You must know that I love a botanical garden. I spend dozens of hours in the summer volunteering at Red Butte Garden, which is technically an arboretum, but with definite garden qualities. I was excited to have the opportunity to go to the Botanical Park and Gardens of Crete. I was curious about what it would be like. Looking back, I am certain that the reality differed greatly from my expectations, and the reality was spectacular.
Our group took a bus from the hotel in Chania to the Botanical Park. The ride was somewhere between 30 and 45 minutes. I lost track of time as we wound our way up the mountain road, leaving the sea far behind. The visitor center looked small from the outside, perched on the side of a mountain with steep hillsides all around us.
Inside the visitor center, it was surprising large, with a nice gift shop area and a beautiful open-air restaurant looking out over the hills. We were greeted with a nice cup of herbal tea and a variety of honey to sweeten it, then we were ushered to the amphitheater so that the owner, Petros, could talk to us about the Park, what it represents, and his vision for the gardens. He talked about how there are young people who don’t know where food comes from, whether from a plant or a tree. He talked about the importance of “getting out of our boxes” - homes, cars, offices, to experience nature. He was passionate about the place, and so well-spoken. It was inspiring.
He encouraged us to explore the park, which is very natural. The trails are packed dirt with rocks and meanders up and down the hillsides. There is an enormous variety of plants and trees growing there, some that are not native to Greece, but that come from South America, other parts of Europe, and Africa. There are several different micro-climates in the mountains of Crete, and that is what allows for so many varieties of plants. Fascinating.
Lizzie and I borrowed walking sticks that were available from the visitor center, and we set off to explore. There is one trail through the park, but there are shortcuts where you can veer off to return to the visitor center if you don’t want to walk the whole trail. It’s not a very long walk, maybe a little more than two kilometers. We took our time, stopping often to take photos, to look at the plants, to listen to the sounds of the hillside, notice the scents all around us, and basically, just try to soak it all in. There is a lake on the property, maybe man-made and kind of a zoo by the lake. We chose not to go down there. I think we spent about an hour or so on the trail.
The weather was warm that day, and we worked up a sweat on the walk. It did feel good to get out of the town and into nature. It was beautiful there.
Our group had a big table in the restaurant. Lunch was on our own, though we all sat together. Lizzie and I ordered a couple of appetizers: dakos, which is barley rusks that are topped with fresh tomato and herbed mizithra cheese. It is a typical Cretan appetizer. We also had some fava dip, which is a split-pea dip topped with onions and olive oil. Delicious.
While we were there, we did art, of course. It was challenging for me, as I mentioned in a previous post, but the place was just so incredible, that I kept trying.
Here are some photos I took that day:
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| The patio of the restaurant |
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| Our group sat at the table where the guy is standing |
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| This is a type of milkweed called balloon plant, or hairy balls |
Just as we were leaving the trail, there is a sign with a quote from the Canadian astrophysicist Hubert Reeves.
As a person who finds “God” in nature, this quote struck a chord with me. Let’s take care of our planet. It’s the only one we have, and it is full of amazing things.
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