‘Crete’ Archives
Warrior Monks of Crete
A road trip with friends took us to the south coast of Crete and a monastery famous for much more than religious activities. We left our village and traveled west on highway E75 toward the port city of Rethymnon. At Rethymnon we turned south towards Spili, climbed into the White Mountains, and then descended into [Read More]
Creativity and the Stone House
What is creativity? It is the act of turning a unique idea into something we can see, hear, smell, touch, or taste. We think of great works of art — paintings, music, dance, and so on. And we sometimes recall famous creative people. However, anyone can be creative in one way or another. While traveling in [Read More]
Way Station
The ancient Cretans, known as “Minoans” today, created a far-flung shipping and trade network with Europe, Africa and Asia. They built grand public buildings (palaces) with beautiful wall paintings, colorful stonework, light wells and sophisticated plumbing. However, after more than a century of digging up Minoan artifacts, archaeologists are still trying to explain who the [Read More]
Ancient Sailors
Until recently, it was thought that humans began sailing the Mediterranean Sea around 12,000 BCE. But scientists now believe early Stone Age people arrived on Crete at least 130,000 years ago. Why the huge timeline shift? A Greek-American research team found man-made tools in 130,000-year-old rock formations in southwest Crete, near the village of Plakias. [Read More]
Olive Harvest
When the last tourists return to northern lands in autumn, Cretan interests swiftly turn to the olive harvest. Workers at the olive mill in Koutouloufari prepare for a flood of local olives. Not far away, near our home in Ano Hersonissos, growers inspect their crops for maturity. We had several rainfalls, but many olives were [Read More]
