The weather’s been great, in the low 20s with some dreamy cobalt skies. As I mentioned before, with the beach setup here, there’s a choice of 3 beaches facing east, west, and N/W. So, we can always find a sheltered spot and calm waters when the wind picks up, and we’ve now acclimatised to the water and the swims are great.
We’d read some interesting blogs about a few places on the west side of the island, so we pointed the car towards Chania and from there headed south towards the White Mountains and the Imbros Gorge. Once off the main highway, we snaked our way through some small villages, showing off the vibrant colours of their spring flora really is quite something. The start of the ascent up into the gorge seemed to be marked by an interesting old ruined church, set by the side of the road. From there, we wound our way up through some very narrow roads, where some goats were stretched out and resting after what I am guessing had been a busy mornings munching. As we slipped from one side of the crevices, to the other not knowing what was around the other side, but with each turn we were treated to a different view.
We reached the small village of Patsianos, with most of its rust-colored stone buildings wonderfully renovated and restored. There were some great-looking places to eat, but it was too early for us. One of the guys we’d met had told us about a small village called Vamos, given over to artisans, with a highly rated lunch venue that was highly rated, so off we went. Cretan food has some slight variants from the traditional Greek fare, but it’s equally delicious all the same.
Our next stop was about 2km east, to the working Agios Georgios monastery, famed in the past for its olive oil production. At one time, over 3600 trees produced 25,000 kilos annually. Olive oil is still produced today, but in smaller quantities, the modern way…still delicious though. The setting itself was incredibly peaceful, with mystical sounds emanating from the Orthodox Church in the center of the courtyard.
Our final stop was Lake Kourna, which is the only freshwater lake in Crete. It swells in the winter and spring as it acts as a basin to the White Mountains, but in the summer, it shrinks, creating temporary sandy beaches and you can stroll around its 3.5km circumference and enjoy the serene surroundings.
Dream Chasers 