We crawled out of bed after a night of drinking with the bar crew, learning new dirty words in Greek and basically making them love us like George did when we worked there. It’s still crazy to think we didn’t get to see him this trip. I texted him tonight and he told me he is at KM 4 of the 18 KM hike of the Gorge. I said nope nope no sir.
After waking I headed down to the bar to get the coffees from Nektarious. He forgot the bottle of Raki he said that he would bring, again, and apparently he too had been up all night drinking at a wedding. It’s a pity really because his Raki is really the best. He had a bottle behind the bar which he gave me and maybe has 6 shots worth in it. We will drink them happily in Sougia before we hop on a plane and can’t take it with us.
JW got up and gave our hugs and said goodbye and hopped in the car and headed towards Sougia.
On the way we stopped off at the Cretan Botanical Gardens. Now we have driven past it before and from the road it looks small and insignificant. But apparently the word is out because when we pulled in there were buses dropping off old people and the parking lot was practically empty. I really thought it was just going to be walking around some plants, get in the car and go. But in actuality, it was a 3k circle, multiple switchbacks, the first half all downhill, no stairs, just steep dirty paths, and along the way, various trees and plants from around the world. Those first KM were fucking killed. I mean, my knees are better, but not healed and this path was designed by satan for people with knee problems.I have no idea how the old people getting off the buses were going to negotiate these pathways.
Once we got to the bottom, basically the middle, it was a flat area with a lake and large number of ducks, geese and peacocks strutting their stuff. It was wild seeming them in their native Crete.
At this point my knees were still not in any paid, but I could tell, they were not happy. The pathway up was so much easier, a few flat switchbacks with a couple steeps steps up to the next, and we got up to the top and were out of there.
By now it was around 1 and we still an hour let to get to Sougia.
The road was marvelous and scenery undescriable. There are no pictures that can give the sense of what it’s like to drive through the Cretan mountains and tiny roads with no guardrails. Before we knew it were saw the sea and were humping into Sougia. Down the main drag and take a left to the Oceanis, our home of choice for the last 10 years.
Christian the owner was waiting for us and we got our room key, dropped off the luggage and then went next door for a light lunch.
After lunch we snoozed, read some books, had a beer, basically bummed around til dinner, we made some plans about tomorrows Samaritan Gorge hike, and at one point I walked down the peer to buy our boat ticket and the guy said the Gorge was closed today and may be closed tomorrow, so buy you ticket tomorrow. Boat leaves at 9:10, ticket office opens at 8:30. Our plan is to get up at 8 and get some breakfast, pack our shit and be at the dock by 8:45 to snag our ticket.
We got some supplies from the local mini market, and headed to dinner at Rembitiko. The food was fine, not great, we had a plate of appetizers and some Greek sausages., red wine and retsina, cake for dessert, and of course RAKI, which was fine.
I got word from George who is working the gorge now for a job that the gorge will be open tomorrow, so the hike is on, Samaria backwards, lots of snacks, lots of planning, the knees may be dead after the botanical guards, there is plenty of time to just sit at the beech and drink all day.
We’re back at the hotel ad we’re doing fine, and so we’ll see you tomorrow.
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