About a country that has everything or My personal visit to the Minotaur
Getting ready for the next trip, a person tries to foresee everything. Well, almost everything. Reads books, guidebooks, reviews. . . If you are going to Greece, you should give up on this habit. This voyage will be so exclusive that you will not prepare for it in advance. The only thing to understand is what kind of rest you are drawn to. If, for example, you want to touch the cradle of civilization, then go to the continental part. In the Athens region. To see the Acropolis, to be imbued with democracy, to realize the greatness of the Marathon. . . If you want divine solitude, then go north, to Chalkidiki. There is the holy Mount Athos and the monastic republic, living according to the laws and charters that developed already in the Byzantine era, snow-covered Olympus, the picturesque islands of Thassos, Lesbos and the fantastically beautiful Sporades islands and, of course, the mountain monasteries of Meteora. Well, if you want simple human happiness, warmed by the generous hot Mediterranean sun and washed by the waters of all sorts of well, very southern seas - you are on Crete or Rhodes. And here, too, you can’t say that it’s definitely better.
That's how, tormented by a variety of thoughts, I flew to Crete and did not regret for a minute that I ended up there.
Administratively, the island of Crete is divided into four regions: Lassithi, Heraklion, Rethymno, Chania. The administrative center is the city of Heraklion. Our "village" Stalida "ran" not far from the capital - twenty kilometers. Nearby (about six kilometers) the city of Hersonissos “spreads out”, and on the other side the village of Malia.
Given the number of people living on the island, I would not use the concepts of "capital", "city", "village". In Rostov-on-Don or Krasnodar there are at least twice as many inhabitants as in the whole of Crete. There was a belief that in general the Greeks (even guides) do not like counting - to a direct question: “How many people live on your island? ” they masterfully evade the answer, saying: “Well, 600-800 thousand. Why do you need it? ”. And Crete itself, although it has the status of the largest Greek island and the fifth largest in the Mediterranean, is actually small. Therefore, the best leisure option is car rental (and this service is excellently developed here) and an independent “travel” along the coasts and historical places. Although this, of course, will limit your freedom in tasting fine wines (oh, what wines in Crete! ), Rakia, ouzo and very good beers. You will have to be content with olives, olives, cheese, butter and other “sweets”, which subtly differ in taste even in two nearby stores.
By the way, about prices. A liter of draft table (very worthy) wine costs only 2 euros (I have seen cheaper), cheese, olives - 4-5 euros per kilogram, a can of olive oil 5 European "rubles". The most amiable sellers allow you to try everything even in stores and are not at all upset if you leave them without buying anything. A wonderful custom, don't you think?
You can talk about food for hours. But, surprisingly, the Greek salad in Russia is an order of magnitude tastier than in Greece itself, and they generally don’t prepare moussaka in the right way. We in the family are now seriously considering whether to go to Mexico - to try tequila, what if this is also the “wrong” drink, and then to Japan - to taste sushi, and to “get acquainted” with rolls...
But that's later. For now - acquaintance with Crete. Like the whole of Greece, this island with its surroundings is literally stuffed with historicisms and memorable places.
The main attraction (who would doubt it! ) is the Palace of Knossos. It was built by Daedalus himself (yes, the same Pope of Icarus, artist, sculptor, engineer) and King Minos once lived there (who gave the name to the whole era - the Minoan civilization). And this is also the same labyrinth where the Minotaur lived (half-bull-half-human, who periodically ate people, which, of course, people were not happy with), whom Theseus killed, and who got out of the labyrinth with the help of a thread, well? That's right - Ariadne... In a word, no matter where you look - either the cradle of civilization, or its sharp bend. And the palace itself is so-so. Indistinct remains of foundations fenced off with ropes, a lot of remake and nothing breathtaking. It's easier to re-read the myths of the peoples of the world and imagine it all in your head.
You have to swim for emotions. For the first impression - a few hours one way and therefore you need to plan a trip for at least two days. This place is called Santorini. It is breathtaking here from the beauty, grandeur of nature and the power of human genius, here you no longer believe yourself - are you dreaming or not... Snow-white buildings (how do they stay on sheer cliffs? ) Reminiscent of bizarre clouds of various shapes and sizes, they drown in blue ornaments and are crowned with puppet roofs. The black volcanic sand on the beaches excites the mind, and the transparency of the water seems unreal. And sunsets. . . And thickets of bougainvilleas. . .
There are 330 Orthodox and Catholic churches on the island of Santorini. That is, every third building is a snow-white church with a blue dome. All this, combined with the waters of the Aegean Sea, looks simply unreal.
Wine is another story. Grapes here are perhaps the oldest (and best) on Earth. They say that after the mighty volcanic eruption that destroyed the Cretan-Minoan civilization 35 centuries ago, only a vine broke through the ashes and lava that covered the island - contrary to all the laws of nature. Today, grapes, twisted into rings or baskets, so as not to be blown away by the wind, grow on large stones that heat up during the day, and at night give off the accumulated heat to the vine wrapping around them. Here they know how to make red wine from white grapes, and not a single gram of sugar is added to sugary sweet. Miracles, and nothing more.
A second boat trip is closer than a trip to Santorini. And here, too, consciousness can be lost. Only from someone else. This is the island of Spinalonga. Island of Pain. Isle of the damned.
Now this is one of the mournful places that twists the soul, the likes of which are not so many in the world, and until the middle of the 20th century there was a functioning leper colony here. Thousands of lepers, men and women, died here without even a hope of returning to the world. There are no names on the cemetery crosses even now - they did not have time to carve them... People were dying from pain and hopelessness.
This most beautiful island today is all decorated with mirrors. They are in the eye sockets of houses destroyed by time and in doorways, they ring melodiously, swaying on the branches of cacti and trees. Sometimes it seems that there are really a lot of people here, until the thought comes - these are your reflections. Then, in the presence of lepers, mirrors were forbidden by law… Until now, memories of video installations with rushing rabbits and beating birds chill the blood and cover the back with goosebumps. You will say why, they say, on your “blood” vacation you need to wind your nerves and endure such difficult trials. I agree. Not why. It just seems to me that it is in places like this that people become. . . You purify yourself here.
This is such a sad journey. But since you did it and you happened to be in these parts, be sure to visit the town (how do they still define their settlements in cities and towns? ) Agios Nikolaos. It is near Spinalonga. It is famous for the fact that Agios Nikolaos is the same saint as our Nicholas the Pleasant (Wonderworker) and the American Santa Claus. This is the city of Santa Claus. Plus, the Greeks are proud of the fact that the freshwater lake Voulismeni splashes right in the city, connected by a narrow canal to the salty-salty Mirabello Bay. They say that the goddess Aphrodite herself bathed in the lake. Go check it out!
They call it a wonder of the world, but is it really? The Kultuchnoye lake in our “native” Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky is ten times larger than the “Dedmorozov lake”, and the water there is really fresh and, unlike Greek, you can drink it. So that. The only pity is that it is much easier to fly to Crete than to Kamchatka, and much cheaper...
But back to business. In order to finally feel the Greek spirit, you should definitely visit something native, ethnic. We chose Anopolis and did not regret it. Anopolis is a traditional highland village about 15 kilometers from Heraklion with narrow streets and courtyards full of flowers. Upon arrival - a mandatory glass of brandy and a walk through the village. Very beautiful. Then - show, songs, dances. Of course, acquaintance with all the gods of Greece, the obligatory staging of a battle with the Minotaur, of course, sirtaki (not a Greek dance at all) at the end of incendiary performances. An unlimited amount of wine and delicious national snacks will absolutely make you whirl in all the round dances offered by the artists. We circled.
We must be prepared for the fact that Russian is hardly spoken in Greece. Well, maybe at the level: “Hi! How are you? ". Moreover, the questioner may not understand the meaning of the question and the answer at all. At the same Cretan party in Anapolis, all the guests mostly spoke Greek and English. Therefore, stock up on a small phrasebook, even downloaded from the Internet. Absolutely all our Greek acquaintances broke into smiles, hearing their native - yasas (hello), parakalo (please), efharisto (thank you)... Recently, there have been more Russian-speaking guides in Greece, but such a person will not always be there, right?
And in general, Greece, of course, is a paradise for vacationers. Whatever time of the year you come, there is always something interesting. There will be no beach (in late autumn), which means there will be an olive harvest, in which it will be possible to collect the main Greek pride and participate in the preparation of oil. Or make wine yourself - if at that time the grapes arrive in time. Fishing here will take place, as they say, in any weather and at any time of the year. Songs, dances, national cuisine - everything here is out of time and out of space.
Do you remember the Greek confectioner Dymba from A. Chekhov's vaudeville "Wedding"? He knew: "Greece has everything! ".
