Crete (Sweet!)

It was awesome!  We arrived in Crete early Friday morning (our flight took off at 7 am).  We stayed at the Mediterraneo Hotel in Limenas Hersonissou.  The first day, we went to the city of Heraklion and walked around.  We satisfied our coffee craving at Starbucks there (we've been so deprived because there are no Starbucks in Israel).  We also bought a few souveneirs there.  Then, we pretty much relaxed for the rest of the day.

We were more adventurous the following day.  We had the opportunity to go to Knossos.  It is significant because the first European civilization--the Minoans--settled there over four thousand years ago.  They had magificent architecture, ceramics, and various art work.  Following our time there, we went to Gortys.  The apostle Titus was from this ancient city.  We saw the church that was built in honor of him.  In addition, there was an ancient amphitheater and an area covered with ancient writing.  These writings contained the earliest evidence of oldest and first preserved European laws.  Later that day, I was able to walk around a small beach town near the hotel.  Overall, the local people were really nice and hospitable.

The final full day, we decided to go to the towns of Elounda and Plaka.  These are port towns with a lot to see.  The weather was amazing, so it made exploring the area all the more enjoyable.    We wanted to take a boat to Leper's Island, but no boats went out since it was Easter Sunday.  However, we were able to take a lot of cool pics of Leper's Island, among other things.

This trip was truly an amazing experience.  Easter is the only real break that we teachers have this semester, so it was definitely worth the trip.  Blessings to you all!!!