Day 7: Agios Nikolaos

Cave of Zeus

The first stop of the day was the Diktaion Andron, or Psychro Cave, which is known as the birthplace of the father of the Olympic gods, Zeus. In the myth, he was raised on goat milk and honey. It was a bit of a chilly hike up the mountain, but we were blessed beautiful sights all around—from the fast-moving clouds, to the open plains, and of course, the rocky mountains surrounding us. I've been in caves before, but something about this cave felt especially powerful, especially regarding the fact that according to legend, a Greek god was said to have been born there. We had to climb a few more steps to get into the cave, but wow—seeing all the stalagmites peeking out of the earth like teeth was simply awe-inspiring.

"Region of Crete"

The next order of business was a visit to Αγιος Νικολαος (Agios Nikolaos), which arguably, was the most beautiful city that we've been to in Crete. Fun fact, the name of the town in English is Saint Nicholas, and it is a popular spot for people to visit during Easter! We were welcomed by representatives from the Department of Travel, and they took us through the streets of the city, all the way to their office, where we were presented with small gifts and refreshments. Everyone there was extremely friendly, and they also offered us shots of raki, which I definitely think goes down the throat much better than ούζο (oúzo), which we tried for the first time with our seafood for dinner—octopus, shrimp, and calamari with a side of broccoli and beets.

Agios Nikolaos

Me, Emma Zoe, Alyssa, Micaela, Jack and Aubrey had a very filling lunch at a restaurant called Καρμάγιο, or Karmagio, which is borrowed from the Italian word for boatyard. We were worried that we were going to be late to the bus, since we noticed that the wait time for food was a little long, but we were so hungry that we just bit the bullet and waited anyways. It was probably some of the best food that I've eaten out on the trip so far, and we paid thirty eight euros for six people! Isn't that crazy? When people eat out in America, it's never that cheap, and also you sometimes don't feel completely full with the food that you've eaten because of all the empty calories.

Diktiri Dairy Farm

Speaking of diet, to finish up this little check-in for the day, I wanted to talk about the dairy farm that we went to, which was located on the outskirts of that town. I went in with few expectations, but I came out of it knowing so much more about cheese and the family business structure. I also found out that saganaki is not a kind of cheese, but rather, a style of preparing cheeses, by frying them in a pan with milk. After all of the learning, we were able to try some of the cheese and yogurt for ourselves! It tasted incredible, and I'm going to miss it so much when I go back home.

Greek Words

Περιφερια Κρητης = Perifereia Kritis = Region of Crete

Τύρι = tíri = cheese

επιχείρηση =epicheírisi = business

διατροφή = diatrofí = diet