Day #12: 12 July 2013

Today we did a cruise! It was the best day I think that I have had so far in Crete. It was exactly what I needed after such a tiring day yesterday. It was so relaxing and calming. Maria, you have to make this a mandatory trip.

The Boat to Paradise!

View from the Boat

The first beach was Balos. It literally looked like it came off a postcard. The entire time I was pinching myself just to remind myself that this was reality. The beach had two parts – the ocean and a bay area. The beach had pink sand and lots of little sea shells! It was wavy and the water was so refreshing. The bay area was the exact opposite of the beach. The water was very still and warm. It was almost like a large baby pool.

Wow

Gorgeous

The second stop was another beach which had a pirate castle on top of a hill. We decided to hike up the mountain to see the castle. It was a struggle because the sun was so strong and we were getting tired. However, making it up to the castle was worth any pain. The view of the beach was breathtaking. It was also exciting to wander around and see the remains that were left. There was a small house/church in the middle that survived as well as the outer walls and the dungeon area.

Castle!

Castle Ruins

Like a Postcard

After we got on the boat, we learned about how the ship is run. We also learned the Greek safety standards to how the life rafts work as well as how the safety features inside the captain’s area work. It was interesting getting almost an “insider’s tour” of the boat. I did not realize how fast the European Union reacts to boat crashes through implementing newer safety standards. For example, the cruise ship that crashed because the captain was asleep resulted in there now being an alarm that goes off every five minutes that helps to keep the captain awake.