We enjoyed exploring Chania this morning. We’d started with another good breakfast, this time there was a “cinnamon drink” on the buffet which was delicious ( I love cinnamon). We have not seen this anywhere else so have been wondering if it is a Cretan speciality
I filled my water bottle at the buffet too. You can’t drink the tap water in the islands, so the hotels usually provide a couple of bottles of water that you need to use even for making tea and coffee. We had bought extra in Santorini, but hadn’t had the chance to top up in Chania and I was feeling parched!
The plan today was to have a relaxed start and chill until the 11am checkout. We would store our luggage at the hotel and spend a few hours exploring the Old Port of Chania on foot, then return to the hotel where I had booked a rental car to be delivered at 2pm.
It was nice sitting on the verandah and watching the passers by and catching up with emails.
After checking out we set off along the waterfront passing a row of ancient vaulted buildings that were used for ship repairs by the Venetians. There are plenty of souvenir shops along the waterfront but the floating one selling all sorts of seashells was unusual.
We turned inland briefly and walked past a street where you can still see the remains of the old Byzantine walls that once surrounded the city. The Venetians had added to them and in parts they are now incorporated into buildings in the town.
A little further inland we arrived at Splantzia Square, which is dominated by a large church. It’s unusual because it has both a bell tower and a minaret, evidence of the changes in dominance of the city over time.
Shading the square is a huge plane tree that was once used as an execution spot! Now it just shades the tourists in the cafe beneath it.
We strolled back to the waterfront and continued along til we turned into the semicircular harbour that was the Venetian Port.
You can’t miss the Mosque of the Jannisaries, with its multiple domes and buttresses. This is the oldest Ottoman building in Crete, dating from 1645 and was hosting an art exhibition.
We walked inland again and took a look at the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary (say that three times fast!)
Then we headed into the old Jewish quarter which is a maze of little lanes. Some were lined with cafes and some with shops but we wandered up some quiet ones that had bougainvillea and cats and not much else.
We found our way back out to the waterfront, this time on the opposite side of the little harbour, we had a closer view of the lighthouse from here. We were a bit disappointed that the Maritime museum was closed today (Sunday) as I’d read it has an excellent exhibition about the battles in Crete in WW2 that I think we’d have both found interesting. We wandered up to the point, around the edge of the old Venetian fort, then backtracked along the water.
Time for lunch! We picked one of the many cafes at random and sat down to a tasty selection of appetizers. Hummus and pita chips, fried calamari (which was amazing), dakos (rusks with tomato and feta (which were ok) and fried savoury filo pastry rolls filled with cheese and a sweet olive paste (which we loved).
When Neil asked for the bill, the waiter wanted to give him some raki on the house , and ouzo for me. That seems to be common here! However we thanked him and said, maybe next time! Feeling full, we set off back to the hotel. We’d received a message from Anna Cars ( the local rental car company I’d picked) to ask if they could deliver the car a half hour early. That was fine with us, so when they came we met the nice lady (Anna maybe?) and her young assistant in the road beside the hotel. Paperwork sorted in a few minutes and after a chat about “how far away Australia is” we waved them off and set out driving east.
We only had one stop planned before heading for Panormo and our hotel, the Souda Bay Commonwealth War Cemetery. In my recent family history research I’d learned I had a 4th cousin (on Dads side) who was killed in Crete in 1941 and is buried here. So we went to pay our respects. We have visited several of these graveyards in our travels, all maintained beautifully by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. This one has a lovely location right on the water at Souda Bay.
rederick Cummins, was married only a couple of months before he embarked for Europe. He fought in Palestine and Crete. His young wife delivered a son that Frederick never saw. It’s a sad story. I was glad to see where he rests., at least it’s a beautiful place,
We drove on east along the coast.
After about an hour stopped at a supermarket to pick up a few supplies for our three night stay at the Royal Senses Resort. It’s a pretty plush place, rising up the hillside overlooking the ocean. We were greeted with cold towels and after checking in, were driven to our room in a golf cart. It’s a steep ride, that cart had guts!
We explored the resort, checking out the pools and shops and restaurants which are in the lowest level. To get down they have a little funicular that runs up and down the hillside.
Back in the room we chilled with some drinks and chips while watching yet another beautiful sunset. Greece is delivering the best sunsets!
We’d been offered a “first night” discount on the buffet they have every night in the main restaurant. We headed down at around 7.30 , making the mistake of trying to get there via the staircases we could see from our room, we got lost and ended up on the gold cart road, but we got to the restaurant eventually .
We timed it badly, the buffet opens at 6.30 and by 7.30 the place was packed and the buffet staff were struggling a bit to keep the food platters full, things looked a bit picked over. We have also found there are a lot of, mainly German , families here with quite a few kids. All the quiet tables for couples outside were occupied, so we were places in a pretty rowdy area. The food was very nice, but the ambience left a lot to be desired. Not to worry, we have booked one of the reservation-only restaurants for tomorrow night.
Back in the room we didn’t last long before heading for bed. Tomorrow we are heading for a drive to the other side of the island.