Drinking white Greek wine made from Assyrtiko grapes with cheese and olives
Crete 2021
Day 8: August 27
Petrokefali - Agiofaraggo Beach - Platanias
Crete 2021
Itinerary
In the morning I realize that we forgot our masks yesterday in the bay, so we decide to go back for them. Even though I don’t really feel like it, the masks are good ones — why waste something good. Besides, the bay isn’t far.
It’s amazing how different the same place can be depending on the time of day. Yesterday both the canyon and the bay seemed magical to me. We were completely alone there, and today there are crowds of people. Everyone is flowing into the bay. The bright midday sun seems to burn away some of the colors. The cliffs seemed so beautiful to me yesterday, and today they look faded. Our masks are lying right where we left them yesterday.
We swim for a long time; it feels so nice to plunge into the water after the heat. Yesterday the hike through the canyon was a pleasant walk, and today it is quite exhausting in this heat. Wolf is surprised that I stopped being afraid of the depth and can swim for so long… I don’t know myself; my fear of the sea is gradually, very slowly, dissolving within me. I feel more confident. But that’s only while the sea is calm and there are no waves :)
Today is the day we return to the western part of Crete. For three nights we’ll be staying in the town of Platanias, 20 km from Chania. This whole stretch of coast from Chania to the end of the island in the west turned out to be a tourist cesspool, as Wolf put it. I don’t know how I managed to book a hotel here; usually I try to stay far away from places like this.
Along the narrow road there are restaurants, hotels, little shops selling clothes and souvenirs. Crowds of people, tons of cars. We couldn’t find a place to park the car in order to check into the hotel. We drove back and forth, and of course all of this seriously ruined our mood.
In the end I called the phone number listed in our booking, and the woman who runs the hotel said there was a parking space for us near the hotel. It was an incredible relief, because I was horrified at the thought of where we would leave the car for all the remaining days….
Our room is nice, with a balcony. But the whole situation with finding parking and the fact that we’re staying in such a crowded place threw me off balance, so I don’t really feel any joy about the hotel.
Our room
In the evening we go to the sea; it’s very close here, just a 2-minute walk away. But the beach leaves much to be desired… The water is murky, with seaweed. We swim a little, but without much enjoyment.
Beach in the village of Platanias
Then we go for a walk along the sea on the sand. In the evening it’s nice here, there are almost no people left on the beach, the little lights in the restaurants along the shore are glowing, and the sea is roaring.
We head back home along the main road; in the evening there are even more people here. A hubbub and commotion, in the best traditions of a resort town. On the way we meet a perfect ginger stray cat. Volchiy suggests taking him to Dussel. There are a lot of stray cats in Crete in general.
Me and my cat
At the supermarket, we buy two kinds of cold cocoa — one made with almond milk and one with hazelnut milk. The cocoa is delicious, and we happily drink it on the balcony before going to sleep. How nice it is that it’s warm here even at night.