A Day in Milia and Elafonissi, western Crete

“The most luxurious thing we have here is nature”, says Tassos Gourgouras, welcoming our group to Milia (www.milia.gr/english.html).  This restored mountain settlement is an international eco-tourism award-winner.  Once derelict, these traditional stone farmhouses near the village of Vlatos in western Crete, are now comfortable, rustic eco-apartments, decorated with local furniture and powered by solar energy.

All year round, people come here for alternative holidays, close to nature and away from the crowds.  On the balcony outside the warm and welcoming taverna, we inhale fresh, clean mountain air, sipping infusions of mountain tea sweetened with local honey.  As we admire the scenery, visitors can be seen trekking along the mountainside across the valley.

Organic produce, including wine from the settlement’s farm, is served in the taverna.  Guests can get involved in the agricultural and farming activities. Appetising aromas emerge from the kitchen, where lunch is being prepared, including boureki (courgette, potato and mizithra cheese pie), vlita (wild greens) and salads.

Loaves of bread made from three different types of flour are ready for baking.   We discover why helping in the kitchen is so popular and have great fun manouvering loaves of bread into the wood-fired oven, with a long-handled wooden board.

Afterwards, we walk down to the farm, via the amphitheatre, across a small bridge over a stream, up to terraces planted with olive and carob trees, brushing against pungent wild oregano on the way.

Milia is the Greek word for apple tree; we pick apples to feed to the cows.  Free-range chickens squawk nearby, next to the calves being weaned from their mothers.  A griffin vulture glides overhead, before swiftly vanishing into the blue sky.

Back in the kitchen, the bread is ready to remove from the oven.  Before sitting down in the taverna for our Cretan meal, we chat with some Canadians who are spending a week here, and a Danish couple, here for lunch because they heard how tasty the food is.  Our freshly baked bread disappears as soon as it is put on the table.

As we leave, we turn and look back.  The eco-friendly buildings of local stone and wild chestnut from the surrounding woods blend naturally, almost imperceptibly, into the landscape.

It is a 45-minute drive, past Topolia gorge, to Elafonissi on the southwest coast, one of the most beautiful beaches on the island.  Small particles of crushed pink shells are washed up onto the long, wide beach, turning the sand pink. By the time we arrive in the late afternoon, many day-trippers have already left.

The beach feels very safe because the clear, turquoise sea is so shallow near the shore.  We swim before walking across to an islet, through thigh-high water.  After enjoying the natural beauty of the sea and the surrounding landscape, we leave just after 6.00 pm, when other people are packing up and leaving too.

We return to the calm and peaceful Cavo Spada Luxury Resort and Spa (www.cavospada.gr) on a tranquil beach 18 km west of Chania, where we are staying.  Our day ends here, on a moonlit terrace overlooking the pool and the sea, after a very enjoyable evening meal.

Milia is in the governing district of Chania, about 60 km from Chania town centre.
Our group was driven round the island in comfort by Solmar Tours (www.solmar.gr)

“Can’t find what you’re looking for? Try Google Search!”

Tags: Chania, crete, cuisine, eco, explore, Myrisa Luke