Crete and Santorini

The end of our Crete visit took us back into a more populated area. We spent 2 days in Xania/Chania/Hania (note: most places had multiple spellings) and the last day in Iracleon. These are probably the two biggest cities on the island and it showed. We stayed at a old 4 story Venitian house which had been converted into a hotel right inside the old city walls. It was close to all the important stuff so we got to walk around town. No lifts (elevator) and of course we were on the 4th floor but it was worth it. We met a new friend while having dinner for my dad's birthday whose name was Yannis. This guy knew how to work his restaurant and ended up being a pretty fun guy to talk to. The next night we took a drive out to the west coast (about 1hr away) to watch the sunset. There were some AF's which turned out to be ruins and not much to see although we did climb a small mountain just to see what was on the other side. It turned out to be worth the trip up the side. We found a small taverna on the hill going back up the road. It was named "Spilios" which means 'cave' in Greek. The owner didnt speak any English but had a Kiwi (NZ) wife who stopped by at the beginning to help us through the menu. The food was great, he was very hospitable and we ended up talking, teaching each other our languages and he taught us about the history of the area... in Greek of course. After two weeks there though you kinda get what they are trying to say. Anyhow turned out this guy's father produced his own homemade wine and Iraki (grape derived spirits similar to Grappa) like most families on the island. He had a special wine he shared with only us which was inbetween a wine and his distillation of Iraki. I compare it to a dry Sherry. It was such a beautiful wine. I asked him if he sold it and he told us to wait in spanish, and soon returned with a water bottle full. I told you it was homemade. That was one of our favorite experiences there. The people (in the country) are just simple, hardworking people who are so excited you are there and are interested in their culture.

Iracleon was just another small Athens, busy, small roads, too many crazy people everywhere, and no parking spaces. We managed to fit our mini bus through some of these roads which was just amazing. I doubt we could have it done it again. Couldnt have been anymore than 3 inches on each side. This was just a quick stop before we got on the ferry for Santorini the next morning.

Santorini turned out to be the most beautiful of all the islands. We had a hotel right on the bluffs overlooking the Caldera. We sat there in awe for a while just trying to drink it all in. Words dont do it justice. Other than the scenery it wasnt anything special. Too many drunk American kids who acted like a bunch of a-holes on scooters and 4-wheelers but whats new. Now when I saw this was a small island I mean it was SMALL. We stook at the top of a mountain and saw both beaches within 5 miles of each other. The island couldnt have been any longer than 10 miles either. I recommend it as a stop on your places to go before you die list but only for a couple days.