Endloses Staunen - endless wonder

ich will doch nur die Welt bereisen,

will all die vielen Wunder sehen

will vor der Freiheitsstatur stehen

und den Eiffelturm begehen

will jeden Meter der chinesischen Mauer

zählen

ich will Abenteuer erleben
nach Freiheit streben

die Komplexität des Seins

auf morgen verschieben

verstehen heißt begreifen

wieso soll ich dann stehen

und nicht nach den Sternen greifen

wieso der Monotonie nachgeben

und nicht nach erleben streben

wieso auf andere hören

und nicht selbst Fehler begehen

Fehler zu machen heißt zu leben

Aus ihnen zu lernen, heißt das Leben zu verstehen

Ich will reisen, ich will leben

und du bist mein Kompass

und hältst mich am Leben

Old town Church

Happy holiday feeling

Italy & Greece Trip
Sardinia / Crete 

My holiday trip to Crete - Palm beach of Vai

During my summer holiday 2012, which I spent with two friends of mine, we visited the wonderful Palm beach of Vai. I have been pretty impressed so I decided to share some pictures with you. 

Arrival/Access:

As our hotel takes place in Agios Nikolaos we had to rent a car to be able to drive to the beach. But firstly it was not expensive at all and secondly it was not only more comfortable than taking the bus but also less complicated, as we had to change buses. We also saved a lot of time as we had to go to Heraklion first because there was no direct bus connection from Agios Nikolaos to Vai.
Our car ride took about 1 hour and 40 minutes and we could park our car not far behind the beach.

The parking ticket costs 2,50€ (prices of 2012)

Palm beach of Vai: 

When you find your way from the parking space to the sandy beach you will pass by a restaurant and a cafeteria. There are plenty of seats outside among the palm trees. Additionally, there are toilets on the beach as well.

Between the huge palms you can also find showers. Whether you use them after swimming or just in between because of the high temperature is up to you. 


As there were plenty of palms you don't need to rent an umbrella but you can take place under the palms. But when you decide to rent an umbrella anyway, you have the opportunity to do so. 

The atmosphere is very breathtaking and the sea has been very bright and turquoise-colored.

The palm beach is not only good for people who like to relax or love swimming, it is also very adventures. You can go for a walk and climb the way at the side of the beach. There are steps which lead to a viewing platform, where you can look all over the whole area. You can also climb further to be able to see even more impressive angles of the setting.

Panorama view guaranteed! 

 

Conclusion: 
Take a look at this beautiful palm forest! It was breathtaking and it is definitely worth it.
At the end of the day I spent about 25€ - 30€  , including the parking ticket, the car renting, filling up the tank at the gas station and 3 post cards and stamps at a little shop next to the beach.

And I had a lot of new impressions I will never ever forget. 

Panorama view

Wild sea (Sardinia, Italy 2012)

Panorama (Sardinia, Italy 2012)

View from the twisting road (Sardinia, Italy 2012)

My holiday trip to Crete - Knossos

While reading "Die sieben Weltwunder" by Johannes Thiele, which is a very interesting book by the way, I got immediately reminded of the "Palace of Knossos".  During my summer holiday which I spent with two of my friends, we all agreed in one point: If you are in Crete, go and visit the ruins - it is a must-do. And exactly these breathtaking ruins were one of our day trips.  

Arrival/Access:

Fortunately, it is very easy and also cheap to visit the ruins. Just take the urban bus 2 at the bus station in Iraklion and stay in there till the end of the line "Knossos", which is right in front of the entry. The bus is driving twice or even thrice each hour. Unfortunately, I am not sure, how much I paid, but it was about 3€, which included the way back as well.

Palace of Knossos - the ruins:

The ancient place is located only a few kilometers apart from the capitol of Crete, Iraklio (Greece), which has been civilized by the Minoans. Also, the well known legend of the "myth of the labyrinth and the Minotaur" is connected to this stunning palace of king Minos. Actually, the visitors can see the replica of the "Palace of Knossos" and ruins of several buildings of town. You have to know that the palace was destroyed by an earth quake, so the Minoan civilization decided to build it up again at the same place but much bigger and magnificent. Unfortunately, the "Palace of Knossos" was destroyed a second time they rebuild it. But after a complete destruction of the second rebuilding they decided to neither use nor rebuild the palace again. After a huge period of time, in 1878, Minos Kalokairinos discovered this place again. In 1900, Sir Arthur Evan started his archeological excavations.

You can not only visit the Palace itself but also the ruins of the sacrificial altars and the food storage. During the guidance you will get to know that the culture of Minoans was very popular for its trade relations. It is also worth mentioning, that they already had their own underground pipelines, which included water pipes and a very "modern toilet system".  

This is my favorite picture I took so I wanted to share it with you guys.

Tickets:

In generally you have to pay 6€ each, reduced tickets cost 3€.

1) Free admission

You are given free admission, when you are under 18. The person at the ticket station asked me about my age and I was already 18 but I was given free access anyway. (They are really nice!)
Journalists and also people over 65 which are citizens of a member state of the European Union you   have free access too.

2) Guidance

I highly recommend a guidance tour to everyone. Firstly, there are several tours in several languages. Additionally, it is definitely worth it paying some extra money for the tour tickets (10€ / reduced ticket 5 €) because you would be a little bit lost without a guidance, as the place is very large. Although I think, some background information just make this wonderful ruin even more impressive. I think the guidance last for about 2 1/2 hours. 

For additional information, you should visit the website:http://odysseus.culture.gr/h/3/eh355.jsp?obj_id=2369

Conclusion: 

If you EVER go to Crete you REALLY SHOULD visit the "palace of Knossos" ! It was breathtaking and so interesting! Believe me, IT IS WORTH IT :) 
At the end of the day I spent about 13€ , including the bus tickets, the admission card and the tour ticket, which was presented in my mother tongue (German). But just so you know, I would take a lot of water with me, because although it is very interesting, it takes time to see every single part of this huge area. In addition, it is very hot, so put on a hat.