Road Trip Day #5: Mohlos and Sitia

After the church we made a pit-stop in Kritsa itself, then set off on our way to Sitia via Mohlos.

Mohlos was on our potential list of places to move to when we reached Crete.

Well, it was absolutely beautiful, but what were we thinking?

With a population of just 79, and 5km down a steep winding track from the new national road, it would have been impossible for us to get settled here.

As a visit though, it was a real treat.

A few tavernas lined the shore, and just about 200 metres away was Mohlos Island (or Mollusc Island as we kept inadvertantly calling it). Uninhabited now, it used to be joined to the mainland by a now-sunken narrow peninsula, and has valuable architectural remains.

We enjoyed a fantastic lunch at the Taverna Κοχυλια - ordering a selection of different starters that soon added up to a feast.

After lunch we set off for Sitia.

Sitia was our second-choice destination to live on the island, after Chania, and with a population of 8,000 was a much more viable option than Mohlos.

We drove into town and headed directly for the hotel we had picked. I say directly, but we did take a little, ahem, detour.

After getting frustratingly lost around Archanes on day two of the trip, we purchased a more accurate road map of Crete whilst we were in Ag. Nikolaos. However, it didn't include a detailed layout of the confusing main junction coming into Sitia!

We stayed at the Hotel Flisvos. At €45 a night it was more expensive that we had budgeted for, but with the Eurovision Song Contest due on Saturday, it was vital we secured a hotel room with a TV - you have to get your priorities right!

We went out for a stroll around the Sitia harbour, which was crawling with teenage school-children. We think school must have broken up for the exams.

Or maybe the teachers were on strike again.

Either way, you couldn't move for hormone-fuelled 15 and 16 year olds smoking and trying to get served alcoholic drinks in the bars througout the waterfront. We had a cocktail, before establishing that this particular bar was going to have a live band on that night, before nipping to the supermarket for some supplies, and heading back to the hotel for a power nap.