Crete and New Year

Nightshift over.....and straight away onto a tour.....to a winery and taste local Crete food....yay....so my scene.....bus ride to the winery....very short....there we had an intro video about Crete......the main things Crete produces....olive oil, soap, wines, Raki...very interesting actually.....after that..time to taste some of the wines....we would be tasting a red, a white and a semi sweet red wine.....but before i start here is a pic of me outside the winery

Now some facts.....the white wine takes between 3 and 6 months to mature while the red wine takes between 8 and 15 months.....their most famous export however is Raki, a Greek schnapps, only produced by a few wineries.....it is made like Ouzo, but without the aniseed taste....hmmm...that could be good cause that is what puts me off the Ouzo....but we would not be tasting it there because they do not make it....Raki is best eaten with cheese, olives, tomatoes, artichokes....BUT the best is snails.....first off the white wine....it is called a Pezza White made from Vilana grapes, it is light yellow and has a fruity taste...very light...maybe a hot summer day drink.....then we got brushetta....divine....didnt expect that....red wine was made 80% Kotsi Fali and 20% Mandilars....has a purple colour and tastes of dried fruits, especially raisins and prunes.....that was not my taste....too light..cannot even compare to South African wine...man i miss the bubbly and wines from SA....soon...soon......last but not least the semi-sweet red....which i would say tasted like a sherry....so for me, more like a dessert wine...man im sorry if i sound like an expert or arrogant...just giving my good old opinion...hahaha...some pics now....of course i spotted this wooden board that i thought was just perfect for a Sunday Cheese Brunch and had to buy it...also a pic of that....

After that...a drive through the country towards the small village where we were gonna have a taste of the local food.....amazing countryside....some more facts....Crete is 8300km squared...the longest part is 250km and the widest part is 45km...narrowest 10km....some pics of the scenery.....

Time to taste local food...but trust me to spot the bakery with all these amazing biscuits...def had to try...if there was any free time i was so going to run back....now i was hopeing for free time....the tasters at the restaurant were good....some olives....a pastry stuffed with Spinach and ricotta, one with cheese, and two sweet things...one with cheese one deep fried onto which u had to poor honey and clotted cream....no idea what it was....but was good...and finally some of the famous Raki...good...but would not run miles for it...did buy some cause i want Kim to try some....hmmmmm......and guess what....did have time to run back to get biscuits...and man they tasted delicious.....mine the middle one and the green one.....the middle one buttery and full of nuts...the other one was gooey...tasted almost like a hardish baklava....with lots of pistaccio and honey....and preference....cannot say...i had one bite of my dads, the two choc covered butter ones....not for me..too dry...he liked them though...so good...successful purchase i guess.....

Back on the ship it was time to sleep and then i would have a dinner with my parents tonight before starting work.....dinner would be at Jasmine Garden, the Asian restaurant...the dinner was divine...we all loved it....love the 3 small creme brulees they have there....i was full..but def not too full for that...yummy....my gran had the choc cake with ice cream...always a winner also..cause it is so dense.....now enough about food.....tonight i was gonna sleep well...8hrs in bed...and 8hrs at one time....yay.....but....first we had crew party tonight......it is an hour back though....so all good.....went with my friend, Andrea, and her boyfriend, drank some rose and danced....was fu...but music was too much house music...i prefer the more current stuff or latin or the good oldies....but anyway..here a pic of me and Andrea...

New Year....somehow I was very lucky....my nightshift ended on the 30th and on new years eve i would be off at 23:00...although no new years eve dinner....at least i could celebrate the start of the new year with my parents...That was def more exciting for me.....as soon as i was off i rushed to get changed...ended up going downstairs round 23:30....at not because im a slow changer but i did have some other things that were very important to do.....my parents had ordered a bottle of Moet...fancy....the main reason cause my parents and i all started the year 2012 really really shitty...and we all ended the year 2012 how we never thought possible....each of us in a different way...And this def deserved a Moet champagne...my gran was happy to join with the Moet....hahaha....we celebrated the countdown in the Aitrium where the Jade orchestra was playing life music....a great vibe...here some pics....

Ater the countdown time to go dance a little...Spinnaker it was....we made our way up to deck 13 from deck 7...u there...packed...and hot...and sweaty....saw some friends....and it was all kisses....happy happy new year...you knw how it goes...then some dancing and some more pics...

Then off to bed...not too late...cause i booked a tour in Naples...Pompeii for my parents and Heracleum for me...and i knew i would not enjoy if i was falling asleep....so off we all went...goodnite from me...and a belated Happy New Year......soon its my last cruise.....im glad im only 1 cruise totally on my own...not easy....especially when you know what it could be like if that special someone was there with you....

 

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