With high hopes we booked flights to Greece in January 2022 hoping Covid regulations would be relaxed by May 1. We arrived May 3 just as the rules were changed by both Greece and Canada. It is a very long trip. We arrived in Chania after 4 flights and 24 hours of travel.
We arrived at Chania airport at 1PM and were met by a taxi hired by our VRBO hostess Efi owner of the Venetian house. What an attractive little doorway at the end of a narrow lane. The house was in the east end close to the harbour near the old shipyard buildings, but hidden up a back alley which proved to be very quiet and convenient to Chania old town. The moment we opened the front door I remembered that old Venetian houses have a very small footprint with several floors above. Ours had 4 levels. There was a well stocked kitchen and bathroom on the ground floor. A seating area with couches was on the second floor, the bedroom on the third floor and a lovely rooftop seating area with a view over the harbour. Perfect. Except having the bedroom on the third floor and the bathroom on the ground floor was a bit inconvenient in the middle of the night.
Despite jet lag we unpacked and headed out to the old town and wandered around, familiarizing ourselves with the area. We bought cheese, bread and wine and retired to our rooftop patio for a snack and rest.
In the early evening we always head out for a glass of wine or an ouzo and watch the sun set over the harbour. Finally, we are relaxed and settled into familiar routine in Chania.
We chose to dine at Amphora one of our favourite tavernas on the harbour. The food has always been good, reasonably priced and the view is outstanding. We had a simple dinner of mezies and house wine. It was a cool evening and the crowds were light so we got a table with an unobstructed view of the harbour and lighthouse. What a great way to finish our first day in Chania.
Morning coffee on the rooftop was wonderful. There were swallows swooping all over the sky, church bells ringing and the sun shining. Today our plan was to walk to Agi Apostoli beach. This took us along the shore line, past Neo Hora beach. We walked as far as Aptera Beach and stopped at a cafe there. We were tired. Jet lag and a long walk had caught up with us. The sand beaches all along here are beautiful. Part of the walk to Aptera is along a groomed dirt road. The wild flowers are beautiful.
Looking for a sunset spot, I was accosted by a taverna barker and in the ensuing banter asked him if they had the best ouzo. With that we ended up at a table. The very nice head man said that he had sent out for something special for us. He chatted with us about being from Sparta. Very pleasant. The ouzo finally arrived and it was very special. Smooth. The brand was Porto. We were told we could buy a bottle at such and such a place. We said that we would definitely return for another serving one evening. We never did find the place where this ouzo was available. All the stores that sold Ouzo told us they have never heard of this brand. Strange.
Tonight, we dined at Semi Ramis, deep in the old town maze of alleys. We ordered grilled vegetables, fried zucchini balls, shrimp saganaki and fried potatoes. It was a lovely setting but the food all came too quickly and all at the same time. Our preference is to make dinner an occasion that takes time. We prefer to have two appetizers then later another appetizer or main and share them slowly. This was the only occasion on the whole trip where we felt rushed.
To be continued