June 30, 2019 – Crete

Thom

5 years ago

THE THOMS SUNDAY TRAVEL SECTION.

You Are Such a Cretan.

More years ago than I care to, (can,) remember a bully on the playground said I was a “Cretan”. I have no idea what that means. But I can tell from the tone in his voice that it is not a good thing.

The Venetian Walls around Heraklion harbor.

Looking back on this, he’s a dummy.

It’s from the Greek. A Cretan is one who, or that which, inhabits the Greek island of Crete.

I wish I were a Cretan.

Crete is the largest of the Greek islands. It sits off by itself at the bottom of the Greek islands, with the Aegean Sea to the north. The south side of the island is 700 miles north of the African coast. The weather on this side of the island comes from there.

The mountain range down the length of the isle splits the two climates. It makes for a very diverse agricultural scene.

The Famous Cretans.

What do you know about Crete? It is the home of Zorba the Greek. Not exactly, it is the home of Nikos Kazantzakis, author of Zorba, the Greek. Alexis Zorba, the character, is not from Crete. In the novel, and the movie, and the musical, they visit Crete.

Anthony Quinn would still recognize Stavros beach where he danced in Zorba.

The actor, Giannis Anastasakis, was born on Crete. He will move to the United States, play the role of Victor Kiriakis, and change his name to John Aniston. His daughter Jennifer is born in California.

One other semi-famous figure from Crete is the mythological Zeus. (read more on Greek Mythology.), He was either born in the Dikteon Cave in south-central Crete or the Ideon Cave on Mount Ida.

And Not So Famous Cretans.

But it is the everyday people I find the most interesting. My friends on Crete take Greek hospitality to a different level. They always insist on giving me a large bottle of their olive oil when I leave. I don’t mean olive oil from the store. I am talking olive oil from their olive trees. It is in a quantity much more than three ounces and always in a bottle that leaks. Their heart is in the right place.

Another thing about Crete I will always remember. I was in a small village around 5:00 PM. Several of the local people began to get restless. They wanted to make sure I had a place to sleep and dinner for the night. There was no hotel in the village, and I’m not even sure about a taverna. They were just my good Samaritans.

Even the bigger towns have charming passageways to get lost in. This one is in Chania.

It’s A Long Way to.

The island is 160 miles long and up to 37 miles wide towards the middle. With more than 3200 square miles of land, there is a lot to see and do.

One of my pet peeves, (there are many,) is that cruise ships call on the island for eight hours. And, many of them visit at the commercial port of Heraklion. It has as much charm as any other commercial port, slim to none. Then they come away saying the dislike Crete passionately.

A tourist sees cement and cranes. A traveler sees past that.

If they only knew what they were missing.

Historical Crete.

A written record of Crete’s history only goes back to around the 18th century B.C. The Minoans, the Mycenaeans, the Greeks of the Archaic and Classical periods make up the first 3,000 years of Cretan history.

Amazingly, the oldest, the Minoans, seem to leave the most ruins and also a lot of mystery. The Minoan (not their real name) palace of Knossos, and the remains of the Zakros, Phaistos, and Malia are puzzles. The excavating and rebuilding is so sloppy. They lose many clues of this civilization. Still, it is interesting to stroll through the ruins and imagine.

The Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Venetians, and Ottomans will add to the next 2,000 years of history. The Venetians leave a wealth of sites and artifacts from one end of the island to the other.

Crete is definitely for the historian in you.

A Natural High and Low.

There are mountains with hiking paths, caves, and monasteries on them.

See the valleys that are lush with farms, orchards, and vineyards.

By the 1950s, there were thousands of windmills in the Lassithi valley, running irrigation systems.

There are portions of city walls you can walk on.

You can hike gorges down to the sea.

The Samaria Gorge is a famous full day hike to the coast.

There are partially visible ruins now underwater.

And Crete has something many Greek islands do not, sandy beaches. You can find the rocky shores, typical of many Greek islands, but you can also find sand.

Crete is definitely for the outdoor person in you.

Cretan Cuisine.

Due to its size, Crete can grow, raise, or cultivate just about everything it needs. Although there are cows on the island, lamb is the meat of choice. And like all islands, fresh fish and seafood are abundant. On the south side of the island, citrus trees grow.

But what about the PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) products you must try?

Local rusks, tomato, cheese and olive oil.

All Greeks take olive trees seriously. They produce olives, oil, and all the products that come from them. The Cretans take that to a higher level.

There are more than 35 million olive trees on the island, and many families have their own. There are at least ten PDO olive oils on the island and one PGI.

They distract the Crete olive oil directly from the olive, without any further processing.

The Cretan olive oil is low in acidity and has unique characteristics. Its classification is extra virgin olive oil.

(Read more on Cretan Cuisine.)

Cretan Cheese.

They also take their cheeses seriously. The island cheeses are from goat, sheep milk, or a combination. There are four with PDO status.

Graviera Kritis is the Crete version of gruyere.

Xinomizithra Kritis is a tangy, sweet cheese that is very popular with locals. It has a minimum fat content of 45%.

Pichtogalo Chanion translates literally as “thick milk of Chania”. It is a soft, spreadable cheese with a minimum fat content of 50%.

Xygalo Sitias is from Eastern Crete. This sheep or goat milk cheese is creamy and rich. The taste is slightly sour but with a fresh note.

Made With Honey.

Crete even has a PDO honey. The bees collect pollen from both the pine trees and the thyme growing wild. The two ingredients blend to create a unique flavor.

What’s the Rusk?

I call the Cretan rusk a bagel-shaped crouton. It is a hard, dry cracker or a twice-baked bread that bakers make from barley or chickpea flour. Before eating rusks, they use wine, oil, or the juice from diced tomato for softening. It also has a PDO status, so try one.

Crete is definitely for the food-lover in you.

Cretan Wine.

After 4,000 years of making wine, they seem to have it down.

In ancient Crete, wine came in a much more practical size container.

You cannot visit Crete without sampling the Cretan wine. Like Santorini, it is its unique region and taste. There are over 20 white and more than 20 red wines with PDO or PGI status.

The vineyards stretch from near Heraklion west to Chania. Rumor has it you could spend a day visiting the wineries. Several require reservations. (so I hear.) Another story says you can spend several days just tasting Cretan wine. (so I hear…)