(Heraklion, Crete, Greece)
Crete is the largest Greek island. It hosts a tremendous number of visitors. Yet I can honestly say that it has never been on my travel radar. So, you may be surprised that Crete will now constitute by far the largest portion of our European trip.
But Crete starts to make sense when it is considered in context. We were already in Athens. We didn’t want to be in a big city, and we also wanted to see something completely different. I usually only travel in winter to ski, so this was a rare chance to go somewhere that would likely be too hot for us in the summer. Crete scored big for cultural sites and also for food. It quickly became the leading contender.
By basing ourselves in Heraklion (Iraklio), the transport hub of Crete, we would have access to a number of other Cretan destinations. And Heraklion also seemed to have a few worthwhile attractions of its own…most notably, the nearby UNESCO-listed Palace of Knossos. So, we boarded an Aegean Airways flight to Heraklion and began our Cretan adventure!
Our initial impressions were not spectacular. Then again, the taxi ride from the airport to the hotel rarely takes you past the most appealing parts of town. On the plus side, our taxi driver was quite personable and gave us some insight into Crete. He lamented that it was getting harder to attract people to agriculture as a career. But he also noted that Crete was a place where quality of life was still valued.
Our hotel (Hotel Kastro) is very much downtown. We’ll be able to walk just about everywhere. And while the nearby park could use some TLC, we did find some appealing retail areas on the other side of it. Most notably, Heraklion appears to be alive. There are many pedestrian streets, and they are busy until very late in the evening.
Our first meal in Heraklion was at a restaurant called Lola. It was a charming, cozy place, and introduced us to the Cretan tradition of hospitality. Like pretty much every Cretan restaurant, you get a complimentary dessert and raki (tsikoudia) after your meal. If you don’t know raki...after a few days in Crete, you definitely will. It’s a potent alcoholic drink made from grape skins and every restaurant seems to have their own!
The photo at the very top of this post shows 1866 Street in Heraklion. It’s also known as the Central Market, and has an interesting mix of souvenir shops and small businesses catering to the local market. Stay tuned for more about Heraklion…and other parts of Crete!