UGLY Knossos

Heraklion was a dead city when we arrived. Yes, it was a Sunday night, but nothing was open! Except for the Chinese restaurant by our hotel. The noodle soup wasn't too bad.

Bright and early the next morning, we headed out to Knossos. I've heard so much OF Knossos (not ABOUT), I thought it was going to be this awesome sight. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a huge disappointment instead. Apparently, the place was in such a disastrous condition when it was discovered, that the archaeologist decided to use his imagination for its restoration. And what a horribly tacky imagination he had; he should've left the place as it was. It just looked too new and colorful now. Come on...Knossos is ancient. Why not leave it looking old?!I did enjoy the frescoes, though. Some of the patterns seemed rather familiar (but don't know exactly from where). I was thinking that it would be cool to finally see the real thing. Until I realized that all of the frescoes at Knossos are REPLICAS! The actual ones are at the museum. Damn it.
A greater damn it when we went to the museum and discovered that only a quarter of the exhibition was open. This turned into a f**k for me when I found out that the only fresco that was NOT on display was the one I wanted to see most!!! (FYI – it's the dolphin one for those of you familiar with Greek history) To make myself feel better, I bought the postcard...

For the rest of the day, we walked, walked, walked and ate, ate, ate. Starting with the town center. With the shops now open, I tagged along my mom as she went on a search for her spoons (yes, she collects those too). Followed by a late lunch of grilled sardines (mmmmm!). Then, we went to the pier and headed towards the lighthouse at the tip. We must've walked for about an hour, but that only got us halfway. Since I didn't feel like going any farther, I dragged my mom back after some whining. On our way back, I found a tiny bakery with a huge crowed. Sweet aroma... A new pan of custard pie was out!!! We bought one, of course, and devoured it on the bench nearby. YUMMY. I wanted another one (wish I didn't have to share!), but mom wouldn't let me. She thought we should have a proper dinner instead. Chinese again...