Day 19, Rethymno,Crete, Greece

Day 19

I was wondering what the very tall chimney was at the back of the hotel a half block from our place.  Jill did some digging and found out that it was once part of the largest olive oil processor in Rethymno from 1920 to 1940.  It was preserved by the hotel by adding iron supports.  We went for a walk in the morning and I took some pictures of the chimney, as well as a picture on the beach from the same vantage point as when we arrived when the water was so rough.  After shopping for dinner, we headed out for a swim.

We walked to the other side of the fort to where we had seen some people swimming off the rocky shore.  We brought our water shoes, a necessity.  The water was crystal clear and glorious. Yes, that is Jill in the picture waving at me.  It looked harder than it actually was to get in and out. After our magnificent swim it was lunch time.  We were almost dry by the time we decided where to eat.  We spied a restaurant perched high on the rocks by the fort and decided to check it out.  It was very reasonable even though we thought the location would make it premium priced.  The breeze and views were marvellous.  I had grilled octopus and we shared a greek salad with half a litre of white wine for just 5 Euros (CDN$7.50) can’t be beat.    

The water started getting choppy as the wind picked up when we headed home.  The weather for our last day, Friday, is supposed to be cloudy with some rain.  It could be a inside stone dot painting day.  We leave Saturday morning for a day in Chania before we fly to Athens, where we stay overnight and catch our flight home the next morning.

Dinner tonight was Greek style lemon chicken and potatoes with fresh oregano from our balcony, and local garlic and, of course, lots of Cretan extra virgin olive oil.  An espresso and Metaxa and a long walk on the boardwalk ended our day.