‘Culture’ Archives
Making Olive Oil
While the morning air is still cool, we are off on a hike through the three villages above Limin Hersonisou. Just downhill from our apartment, we pass the olive oil factory (now a stylish café) on the central street of the village. It makes us wonder where the local farmers have their olives processed these [Read More]
Evolution of a Village
For the past five years, the village of Koutouloufari has been our home away from home whenever we are visiting Crete. While very familiar to us, it is also something of a mystery. So we decide to learn more about it. Koutouloufari on the lower slope of Mt. Harakas, above Limin Hersonossou According to local [Read More]
Greek Festival
Since our arrival on Paros, the temperature has been climbing and the wind diminishing. Our friend Lambis says it is much worse in Athens, where people have died of heat stroke. We are thankful the sea is only about 60 feet from our door, which gives us the option of jumping into the water several [Read More]
The Last Fortress
The longest surviving Venetian fortress on Crete is on a rocky island not far from the Lisithi provincial capital of Ayios Nikolaos. We departed in the morning, traveling east on the new national road, which parallels the northern coast of the island from one end to the other. Although the road is very good, it [Read More]
Bull Leaping
Minoan lifestyle was the envy of the ancient world. Their merchant marine fleet traded throughout the Mediterranean, from the ports of Anatolia (modern Turkey) to the shores of Africa. Even the great Egyptian empire relied heavily on regular shipments of goods brought across the sea by Minoan ships. All of this commercial activity produced great [Read More]