We visit Rethymnon and Knossos, Crete

The restored north entrance to Knossos Palace, with the charging bull fresco.

On our second day, we went to Knossos, which has the distinction of being the earliest inhabited site in Crete; the first settlers having arrived some time before 7000 BC. First excavated by Minos Kalokairinos in 1878, the major excavations at Knossos were carried out by Arthur Evans, a Victorian amateur archaeologist.

Dolphins were revered by the ancient Greeks and Romans. These were originally 

a floor covering, which was later hung on the wall when restored.

This, the "royal road", is one of the oldest and best preserved ancient roads in Europe.

Here,we are listening to Çiğdem transporting us back in time!

From Knossos, we were whisked off to the tiny village of Fodele, where the museum of Domenikos Theotokopoulos (1541 – 1614), otherwise known as El Greco, is hidden away at the end of a long lane. The tiny stone cottage which houses the museum lays claim to being the birthplace of El Greco, although there is some doubt about this.

This room in the museum looks as if El Greco has just stepped outside for a moment!

We wondered whether Black Adder got his inspiration from El Greco!

Lunch was calling, but we still had visits to make, so we headed for Rethymnon, our next port of call. Looming over the town is Fortezza, the Venetian fortress of Rethymnon.

Within the Fortezza is the Fortezza mosque, with its impressive dome. Originally built by the Venetians in the 16th century as the Catholic Cathedral of St Nicholas,  it was converted into the Ottoman Mosque of the Sultan Ibrahim Han, following the fall of Rethymnon to the Turks. Today, it is used as a concert hall as the acoustics are amazing!

Here we are inside the Fortezza Mosque

The richly decorated Rimondi fountain, is situated at Platanos square, the centre of the Venetian town. It was built in 1626, by A.Rimondi, in order to provide the citizens with drinkable water.

Finally, it was time for lunch in a delightful, waterside restaurant, where the waiter serenaded us!

Lunch over, we wandered through the old town of Rethymnon. Unlike Heraklion, this is an attractive town, with evidence of Ottoman and Renaissance-style Venetian architecture.

 Evidence of Rethymnon's Ottoman past

We saw many fine old Ottoman buildings in Rethymnon

When we got to our hotel in Rethymnon, I followed the porter to my room along a long corridor. At the end, I could only see houses through the window. I had resigned myself to a room at the back, until I opened the curtains in my room, and saw this...

Wow! What a view!

uShaka Marine World, Durban

Entrance to uShaka Marine World, Durban.

When we visited uShaka Marine World in Durban, the day was cold, windy and overcast. The upside to this was that there were few other visitors, so we were free to stroll around at will, unimpeded. uShaka Marine World is a vast complex of over 15 hectares (37 acres). We didn't have time to cover everything, so we confined our visit to Sea World, which has the largest aquarium in the southern hemisphere, housed in a very realistic recreation of a 1920s shipwreck.

The replica 1920s wreck looks very convincing, both inside and out.

 

I don't know what kind of fish this is, but it was HUGE!

Shannon was fascinated by the fish, although rather a little scared.

Jordan was intrigued by the sea turtles.

I agree with Jordan, it's amazing watching the turtles swimming underwater.

 

There were lots of weird sea creatures (that's not a rock bottom left!)

We were there at feeding time, when the divers take to the aquariums.
This diver was putting morsels of fish into the mouth of a stingray.

From the aquarium, we went to see the dolphin show. Excitement mounted 

as the drummer announced the beginning of the entertainment.

The dolphins performed for us, they were delightful to watch

...and were rewarded with food.

Afterwards, they showed their appreciation by wagging their tails!

We all had such fun at the uShaka Marine World in Durban. It was a great end to our stay. The next day, David and I flew back to Istanbul. Here's to the next time! Thank you Jane, Sean, Shannon and Jordan.