After another dose of snow fell in the mountains, we were keen to drive up to the Lasithi Plateau to enjoy the scenic views. However, the first couple of days after the snow were dull and grey, so we waited. Then, when the sun shone, we had prior arrangements.
Friends from a nearby village took the drive to Lassithi and posted lovely photos on Facebook. Their young dog enjoyed his playing so much he must have thought the snow was especially for him. My thanks go to Mark Lloyd-Jones for his kind permission to use the above photo and the one in the header.
If you visit the Skapanis Taverna with its wonderful views out across the plateau, ask to see their photo albums full of dramatic snowscapes. I took the lovely blue sky photo below, the last time I visited this taverna in September 2019. My almost black and white photos are from March 2011, so there is still time for more snow.
The lush green of the plateau, freshly saturated by snow melt, looked fabulous rimmed by the circle of snow-topped mountains and reservoir was full.
With no snow for us to play in, we took a drive around the perimeter road to enjoy views from different vantage points. Without seasonal visitors, most kafenions/tavernas were closed. As we passed a kafenion called Castello, on a V junction just before the village of Agios Georgios, we saw a group of local men enjoying coffee outside in the sunshine. Minutes later we were soon on the table next to them.
We soon deduced that the main topic of conversation was the cost of using phones. Instead of phone bills being sent to each home, a huge stack of envelopes languished at the kafenion. Each man sifted through the pile, took out their bill, opened it, made exclamations and passed it around for comment. Then, without exception, they shrugged, drained their coffee and started chatting on their phones.
As you’ll see in the photo below, it was a lovely spot to enjoy our refreshments. Those trees must create lovely shade in the summer—we’ll return later in the year for a cool drink on a hot day.
As we had driven up to Lassithi via the road from Neapoli, we descended on the road to Stalis to enjoy a different set of breathtaking views on the way down. As usual, we agreed how lucky we are to get out and about to see a face of Crete that hot summer visitors find hard to imagine.
Kritsa, at the heart of it all 