Michy's Travel

In the centre of Crete stands Heraklion, the capital city and also where my office was based. Most of my time spent here was for work, food and shopping. They also have some amazing bars but club-wise, it is mainly Greek music. My favourite bar was 'Xalavro Open Bar', beautiful setting with some mouth-watering cocktails and food.

Down the road from my office was a walkway through the sea, it's nice to go for a stroll if you have time but be aware the walkway is much longer than it seems and the sea can be rough in that area so you will get a little spray at points. Near the beginning of the walkway there is Rocca a Mare Fortress which you can go into and explore for a fee of €4, then right at the end is a lighthouse (which me and my friend never made it to as 1. We were tired and 2. We had to rush back for our coach).

Heraklion was the best place to shop for me, as it has some familiar brands such as Zara, H&M, Sephora and Stradivarius (which I never went into in London but it became my favourite clothes store in Crete). For toiletries I'd go to Hondos Center but it also sold homeware, toys and clothes. I managed to find an amazing lash technician (who I miss sorely) at Gloss Nail and Makeup Bar, the salon itself is very modern and clean, staff are friendly and the prices are affordable. Another beauty salon I frequented was Doctor Fish Heraklion but this was mainly for waxing. Bear in mind with these salons it is always advisable to book an appointment as they do get very busy. If you want to buy more traditional items and/or souvenirs there is Heraklion Central Market, which is open every day.

Heraklion is filled with restaurants ranging from the traditional Cretan cuisine to Asian to Western. I wouldn't advise getting sushi there though and you can forget about dimsum. The 3 places I frequented most for lunch was:
1. Hot Hot Burger - Their burgers were amazing, my favourite was 'The Mexican' for the spice and also the chicken caesar salad with dressing on the side. The staff were friendly and I went so often, they knew my order by heart. However I have been told they have now moved to Athens.
2. Wok Spot - For those times I really missed Asian food and was too lazy to cook it myself. You can customise your order with what noodles/rice, what toppings and which sauce you wanted. It's not going to be the best rice or noodles you'll ever taste but it hit the spot and the portions were big.
3. Izmir Kebab - This was a great place to get gyros and if you order takeaway it is much quicker.

Other places I enjoyed going with friends was Central Park, which is a fusion restaurant with some amazing desserts and cocktails; Amalia's Kitchen, for when we wanted Greek food and for dessert, DaVinci Gelato, their gelato was one of the best I've ever had and they had so many flavours to choose from. My favourite bakery was Savoidakis, I tried to limit how much sweets I got but when I did, I chose a different pastry each time and had never been disappointed.

As a fan of escape rooms I enlisted 2 friends to check out Escape Rooms Heraklion with me. We chose the room that looked the least scariest, 'Mission: White Diamond'. The member of staff that briefed us did ask, "why aren't you guys doing the 'Madhouse'?", Sir that may be the most fun room for you to watch people escape from but with a literal horror score of 110% on your website, I really don't think so. The room we were in was quite difficult and the props seemed a bit aged but all in all it was a fun experience and we did manage to escape (with some help).

WEST CRETE
The very first place I visited in West Crete was Rethymno. Me and my friend A.B got the coach from Heraklion which took just over an hour. Old Town Rethymno is a charming town due to its Turkish and Venetian background giving every little street some character.

We took our time walking around town and stopped for lunch at 'Akri Gardens', the layout of the restaurant was unique, it had like little levels leading to a third 'floor' and it was filled with greenery and flowers. I got the prawn linguine which was fresh and full of flavour. We then stopped at 'Fortezza Castle', which is absolutely huge but an interesting place to explore.

My first road trip was to Matala Beach, also known for its hippie past which you can still see signs of when walking around the area. They have a festival every summer commemorating the Matala hippies of the 60's. It's a sandy beach with pebbles at the edge of the water and because we went early in the season (end of April when it was getting warmer and wasn't too cold to go into the water), it was quiet and there were no horrible sunloungers polluting the scene. Besides the beach you can also visit the old hippie caves located on the right of the beach for a fee of €2.

Side Story - 'Wrong' Side & Mystery Place: On our way to Matala Beach, my friend R.C was driving on the left-hand side for the first time and 2 of his friends thought it'd be a swell idea, to ask him if he could drop them off halfway up the mountains so they wouldn't have to hike so much and being the lovely person he is, R.C agreed. You could tell he was really nervous and to be honest so was I, but it doesn't help having your passengers stressing out so I tried to stay calm even though my heart was going off the rails especially when it came to those mountain edges. However on the way, we found this beautiful place and it was honestly one of the most breath-taking scenes I have ever seen, it reminded me of something from Studio Ghibli; a vast field filled with yellow flowers and surrounded by cliffs. I don't think my pictures do justice for it. Once we had taken the view in, we hopped back into the car. There was one point R.C was way too close to the edge but luckily his friend on the passenger seat had his head poked out at the time and was able to warn R.C very quickly. Fast-forward we dropped them off and as you know we made it to Matala Beach, safely!

A place I always recommended to friends, was Preveli Beach; famous for its palm tree forest. The drive from Amoudara is only 1.5 hours and just before you reach the beach you will drive through some amazing scenery.

Preveli Beach on Google Maps should take you to the carpark at the top of the beach, you will then have to hike down, yes hike and no it wasn't easy. Although there were many children and babies there too. The beach itself is pretty small and split into two by a river, it has a snack stand and toilets but the real highlight is the palm forest. There is a trail through the forest and once you enter you feel like you're in a different place, away from the hectic and busy beach to a secluded and serene area.

Side Story - You're on my Turf: When my bestie G.C came to visit me, I took her (though she was the one driving) to Preveli Beach, as I mentioned it's not too long a drive from where I lived and its a nice place to see. We set up on the beach but on that day the sun wasn't prevalent, it kept coming and going so one point G.C upped and moved further away from me to chase the sun. I decided to stay put. About 10 minutes later I heard her screeching, I looked up and 2 geese, one clearly male and the other female actually tried to attack her even though she was minding her own business. She got up and ran away back to me. Clearly disturbed by the experience, she told me, the male geese had manoeuvred his beak up her leg whilst she was lying on her front. To make it worse, not even 5 minutes later the male geese found her again and tried to peck her. I honestly can't remember if this was the 1st or 2nd incident in where she was attacked by birds but she now has a fear of them, understandably.

Agia Pelagia was once a traditional fishing village but is now a seaside resort with some cute cafes, seafood restaurants and souvenir shops along the beach. It was a nice place for a spot of lunch.

Margarites Village may be a small place but it is brimming with charm due to its tradition of pottery passed down from generations. As you walk through the village you will be met with an array of colours and shapes with each shop displaying their works of art outside and on their walls.

In the same day we then drove to The Monastry of Arkadi which is about 25 minutes drive away from Margarites Village. It is open everyday but timings vary depending on the seasons. There is also a small entrance fee of €3.

Safari Club was another excursions supplier that we worked with, a guided tour around Crete in a jeep. The route that I took was Katharo in the Lassithi area which is €95 per person. The tour included a coffee stop at Kritsa, Selakona Forest, Goat Valley, Cave of Zeus and lunch at Zorbas BBQ. The views on this tour were amazing, our guide was friendly, informative and had good English and he gave us plenty of time at each stop. I would highly recommend this company and I don't even work with them anymore.

Lastly I have to mention Santorini, which isn't in Crete but one of the Cyclades Islands in the Aegean Sea. You can get to Santorini from Crete via the ferry and they have 2 options, one is the fast ferry which takes around 1.5 hours and then the normal ferry which takes around 2.5 hours which is obviously cheaper. I was lucky enough to go on one of our excursions for free, which included a return ferry, a coach to take us to Oia for a photo-opportunity and Thira to explore the shops and get lunch, and an optional stop to Perissa Black Sand Beach.

When I was in Crete, one of the things that I missed a lot was Asian cuisine. To my surprise the place where I saw the most Chinese restaurants and I mean at least 2 in every street where there was a restaurant, was Santorini. I was both happy and confused, this was one of the things that contributed to my opinion that Santorini is a total tourist-site. Of course I was part of an excursion so I saw how many tourists and how many ferries actually arrived at Santorini at one time. Driving around in these huge coaches on these small roads, you can imagine the traffic that builds up. Another thing that surprised me was the number of blue-top buildings, I thought Santorini would be filled with them but there was about 5 in total that I could spot (see pictures below).

When walking around Oia, I noticed there were a few paths that were blocked off and exclusive to hotels only, so I imagine that Santorini would still be a beautiful place for couples and/or honeymoons. Fast forward to a year later and I actually went back to Santorini for my friend's wedding and I have to say the venue was beautiful. My theory on Santorini remains.

This ends my Crete/Greece blogs, there is probably so much that I have missed out but I have tried to include the most memorable places for me. Even though I was there for 6 months there are still some places that I never got to visit but would like to such as, Samaria Gorge and Gramvousa Island. I loved Crete and I think it is such a beautiful island with so much to see and filled with friendly people too so if you ever get to go, please do. Thank you for reading! (◍•ᴗ•◍)♡ ✧*。

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This is a slightly different post to usual, as Crete was my temporary home abroad and not just a holiday away but I will try to whittle down part of my experience, in the tumultuous 6 months I was there.

Flight: I flew with EasyJet and the flight duration from London to Crete is approximately 3 hours, 52 minutes. You can get flights from as cheap as £72 but in the high-season (June-September) it can go up to £200. Some shops and restaurants start to open again in mid-April and by May, most places should be open. The only exception, that I am aware of is the Malia strip. The season in Malia started beginning of June, with the bigger clubs open from mid-June.

Eat: Unfortunately I don't have many pictures of food (I was more into taking videos of the food, possibly because of how much there would be on the table), so instead I will list out what I think are the foods you must try if you ever go to Crete or Greece:

Moussaka - This was my absolute favourite dish to go for. Traditionally it is layers of minced lamb, aubergine, potatoes, tomato, onion and then topped with béchamel sauce and cheese. The best ones are served in a little clay pot.
Tzatziki - Okay so technically this is not a meal, but a dip, pair it with fresh bread and you'll have finished the dip in no time.
Greek Salad - I know what you're thinking "eurgh salad", but no, think again! Normally consisting of tomatoes, olives, cucumber and topped with feta cheese, drizzled in salt, pepper, olive oil and vinegar making it the perfect refreshing side dish. Before this trip I wasn't a massive cheese fan but I have now been converted.
Gyros - This was one of the main-lunch staples, quick but messy. Meat cooked on a rotisserie and then wrapped in a thick pitta bread with chips, onions, tomatoes and tzatziki sauce.
Souvlaki - Grilled meat, usually chicken, lamb or pork with chips, tzatziki and some salad.
Fried Snails (Chochlioi Boubouristi) - I have to say I'm not a massive fan of snails but after trying one of the fried snails in Crete I couldn't stop! They are coated with flour and fried in hot olive oil, then drizzled with wine or vinegar.
Raki - One of the many things I loved about Crete was the free raki and desserts that came after a meal, the Greek hospitality is honestly so warm. Raki is Crete's national drink, a strong spirit ranging from 40% - 65% alcohol by volume. You can imagine how strong a shot of it would be but when in Greece, yammas!

Side Story - One of a kind Landlady: I had just moved into my apartment in Crete, it was about 2 days in and on that evening I heard a persistent knocking on my door. This was around 10pm so I was a bit perplexed, who on earth would be knocking on my door at this time and especially when I didn't really know anyone yet. I opened my door and there stood my landlady with a plateful of porkchops. Yes, cooked porkchops. "Hi, Michelle! Welcome to the building! I made too much so here take some, NO, take more". Turns out my landlady owned a jeep excursion company where they provide lunch too and on this day she had a lot of leftovers so she was going around every apartment and handing out porkchops, which I found both hilarious and sweet. I was grateful as that was 2 of my meals sorted and it was tasty. She actually was a really sweet old lady, but she didn't speak English very well so our conversations were always somewhat limited.

Do: The area that I stayed was Amoudara, which is a 20-minute bus ride away from the centre of Crete (Heraklion/Iraklio). Amoudara is a fairly quiet area, although it has many cafes, restaurants and tourist shops, they also have a lot of places that have closed down and not been taken up by new tenants. The thing I loved most about living there was the fact that I was just 5 minutes walk away from the beach and on this (7km long sandy) beach, were several tavernas with their own section of sun-loungers; my favourite taverna was Lotos. If you order a drink (and/or food) you can stay on their sun-loungers for as long as you wanted, staff would come out and take your order if you set-up in one of them. After my daily dose of vitamin D, I would go inside the restaurant for some lunch, as their food was really good too. Then on some occasions, on the walk back to my apartment I would stop at the cafe, Oompa Loompas for their amazing froyo, they also served other desserts such as waffles and ice-cream. Another taverna I frequented with friends, was Heaven Beach, which has a very hip modern design with a mix of food from the traditional grilled meats to baos and even an afternoon tea! They also have some beautiful cocktails.

Side Story - Kind Stranger: There was an amazing store called JUMBO, which is advertised as a Toy Store on Google but don't be fooled, this store has everything! This was the place where everyone got their cutlery, decorations, cleaning supplies and more from (think birth-child of an IKEA + Woolworths). Lucky for me, this place was nearby to where I lived, about a 10-minute bus ride away. The first time I went to the store by myself I got confused as to what bus I had to get home, the bus driver that I spoke to was incredibly unhelpful and as a foreigner who doesn't speak any Greek, I was feeling both worried and frustrated. However these 2 girls at the bus stop must have seen how forlorn I looked because one of them went and bought me a bus-ticket. They couldn't speak English so I couldn't explain I was lost but her gesture warmed my heart so much and in the end a friend got back to me with the correct bus number. With the local buses in Crete, there are different priced tickets depending on how far you want to go. You can purchase these tickets from small shops/stalls. You can also purchase them on the bus itself but it is slightly more expensive.

Side Story - Bear: Me and the bestie G.C were tanning at Lotos, I was lying on my front to tan my back when about 10 minutes in I felt a gentle bop on my head. I knew for sure G.C was still on her sun-lounger and couldn't reach so far, so did this mean a stranger had just come and bopped me!? I heard G.C laughing when I looked up and was caught by surprise, I was indeed bopped on the head by a living being but it wasn't a person, it was a stray dog. He or she was a gorgeous black labrador (I am guessing) and I think he actually enjoyed my shocked face because I could have sworn he was smiling. It was just adorable! Normally they come over when you have food but we didn't have any so I think he was just feeling playful. This same dog also walked me and my colleagues back to our apartment from the bus-stop after one of our team events. I was scared he was going to try come into the building but the good dog just sat at the front door and then started cleaning himself. I did name him Bear and I say he was a stray because the very first time I saw him on the beach was when I was eating in Lotos and he didn't have a collar on then.

Another pro to living in Amoudara was the fact that we had a beautiful hiking trail (I say trail loosely, I got lost a few times but it was all part of the adventure) and I ended up at Almiros Gorge. I wanted to go further but as I was by myself and there was no footpath to go round just a road, I decided not to risk it. However, my friends did go further ahead and even hiked up the mountain. If you do decide to do these routes please make sure to wear suitable footwear and have water with you.

An activity in Amoudara, which only pops up in summer is the open-air cinema at Technopolis. Technopolis is a cinema (and so cheap compared to London) with many kids-areas so it wasn't really a place I spent a lot of time in but I was excited for the open-air cinema. The movie I got dragged to watch, thanks to my friend S.M was 'Mamma Mia 2', I had never even seen Mamma Mia 1 but the sound system at Technopolis was amazing and I couldn't have imagined a better way to enjoy this movie, I ended up loving it. When I got home I watched the first movie on my iPad and funnily enough, it just did not have the same effect.

EAST CRETE
First up in East Crete is Vai Palm Beach, which is famous for having the largest natural palm forest in Europe. You can get the bus/coach to Vai from Sitia but we decided to rent a car and drive there which was a 5-hour round trip from Heraklion. You can see from the photos below, it was pretty busy with various sun-loungers on the beach (aside from the classic ones, they also had a 'luxury range' which is the sun-lounger with a cushion) however the price they were asking for was ridiculous so we found an empty spot on the beach and set our towels out instead. I'm not sure it was worth such a long journey to get to as there were other beaches that were closer to me and nicer too but the palm trees are a nice background for photos.

Next is Agios Nikolaos, a coastal town 1-hours drive away from Heraklion. It was a cute little town to walk around in, filled with colourful buildings, boats and of course various restaurants and little shops.

Side Story - Fluffy Friend: I don't know if you spotted the little dog in one of the pictures above but he followed us from a place where there were all these old boats parked on land and joined us in our walk up the stone stairs and along the coast. When we stopped to admire the view and take pictures, he also stopped and admired the view through the gap of the walls. One of the saddening things about Crete is the amount of stray cats and dogs there are. I asked my Greek friend about it and she said the government are trying to help these animals but there's just so many of them, that it's impossible. I got to say, I love cats too but some of the cats in Crete were terrifying especially the 'bin gangs', the group of skinny stray cats that would hang around the bins all day, you wouldn't want to mess with them.

Another pretty place for walking and taking in the views is Sissi. They have little water spots and beaches you can explore but if you're not one to get into the water, they also have a walkway filled with flowers and colourful hammocks. Further ahead there is a restaurant which we went to for lunch but be prepared to wait awhile for service and for food, also the amount of mosquitoes there. Mosquitoes in Crete seem to be so much more venomous than the ones in UK, that I actually had to go doctors to get antibiotics for all my bites. Always spray on repellent if you know you get bitten easily.

When it comes to olives there are 2 types of people, ones who love them and ones who absolutely cannot stand them, I belonged to the latter. However, my friends wanted to go to the Cretan Olive Oil Farm in Agios Nikolaos and since Crete is known for their olives, off we went. When you go in you are greeted by the friendly owners, then you start your journey with a short video on how to make olive oil using the traditional methods and distinguishing what olive oil you should buy based on the acidity levels. They also have tours and hold classes in cooking, pottery and cheese-making. We decided on a self-guided tour which was €3, we followed the path, saw various animals, then went to the gift shop where you can taste the different olive oils and raki they had to offer.

Now onto the famous Malia, known for the party-life in Crete and believe me it lives up to its name. You can also rent out quad bikes here, just please don't be one of those drunk mugs who don't watch where they are driving whilst on it. The strip in Malia starts off with a number of western-themed restaurants and as you walk down you will be bombarded by staff of the many bars and clubs, who will try to entice you into choosing their place. They offer a really good deal too, normally involving shots and a goldfish bowl for an obscenely cheap price, where you think they've probably watered it down so much that you won't even feel the effects but trust me, you definitely will. Weirdly enough I didn’t enjoy this part, some of these promoters were way too pushy and will actually grab onto you and physically try to drag you in. On the other hand I did feel sorry for them as Malia is not as busy as it used to be. It was once the booming place for 18-30s club tours but this kind of travelling-style is now no more.

There were aspects of Malia that did not please me but it is a good place to party once you've found a club with the type of music you are looking for and there are some friendly people there too. One of the managers of the hotel we were staying at, Kastro Apts (decent price, clean and at the end of the strip so you can work your way up) got my birthday started in the right way, with a colourful sparkling cocktail and a group photo. S.M also surprised me with a birthday cake to be placed in our hotel room, which was so sweet. In the daytime Malia is almost unrecognisable and they have a pretty decent beach too. I'm sure I took the photo of that 'Nisos Beach' sign because of the quote below it, which reads, "The tans will fade but... the memories will last forever...".

When you think of partying in Crete, another place that comes to mind is Hersonissos, which is a town with many restaurants, cafes and shops but also a classier place to party. Hersonissos doesn't have as many bars and clubs as Malia but the main ones are New York Beach Club and Palm Beach Club. I have to say, I personally preferred Hersonissos to Malia. In the daytime, the place I frequented most here was Star Beach, which is a huge resort with a water park but they also had a themed party it seemed, every week. It was a nice place to chill by the many pools, with a drink in hand.

One of the excursions that we sold in Crete was a trip to the island Koufonisi and we were lucky enough to be booked on one of these trips. Me and my colleagues were picked up by the coach at Creta Beach Hotel in Amoudara and normally the drive from Amoudara to Makrigialos is 2 hours but since we had to make other stops (to pick up other people and a 'quick' toilet-break, it took much longer). Once at Makrigialos you will board the pirate ship and sail around for about 2.5 hours, this includes lunch and a swimming stop too. The coastline is absolutely beautiful and the water was the most clear and blue I've ever seen. As the ship is too big to dock at Koufinisi, there is a small boat to take you to the island, you can imagine this can take awhile especially when there is only one small boat making the rounds. I think we had about an hour on the island, it was nice because it was empty but it wasn't really comfortable walking bare feet as there were so many little rocks on the sand. All in all, I was happy I could tick the place off my list but I wouldn't have been devastated if I never got to go, it was one long long day. But please look how beautiful it was below.

These were some of my highlights of East Crete, I think this post is getting long so I will write about Heraklion in my next post including my West Crete highlights. I hope you have enjoyed reading this (｡･ω･｡)ﾉ♡

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