Kythera: September 25-29

We departed Crete on September 25^th and took the boat to Kythera, which seems to be Greece’s Lasqueti. Unlike Lasqueti, Kythera has approximately 2000 permanent residences plus tourists.  This island seems to be one of the preferred vacation spots for Greeks, but not really the rest of the world.  Consequently, Kythera has a reputation as a “functioning” island independent of tourism.  It has cities, hamlets, and bustling ports.

The View of Hora From The Castle

The capital city of Kythera is called “Hora”, which really means “main city” in Greek.  Situated on the top above the sea, the Venetian castle looms over the twin towns of Hora and Kapsali.  400 hundred years ago, Kapsali was Hora’s the bustling port and a Venetian stronghold.  From everywhere in the two towns, I could look up and see the ruins of the castle.  This led me to wonder how the native Kytherans felt when the Venetians conquered them.  Did they like the constant reminder of their loss of freedom?  Was there even a loss of freedom?  Greece had been under Byzantine control before the Venetian expansion, so was there a bloody war and conquest?  Or perhaps heavy taxes were the only change.  And perhaps in the remote mountain villages, there was no day-to-day change in their lives.  The answers to these questions will never be known, but they prompted some intense debate between my parents and me. 

Part of an Old Watermill

Kythera is about 22km long and 15km wide and oriented on the north/south axis, which should make navigation easy.  However, we still managed to get lost at every possible opportunity.  Important street signs tend to be only visible coming from one direction, if the streets are labeled at all.  One day, as we were driving towards Aphrodite’s birthplace on the east side of the island, we found ourselves on the west coast, with no idea of how we had turned the wrong direction. 

Me on a Bridge

Since we were on the wrong side anyway (though the right side for some other plans), we decided to take a hike down into a gorge to see Byzantine watermills, waterfalls, and dryads.  Flip-flops have been my preferred shoe all summer and I have been wearing them in Greece quite successfully—donning proper shoes whenever we go on a hike.  However, I forgot to change my shoes and so was scrambling down a centuries old path in shoes that kept falling off. 

Figs in Greece grow as a roadside weed.  As we were hiking through the gorge, I saw fig trees bearing red fruit, yellow fruit, no fruit, and fig trees that seemed to be on steroids.  In Vancouver, figs are rare and special.  Here, they are everywhere.  We picked all the ripe figs we could reach and ate a very fig-focused lunch.  Even with my gargantuan brother’s help, many figs were still left for the birds and butterflies. 

On Crete, and especially Kythera, there are caves dedicated to Agia (Saint) Sophia everywhere.  My brother is fascinated with caves and consequently we visit them all.  The first time we visited a cave of Agia Sophia’s, I expected a shallow, insignificant depression in the rock.  Instead the cave extended back into inky darkness filled with empty caverns, holes, and mineral formations that were exposed by my flashlight.  At the front of the cave was a shrine dedicated to St. Sophia as well as a tiny sanctuary for services.  After this cave, we were all more eager to explore the other caves of Agia Sophia. 

Caves on Kythera are located at the end of long, steep roads that end in the bottom of a gorge.  On our quest for subterranean monuments, we followed many such roads, only to turn back because we (me, my mum, and Georgie) felt the road was too steep.

Stalagmite Meets Stalactite

One cave, however, we walked down to from the road through a mountainside that was rough and rugged, filled with scrub and protruding rock formations.  This particular Agia Sophia was a magnificent cave.  There was a small chapel near the front filled with pews.  Back from the light, the ground was covered with baby (though really very old) stalagmites.  Young stalagmites have a slightly rounded surface that glistens and sparkles in the light.  I didn’t touch one, but I would imagine it feels slightly like calcified slime, if that is possible.  Towering pillars of minerals seem to hold the ceiling up as I walked farther back.  The stalagmite/stalactite cross-seemed like a frozen waterfall with waves and ripples coursing down the column.  Tiny stalactites like teeth were silhouetted against the sky when I turned to look outside.  We are not sure how far back this cave went as it became unsafe to explore further—remember I was in flip-flops. 

A Typical Shrine in a Cave

Each cave we entered felt sacred and spiritual.  I was surprised, however, that an organized religion, like Greek Orthodox, would also honour the innate sacredness of the caves.  My mother has been giving us interesting insights on most cultural sights we see and she had some questions about the culture of the caves Agia Sophia that I would never have thought of otherwise.  One question was “ who was Saint Sophia and why are all caves dedicated in her memory?”  Also, “How long have these caves been sacred in the community and in the Greek Orthodox Church?”  We don’t yet know the answers, but we will ask someone. 

We camped underneath the stars on our last night on Kythera, which was also Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.  The stars were bright, cold, and infinitely varied like they are everywhere.  I could see some of the same constellations - The Big Dipper, Orion and Cassiopeia - as well as some new ones, like Scorpio.  I am looking forward to seeing many more new constellations as we continue our travels. 

Next stop—the Peloponnese Peninsula.