Agía Galíni

If you don’t care where you go, you can’t be criticized for not planning well.
From Athens I thought I could just ferry my bike to Cyprus (off the coast of Syria) so then would take another short ferry ride to Tel Aviv and not have to fly. The next available ferry seat to Cyprus was two weeks away. I jumped at it. Turns out none of it is actually possible. Syria is in civil war. Lebanon is collapsed. Israel doesn’t seem to want open boat routes from around the neighborhood. Alrighty then, I’ll party right here on Crete.

High season in Agia Galini and the vacationers spill over everything. Couples and families with each other made this singleton feel bereft. For distraction the only donated book in English was a five novel Dick Francis anthology from the ‘60’s. I read four. Avoided the free Ouzo and Mythos brand beer so nothing to reveal there. Endured a couple of tough days resting poolside working on my fantastic tan and resisting such like.

Nearby found the best little campground on the island called No Problem. A tent pitch costs only €13 (<$15) per night. It had everything, really did. Pool, a destination quality restaurant, mini-mart, a community kitchen and one Florida personal injury attorney with wife and kids from Orlando in a honking big rented RV.

I am fascinated by the dilapidated and abandoned houses that shouldn’t be that way where they are. Those places kept me thinking about Diane Lane in Under the Tuscan Sun and Russell Crowe in A Good Year. But one thing that never changes over time is classic rude graffiti. Stay classy Greece!

The young lady I’m hugging made the me a Greek eggplant dish. The flavor popped.

In the end everything moves on so I pedaled North back across Crete to Heraklion, ferried overnight from there to Piraeus and booked a El Al flight to Tel Aviv.Read more