Out of a frosty winter, a warm Greek summer awaits...

Greece’s mountains, beaches, family values and gastronomy are just some of the 49 reasons to love the country, according to BuzzFeed, an American social news and entertainment website.
 The post includes some great pictures of Greece and was created by Alexander Besant, a member of the BuzzFeed Community.

Greeks take their time.

They let beautiful moments linger.

They are passionate.

 

From May to September you’ll almost never see a cloud.

 

Crete has more history and landscapes on one island than some large countries have.

 

The beaches are absolutely crazily

Theater was born here.

 

Philosophy too.

 

Democracy was conceived here on this rock.

 

 

16 Food Reasons Greeks Are Better At Life

We have the Greeks to thank for so much of our modern day society. They paved the way for great philosophical minds to keep pushing us forward intellectually. They gave us the Olympic Games, and a desire to strive for athletic excellence. And, well, then there's democracy. Clearly, we owe a lot of who we are to Greece. We're thankful for all of it, but most of all, we're thankful for the feta.
The Greeks have singlehandedly shaped our modern society, and they have also -- and just as importantly -- shaped a way of eating that no country can rival. Not only is their cuisine swimming in fruity olive oil, drowned in red wine and full of mezedes, but it's also a diet that nutritionists across the board tout as the way to eat healthy. While we all try to eat like this, and happily so, the Greeks do it best. It's just their way of living, which explains why they're so much better at life than the rest of us.

Two words: grilled cheese

 

All cheese, no bread necessary. In Greece, this grilled cheese is known as Saganaki. It's a yellow cheese -- usually Graviera -- that has a high melting point so it can stand up to being fried in a pan. It gets crispy on the outside and melty on the inside. It's basically everything cheese has ever wanted to be. But the Greeks don't stop there. They also have Halloumi, another cheese with a high melting point, that they grill and serve on top of salads or with watermelon. Trust us, you want all of this.

 

NO ONE makes a better salad, so don't even try.

 

Greek salad has everything you need: feta, tomato, cucumber, oregano, olives and olive oil -- of course. So all you other salad makers can just go home. (Do you see that feta chunk?!)

 

Wine comes first, water second.

 

Wine is not relegated to celebrations or holidays. No, the Greeks know that wine is an important part of one's daily diet, along with olive oil. And it has been since ancient Greek cuisine.

 

They've never let tentacles scare them.

 

And we're forever grateful. Because when the Greeks grill octopus it turns into something we thought was only possible in our dreams.

 

Tzatiki is their ketchup.

 

Yes, yes and yes. Made of yogurt -- so it's healthy -- cucumbers, garlic, dill or mint, tzatziki is served alongside meat dishes and mezes.

 

This is dessert.

 

Hello, Loukoumades! These are a Greek donut soaked with honey, and they're served for special occasions. Jelly donuts have got nothing on these guys. They're even better than you can fathom they might be. Seriously. In ancient Greece, these deep fried dough balls were served to the winners of the Greek Olympics. That's how special they are.

 

They've turned eating LOTS AND LOTS of olive oil into a healthy pastime.

We can never repay them for this.

 

Their land is reserved for only important crops: olives and grapes.

 

For making olive oil and wine, of course. (Well, that might be a slight exaggeration, but they do produce A LOT of wine and A LOT of olives.)

(source: huffingtonpost)

Crete: The Land of Summer!!

''There some kind of flame in Crete, let us call it soul, something that is stronger than life and death. There is pride, persistence, courage and with them something other, of no words and unpredictable, which makes you happy and afraid to be human at the same time''. These is Kazantzakis' words coming to mind as we walk around Plakias.....

One of the most famous Carnival in Greece, Rethymno Crete!!!

One hundred years have passed since the first Rethymno Carnival in Crete, Greece!! The Carnival will once again open the tourist season on the Greek island, which means one more reason for the municipality of Rethymno to celebrate....

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celebrate.#sthash.hAq6ige2.dpuf

One hundred years have passed since the first Rethymno Carnival in Crete, Greece. The Carnival will once again open the tourist season on the Greek island, which means one more reason for the municipality of Rethymno to celebrate. - See more at: http://greece.greekreporter.com/2014/02/05/crete-rethymno-carnival-brings-thousands-of-tourists/#sthash.KE8RVpLe.dpuf

One hundred years have passed since the first Rethymno Carnival in Crete, Greece. The Carnival will once again open the tourist season on the Greek island, which means one more reason for the municipality of Rethymno to celebrate. - See more at: http://greece.greekreporter.com/2014/02/05/crete-rethymno-carnival-brings-thousands-of-tourists/#sthash.cdKbC4Ai.dpuf

  Since 1914 beautiful Renaissance Rethymnon has been celebrating the carnival with its many humoristic events. A carnival of another era leaving behind its nostalgic aroma of romantic balls and the Rethymnians through laughter and their comical antics paying their tribute to "His Excellence, The King of the Carnival."

The Treasure Hunt, an old custom dating back to when the Carnival of Rethymno began about a century ago, was the reason for the creation of 'teams' in 1990, which would give birth once again to this age-old tradition.

 In 1993, the Municipality of Rethymnon decided to help fund this popular event and requested the teams to take on the challenging task of creating and organising the Carnival of Rethymnon, which has become the most popular and famous Carnival of Crete!!!!

 (The city is collaborating with several travel agencies of the municipality in order to offer good, cheap travel packages throughout the tourist season of the Carnival)

  source: (Plakias Suites CreteRethymno carnival)

Crete, an Independent State?

The Irish airline, Ryanair, with its new commercial spot, is reviving theories on the independence of Crete.
How so? Ryanair, on a video showing the changes prepared by the airline for 2014, presents various destinations such as Nice, Lisbon, Berlin etc. One of these destinations is the Greek island, Crete, depicted with the flag of the period of the Cretan State (1896-1913).
Unlike the other cities with famous touristic monuments such as the Brandenburg gate of Berlin, the flag of the Cretan State with the “Sultan’s star” was chosen for Crete. This flag was a combination of Greece’s flag of 1822 with the Turkish one.
It is worth mentioning that the Cretan State was the official name under which Crete was recognized as a self-governed state, after the Cretan Revolution in 1896 and the island’s secession from the Ottoman Empire. It was then that Crete was under the protection of the Great Powers – Great Britain, France, Italy and Russia. This was a transitional stage before the union of Crete with Greece in 1913.
(source: Greekreporter, by Iro-Anna Mamakouka)

Weekend on Crete, Psiloritis: The mountain of Gods and Humans...

Anogia: The Idaean Cave.

The discovery of a clay plaque with an incised dedication to Zeus inside the cave, during the first antiquarian investigations in the 19th cent., contributed to its identification as the Idaean Cave.

The cave is associated with the story of the birth of Zeus and his bringing up in it, where his mother Rea had hid him in order to rescue him from his father Kronos. A goat by the name Amaltheia fed the baby with her milk, whereas the young Kouretes served as his guardians by drumming their shields, so as to conceal the baby's cries....

After hiking, you can relax.... with traditional food!!

You must visit: Nikos Xilouris House!!

Don't forget!! to taste sheep's milk products....

from the old woman...

''Skandali''

or to drink raki with the wonderful owners from ''Melissa''

Also, there are a lot of tavernas!!
Two of them are ''Skalomata'' & ''Mougeris''

Something... different: Visit the Glass Workshop and discover the magic of blown glass!!

Near the village Zoniana:

Wax Figures of Cretan History!!

The Sfentoni Cave: one of the most important caves in Greece!!

So....

Source: Plakiassuites