June 2006

The Frankish Castle in Parikia is one of the most enduring monuments on the island of Paros. It was built in the 1200s by the Venetian Sanoudos. Scholars believe that the castle was built from the vestiges of an assortment of ancient sanctuaries that were scattered in and around the island of Paros and grindstones from windmills are clearly visible in the walls...

Windmills are still a feature of the island...

All life in Paros centres around the port and the daily comings and goings of the ferries...

Like many of the Greek Islands, Paros is scenic though a little stark. The quaint whitewashed houses and laid back lifestyle of the locals makes them interesting. Life hasn't changed much for the locals in generations - although most of the money now comes from tourists and from islanders living abroad. people still shop in the same way as their parents and grandparents...

There are no supermarkets here. But it's a lovely place to spend a few quiet days. One event that we attended was an art collective's opening night where corrugated cardboard featured widely...

A day trip to the caves on the neighbouring island of Anti-Paros ended somewhat scarily when the sea turned rough and the small ferry we were on took a beating. This cat wasn't perturbed...

And Paros is a great place to stop and smell the roses, (and the bougainvillea)...

There is no other way to describe the island of Santorini - it is simply stunning...

Some of the best views are from the deck of a small ship inside the island's natural harbour...

This giant caldera of a still active volcano rises out of the blue Aegean Sea like a fire-breathing monster rising from the depths yet, today, the fires barely smoulder...

The wisps of smoke coming from the sulfur stained fumaroles are barely visible but, as we walk across the barren lava field in the centre of the caldera we feel the heat on our feet. And when we swam, streams of deliciously warm water swept over us.

The small whitewashed island towns are sprinkled along the lip of the caldera like frosting on a bundt cake..

Tourism is everything to this land but, unfortunately, it is too beautiful for its own good. Giant cruise liners fill the caldera almost daily and thousands of camera heavy grockles load themselves onto donkeys for the tortuous climb up to the main town of Thera where almost every shop is filled with bling. These donkeys are on their way back down for the next load...

Despite the heat, these poor creatures are forced by cruel owners to carry overweight tourists up and down the steep cliffs hour after hour. There is a cable car, (which we took), but some people just cannot resist making an animal suffer for their enjoyment. Please don't ride the donkeys on Santorini.

Once the cruisers have gone for the day Thera settles back into a quiet and pleasant evening, but they will be back. In fact, we have just learned that there will be five cruise ships in port tomorrow. Ten thousand tourists will cram into this tine town so we are leaving. Next stop- the much quieter island of Paros. Here's a final look at Santorini from the deck of the ferry...

P.S. In 2013 the Greek government banned anyone weighing more than 100 kgs (220lbs) from riding the donkeys, but it seems that neither the owners nor the tourists care - we bet the donkeys do!

Agios Nikolaos at the eastern end of the island of Crete is a bustling tourist resort surrounding a pretty harbour...

We had not planned on visiting Agios but were forced to do so when we were unable to quickly return our hire car in Iraklio and as a result we missed our fast ferry to the island of Santorini. Our only alternative was to keep the car and drive to Agios Nokolaos to catch the giant car ferry later in the evening. With several hours to spare before the evening ferry arrived from Rhodes we spent a pleasant afternoon strolling around Agios and taking in the views...

With its quayside bars and flotilla of picturesque boats bobbing in the sheltered bay It is not surprising that Agios is popular with tourists.

The northern area of Crete was inhabited at least 7,000 years BC and this is all that is left of the 3,000 year old Palace of Knossos in Iraklio, Crete...

The palace of Knossos was the ceremonial and political centre of the Minoan civilization and culture. The palace was abandoned at some unknown time at the end of the Late Bronze Age, c. 1,380–1,100 BC. and although it is often said that it was destroyed by the eruption of the Santorini volcano and subsequent tsunami, it seems more likely that it was destroyed by the Mycenaeans or other rival civilizations...

Visiting the ruins of Knossos turned into an interesting experience when several English speaking guides almost came to blows when deciding whose turn it was to take us on a tour. The guide who eventually agreed to take us was harassed throughout the tour by one of the losers. However, we got to see the site which, it turned out, was little more than a pile of old rocks. We also saw some interesting pieces of Minoan pottery of indeterminate age...

The ruins of the Palace of Knossos were of particular interest to us as Greek mythology suggests that it is the place of the labyrinth where the minotaur lived. Apparently, King Minos dwelt in a palace at Knossos. He had Daedalus construct a labyrinth in which to retain his son, the Minotaur. However, our guide was unable to show us a labyrinth or explain where it had been, but we saw lots more Greek urns..

We also saw one reconstructed building with murals...

And lots of cats...

James has a sad story about a cat in the ruins of Knossos, but it is best left untold.

Chania is a one of the major ports on the north coast of Crete and its waterfront promenade is a perfect picture of this ancient island...

Chania has been a major settlement in Crete for at least 3 thousand years and it is the site of the Minoan settlement the Greeks called Kydonia, the source of the word quince. Quince are probably still grown here along with the multitudes of flowers...

Even the narrowest of streets have room for plants in this sub-tropical haven...

And the restaurants au plein air are surrounded by luxuriant growth...

The traffic free narrow streets of old Chania are a pedestrian's delight...

And flowers and plants brighten the scene everywhere...

But Chania would be a pretty place without the vegetation and we probably should have stayed longer than a day...