Western Crete

From the Minoans to the Ottomans

Kidnapping
the General I had been in the mountains on the north side of the Psiloritis massif. I was visiting villages where the Andartes, the Cretan guerrilas during World War II, along with the British SOE, had captured a German general and marched him to the south coast and a British submarine to Cairo.

Rethymno Then, as described in these pages, I continued to the west and stayed at Rethymno for a few nights. I visited the old town with sights from the Romans, the Venetians, and the Ottomans.

Aptera Then I moved on to the west, to Aptera, overlooking Souda Bay. Aptera was a city-state founded at the end of Minoan times and became home to a monastery established in the 12th century.

Minoan Tombs From there, I moved south to Armeni and its late Minoan tombs.

The road south Finally, I drove south to Neo Kalamaki on the Libyan Sea coast.

Portion of Tactical Pilotage Chart G-3D from the Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection at the University of Texas at Austin.

I stayed at the Route 66 guesthouse in Rethymno. It's within walking distance of the main beach area, the harbor, and the old city. It's at #66 Eiaggelou Daskalaki. The room are named for U.S. states the famous Route 66 highway passes through. I stayed in the New Mexico room.

It's a nice place, with what are really apartments. Each has a full kitchen.

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