A walk around Rethymno -section 1 and other Rethymno, Greece Things to Do Tips

My walk starts at the Fortezza and finishes at the Porta Guora. You need a simple map of the town.

You can't miss the start: the fortess which dominates the seafront. Be sure to set off early for the Fortezza - It can get very hot up there. (Open Sat - Thurs 8.30am - 6pm, a little longer height of summer.) The fort is the biggest venetian fortification ever built; so confident were the venetians that they failed to fortify the town which fell to pirates not long after the fort was built! Ther are two churches and an old mosque inside.

Your next stop, if you have the energy, is the archaeological museum, just opposite the entrance/exit to the fort. A small museum, with some lovely Minoan artefacts, including beautifully decorated sarcophagI - a spacious and cool place to visit after the heat of the fortress. Open 8.30am- 3pm, closed Mondays.

Now a walk down to the harbour along the long straight road, Salaminos, for a cold drink or coffee. Once you circumvent the hassly waiters, the old harbour is a very picturesque place to sit mid-morning. There's a C16th lighthouse, brightly coloured fishing boats (and brightly dressed tourists) to spot here.

Once revived, walk in the direction of the Loggia (a old venetian building that is now a place selling hellenistic art at high prices) and to the start of the little market street, Souliou. There is some tourist tat on sale here but you'll find a good olive wood shop, several interesting herb shops (the cretans regard 'dittany' and 'mountain tea' as precious remedies for a wide variety of conditions) and a great bookshop too .....as well as the ubiquitous jewellery stores.

My walk continues in th next section : go to the next tip!

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Follows on from the 'Walk around Rethymno -section 1' .

The trouble with doing a walking tour is that, rather worryingly, one starts to affect a rather bossy tone of voice. If you can handle it, follow me for 2nd part of your walk!

We left you shopping in the market street of Souliou - you come out the far end in front of Nerandzes mosque - a fine minaret. This (as of Spring 2005 ) is being restored and the minaret is under scaffolding. The mosque started life as a Venetian church, and is now a music school.

Down the side of the mosque runs Othos Vernadou - a particularly pretty place to come and eat at night (see restaurant tips) where candles flciker in the old venetian walls. By day, there are shady courtyards and imaginative cafe interiors here. A possible lunch stop: Minares, or the Ouzeri/Mezedhes place further down the street.

At number 28, the Folk Art Museum is in C17th Venetian house: traditional costumes and old household implements. Mnay items are still commonly used today in parts of rural Crete. Look out for the tapestry depicting scenes from the Battle of Crete in 1941.

At the bottom of Vernadou, turn left into Nikiforou Foka- another street with higgledy piggledy houses. Take first left again, doubling back so that you end up on Ethnikis Andistasis - an excellent place to end your walk, because it is a wonderful street for food/souvenier shopping. At the top of the street, near the Porta Guora, there is a 'fournos' (bakery), a shop called 'Moka' that sells nuts, sweets, coffee, oil (& will wrap them into pretty presents), a dairy/cheese shop, and a 'pantapoleion' which sells local wine and raki. Also, in the street is a little ecclesiastical supplies shop that sells lamps, icons & incense.

This has been a long tou; at the other side of Porta Guora : all the bustle of the modern city of Rethymnon. Definitely worth an explore too, for its cafes, churches, the public gardens & the shops and craft studios of just the other side of the gate. That is for another day though!

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