Iraklio to Chania. 10 September 2022
We arose fairly early and packed our stuff (well, the things which we hadn’t already packed last night – something that I do with an almost religious fervor). Aaron and I went to pick up the rental car from the overnight garage, which cost me about €50 if I recall correctly. That’s a worst rate than airport parking lots, but at least the car was off the streets. We drove back to the Airbnb and loaded up our luggage before setting off on a last shopping stop before heading out of town.
Our first stop was the Spirit of Greece shop near the Heraklion Archaeological Museum. It features the museum replica quality work of artist Vassilis Politakis. Vassilis’ son was manning the shop when we visited, and I picked up a couple of pieces and had one shipped home, as I didn’t trust my luggage. If you are visiting the museum, you should take the time to stop by their shop and see what’s on offer. While much of the beautiful work on display is painted with acrylics, some has fired designs which are ready for household use.
Our next (and final) stop before leaving town was the Irida Family Workshop located a short walk south from the Spirit of Greece. The matriarch of the very friendly family was in the shop that day holding court, along with the kids. There we found what we were looking for – terra cotta reproductions of the Goddess statues from the Post-palatial period (Late Minoan III, 1400–1100 BCE) at Gazi, Crete.
We were specifically looking for the Poppy Goddess, which they had in stock. Success!
Upon leaving the Irida shop, we retrieved the car from the short-term lot we left it in and headed west on A90/E75. We stopped for lunch in Rethymnon, parking in a free garage at Ioannou Bernidakis and Machiton Scholis Chorofilakis. We had a pleasant lunch at Taverna Aris Marie, a family-run restaurant which has been around since the 1960s. It wasn’t fancy or anything, but the food was good, fast, & cheap. That, and I really had to take a pee after an hour on the road. After settling the bill, we were back on the road to Chania.
I should make one note about the cleanliness of the E75 highway. Very little trash, and I only saw one dead animal along the entire route. That may strike you as an odd thing to say but, compared to US highways, it was notable. We arrived in the early afternoon in the port city of Chania, which is built on the ruins of the ancient Minoan city of Kydonia. Parking near the fortress, we got out to stretch our legs and take a quick look around. We only had about an hour or so to sightsee and shop before we had to be on the road again. Our first stop was the Venetian harbor and fortress. We then made a beeline for the archaeological ruins of Kydonia.
This area has been inhabited since at least the Neolithic. The city itself was probably first built during the Early Minoan II period (ca. 2650 – 2200 BCE). There is evidence of destruction and a short period of abandonment right before (during?) the Mycenaean conquest of Crete, after which it was a clearly Mycenaean city. Linear B tablets found at Knossos during that period confirm the ancient city name as Ku-do-ni-ja, or Kydonia as we know it today. As it was an important port and trading center, Kydonia didn’t suffer the fate of many other Mycenaean cities during the Bronze Age collapse. It remained an important port through the Iron Age and beyond. The city bore the name Apollonia at some point during the Roman era, probably in recognition of its renowned archers (Apollon being an archer God).
After photographing the Kydonian ruins, we wandered the shopping district of Old Town. I bought a traditional Cretan white-handled knife called a “saita” on the Street of the Knifemakers, as well as pocketknives for my nephews. I can’t recall if the others bought anything. But before we knew it, it was time to hightail it over the fortress mount to the far side where the car was parked (after hitting the nearby public restroom).
Just like in the leg of our trip from Delphi to Milina in Thrace, we had to race the sun in order to make the Milia Mountain Retreat before sunset. We had to arrive by then for two reasons. First, the office would close and we’d be unable to check in to our room. Secondly, and possibly more important, the resort is located in the mountains of Western Crete and the roads leading up to it were said to be somewhat dangerous at night (and they are). I’ll write more about Milia and the route in my next post.
We made it to Milia just before the sun set. Sending the boys on ahead to the restaurant to grab a table before it closed, I went to the office to check us in. We made it in just under the wire. I joined them at our table and, honestly, I can’t remember what we ate. But we were famished and it was delicious.
Above, Michael P. and Paul eat while the Full Harvest Moon rises above the mountains of Western Crete. We had one bottle of retsina at the table and took a second one back to the room with us for a nightcap. We didn’t know it at the time, but the people at the far table were also from Ohio – residents of Cincinnati and Cleveland. We learned the next day that they were relaxing after the wedding of their children in Chania. It’s truly a small world. For tomorrow, I had planned a very special excursion to the Rodopos Peninsula to the north.
— Να εχεις μια ωραια μερα. —
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