Monday, July 26, 2021

On the road at 34 degrees

Today it started at 9 o'clock. The plan was actually 'Mires'. This is supposed to be worth a trip. At least that's what the guidebook says.... Well, I have a completely different opinion! So the way there is already worth a trip. But not the village itself.

But before that, I had to make a quick stop in Rethimno (my route today went from the highway to the mountain road anyway) to buy a charger for the car cigarette lighter. This way, my phone doesn't use up all the power for the navigation system. Not that easy to find such a plug! I walked back and forth and no one could tell me exactly where to find something like that in the souvenir shops. But, I found it! So off I went out of the chaos of the city towards the south of Crete.

Since Mires wasn't that cool, I continued straight to the next destination nearby: 'Sivas'. In this small village, there is a ceramic shop with a large selection of great handmade things. The potter was just working at the wheel and his wife takes care of the shop. When I told her that I came from Chania, she gave me a small bowl as a gift. Since I couldn't establish an internet connection to show her my pottery works, she took my business card and said she would look at it on the internet with her daughter tonight. We exchanged ideas about pottery and techniques. Nice to buy items that come with a 100% guarantee from here and not from xxx. They were also very happy that I praised their work.

On the way, I spontaneously stopped at a women's monastery. The 'Lalyvani' Monastery is huge. Numerous accommodations, aviaries with birds, and a beautiful church awaited me.

The mountain landscape is beautiful. Vast valleys with tens of thousands of olive trees and many white greenhouses. This is where all the vegetables for the Greek salad and especially all the tons of olives for the best olive oil in the world come from! There are also a few wind turbines and gigantic solar panels here. Actually surprisingly few; because there is a lot of wind here and sun anyway! Smile

The roads are mostly very well-maintained and some sections are freshly paved or under construction. However, there are more potholes, tar stains, and other irregularities. So driving requires a lot of concentration and skillful evasion. If you're lucky and there's a car ahead, you just have to follow your evasive maneuvers. Unless it's a tourist!
Oh yes, I saw something 'strange': it was driving towards me. I could see it as a pick-up truck. The last ones I saw had watermelons loaded and workers sitting on top (!).... but this time something was moving on the loading area. Hmmmm. So cool: what I saw were the ears of a Dalmatian blowing in the wind. Unfortunately, I couldn't take a photo. But here's my attempt to describe it: the dog was standing with its hind legs on the loading area. The front legs and thus the whole head were resting on the driver's roof and facing forward. Fully in the wind.

Finally, I ended up in the former hippie village 'Matala'. Wow, there's a lot going on! Even finding a parking space is a matter of luck. And I was lucky! Right in front, on the beach, I could use the slot and find a spot. 3 euros.
The tiny village is charming, with colorful painted streets and still bears the traces of the good old hippie times.
In the Neolithic period, numerous living caves were dug into the soft, porous rock of the bay, which were used as tombs during the Roman occupation of Crete (it still smells like that there!) In the 1960s, hippies from all over the world settled in the living caves (including many young US citizens who refused to participate in the Vietnam War) and founded a large commune there. Admission to the mountainous witnesses of time costs 4 euros and visitors are well advised not to climb up in flip-flops....
Flip-flops, on the other hand, are handy again on the sand at the fully packed mini beach section. Goodness, I almost burned the soles of my feet and had to sit down urgently after the first 30 (fast) steps so as not to scream out loud because it burned so hellishly! Then quickly put the shoes back on and keep walking. Phew. That wasn't fun at all!

Since my return trip to Chania is 130 kilometers and takes almost 2.5 hours, and it was already 5 p.m., I sat down in a tavern right on the beach and had dinner. The wind was blowing extremely hard and the food almost flew off my plate! But it was a great way to cool down after this extremely hot day.

On the way back, the landscape had a completely different light; the sun was slowly setting and everything had warmer colors. Really beautiful. In addition, Greek music turned up loud on the radio and the long journey back became much more pleasant. In Greek radio, they even advertise for the Covid tests!
After Rethimno, the sun was already ready to disappear behind the mountains. So I found a parking space and waited for the orange-red-yellow natural spectacle to happen. Since it would take about 20 more minutes and I wasn't the only one waiting, I played photographer for the couples in love who struggled with selfies. Smile. Well, if I have to stand alone here, I can at least help others with a great photo. Wink

Back at the hostel, there was another change of roommates. Already yesterday. Phew. I'm getting new roommates almost every day. France, Holland, Poland today. I'm losing track. Hehe.