Matala

This morning our rental car was delivered to our hotel around 9am. We checked out and loaded the wee Hyundai with our luggage and off we headed through the hills across to the southern side of Crete. The valleys were full of very tidy looking plots of mainly grapes & olives. 

We found our hotel in a lovely little village called Matala on the coast right across the road from the beach. Unfortunately the winds are so strong it makes it a little unpleasant & cool enough not to be tempted to swim. 

Tony & I checked out the caves on the side of the bay and discovered it had been a Roman Cemetery.

Entrance to one of the tombs.

Looking across the beach to the tombs.

We then checked out the village and came across Jill & Tony enjoying a cold drink along the way so joined them for refreshments.

After that we walked up to the rock face behind the village and found a cave church which was very quaint then climbed the rocky hill a bit further to get the feel of the surrounding area.

Around this area through the valleys they grew a lot of fruit & veg under cover.

During our usual pre dinner drink we were entertained by surefooted goats skipping and chasing each other on the step rocky terrain. We then headed down the road for moussaka which Jill and I have had for the past 3 nights. After arriving back in our room we looked out the window to see the whole cliff face where the tombs are all beautifully lit up.