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Roadside shrines are everywhere in Crete, usually left at the exact spot where the victim died, an ever-present reminder of the danger of Greek roads that top Europe's fatality tables year on year.
I read somewhere that 57 people were killed in the first half of 2007 alone which, for an island the size of Crete (pop c600k) is plain ridiculous. Greek authorities have ramped up fines since - 700euro for going through red light one of them - but the trouble is it's very weakly enforced with a threadlike police patrol presence and driving culture built on the survival of the fittest.
Anyway, back to the shrine. I had a peep inside this one and it contained a bottle of the victims favourite drink, lit candle and photo. Poignant.
Calle Höglund | Photographer - Stockholm, Sweden
Crete, Greece
Late evening, beautiful sunset.
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Crete, Greece
Camera: Canon EOS 5D Mark II
Lens: Canon 24-70mm
Shutter Speed: 30sec
Aperture: f/11
Focal Length: 21 mm
ISO: 100
Copyright © 2011 Calle Höglund.
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On our way to visit the monastery Akari, we passed a large reservoir.
On the north-western exit of the Amari-basin a dam was built in recent years, which aims to secure the water supply of Rethymno and the surrounding area. In winter 2008/09 Potamon dam was first flooded. Its own name seems the new lake not to have. The dam itself is 55 meters high and the reservoir can hold 22.5 million cubic meters of water. The costs amount to about 50 million euros.
While my wife and my son were waiting at the car I quickly made 4 images that I've stitched together using Photoshop.
Greek Orthodox Church - the boys like to pay regular visits here as we went about our daily business.
Churches are everywhere in Crete, even in hotel grounds, and whilst this was small it was beautifully maintained with prayer candles and ornate decor. A place of shade and tranquility, and fun for the boys.
Crete is the largest of the Greek islands at 8,336 km² (3,219 square miles) and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean.
Crete is a popular tourist destination; its attractions include the Minoan sites of Knossos and Phaistos, the classical site of Gortys, the Venetian castle at Rethymno, and the Samaria Gorge, as well as many other natural sites, monuments, and beaches.
Geography
Crete is one of the 13 regions into which Greece is divided. It is the largest island in Greece and the second largest (after Cyprus) in the East Mediterranean. Crete has an elongated shape - 260 km from east to west and 60 km at its widest, although the island is narrower at certain points, such as in the region close to Ierapetra where it has a width of only 12 km. It covers an area of 8,336 km² and has a coastline of 1046 km. To the north Crete borders with the Sea of Crete , to the south it is bordered by the Libyan Sea , to the west the Myrtoon Sea, to the east the Karpathion Sea. Its population is 650,000 people (as of 2005). The island lies approximately 160 km south of the Greek mainland.
Crete is extremely mountainous and is defined by a high mountain range crossing it from West to East, formed by three different groups of mountains. These are:
* the White Mountains or Lefka Ori (2,452 m high);
* the Idi range (Psiloritis (35.18° N 24.82° E) 2,456 m);
* the Dikti mountains (2,148 m high);
* Kedros (1,777 m high);
* Thripti (1489 m)
These mountains gifted Crete with fertile plateaus like Lasithi, Omalos and Nidha, caves like Diktaion and Idaion cave, and gorges like the famous Gorge of Samaria. The protected area of the Samaria Gorge is the home of kri-kri. Cretan mountains and gorges are refuges of the endangered vulture Lammergeier (Gypaetus barbatus)
.From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
On our descent from the Lasithi Plateau to Hersonnisos, we diverted slightly to see an old 13th Century church said to have the finest frescos in all of Crete.
A tiny little Byzantine church in Kritsa, it was called the Panagia Kera, which we reached via a heart-stopping single track, blind-bend, 10% gradient hilltop climb in the car complete with hairpin turns and landslides. We were shitting ourselves.
When we got there it was closed! Don't visit on a Monday. It was pitch black inside, but my camera did manage to pick some of the old paintings on the wall as well as an image on a window of what appears to be Christ.
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece.The capital and the largest city of Crete is Heraklion. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits. Crete was once the center of the Minoan civilization (c. 2700–1420 BC), which is currently regarded as the earliest recorded civilization in Europe.
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This photo has been graciously provided to be used in the GRID-Arendal resources library by: Peter Prokosch