In Crete – Day 0

October 2022,

“There’s a smell in the air”, says J. exiting the door of the plane.

I don’t have a strong sense of smell and currently trying to avoid negative thoughts about bin worker’s strikes. “The air is aromatic, but I cannot tell from what!”, she says.

After half an hour wait at the passport queue, we exit into the warm Chania night – time is almost midnight. “What are those bushes?”, she points forward. “Ah, oregano. That’s it! Your country smells of oregano and thyme, brilliant.”

The car hire guy is waiting patiently outside his booth and showing us how to bypass the fence – we accidentally arrived from the back side. He makes a good impression to J. “Polite and smiling. My first encounter with a Greek in Greece.” While handing over the car keys he warns us: “It is prohibited to use the car off-road. I will notice it, if you do.” We nod we understand and start.

The drive to Nea Chora suburb of Chania is easy, through bushy slopes. The young hotel receptionist instructs us where to park and wearily hands us the key to the room. The air in the room is a bit stagnant. J. states her interest to see the beach before she sleeps. So, even though it’s 2am, we decide to walk to the coast which is only three blocks away.

“Where are we?”. A few hours before we were watching from the train the cool undulating landscape and orderly cottages of Surrey, on the way to Gatwick. Now, we observe a vast sea, which begins at the edge of soft sand we squeeze under our feet, is disrupted by a row of rocks that jut out like teeth and reaches the faint outlines of peninsulas, indiscernible in number. The Mediterranean. Greece! A cluster of cats, munching outside a closed fish-tavern, provides extra confirmation. J. strokes a cat – we adore cats.

After many years, I return to Greece for tourism and not to see my family. 15 years since my last visit to Crete and J.’s first time in Greece. A special trip.

We aim for some autumn sun, and get to know the Cretan people and their island. What Crete had in store, we didn’t know. Some of it we couldn’t imagine either.