Historical Village of Gribiliana

Welcome to Gribiliana

     Since we are too busy with housework ( electrical stuff, concrete work, new toilet, getting the house in a normal living condition) and adjusting back to homeschooling we have not visited the relatives much yet. Therefore, we have been able to take in more of the sites around here than in previous years.  This village is part of Kolymbari,( actually Kolymbari is still Gribiliana) just two minutes away by foot! On a small mountain, untouched by tourism is a place where Turkish,Venetian and old Greek homes still stand. Some newer home are built over ancient ones. There are few places that are unspoiled in today's world. It seems that everything has a price tag involved, especially if you are traveling. This one is free and awesome and will make you feel like you went through a portal in time- back hundreds of years. 

Venetian times

                 

Venetian House- what isn't shown is the concrete floral engravings on the other side

Concrete stair railing

olive press stone

another home in the village old way of building with wood and bamboo(kalami) roof

delightful street only big enough for foot traffic, part of an intricate maze throughout the entire village. The twists and turns can be confusing- I assume it was helpful to surprise the enemy if the enemy didn't know the layout. 

How did it get his name? Below is part of a large Turkish home. The man who built this, obviously Turkish, was either named Gribiliana and thus, the town is still called that and yet others say that Gribiliana was an older name pre-Turks and the Turkish man adopted the name.  Either way this site is old. 

. 

These are left over from the Turkish occupation. We had fun finding the cornerstone in the arches. This was a huge palace like structure complete with levels, lovely stairs, a prison and places for animals. I don't know how tall the actual structure was but it was quite wide. 

close up of arch

Keep walking farther up and there is a wonderful church/homestead/scenery called Agios Ioannis. A true Cretan and fighter against the Germans during WW2,  Costas wanted to be buried overlooking his beloved Crete. In order to be buried at his favorite place, he had to build a church since no one in Greece can be buried outside of a church. Following pictures are the beautiful church, accoutrements of church life, a home and his gravesite. He must have been a spectacular man.

marble grave of Stellios

tiny church, the four of us could barely fit

podium

Jesus

Mano is like a bull in a china shop. Immediately
after this, I ushered him out. Still wondering how he didn't break anything. 

things for the church, incense, candles, lamp oil

bring your money and get a candle to light

 And of course, the boys ended their day with gyros with Nectarios. Don't worry- we feed them real food. They already had lentils (Fakes), potatoes and salad before going out. Paul doesn't need a recipe to make delicious and perfectly cooked lentils but I do.  Here's the best recipe I have used for Fakes ( Lentils)so far http://www.organicallycooked.com/2008/01/fakes-lentil-soup.html

Next post will be grape picking with the kids, grape crushing, etc. 

Off to the beach...