Glimpses of Crete: The epilogue

So, I have decided to give the absurd and overrated Christmas festivities a miss and visit Crete in October instead. Mum and dad have had enough with my iconoclastic views and they are probably relieved with the change of plan. Mercury is descending, but +26C feels pleasantly warm if you are acclimatised to the Blighty. The Mediterranean Sea hovers around a palatable +20C; the touristic fervour is still noticeable; the island is busy as ever. If you want to take your taste buds to an epic culinary journey, allow the sunshine to ooze through your bones and lighten your heart with local wine or raki, this place is in a league of its own.

Agios Nikolaos, Lasithi Prefecture, Crete: The journey from Heraklion in a fully air-conditioned bus was luxurious, but walking around in this heat is an ordeal. It’s past lunch time and there is hardly any rolling or swaying of boats tied up in the harbour, as all is calm around the whole bay. Despite the vibrant tourism industry the town retains its quaint and tranquil profile. Within a distance spanned by a stone’s throw one can find almost everything they might need: the town hall, information office, ATM machines and, above all, a plethora of cafeterias, bars and tavernas to delight the palate of every sort, from stonewall drinkers to epicures like myself. A wide angle shot samples the day-to-day life in this resort, rolling calmly and casually just like the translucent harbour waters.

I have finally come to realise that the much abused cliché “desperate situations require desperate measures” is nothing more than a trite, made-up lacklustre politicians’ expression, aimed at masking their own incompetence and failure to procure prosperity for the citizens. The long-corrupt Greek governments seem to be set in fire-fighting mindset, routinely but thoughtlessly imposing austerity measures, contrary to what free-trade common sense dictates. The idiosyncratic Cretans respond in their own manner: they ignore politics and seek shelter within the enclaves of their own choice... cafes, tavernas, sandy beaches and anything else that epitomises their raison d^etre. To bigwigs, people should live within their means. To people, life is for living.

Many thanks to the old friends and regulars of the notorious haunts Central Park Café, Mix-Tape, Route 66 plus a number of similar establishments for offering abundance of liquor, gastronomic exertions and company that has made my stay ever so memorable.
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