![\"Balos\"](\"https:\/\/www.devolkitchens.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Balos.jpg\")
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I love the Greek Islands; crystal clear water, secluded beaches, cute tavernas, meze platters and the odd glass of ouzo… yes, island life is most definitely for me. So, when my housemate suggested heading to Crete for her 25th birthday I jumped at the chance to explore another one of Greece’s retreats.<\/p>\n
![\"Chania-4\"](\"https:\/\/www.devolkitchens.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Chania-4.jpg\")
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Crete felt quite different from the islands I’d visited before, a little more rugged than the white and blue\u00a0serenity\u00a0of Mykynos and Santorini, but still completely beautiful. We stayed near Chania, an old port town that reflects Crete’s long history of colonisation in\u00a0its\u00a0really interesting\u00a0mix of architecture, prominently Venetian but with distinctive Turkish elements.<\/p>\n
![\"Chania-3\"](\"https:\/\/www.devolkitchens.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Chania-3.jpg\")
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![\"Chania-2\"](\"https:\/\/www.devolkitchens.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Chania-2.jpg\")
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Old doors, boat houses, crumbling churches and fisherman\u00a0selling natural sea sponges, the perfect setting to while away a few hours with a bowl of olives and a glass of Aperol Spritz just watching the sailboats gently cruise\u00a0the famously\u00a0blue\u00a0Cretan sea.<\/p>\n
![\"chania-v2\"](\"https:\/\/www.devolkitchens.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/chania-v2.jpg\")
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Walking inward away from the more touristy sea-front restaurants, you come on to a maze of narrow streets. It’s definitely one of\u00a0my favourite things about old European towns. When I was young my parents used to draw chalk arrows on the city\u00a0walls or stone floors, a little treasure trail to dinner. We’d excitedly run around the winding\u00a0streets getting lost and going in circles, eventually finding my mum or dad sitting at one of the rustic wooden tables lined up outside an old taverna, bread, oil and balsamic waiting.<\/p>\n
![\"chania-6\"](\"https:\/\/www.devolkitchens.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/chania-6.jpg\")
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![\"Chania-4\"](\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/button?&url=https:\/\/www.devolkitchens.co.uk\/blog\/island-life&media=https:\/\/www.devolkitchens.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Balos.jpg\")