Piskopiano Village, Crete, Greece - Day 1

Thursday was a very early morning, as we had a 6:40 am flight out of the Athens Airport to Crete, the largest island of Greece, located in the Mediterranean Sea. Luckily, the flight was only 50 minutes long, and we landed at the Heraklion International Airport by 7:30. We could tell from the air that Heraklion, the capital of Crete, was a beautiful port city. But, exploring the city would have to wait a few days, as we had a two night hotel reservation in the village of Piskopiano, a small Oceanside village of Heraklion.

We managed to track down a taxi in the airport parking lot, and gave the driver the directions to our hotel, Korifi Suites. The ride took about 20 minutes, but we were glad that we decided to take a taxi, as we would have never found the hotel otherwise. As we entered Piskopiano Village, the roads became tiny and extremely windy, as the village was literally built into the side of a mountain, overlooking the Aegean Sea portion of the Mediterranean. When we finally drove up to the Karifi Suites, we were amazed at the hotel and the location, and we even had to check our paperwork again to make sure we were at the right place. Well, it was the right hotel, and the price we thought we were paying was right as well, since evidently it was still two weeks away from the normal tourist season.

We checked in at the suites, and the guy at the front desk walked us up the stairs, past the pool, and to our apartment. It was huge! We had a living room, a kitchen, a bathroom, and two bedrooms, all for just the three of us. We walked around the rest of the complex, and checked out the pool, the bar inside, and also the tiki bar outside on the patio. The view from the patio was amazing, as it overlooked the entire village below.

We were at the highest point in the village, and could see absolutely everything, including the beaches along the Mediterranean Sea. The closest beaches were only a ten minute walk from the hotel. Beyond the beaches, mountains stretched everywhere in the distance. There was even a mountain peak directly above and behind us. It was very quiet and early, there were not many other guests, and it was already beautiful out. So, we decided to take a short nap out on the patio, in the sun, next to the pool.

After a short while, we decided to make our way down through the village and spend our day on a beach. As we made our way down the hill, we stopped for groceries for lunch at a small store. As usual, the cashier asked if I was Greek….this became very common while in Greece. Evidently I look Greek….I even had people asking me for directions. You know they’re in trouble then. We picked up some sandwich stuff, and of course the other two had to pick up olives, since we were in Greece. But, most importantly, we found a case of Corona! The perfect drink for the beaches of the Mediterranean! No limes unfortunately, as the fruit truck drivers were on strike. Seriously. Fruit truck drivers. Guys driving little pickup trucks loaded with fruit. I don’t know why, but that’s so cool. It just goes to show you just how small of a place the village was.

We finally made our way down to the busier part of the village directly along the beach. We walked down to the water, found a nice spot on the beach, and opened a Corona. The beach was amazing. It was so cool to see the bright blue water, as well as the mountains in the distance.

After some lunch, my two friends jumped in the water. I’m a baby though, and thought the water was way too cold for that. I must have been cold, because they sure weren’t in long. Once they got out, we played some soccer with a kickball that we bought in the village. A very young kid from the village joined us in tossing the ball around, but he soon just got a kick out of whipping the ball at people and watching them have to chase it into the water. So, when one of his friends came over, we gave them the ball and went back to relaxing on the beach, while watching them whip the ball at each other.

After quite a few hours on the beach, we headed back up to our hotel, showered, and then went back into the village for supper. Of course, right on the water, the specialty of the village was seafood, so that’s what I had to get. The shrimp and swordfish were delicious! After the meal, the waiter brought out shots of Raki, which is similar to Ouzo or Grappa and normally drunk with or after dinner in Greece. We finished up, and then headed down along the beach to stop into a few pubs. As quiet as it had been during the day, the scene was much busier at night. The beach was covered with bars and nightclubs, and we were able to get drinks very cheaply. We headed back up to the hotel by early morning, and headed to bed.