Buzzing Around The World With Fellette & Doug

Nick Copperfield, our Cabbie for the day...

Iraklio, Crete, Greece. We docked at seven in a commercial port next to The Minoan Line High Speed Ferry that goes to Athens.

[No doubt Glen Clark had a trip to Crete to check these out before he decided he knew better]. A leisurely breakfast and off the ship through a very modern cruise terminal to the taxis outside. A very helpful information desk where we find out that the taxis are regulated with fixed rates. Shucks, there goes the first fun of the day!

We get Nick as our driver, a veteran of 45 years driving cabs here. A new Gray Mercedes, [I said regulated, not cheap], and off the four of us go again. Nick talks us into a somewhat "extended" tour, all agreed. There is snow on the mountains,

just like home even as spring has arrived here. Nick stops at a viewing spot where we see a local lady gathering snails for market. That is where we find out Nick's last name, [he never told us], we came up with it. Copperfield, like David Copperfield. But in Crete you pronounce it cop-a-feel.

The girls told us when we got back into the cab. We decided to ignore it and watch it with him. Other than that he was an excellent guide for the morning. He stopped and picked some orange blossoms and gave them to the ladies. Maybe he is just a huggy romantic Mediterranean guy, maybe.....

Off through the country side where the views are like you would expect in Crete: grape vines, olive trees, flowering fruit trees, rolling hills and sunshine.


Did I tell you that Nick had 'Zorba the Greek' music playing softly on his $70,000 stereo? We stopped to view an aquaduct built by the Venetians about 800 years ago.

They also built a wall around the original old city which still stands today in excellent condition.

We wanted to see the Knossos Palace.

For those of you not paying attention during history classes, here it comes again.....The Minoan civilization dates back to about 3000 BC. They were the most advanced civilization in the world, light years ahead of all others.

Minoans had an alphabet before almost any other known civilization. The Minoans somehow disappeared as a people.

The eruption of Santorini, a Greek Island and the ensuing tidal wave is one suggested reason for their disappearance. The lost city of Atlantis has also been toyed with as being Minoan.

It has been suggested that the advance of human civilization was set back by the loss of Minoan knowledge. At least that is what we have been told by various bits of information we have read in the last few days.



Nick then helped me buy four kilos of giant oranges for the cabin from a truck seller.

I have not had really good oranges on the cruise, [I consider myself a judge of good oranges], then took us to the Greek Orthodox Cathedral in the city, and a street market.



We then separated from our new-found Cretan and strolled the streets. [I can't believe we tipped Nick after feeling our spouses!]

We immediately came across a "sale" rack on the street with "leather'' jackets for women at five Euros each. [That is $6.00 U$]. Gail got one for herself, soft blue and Fellette got one for somebody special, pink. They were colours that do not sell well here and they came in a mixed lot, so we were told anyway. Jim directed several cruising Prinsendamians to the shop.

We were by now hungry and needed a rest and fuel. Lunch at an outdoor sidewalk cafe

that had tables that looked like home to us. I had two of the best oranges ever before our drinks came. Right across the nine foot wide passageway was a bakery wafting out the most mouth watering smells. I was in the shop twice before lunch came, just looking at the array of breads, rolls, and selection of small cookies etc. There was a steady stream of interesting people, young, old, chic, not so chic, male and female, the whole hour we were there. There are by the way some very attractive young Cretan women. They seem to have a certain confident sophisticated look about them as they stride by with a click, click of their heels.

Lunch consisted of Tzaki [spelling?] and bread appetiser, then gyros, a lamb dish, again with Tzaki and hot cooked-for-us potato oven-fries, circular and delicious. Gail had Mousaka. We have been told, and believe, that food and drink taken ashore has no calories. All washed down with appropriate beverages, Jim was given an extra glass of wine by a prinsendamean who bought two jackets and figured that Jim had saved her a tidy sum today. I then went back to the bakery for the third time and bought four sugar donuts. Best I have ever had, not sickly sweet and not cake and not donutty. Delicious. I then took Jim into the bakery. We met the owner, the son of the previous owner and other family members. They started the bakery in 1865!

English was poor but they understood our genuine interest. The owner then passed out tear-off samples of some of their specialities. I really need the recipe for that custard flavoured bun!

By more luck than navigational skills we ended up at where we wanted to go be, The Herkaleion Museum where artifacts from the Minoan site are exhibited. About 15 rooms of well displayed bits and pieces displayed in ascending order of time. Starting about 1800 BC. We made it to room 12 when the 3.00 pm closing bell rang. Just as well, our energy had run out and Prinsendam was calling.

A 20 minute walk and we were back on the ship. I was stretched out on the bed in about four minutes. I skipped dinner tonight, two oranges, the Tsaki and buns, gyros, beer, donut and bakery tid-bits were enogh for the rest of the day. The oranges look tempting again but I will wait!

The Island of Crete was occupied by the Turks for about 300 years. After World War One, Crete was given back to Greece. Today, we did not see any evidence that the Turks were ever here, our man Nick says that after they left everthing Turkish was dismantled.

That was our day in Iraklion! Tomorrow Athens, gasp!

[On our bed tonight was a "Disembarkation Questionnaire" oh dear, it is coming to an end].

posted by Doug and Fellette @ 7:50 PM