Day 74 & 75 ~ Crete, but not Heraklion

 March 24, 2022

High 40's, low 50's--Still waiting for spring to catch up with us!

Give up the thought that you have control. You don't. The best you can do is adapt, anticipate, be flexible, sense the environment and respond. ~ Frances Arnold

We were supposed to call at Heraklion, but the waves and wind made that too dicey a port for the Star. So, Captain Olav snugged us into sheltered Souda Bay. Rob, our shore excursion director, threw together a bunch of new excursions and we found ourselves on a bus headed for the city of Chania (The "c" is silent.) Our guide, Christina, told us we'd be seeing an old Venetian port, a UNESCO site, as a highlight of our walking tour. 

One of the few remaining minarets from the time of Ottoman occupation.

Christina spoke fondly of the Venetian period in the island's history, explaining that the inhabitants benefited from Venetian business acumen and contacts even after they released their hold on Crete. And even though the Venetians were Roman Catholic, they did nothing to deter the practice of the Cretans' primary religion--Eastern Orthodox. Even today 85% of the island is Orthodox. But she had little good to say about the time of the Ottoman rule and the few Muslims who live on Crete now have come from other countries, but not Turkey. 

It seems strange to me to carry a grudge from another century.

Wandering the narrow lanes of a city that sprang up in the 1300's with Kristy & Dave

Part of the difrugalty may have to do with the fact that Venice bought Crete from the Republic of Genoa (though how it came to be a possession of Genoa, I have no idea), so the transition of governing authority was peaceful. The Ottomans took the island by force.

The Venetian Harbor, built between 1320 & 1356

A Venetian lighthouse & a mosque guard the harbor.

Then after giving the group several different ways to go to find our bus again, our guide turned us loose. This is the part where we're supposed to shop or drink coffee at one of the establishments that was not quite open yet. Throughout the Med we have found that the business day starts later, has a long leisurely hiatus for lunch in the middle of what we'd call the afternoon, and then shops reopen for evening. Supper is often not eaten until 9 or 10 o'clock at night. Kristy, the night owl among us, feels like she's finally found her people!

The DH, me, & Kristy

One of the places that was open was the Eastern Orthodox church. 

I am always mindful when I step into a place of worship not to disturb those who have come, not as a tourist, but as a worshipper. This sanctuary was not crowded, but there was a steady stream of people who slipped in to pray, to move around the space, pausing before various icons and paintings to kiss the image and cross themselves, to maybe light a candle.

It reminded me of the shrines I'd visited in Tokyo. People would come in and pray in certain spots, moving around to different stations which changed their focus, sort of like a human-sized rosary, telling the beads of their devotion with bowed heads and clasped hands. 

And in the Jain temple in Mumbai, worshippers would follow a path around the space in the accomplishment of their devotions.

Or the stations of the cross often seen in Roman Catholic churches that invite the worshipper to walk that road with Christ. 

There is something in the human heart that longs for something pure, something holy. No matter where we travel in the world, it seems people are always looking for ways to connect with the divine.  

Inside the opulently decorated Eastern Orthodox Church

Kristy & Don

And we're also looking for ways to connect with each other. 

On this trip, there are a few travelers we first met on the Pacific Princess in 2018 and are now on the Viking Star with us too. One of them is Don. 

He's such an inspiration to me. He uses a walker. His hearing is severely impaired so masks make it doubly difficult for him to understand what's being said. But he keeps going, getting off the ship for excursions at each port and smiling everywhere he goes!

May 25th

We have a sea day today. After our flurry of cold excursions, we spent some time warming up in the thermal suite. How delicious it is to slide into that steaming pool! Part of being cold is the way our muscles tense up. The thelassotherapy pool is pure bliss.

Then when we returned to our cabin, this box was waiting on our bed. To give you a sense of scale, the box is about 18 X 18 inches. 

Just for grins, what do you think is in it? 

I promise to share the answer in my next post! 

More soon...

PS. The DH is still having trouble with Youtube because our ship's wifi continues to be spotty. He's still working on his photo montages which I'll post when we have better internet.