The Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea
Monday April 10, 2023, 9:30 p.m., Kalyves Beach Hotel, Chania, Crete, Greece
Third and final night in this hotel. It’s been an experience. Steve and I both braved the shower today, which is a teeny-weeny little space on the floor of the bathroom, inches away from the toilet, with a small raised wall of about three inches high, and a shower curtain to pull around. Water got everywhere, of course.
Before that, though, I braved something much better. I went ahead outside after I exercised and found Steve walking along the beach, and actually waded in the water of the Aegean Sea, with the sun just rising in the rosy-fingered dawn that Homer described repeatedly in his books. It was really a moment. We strolled around for a while before the chill drove us back inside. I’m super glad to have done it. Collected some rocks- I’m trying to get representative samples wherever we go.
Breakfast at the buffet downstairs, and we all went out on the patio with our germs to eat outside. We are all still trying to mask, except of course Maureen who was feeling unwell today and stayed back from the shopping trip, and of course still isn’t masking. She said she thinks it was the raki liquor that comes at the end of every meal had upset her stomach. It obviously couldn’t be the stomach upset that was one of the symptoms of Covid that Marjorie experienced because Maureen’s vibrations are too high to get sick. (insert eye roll emoji here) Anyway, except for her the rest of us are trying to be careful and so far still just Sue and Marjorie have tested positive. Marjorie is feeling better, and Sue is still feeling kind of crummy, but still just a bad cold sort of thing.
So our trip back into town today was me, Steve, Sarah, Margaret, Charlie, Greta and Maryn. We had a van pick us up here at 9:15 and drive us the half hour, then drop us off. Steve started with a little lecture to the girls about what the tour guide had explained to us about history yesterday, using the map and timeline she had given us. Then we just enjoyed strolling all through the narrow winding streets, roaming in and out of shops, and making various purchases of souvenirs. Charlie bought a leather back in the leather workers’ street to hold his music because apparently his was falling apart. Greta got some ottoman style balloon pants that look very cute. It was raining off and on, and we timed lunch just right so that we were sitting in an enclosed covered patio during the worst of the rain. Margaret figured out how to call the driver for pick up, but a different driver came to get us. The first one had been telling us that he was also a geological engineer for the government when he isn’t taxiing people around.
Back to the hotel by 2:30 or 3 for an afternoon of relaxing. The rain had cleared and the sun was shining for part of the afternoon, and I took the Chromebook back out onto the balcony for some writing with the Aegean and river and scenery all around - sublime.
For dinner we went back to the same restaurant as last night, all of us except Rob and Sue who had gone an hour or two earlier than the rest of us wanted to eat. Another very enjoyable time, with complimentary chocolate mousse and raki to conclude the meal.
Tomorrow morning we leave here at 10 to be driven around to the other side of Crete to Knossos, and we will spend the night in Heraklion.
Then three nights in Santorini, then making our way towards home. It sounds like our stopover in Athens will be extremely short since our flight leaves early in the morning and we’ll have to leave the hotel at around 3 in the morning I think.
Definitely on the downhill side of this trip, still a few days to go but starting to feel like it is wrapping up.
Monday April 10, 2023, 9:30 p.m., Kalyves Beach Hotel, Chania, Crete, Greece
Third and final night in this hotel. It’s been an experience. Steve and I both braved the shower today, which is a teeny-weeny little space on the floor of the bathroom, inches away from the toilet, with a small raised wall of about three inches high, and a shower curtain to pull around. Water got everywhere, of course.
Before that, though, I braved something much better. I went ahead outside after I exercised and found Steve walking along the beach, and actually waded in the water of the Aegean Sea, with the sun just rising in the rosy-fingered dawn that Homer described repeatedly in his books. It was really a moment. We strolled around for a while before the chill drove us back inside. I’m super glad to have done it. Collected some rocks- I’m trying to get representative samples wherever we go.
Breakfast at the buffet downstairs, and we all went out on the patio with our germs to eat outside. We are all still trying to mask, except of course Maureen who was feeling unwell today and stayed back from the shopping trip, and of course still isn’t masking. She said she thinks it was the raki liquor that comes at the end of every meal had upset her stomach. It obviously couldn’t be the stomach upset that was one of the symptoms of Covid that Marjorie experienced because Maureen’s vibrations are too high to get sick. (insert eye roll emoji here) Anyway, except for her the rest of us are trying to be careful and so far still just Sue and Marjorie have tested positive. Marjorie is feeling better, and Sue is still feeling kind of crummy, but still just a bad cold sort of thing.
So our trip back into town today was me, Steve, Sarah, Margaret, Charlie, Greta and Maryn. We had a van pick us up here at 9:15 and drive us the half hour, then drop us off. Steve started with a little lecture to the girls about what the tour guide had explained to us about history yesterday, using the map and timeline she had given us. Then we just enjoyed strolling all through the narrow winding streets, roaming in and out of shops, and making various purchases of souvenirs. Charlie bought a leather back in the leather workers’ street to hold his music because apparently his was falling apart. Greta got some ottoman style balloon pants that look very cute. It was raining off and on, and we timed lunch just right so that we were sitting in an enclosed covered patio during the worst of the rain. Margaret figured out how to call the driver for pick up, but a different driver came to get us. The first one had been telling us that he was also a geological engineer for the government when he isn’t taxiing people around.
Back to the hotel by 2:30 or 3 for an afternoon of relaxing. The rain had cleared and the sun was shining for part of the afternoon, and I took the Chromebook back out onto the balcony for some writing with the Aegean and river and scenery all around - sublime.
For dinner we went back to the same restaurant as last night, all of us except Rob and Sue who had gone an hour or two earlier than the rest of us wanted to eat. Another very enjoyable time, with complimentary chocolate mousse and raki to conclude the meal.
Tomorrow morning we leave here at 10 to be driven around to the other side of Crete to Knossos, and we will spend the night in Heraklion.
Then three nights in Santorini, then making our way towards home. It sounds like our stopover in Athens will be extremely short since our flight leaves early in the morning and we’ll have to leave the hotel at around 3 in the morning I think.
Definitely on the downhill side of this trip, still a few days to go but starting to feel like it is wrapping up.