Crete, Greece

In France, vacations are taken very seriously. Unlike in the Philippines, it’s customary to take a two-week vacation — or even longer — in France. On top of that, some companies actually encourage their employees to go on vacation by giving them chèques-vacances so they can enjoy their break even more. For us coming from the Philippines, this idea is almost unimaginable — but we embraced it with open arms.

Speaking of chèques-vacances, Iris’ company happens to be one of those that offer them. Thanks to that, we were able to afford (or at least significantly reduce the cost of) an all-inclusive resort in Crete, Greece. Yes, Greece — where most people would normally go to Athens or Santorini. But we are not most people. We are people with chèques-vacances. 😉
Instead, we went to Crete. Well, technically, it was Iris who planned everything. I just tagged along, comme d’habitude. 😛

Joining us were our neighbors and friends, Aalambek and Maxe, who also happen to work at the same company as Iris. And yes — you guessed it — they also had their own chèques-vacances. 😄 In fact, another friends, Leny and Benoît, whom we grouped up with for two (or maybe three?) days, also had them because Leni, coincidentally, works at the same company. So that means… Yep, you guessed it again: chèques-vacances! Pilipinas, ano na? 😄

The week we went to Crete was the sweet spot for a vacation. The weather was perfect, and there were fewer people since it wasn’t yet peak summer. To make the most of it, we did a bit of city hopping. We stayed in Heraklion for the first two days, moved to Rethimno for a few more, and finally spent the rest of the trip at an all-inclusive resort near Chania.

Crete is quite big, and getting around isn’t as easy as in mainland Europe, so renting a car was the only practical option. And this is where Maxe became the hero of the trip. The three of us (Iris, Aalambek, and me) neither knew how to drive nor had a license. 😛 So Maxe drove us around the entire trip while some of us enjoyed our backseat queen privileges. Thank you, Maxene! 😄

There were so many highlights during our stay in Crete — diving in crystal-clear waters, beach and cave hopping, fighting off seasickness, riding a boat, driving a boat, docking at a port with all eyes on us wondering how these poor-looking folks could afford to rent such a fine-ass boat (chèques-vacances, ladies and gentlemen), getting sunburned, driving on sketchy roads, pigging out on Greek food (which mainly consists of olive oil, cheese, salad, yogurt, and seafood), and finally, somehow ending up on a nudist beach.

I have never seen so many naked old people in public in my life. Maybe it’s normal for some, but for us — coming from a conservative country — it was uncomfortable, borderline shocking. But I guess, when in Rome, do as the Romans do, right? Well… no, we didn’t. 😄 We just anchored away from the shore and enjoyed our little paradise while doing our best not to sneak glances at the skinny-dipping crowd behind us.

However, the most surprising thing we experienced in Crete wasn’t the nudity. Apparently, dessert is free in many restaurants. And not just store-bought yogurt — we’re talking real, restaurant-made, delicious desserts. On top of that, you even get a shot of raki, the local alcohol. I mean, free dessert in this economy? It doesn’t make sense — but I’ll take it every time.

We spent our last day at the resort gorging on buffet food and never-ending cocktails. We enjoyed it as much as we could because we knew that once this was over, it was back to rice and Pancit Canton again.
Overall, I really enjoyed this trip with friends. And again, merci beaucoup, Maxene, for driving!
The only downside? The bar is now set really high for the next destination — all thanks to Crete’s free dessert.