO 200)
Kalathas beach near Chania (16mm, 1/160ss, f5.6, ISO 200)
Old sea salt production in Stavros, near Chania (16mm, 1/350s, f7.1, ISO 200)

Probably the best way to get to know Crete is to rent a car. If you’re brave. Apparently sidewalks haven’t been invented yet, so many streets are filled with pedestrians with no other option than to walk in the middle of the road. Double white lines have been invented, but seemingly for aesthetic purposes only: when driving on the roads that connect the island’s towns, stay well to the right.

The sketch below depicts our voyage through the island. My mom gave me a sketch book for my birthday, convinced I needed to improve my drawing skills. Clearly she was right.

Our path through Crete (35mm, 1/350s, f5.6, ISO 200)

Heraklion was our first stop, fresh off the boat from Naxos. It’s not a beautiful city by any stretch of the imagination, but it feels authentic. People are as diverse as the architecture. Local Cretans going on with their lives, Greek mainlanders on holidays or working the high season, tourists from all over the world.

Heraklion (16mm, 0.8s, f.14, ISO 200)
Heraklion (16mm, 1/12000s, f.14, ISO 200)
Docked ship at Heraklion’s old harbour (4.15mm, 1/600s, f2.2, ISO 32, iPhone)
Agia Pelagia, near Heraklion (16mm, 1/400s, f9, ISO 200)
A couple takes refuge from the weekend beach crowds at the Agia Pelagia harbour, near Heraklion (16mm, 1/350s, f8, ISO 200)
Shadow puppet show on a warm Saturday evening, Heraklion (16mm, 1/60s, f1.4, ISO 640)

Rethimno (or Rethymno or Rethymnon or Réthymnon or Rhíthymnos, depending on who you ask) is a costal town 80 km (50 miles) east of Heraklion. The old Venetian fort and alleys are beautiful, but the modern part of town is overwhelmed by restaurants and souvenir shops. The beaches closest to town are a cacophony of beach chairs and bouncy castles, however you won’t have to walk far to find the nearly empty beaches where turtles come to bury their eggs. If you manage to wake up at 5am you just might see the baby turtles hatching their eggs and marching off to the sea (we didn’t manage to wake up at 5am).

After: A plane crosses the Milky Way, Crete, Greece (16mm, 20s, f1.4, ISO 640, PPL2-Enhanced)
Rethimno’s old Venetian harbour (16mm, 0.5s, f1.4, ISO 200)
A shielded off turtle nest, Rethimno (16mm, 1/16000s, f1.4, ISO 200)

Another 70 km (43 miles) west lies Chania. Its Old Town is often considered the most beautiful district in Crete, and rightly so. The old Venetian lighthouse and harbour are mesmerising at sunset, but be prepared to fend off a profusion of selfie sticks.

An old lighthouse Fresnel lens, Chania (35mm, 1/40s, f2.5, ISO 400)
Old Venetian harbour, Chania (16mm, two exposures, 1/150s@f3.2 & 1/200s@f5.6, ISO 200)
Camera pointing at the wrong direction, Chania (35mm, 1/180s, f5.6, ISO 200)
Old Venetian harbour, Chania (35mm, 1/17s, f4, ISO 800)
Old Venetian harbour, Chania (16mm, 1/420s, f8, ISO 200)
Chania (16mm, 20s, f9, ISO 200)
Stavros, near Chania (16mm, 1s, f8, ISO 200, 9-stop ND filter)
Jules at Chania’s lighthouse (16mm, 1/60s, f1.4, ISO 320)

The southern coast of the island is much less developed than the northern one. Getting there is a narrow and winding affair, but the amount of tourists decreases with every turn of the road.

Agia Galini (16mm, 1/420s, f7.1, ISO 200)
A drink by the beach (16mm, 1/4000s, f1.4, ISO 200)

Our final stop was in Zaros, a mountainous region dead center in the island. Best known for its spring water (you’ll find bottles of Zaros water anywhere in Crete), it is one of those well kept secrets with half a dozen Bed & Breakfast places and an equally small number of visitors.

Zaros lake (16mm, 1/210s, f5.6, ISO 200)
Zaros lake (16mm, 1/125s, f5, ISO 200)

The island was the wrong one, and so was the country. Slung over my shoulder I had a camera instead of a rifle. Still I felt like a young Corleone in exile while walking those lonely hills.

Zaros mountains (16mm, 1/280s, f5.6, ISO 200)

 

Verne*

56 thoughts on ““I’m both a Cretan and a Greek””

  2. Thanks for the tour! Great photos. Did you see any caves, perhaps the one where Epimenides reportedly slept for 57 years? As you know, Epimenides was a prophet of Zeus whose words and work are mentioned 3 times in the Biblical New Testament.

    Like

    Reply

    1. Thank you for reading Malik! Do let us know if you end up going to Crete, there’s always so much information and photos we have to leave out, as do not risk boring our readers to death 🙂

      Like

      Reply

    1. Thank you Yvonne! Writing about a place after spending hardly a week there is risky, so it’s great to hear from someone that not only lives in Crete, but also writes about Crete. Just added your book to my Goodreads list 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  12. Crete was a fun place to visit . It very much own world and yes everyone says that they are Cretan ! I used to live in fishing village called Agia pelagia , thats about 30 min by bus from Heraklion . And also went to Hippie festival to Matala ! I loved it . I still can not believe that In Matala used to live hippies in the caves , thats just mad ! https://parrotfishjourney.com/2016/08/29/i-went-to-matala-beach-festival-hippie-movement/

    Like

    Reply

      1. I so agree. I got lucky and met some hippies from good old days . Last generation of real hippies ! Really something . And Agia Pelagia is lovely , very nice and relaxign and locals are so lovely with many different trades

        Liked by 1 person

  16. I’m walking part of the E4 in Crete at present. So lovely, not a tourist in sight. Wonder if we meet one day. I was in London when Brexit happened and so were you…..visit me in Australia! Ursula

    Like

    Reply

    1. Ah, Crete! Wouldn’t mind at all being there right now. We were there in August: there were definitely other tourists in sight, but nonetheless an incredible place. I hope we do meet: we’re in the early stages of planning a trip to Australia. We were there once, but that big lump of land is too vast to visit in just a couple of weeks 🙂

      Like

      Reply

  17. Always so happy to see Crete. I spent one of if not the best month of my life driving my Peugeot around it and sleeping outside. I wrote about it on my first blog (I’d add the link but I hear it’s not proper. 😉 Thank you for the follow!

    Like

    Reply

      1. Glad you found it! 🙂 I see that you are similar in your joy away from civilisation. Now I’ve been living in the south of Tuscany for almost four years, but it’s remote here as well, surprisingly other people only find us in the summer. So it’s been excellent. And I’m glad I found you two!

        Liked by 1 person

  20. Pingback: Five Greek memories – The Mexi Movie

  21. I am slowly working my way through your past blog posts – may take a while! This one makes me nostalgic. My mom is from Greece and my aunt has a house in Sisi, east of Heraklion. I love that you rented a car and just moseyed around the island; it’s a more chill part of Greece, I think, especially compared with the more popular islands like Santorini and Mykonos.

    Like

    Reply

    1. We loved Greece! Crete and Naxos were serene, even in the brink of Summer. We rented cars in both islands, it’s by far the best way to explore these places. Both islands are pretty hilly, and our small rental car struggled uphill. Reminded me of one time we rented a scooter in Madeira that couldn’t climb the island’s steep roads with both of us on it 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  23. Pingback: «I’m both a Cretan and a Greek» — Jules Verne Times Two — С любовью к людям!
  24. Pingback: Our seven sins of travel photography – Jules Verne Times Two
  25. Pingback: Cyprus, the last divided country in Europe – Jules Verne Times Two

Leave a comment