Indiana Jones(-ess)...

... And the Mythical KTEL Buses.

NB: You get two for the price of one today... Don't miss the previous post on Knossos.

Let down by Knossos, I decided to take an adventure south towards Festos Palace the second most important Minoan site. Easy peasy, right?

Dressed in my khakies, boots and expedition hat I walked to the Iraklion bus station and purchased a ticket for the 0900 to Festos. Shortly after 0915, a bus arrived with an announcement in Greek followed up by "Festos, second bus." That announcement must have been specifically for me. After checking my ticket with the driver, he waved me on board leading me to believe the bus went directly to Festos. Greek bus travel is an experience, in luxury. This teal beast, complete with high backed seats and air conditioning, speed south over narrow mountains roads, through olive orchards, towards the coast stopping at Mires for the Matala bus change. I'd certainly be freaked if I saw this monster headed towards me on a cliff-top one way road. After 2 hours, for a journey which should take 90 minutes at most, I asked the driver when we would get to Festos. He said, "That was back about 20 minutes. Get off here, cross the road, and another bus will be along in about 20 minutes."

A bit worried, I got off the bus (because it was clear he wasn't going to take me any further) and waited by the side of the road in literally the middle of nowhere in the mid-day sun. An hour and a half later, the return bus approached only to deliver me back at Mires where I learned I had missed all buses to Festos. I could have used that bull-whip... Forty-five minutes later, a southbound bus arrived, the attendent ran out, said something to the driver, then came and got me. Apparently, she convinced this driver to drop me off at Festos despite it not being on the route. Lucky me! The driver was careful to make sure I understood that the bus back to Iraklion was at 1730 and there was no other means to get back if I missed it... Should I have taken that as a hint?

Festos Palace was discovered and excavated by Federico Halberr (Italian) around the same time as Knossos. Unlike Evans, Halberr opted to excavate and conserve which made a world of difference. Although created on a smaller scale than Knossos, Festos made use of alabaster and gympsum which remains in-situ.

Festos Palace over Messara Plain, Crete

A Canadian and Australian couple tagged along as I wandered around a practically deserted ruin overlooking the Messara Plain. I was the only one with an expedition notebook - a.k.a a well dog-eared copy of the Rough Guide to Crete, 2004. After their impromtu 'guide,' they offered to drive me 3km up the hill to the 'Summer Palace' of Ayia Triadha overlooking the Gulf of Messara. Again, completely deserted this was truly a hidden gem.
Ayia Triadha over the Gulf of Messara, Crete

A 45-minute stroll back down the hill, dropped me at Festos around 1645. The bus ambled up at 1745 and arrived back in Iraklion, happily, 90 minutes later.

Despite taking over 4.5 hours to reach, it was worth the adventure - I felt, and looked, a bit like Indiana Jones(-ess) discovering these beautifully sited ruins for the first time. Given that some of the most significant Minoan artifacts were discovered on these sites it was amazing to see than without the clutter of tour groups and guides.

Having seen what I came to see, I caught the last bus from Iraklion west to Rethymnon... I pick up the hire car in the morning for some off-the-beaten-track adventures. More to come...

Knossos

Iraklion is the third largest city in Greece, and the largest of Crete, with a population of around 120,000 souls (before the cruise ships dock). I arrived on a cold and wet Saturday and was... well... less than impressed. I've tried to come up with something positive to say about the city, but haven't been able to find anything, sadly. For the first time in all my years of roaming, I actually found myself freezing at a crepery, lost, with no sense of direction and little hope of discovering my location on the map without divine intervention as over 90% of the town in covered in scaffolding. Not the greatest start. After wandering through the Iraklion Archeology museum, which has been reduced to the highlights while the original structure undergoes a major renovation, I was set to track down some Minoan ruins.

Day 2 started crisply with clear skies as I booked it onto a KTEL No.2 towards Knossos. Despite lying 5 km south of the city, I was hard pressed to find the city limits as the bus ambled under the over 40m thick Venetian walls which protected the city in days gone by. Knossos was discovered in the late 1870s, before being excavated by Sir Arthur Evans at the turn of the century, effectively bringing the legends of King Minos, the Minotaur and labyrinth to life.

According to the Evans school of thought, excavation was accompanied by reconstruction rather than conservation... Something, which has created a bit of a farce. Situated on a lovely site, the ruins appear as a jumbled warren chambers, hence the legends. Due to Evans' recreation and predictions, sadly the site comes across a bit 'Disney-fied' for my liking. In my opinion, ruins should either be left as-is or recreated whole-hog, not the middle ground which Knossos represents.

Surprisingly, I had the place almost to myself (unheard of due to its fame) but the caretakers were keen that all tourists were escorted from the premises promptly at 1430 rather than the advertized 1500. (Note to self: Just because the sign says so, doesn't mean it is so.)

Dissatisfied for the second time in under a week (I'll get back to the Acropolis in Athens later in the trip), I decided to adventure further afield...