Kreta - Crete - Κρήτη

Sotiras Christos Church (Our Saviour Christ) is a Byzantine church dating back to the 10th century. The church was built with materials from an earlier basilica of the 6th century, which was located on the same site and most probably the seat of the bishop of Eleftherna. Next to the church is a small cemetery. Sotiras Christos Church has a cruciform architecture with a freely shaped cross and a cupola. On the top of the dome is a wonderful fresco of Jesus from the 12th century.

The Agios Minas Cathedral is a Greek Orthodox Cathedral, serving as the seat of the Archbishop of Crete. It was built over the time period of 1862-1895. The outbreak of the Cretan revolution in 1866 demanded the stopping of its construction, which continued in 1883. It is one of the most magnificent and impressive churches in Greece, with a capacity of 8.000 people. The church is of a cruciform type with a dome base, while internally there are also elements of a three aisle basilica. The inside of the church has gone through many changes with new additions. The religious painting of the church was assigned to St. Kartakis, who followed faithfully the principles and the models of the Byzantine icon painting. The The church is dedicated to Saint Minas, the patron saint of Heraklion during the Turkish period. Foundations of the imposing cathedral of Saint Minas were laid in 1862 as a token of gratitude by the citizens of Heraklion for the saint's protection of the city. Although Crete was still under Turkish rule the cathedral was inaugurated in 1895. To the left of the cathedral stands the original little church of Saint Minas (‘mikros Agios Minas’ as the locals say), which was built in 1735 and housed the Metropolis of Crete for the first time after the Turkish occupation. (see PiP 1).

The church of Agios Titos (Saint Titus Church) is one of the most important monuments in Crete. It can be found on a lovely square in the city centre of Heraklion. The original church of Agios Titos on this location was built in the 10th century by the Byzantine Emperor Nicephorus Phocas, who liberated Crete from the Arabs. During the Turkish occupation of Crete, the church of Agios Titos was turned into a mosque, named Vezir mosque. During its many historical phases the church suffered substantial damages, and renovations - including major alterations by the Venetians in the 16th century - and was used as the metropolitan church by the Catholics. The severe earthquake of 1856 totally destroyed the church, which was rebuilt in 1872 on its own foundations. The minaret was demolished in 1920, when the last Ottomans left the island. In 1925 the church was renovated and nowadays the cathedral still works as an Orthodox church, dedicated to St. Titus, St. Paul’s disciple and the first bishop on Crete and guardian of the island.

The first attempt to create a harbour in the bay of Heraklion (in that time called Chandax) took place during the Arab period (9th-10th century). Following the restoration of Crete to the Byzantine Empire in the year of 961, Chandax developed into a thriving city and its harbour was consequently fortified and improved. When the island fell into the hands of the Venetians (1204), Candia (as the Venetians called both Heraklion and the whole island) became "the other Venice of the East". Especially during the last two centuries of Venetian rule, it was the greatest harbour in the Eastern Mediterranean. Very few modifications were carried out to the harbour during the Turkish period (17th-19th century). In the 20th century the construction of a coast road demolished much of the Venetian harbour installations. Nowadays the old Venetian harbour is used by fishing boats and yachts. In the background of the image stands the Venetian fortress of Koules (Rocca al Mare), dominating the entrance to the old harbour. The PiP shows a Venetian lion above the entrance of the fortress.

Agios Dimitrios is a small Orthodox church. It is a real hidden gem, located a little bit out of the way. I tried to find any further information, but didn’t succeed; even the tourist information centre of Heraklion couldn’t tell anything about the church.

One of the few remaining windmills on the Lasithi Plateau, located on an altitude of more than 800 metres in the eastern part of Crete. The plateau was famous for its thousands of windmills with their typical white sails. As a matter of fact they were more wind-pumps, a local invention that have been used for two centuries to irrigate the land. Despite their vast number in the past, most of them are not used any longer, but replaced by modern diesel and electrical pumps. However, there is renewed interest in the restoration of the windmills, which would bring back the picture of the Lasithi Plateau as it once was.

Spinalonga (officially known as Kalydon) is an arid and barren rocky islet lying at the mouth of the natural port of Elounda and opposite to the village of Plaka. From the year of 1204 Crete was ruled by the Republic of Venice. To protect the port of Elounda against the Ottomans they built a large fortress on Spinalonga in the late 16th century. Crete was conquered in 1669 by the Ottoman Turks, but Spinalonga remained Venetian until the year of 1715. After that, the island was occupied by the Ottomans. In 1903 the last Turks left the island and Spinalonga was subsequently used as a leper colony till 1957. Approximately 400 people inhabited the island over the half-century. Today, the uninhabited island is a popular tourist attraction in Crete. The island can easily be accessed from Plaka, Elounda and Agios Nikolaos.

Mochlos is located on the north coast of Crete, between Agios Nikolaos and Sitia. Only being accessible along one of the two narrow winding roads from the main road, it still is one of the few truly quiet places left on the island. The heart of the village, where all life is concentrating, is its quiet bay, lined with tavernas and also offering a small beach. A main feature of Mochlos is the island of the same name that is only 150m from the shore. It was probably still connected to the 'mainland' in Minoan times and was an important harbour. The island can be visited, swimming or by a boat from the local jetty.

The palm forest of Vai, is considered being one of the most beautiful natural sights in Crete. Vai is not the only natural palm forest in Crete, but with an area of approximately 250.000 square metres and about 5.000 palm trees it is certainly the largest, even in Europe. Scientists have proven that the Vai palm trees are an endemic species known as Phoenix theophrasti, or Cretan Date Palm. There have been palm trees in Crete since ancient times, as historical sources attest. The name Vai comes from ‘vayia’, the Greek word for palms. Vai beach has fine golden sand and pebbles at its north end. A viewing platform offers a panoramic view of the palm forest and beach of Vai. The palm forest and surrounding area is owned by the powerful Toplou Monastery, which is the largest landowner in eastern Crete.