Путешествие зануды-ворчуна на остров Крит (Греция) Journey of a boring grumbler to the island of Crete (Greece)

And again and again Ufa airport. Starting point for my next trip. Behind the hassle of organizing the departure, ahead of the unknown. And it seems like this is not the first time, but still there are signs of emotional excitement. Not a tremor, of course, but just some anxiety. And there are reasons for this. The main one is instability in the tourist services market. At that time, thousands of clients of suddenly bankrupt operators (supposedly due to Western sanctions) were abandoned. Some could not fly to rest, others could not return home. And I was afraid that this trend could affect my agency as well. Sad thoughts spoiled the mood. I'm trying to distract myself from the sad topic, but somehow it doesn't work out very well. I notice that the atmosphere of the airport itself does not contribute to this. It's kind of uncomfortable here. For some reason the floor is not carpeted. There are no paintings and photographic art of talents on the walls. There is no big plasma panel showing something optimistic, life-affirming. And what prevents, in pauses, between announcements, broadcasting calm electronic music? Given the psychological state of the passengers, this would be quite appropriate.
However, finally, with an hour's delay, the plane was served and it was time to go to the cabin. The sensations of the flight are not new and are described in previous reviews. And now, after four and a half hours, we are going to land. On the right is the sea, on the left is the Heraklion airport building. There is only one runway. Landed. Painful waiting for the end of the maneuvers of the aircraft. And here I am on the ladder. Hot sea air hits the nose. What a bouquet! It is a pity that such a device has not yet been invented to record and then reproduce aromas, together with an image and sound, as in a video. I believe that in this case, the feeling of viewing a picture of a seaside landscape would be very realistic. I go down the ladder. The mood starts to improve. After going through customs formalities and getting my luggage, I go outside to the representative of my travel agency - a girl who directs me to the right bus. On the way, I look at the airport workers and drivers. I try to catch something special in the faces and manners of the descendants of the legendary nation.
Soon the bus started moving. I look out the window. In architecture and landscape, there is much in common with Turkey (see the journey of the boring grumbler to Alanya). All the same two - three-story houses with flat roofs, with long balconies - loggias. The same thin vegetation (outside settlements). We drive to Hersonissos. Main street lane in each direction. Watching buses, quad bikes, scooters, buggies and other vehicles on this street is very exciting at first. The houses are very tight. Some of them are hotels, but you won't notice it right away. The first floors are occupied by shops, cafes, travel agencies and car rentals.

My hotel - Dimitrion is very modest by Turkish standards. Territory - a small lawn in the courtyard with a playground and dining tables. One pool and that one without a slide. But there is a bar. A bartender named Sokol is here for the manager, and, in general, controls the situation in the hotel. Lunch - a buffet, where at least three meat dishes with various side dishes. There are only two vegetable salads. There are fruits. There are about five types of drinks. The food is of good quality. Standard room with all amenities. There are Russian-speaking channels on TV. Among the guests are mostly young people and girls from Italy, Germany, England, France, Slovakia. The youth pleasantly surprised me with their positive energy. Coming to breakfast, all you hear in your direction is "Hello, hello... ". Nice! Interstate trade sanctions and the propaganda tied to it did not affect the relationship of ordinary people. It was interesting to communicate with foreigners. Here I had to remember everything that you know in German, English, use sign language. After breakfast, as usual, I hurry to the sea. Leaving the hotel, I find myself on a narrow sidewalk. The city is already awake. Shops and cafes have opened. The roadway is not so easy to cross. The flow is formed mostly by scooters and quads. Most often girls and boys drive, but often grandmothers and grandfathers. Here drove a bearded man all in a tattoo "Demis Roussos"... Oh-oh-oh!
I walk down a narrow alley towards the sea. I reach the embankment and run into an endless strip of restaurants. The restaurant here is a one-story structure consisting of columns and a roof. The restaurant has tables and chairs, and the kitchen is in a main building, on the opposite side of the street. There are also boutiques, souvenir shops, cabarets, etc. I find a gap between restaurants and go down the ladder to the beach. I hear someone calling from the restaurant - Dimitrion, Dimitrion!... I turn around, it turns out it's me. The middle-aged man turned out to be from my own hotel. He introduced himself: - Ivan, Italiano. Ivan so Ivan, so be it. As I understand it, Ivan was disgusted by the consumption of beer alone, and here I am for his happiness. After having typed beer, we went to the sea. A five-minute bath was enough for Ivan and he returned to the restaurant. I stayed at sea. It was a little stormy. The water is transparent. The entrance to the sea is somewhat difficult due to the uneven rocky bottom. Sun beds on the beach are paid (3 euros), and some preferred their own mats. Fine. Dinner time arrived, and I got ready for the hotel. I found Ivan and called him with me: - "commend, hotel, lunch! Beer discount! " Ivan refused, he already had a new interlocutor. No, it's not. Well, okay.
After dinner, many in the hotel chose to bask in the free sunbeds by the pool. Toward evening, those who did not go for a walk on the embankment began to pull themselves up to the bar. There is a special atmosphere of goodwill here. Music played, people drank beer, showed each other photos of their relatives and it didn’t matter that they communicated at the level of my “Italian”, well, or a little better. Here is a family from Slovakia, more or less, somehow in Russian shared their impressions of visiting St. Petersburg. Soulful people. Beginning to get dark. Soon Ivan appeared and immediately joined the company of young Italians. I got close too. And then one of the company, in appearance and temperament, a "charismatic" Italian, pointing at the girl, declares to me in purely Russian - "we are newlyweds and we have a honeymoon. " My jaw dropped in surprise. Later, the guy admitted that he knows Russian because he comes from Ukraine, but his wife is a real Italian. How romantic. . . Here are two girls, it seems, from "ours". It turns out they are French. Wow! Where is the charm? Or, like him, glamour? At some point, I got bored and began to organize a space for dancing, but, not finding support, I gave up this idea. It's a pity. . . However, I didn't get bored for long. The Slovaks gathered for a walk and persuaded me. Outside the hotel in the evening life is just beginning. Crowds of idle people fill the sidewalks. Some go to the nearest cafes and boutiques, while the rest go to the pedestrian embankment, where the human mass turns into a two-way demonstration. In the evening, the embankment is more crowded and more festive. People are not in a hurry and enjoy the contemplation of the world around them.
The sun has long since set and there is a full moon in the sky. The air is immovable. The southern night is enchanting. I turn on the camera in the "video" mode and, putting it in front of me, I walk most of the embankment to the lighthouse. I'm looking at the footage. The material is exciting. Here's to photographing the morning dawn! To do this, you have to force yourself to get up early. And the next morning I succeed. At five o'clock I left the hotel and went to the embankment. It was dark and deserted. Along the street, in some places, small groups of drunken youth wandered. Those who were "overwhelmed" and could no longer walk rested on beach chairs. Here the girls, staggering, left the bar and sat on the quads. Surprisingly, everyone put on and fastened their helmets. When you are in this state, a helmet, of course, will not be superfluous. I continue to move towards the designated place. Along the way, I watch empty restaurants and waiters looking ingratiatingly into my eyes. A little later, I notice a lone visitor, whose face seemed familiar to me. He recognizes me earlier and calls out - "Bon giorno, bon giorno, Dimitrion! " - Ba! Yes, it's Ivan. I sit down. On the table are two wine glasses, a plate with the remains of mussels. Next to it is champagne in an ice bucket. Ivan calls the waiter. He replaces the glass and pours me champagne. I take a meal. I explain to Ivan: - “Ah, comme a photo session! Sleigh aufstein! And I try to demonstrate the natural process with gestures. Ivan nods understandingly and asks for my sunglasses (they protruded from my pocket). and I took my leave. We must hurry, the horizon has already been outlined... At the hotel, my sunrise shots were approved. But I didn’t see Ivan again. Ivan left without saying goodbye. Soon I’ll go home. I still need to gain impressions. And the tour will come in handy. I chose a five-hour a walk on Sussi (a coastal resort town east of Hersonissos). Several boats participate in the event, one of which is stylized as a pirate schooner "Black Rose" from the famous film. There is also a character very similar to Johnny Depp. The schooner goes out to sea in a solemn atmosphere, to the music from the same film. Spectacular spectacle. Boats go along the coast, opening a panoramic view to travelers. The end point is a cozy bay. Palm trees on one side, on the other and many restaurants, conveniently located on the slope. Everything is very nice and neat. The program includes a free lunch. And in the remaining time you can swim right there in the bay. At the appointed time, the boat went back, with a stop in the sea for swimming already from the boat. Sussi is a modern city. And if anyone is interested in the Middle Ages, you need to choose another tour. And one more thing: it is undesirable to drink beer in a sea trip: before and during the trip (sickness).

It's time to leave. A Mercedes E-class taxi took me and two others from the hotel. Cool!
CONCLUSIONS. Of course, the resorts of Hersonissos are in many ways inferior to Turkish ones. First of all, the size. Not everywhere there are slides in the pools. Weird situation with the animators. There is no coastline (beach) assigned to hotels. And also: the entrance to the sea is rocky. But there are also pluses. Small hotels are conveniently arranged. Everything is within walking distance. Plus, they are a little more comfortable. Everyone knows each other and communicates sincerely. And although, for example, our hotel does not provide an animator, the bartender Sokol successfully filled this position. Well, and this embankment with restaurants? ! You have to see the expression on the faces of people eating seafood delicacies. By the way, for a very reasonable fee. With certain advantages, what is it that attracts Europeans here, who have a lot of their own sea? I think this is the atmosphere of looseness, inner freedom, some kind of prosperity that reigns here, which, to some extent, is created by the tourists themselves. Well, what about the Greeks? And the Greeks are like us, there are blondes and brunettes. Somewhere reckless, like us, but definitely peaceful. Would I still go to Crete? Probably, but already in another city, where I will look for other photo stories.
Ramilen Ikeev September 2014