Excursions of North Crete

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001. Apple-green catamaran on Lake Kournas - (Η λίμνη Κουρνά). This is a unique freshwater lake on Crete Island witch will astonish you with its different hues of water and varieties of flora and fauna. Where else could you find a lake where you could enjoy sweet wild grapes while sailing up to its shore on your catamaran, to see turtles and playing of golden fish? 001. Apple-green catamaran on Lake Kournas 002. Walking along the shore to find turtles - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 002. Walking along the shore to find turtles 003. Blue-gray dragonfly - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 003. Blue-gray dragonfly 004. Long-awaited turtle - The turtles can stretch their necks like snakes as well as hiss and bite, therefore we set free the caught turtle very rapidly ;) Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 004. Long-awaited turtle 005. Set free turtle - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 005. Set free turtle 006. Pink dragonfly - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 006. Pink dragonfly 007. Snake - We saw many different snakes, including long and thick ones. Local people say that they are harmless. In fact, snakes never bit us never when we swam. Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 007. Snake 008. Pure turquoise waters - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 008. Pure turquoise waters 009. Stripes of different colors on the water - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 009. Stripes of different colors on the water 010. In all of its beauty - The water in Lake Kournas has many varieties of color in the form of astonishing turquoise, lavender and blue stripes. 010. In all of its beauty 011. Golden Fish - (τo χρυσόψαρο). Inhabitants of Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 011. Golden Fish 012. Lake Kournas - (Η λίμνη Κουρνά). View from tavern 012. Lake Kournas 013. White geese - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 013. White geese 014. Multicolored geese - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 014. Multicolored geese 015. Turquoise waters and grapes shores - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 015. Turquoise waters and grapes shores 016. Hiding crab - Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 016. Hiding crab 017. Shadows of big fish - We caught sight of fish shadows through the water mass. Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 017. Shadows of big fish 018. The playing of Lake Kournas' fish - Fish photo shoot. We took pictures of rather large fish (of approximately 50 sm) by underwater camera! 018. The playing of Lake Kournas' fish 019. Gruesome-twosome - Fish photo shoot. Lake Kournas (Η λίμνη Κουρνά) 019. Gruesome-twosome 020. Where the clouds touch the mountains - Voyage to the Gramvousa Fortress (Γραμβούσα) and Balos (Μπάλος) Bay. The North-Western tip of Crete 020. Where the clouds touch the mountains 021. Cyclop’s Cave - Does Ιt look like a mouth? Voyage to the Gramvousa Fortress (Γραμβούσα) and Balos (Μπάλος) Bay. The North-Western tip of Crete. 021. Cyclop’s Cave 022. Could the whole family of Cyclops live here... - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 022. Could the whole family of Cyclops live here... 023. Uplift - After earthquake which occurred several thousand years ago, the mountains uplifted by 6-9 meters. The lower boundary (dark line) is the former water level. Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 023. Uplift 024. Sailing to Gramvousa Fortress - View from our ship. Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 024. Sailing to Gramvousa Fortress 025. Gramvousa Fortress from afar - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 025. Gramvousa Fortress from afar 026. Agava grove - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 026. Agava grove 027. ‘Easy 10 minutes walk’ under the flaming sun - Guides promise to us that it would be an easy walk, but in fact it wasn’t. People are climbing to the castle. The Gramvousa Fortress is a Venetian castle (fort) built on top of a steep cliff at the height of 137 meters. Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 027. ‘Easy 10 minutes walk’ under the flaming sun 028. The fortified wall of the Venetian castle - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 028. The fortified wall of the Venetian castle 029. Exciting view from above - Our ship is in turquoise waters. Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 029. Exciting view from above 030. Lonely rock in a blue sea - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 030. Lonely rock in a blue sea 031. Sunny thorns - There are many such thorns in Gramvousa Fortress. You should wear pants ;) Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 031. Sunny thorns 032. Unknown fruit - It grows in Gramvousa Fortress but you should not try it! Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 032. Unknown fruit 033. Agave’s shafts - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 033. Agave’s shafts 034. View of Gramvousa Fortress from the shore - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 034. View of Gramvousa Fortress from the shore 035. Balos Bay - (Η λιμνοθάλασσα Μπάλος). The lagoon of exceptional beauty with warm water of different hues from tender-blue to intense green. It’s a true paradise for children who enjoy making sandcastles and gamboling in shallowness for hours. Some shoal places turn into natural baths when the water is heated enough by the sun. Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 035. Balos Bay 036. Sea salt in Balos Bay - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 036. Sea salt in Balos Bay 037. Light green waters of Balos Bay - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 037. Light green waters of Balos Bay 038. Sandcastles - You can make them right in the water! Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 038. Sandcastles 039. Heaven on earth - The warmest, pure light-blue water where you can see fish and seashells on the bottom of Balos Bay! You may spend several hours swimming non-stop. You can also see Gramvousa Fortress at a distance. Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 039. Heaven on earth 040. The hues of green of Balos Bay - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 040. The hues of green of Balos Bay 041. Gramvousa Fortress against the background of blue see - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 041. Gramvousa Fortress against the background of blue see 042. Way back from Balos Bay - Gramvousa-Balos cruise. The North-Western tip of Crete 042. Way back from Balos Bay 043. Well near entrance οf Knossos palace - One of three stone-lined pits about 5-6 meters in diameter and 3 meters deep. Evans assumed that they were built to quickly drain away surface water. Probably, the wells were used as storages for something or for sacrifice during religious ceremonies. 043. Well near entrance οf Knossos palace 044. Wooden ceilings in Knossos - (Κνωσσός). To solve seismic problems in Knossos the ancient architects used wooden ceilings between the stone blocks. After the reconstruction those ceilings were changed for concrete ones stylized like wood. 044. Wooden ceilings in Knossos 045. Procession - The frescoes are from the extension of the Corridor of Processions which takes its name from the murals on its walls that feature people walking along it. Initially, all frescoes at Knossos were only in red colors. Knossos (Κνωσσός) 045. Procession 046. Storage jars, or pithoi, at Knossos - (Κνωσσός). These jars are as tall as a man! Pithos (pl. Pithoi), or Πίθος, Πίθοι on ancient Greek, is a large earthenware storage jar. 046. Storage jars, or pithoi, at Knossos 047. View of Knossos ruines - Knossos palace is an impressive construction dated to the golden age of Minoan civilization. The palace relates to the name of King Minos and the labyrinth of Minotaur. Probably, the palace had 3 floors. It is interesting that there were columns that tapered downwards, as well as so-called ‘light wells’ (apertures in the ceiling leading through all the floors of the construction) that were used for ventilation of premises and instead of windows. There was a full-fledged sewerage in Knossos! 047. View of Knossos ruines 048. Dancers on a leaping bull - Knossos (Κνωσσός) 048. Dancers on a leaping bull 049. Restoration of the fresco (an example) - Knossos (Κνωσσός) 049. Restoration of the fresco (an example) 050. Blue monkey fresco - Knossos (Κνωσσός) 050. Blue monkey fresco 051. The West Bastion - You can see a magnificent portico with painted bar relief of bull-catching scene at Knossos (Κνωσσός) 051. The West Bastion 052. Storage jars, or pithoi, at Knossos - (Κνωσσός). Pithos (pl. Pithoi), or Πίθος, Πίθοι on ancient Greek, is a large earthenware storage jar 052. Storage jars, or pithoi, at Knossos 053. Throne Room of a priestess - You may see painted palm trees and crouching wingless griffins in the background. The execution of wingless griffins is quite unusual. In Minoan Crete, the griffin is frequently associated with a female goddess but never with a male one, so it is probably a priestess rather than a king seated on the throne. Knossos (Κνωσσός) 053. Throne Room of a priestess 054. Pool of Ablution - It is located in the northern part of Knossos, it was restored by Evans 054. Pool of Ablution 055. Theatre area - Approximately 500 people could comfortably take seats here on the set of stands. Knossos (Κνωσσός) 055. Theatre area 056. Royal road - The road was very well built. It was about 3.8 meters wide and lay on a layer of rough stones that was about half a meter deep, set in a sort of concrete made of clay with the addition of potsherds and small pebbles. This road leads to the Theatre Area. Knossos (Κνωσσός) 056. Royal road 057. House of priest - It is located in the southern part of Knossos and probably belonged to a supreme priest 057. House of priest 058. Horns of Consecration - (by Evans). These horns symbolized bull’s power. Knossos (Κνωσσός) 058. Horns of Consecration 059. Prince of lilies - This is a plaster bar relief at the end of the Corridor of Processions. Arthur Evans believed that the fresco pictured a priest-king, wearing a crown with peacock feathers and a necklace with lilies on it, who was leading an unseen animal to sacrifice. It is interesting to note that the headdress is more appropriate to a goddess or one of her accompanying sphinxes. Knossos (Κνωσσός) 059. Prince of lilies 060. Staircase - Partly restored first floor at Knossos (Κνωσσός) 060. Staircase 061. Private houses - Knossos (Κνωσσός) 061. Private houses 062. Hall of the Double Axes - The Hall of the Double Axes got its name from the crude axe symbols (labrys) carved on the walls. Probably, it is a King’s Hall at Knossos (Κνωσσός) 062. Hall of the Double Axes 063. Goddess descending from heaven - Restored fragments of a fresco, depicting a woman with long wavy hair that looks like wings. Probably, she is a goddess, descending from heaven. It is the Queen’s Hall at Knossos (Κνωσσός) 063. Goddess descending from heaven 064. Beautiful dolphins in the Queen’s Hall - Knossos (Κνωσσός) 064. Beautiful dolphins in the Queen’s Hall 065. Giants storage jars, or pithoi, at Knossos - (Κνωσσός). Storehouse of pithoi is approximately 4000 years old. In ancient Greek Pithos (pl.Pithoi), or Πίθος, Πίθοι, is a large earthenware storage jar 065. Giants storage jars, or pithoi, at Knossos 066. Charging bull fresco - The West Bastion. You can see a magnificent portico with painted bar relief of bull-catching scene at Knossos (Κνωσσός) 066. Charging bull fresco 067. The ‘first’ fish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος). Cretaquarium is interesting both for adults and children. You can take a good look at all the inhabitants. Children were tickled pink! There are signs in different languages. Cretaquarium is situated not far from Iraklion’s former American base at Gournes. 067. The ‘first’ fish 068. Big fish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 068. Big fish 069. Dusky Grouper - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 069. Dusky Grouper 070. Sea fox - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 070. Sea fox 071. Shark - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 071. Shark 072. So close… - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 072. So close… 073. In search of food… - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 073. In search of food… 074. Pleasant sea-urchin - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 074. Pleasant sea-urchin 075. Most сharming and attractive - Moray. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 075. Most сharming and attractive 076. Most сharming and attractive 2 - Moray. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 076. Most сharming and attractive 2 077. Most сharming and attractive 3 - Moray. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 077. Most сharming and attractive 3 078. Sea kingdom around Crete - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 078. Sea kingdom around Crete 079. Underwater world of Greece - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 079. Underwater world of Greece 080. Cuttle-fish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 080. Cuttle-fish 081. Surprised fish - Dusky Grouper. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 081. Surprised fish 082. Whole shoal of groupers - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 082. Whole shoal of groupers 083. Silvery shoal - Dentex dentex. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 083. Silvery shoal 084. Submarine cosmos - Actiniae, Anemonia Viridis. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 084. Submarine cosmos 085. Small fish - Thalassoma pavo. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 085. Small fish 086. Grey triggerfish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 086. Grey triggerfish 087. Clamkiller Spanish lobster - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 087. Clamkiller Spanish lobster 088. Clamkiller Spanish lobster - half face - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 088. Clamkiller Spanish lobster - half face 089. Spiny lobster (Palinurus elephas) - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 089. Spiny lobster (Palinurus elephas) 090. Actiniae’s kingdom - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 090. Actiniae’s kingdom 091. So amazing!.. - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 091. So amazing!.. 092. Hide-and-seek - Dragonfish. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 092. Hide-and-seek 093. Dragonfish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 093. Dragonfish 094. White shelter of a big soldier-crab - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 094. White shelter of a big soldier-crab 095. Spiny lobster - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 095. Spiny lobster 096. Long-nosed fish - Bird Wrasse (female). Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 096. Long-nosed fish 097. Lunare wrasse, Thalassoma lunare - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 097. Lunare wrasse, Thalassoma lunare 098. More fish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 098. More fish 099. Clownfish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 099. Clownfish 100. Sea turtle - Caretta caretta. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 100. Sea turtle 101. Sea patrol - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 101. Sea patrol 102. Surgeonfish and Angelfish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 102. Surgeonfish and Angelfish 103. Angelfish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 103. Angelfish 104. Spotted Hawkfish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 104. Spotted Hawkfish 105. Funny pop-eyed porcupine fish - Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 105. Funny pop-eyed porcupine fish 106. My angel - Yellowbar angelfish. Cretaquarium (Θαλασσόκοσμος) 106. My angel 107. Monument - Heraklion (Ηράκλειο) 107. Monument 108. Fortress in the rays of sunset - View of Koules Fortress (Greek: Κουλές, Italian: Rocca al Mare). Heraklion (Greek: Ηράκλειο) 108. Fortress in the rays of sunset 109. Sunset over Venetian harbor in Heraklion - 109. Sunset over Venetian harbor in Heraklion 110. Arches of Venetian harbor - It used for warehouses before. Heraklion (Ηράκλειο) 110. Arches of Venetian harbor 111. Wall of Venetian harbor - Heraklion (Ηράκλειο) 111. Wall of Venetian harbor 112. View of Koules Fortress - (Greek: Κουλές, Italian: Rocca al Mare). Heraklion (Greek: Ηράκλειο) 112. View of Koules Fortress 113. Sunset in Heraklion - (Ηράκλειο) 113. Sunset in Heraklion 114. Greek Village - View from the bus on the way from Heraklion 114. Greek Village
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