Day #16: 16 July 2013

Today we had an interesting day. It is almost like our group is falling apart because we keep having medical issues or something keeps going on. However, Theo is taking good care of all of us. We went to the Cretan Medicare Clinic, near Hersonissos, so that Rebecca could get the earring out of her ear. We then went to the National Bank of Greece in Hersonissos so that Hailey could get more information about her ATM card.

After these two unexpected stops, we made it to our first destination, Zeus’s cave. The cave is located in Lassithi Plateau. The physical cave is called Cave of Psychro. This cave is reportedly where his mother, Gaea, and sister, Hra, put Zeus so that his father, Kronos, would not eat Zeus. Kronos was eating all of his children because he did not want a son to take over his kingdom.  However, Gaea put Zeus in that cave so that he could not be found my Kronos and so far back in a deep cave where his cries could not be heard.

Zeus's Cave when He was Little

We also went to a gorgeous beach called Spinalonga where many important people go to visit. Last week, there was an entire banking conference there. I was surprised at how rocky the beach was. The rocks were so large and round that it was almost difficult to walk on. The water was so nice and smooth though and it was actually an area where you could swim and play around in the water rather than battling waves.

Rocks Ahoy!

After the beach we went to Agios Nicholas. This was a small little town dedicated to tourists and boats. There was a huge harbor that leads into a lake where smaller boats could dock. The town was nicely laid out with everything almost focused on the water. It was enjoyable to walk around and see how the touristy souvenirs changed from there to Heraklion. In Agios Nicholas, there were a lot more books aimed at tourists while in Heraklion it is more beauty products and statues.  

Lake in Agios Nicolos

Our day concluded with going to the Santa Marina religious festival in a nearby mountain village. This was our opportunity to see how Greeks interact with each other in a public manner. It was also interesting to be able to witness a religious festival. The people were very friendly and everyone seemed to know everyone. It was such a social event in that all the people made sure to say hi to their friends as well as see the family members, especially the children and grandchildren.

People Eating at Santa Marina