Beach Day Sitia Crete

There are famous, gorgeous beaches in Crete. This one is not famous nor as gorgeous as some but we thought it was wonderful - beach chairs, sand, not many people, the town beach in Sitia.
On Saturday we are moving to a hotel right on this beach where we will stay for two nights. In the meantime we walked here from our quiet hillside apartment & the walk is not that far maybe 15 blocks to the water, but the hill is really steep. Easier walking there than back. We stopped for a coffee and cheese filled sesame bun - this is the best coffee we have had so far in Crete. At first the place only had men sitting around enjoying a visit and coffee but about 1030 the women started to drift in. They were likely cleaning the house and picking up groceries before the heat of the day.

The Archeological Museum is nearby and two men pointed this out to us. Admission 3 E - we will go tomorrow or Saturday
The beach was so wonderful I got a great spot on a beach lounger with an umbrella and shade, waded in and thought I would go in a bit later but was so content with the shade and a cool breeze I just stayed put. Actually I have vertigo and the little waves and uneven ground made me dizzy when I was in the water. I will try again if I actually floated around would likely not get dizzy. But Jeff spent at least an hour in the water. It was lovely, peaceful, beautiful.

Jasmine grows here I picked this flower on our way to the beach

We spent about two hours there and then had lunch at a seaside cafe.

We checked out our upcoming hotel and a few restaurants for future reference and looked at hats and sunglasses. My upper back is sunburned - not from today. Trudging up that steep hill in the heat of the day was grueling but now in air conditioned comfort will be happy to stay inside from 3 to 6 and maybe have a nap. We have a kitchen here so Jeff will make pasta for supper.
Right now at 330 it is 28 C.
Not everyone wants or needs to be a budget traveller. I like the challenge of the do it yourself, fly by the seat of your pants travel. It can be exhausting and nerve wracking but also relaxing, rewarding and satisfying. With all these hills and stairs I am glad I can still kind of do it but expect this to be my last 'big' trip - not my last trip though!! I expect these 2,5 months of travelling to cost less than a CARP advertised all inclusive 15 day trip to Palm Springs and San Diego. No we won't be sampling all the various delicacies but we will be looking at the same sky and the same Mediterranean as other more well to do tourists here in Crete. So if you think you can't afford to travel think again!!
And do think of Crete as a destination. There are fruit trees on our patio: orange and pomegranate.

So we do a repeat on Oct 11, only left home earlier. Went to the same cafe for coffee, now we are regulars. Secured a slightly different spot on the beach, umbrella, lounge chair. Jeff was in the water for over an hour, then we went to the same restaurant as yesterday for lunch, back to the beach for another hour.

Then we went shopping. It's 31 C today, amazing how much cooler it is in the shade. I bought a hat and loose beach top and Jeff bought sunglasses. We were not prepared for this heat but now we will manage. I do see people wearing black but it is a colour that absorbs heat.

I picked this blue flower from a tree - lots of flowering trees here