My Crete Adventure

I finished work on the 7th July and got ready to fly out on the 10th to Crete.

After a short delay I was sat on the plane. My first holiday in 10 years and the very first of what I hope will become a travel adventure over the next few years.

Getting on the plane hadn’t been as straight forward as it should have been. I had left my passport at home and by the time I realised it was midnight and I was 5 hours away from home.

I had chosen to fly from Gatwick Airport and was on my way there when a thought crossed my mind and I checked for my passport. I had left it in my larger suitcase. The day before travel I had bought myself a new smaller case and left the passport in a zip in the larger one.

I spent midnight until 4am walking around London waiting for the train station to open. Got on the train back to Birmingham and as I arrived back at my daughter’s house I had convinced myself I wasn’t going.

My daughter had other plans. She had already looked up alternative flights.

An hour after getting home. With no sleep and now a few hundred pounds lighter after paying for another flight and transfer fees I was at Birmingham International airport.

I arrived in Crete at 10.30pm instead of the original mid-day. As I arrived at the hotel I found out the other people being picked up had waiting 90 minutes for me – I felt bad about that. The airline wouldn’t tell them whether I had boarded the plane or not so they sat and waited. I

t helped the three of them bond and get to know each other so that was a plus because they were inseparable for the whole week.

Solo travel experience

I wasn’t expecting everyone to want to hang out together. I thought the trip was for solo travellers but gave us a base to come back to so we could catch up and talk with other solo travellers.

I decided to stay solo. I went out and did my own thing visiting as much of Crete as I could. There was one night where I attended ‘Greek Night’ with a few others and had one person who I went to the beach with – otherwise I did most of my activities alone.

Seeing Crete

In my 7 days I wanted to make sure I did as much as possible while also resting. I will have to return because I got to see a very teeny part of the island in that time.

I kept a journal. I have decided to buy a new journal for every travel adventure I take and put everything into it.

Grand Canyon, Therisso

I paid 19 euro and went on a bus tour to Grand Canyon Therisso. Known for it’s gorges and ravines there were some spectacular views from the mountains. I managed to get a few photos of the Kri-Kri goats and visited an olive factory where I bought myself some great soaps and lovely moisturiser.

We went through the ravine of Therisso following in the footsteps of the revolutionary soldiers and Cretain rebels of the 1896 uprising who hid in caves.

 

Chania Sightseeing Tour

This tour allowed me to get on and off the bus as many times as I wanted to in 24 hours. The buses were only running during the day though so I really only had until 5pm.

I stopped at a place called Sabionara. The peace and tranquillity hit me first and I sat and watched the world go by. I would love to come back and stay in this area for R&R.

Market Square. Stopped here and bought myself a loofah and some natural products. Walked round the market and resisted buying too much.

Akti Kanari. This is the old town of Crete I think and has a beautiful harbour and plenty of places to eat.

7 quick days

The 7 days went past really fast and I couldn’t do everything I wanted to put was so happy to have enjoyed my first solo trip.

I didn’t have a decent camera with me so missed out on taking loads of images.

I am hoping to get round to a trip to Egypt next or Cyprus and then something further afield.