Elevate July 2023 | Air Serbia

mnogo. Ali šta ako vam ka- žemo da je tamo prvi put za - igran sirtaki? Davne 1964. Entoni Kvin dobio je ples koji je mogao da odigra na pesku Stavrosa, uz čuvenu muziku Mikisa Teodorakisa. Posle tri „Oskara“ „Grk Zorba“ prosla - vio je sirtaki, za koji mnogi misle da je tradicionalni grč - ki ples iako je nastao za po - trebe filma. Ali je proslavio i plažu sa planinama u zaleđu koju svakako treba posetiti, čak i ako ste suviše mladi i nikada niste čuli za ovaj film - ski klasik. Na kraju, i ne morate mno - go daleko od Hanje. U nepo - srednoj blizini pruža se pe - skovita, uređena plaža kroz mesta kao što su Aja Mari - na, zatim plaža Platanijas, a idući još dalje obalom, na - ići ćete na mesto pod sun - cem baš po svojoj volji. Ako ste u Aja Marini, ne propusti - te „Akti“, restoran uz samo more u kom ćete u čarob - nom ambijentu jesti najbolje grčke specijalitete po pristoj - nim cenama u velikim količi - nama! Manastirsko vino i masline Hanja je, osim po svemu već rečenom, poznata i po svom mirisnom, devičanskom ma - slinovom ulju, vinima, pomo - randžama i avokadu. Dok pu - tujete ka plažama, uživajte u poljima pored kojih prolazi -

ter, parasols, sunbeds, drinks, and everything else you need to spend an unforgettable day here. If you don’t want to travel the 60 kilometres required to get there, you will find the wild landscape of Sheitan [Satan] Ports just 22 km from Chania. Located there are three narrow inlets that are well protected against the waves. Or are they? This natural beauty spot earned its devilish name because the narrow passage through the rocks seems gentle and calm, but the sudden and unexpe- cted wind has been known to smash ships against those sa- me rocks. That’s why the Otto- mans who discovered these bays named the place after Sa- tan himself, Satanas, as the Greeks call this place, or as we Serbs would say, after the black devil. But the only thing we saw here was devilishly beautiful na- ture and the cleanest deep sea. You can only reach this bea- ch by car, and only as far as the carpark – after which you ha- ve to descend the steep path on foot – or, if you’re as fortu- nate as we were, by boat. We dropped anchor, leapt from the deck and had the best possi- ble time swimming in the cle- ar waters. If you have time, head to Sta- vros Beach, which is just 15 ki- lometres from Chania. The na- me probably doesn't mean much to you right now, but that might change if we tell you that it was there that the sirtaki dan- ce was performed for the first time! It was way back in 1964 that Anthony Quinn was given this dance to perform, on the sand of Stavros Beach, to the famous music of Mikis Theo- dorakis. Sirtaki was celebrated after the film Zorba the Greek won three Oscars, and many believe it is a traditional Greek dance, though it was actually created for the needs of the film. However, the dance and

tiri for an unforgettable panora- mic view of the whole of Chania and the endless blue of the sea of the Cretan coast. The park here is stunningly beautiful and somewhat reminiscent of Bel- grade’s Avala, if you exclude the palm trees and oleander shru- bs, and in this important pla- ce you can also pay your respe- cts to Eleftherios Venizelos, the most renowned Cretan, who de- termined the developmental di- rection of the Greek state and paved the way for modern de- mocracy, and whose tomb is lo- cated there. The memorial sta- tue of Spyros Kagiales, the hero of the 1897 rebellion, who bra- vely used his body to replace a broken flagpole and ensure the Greek flag remained aloft, will remind you of the slogan “free- dom or death” which is a slightly different version of the slogan we remember in Serbia: ‘better the grave than a slave’. Big blue and sirtaki And now the time has come to head towards the main rea- son we came here: the turquo- ise waters of the Mediterra- nean and some of Greece’s most beautiful beaches. And the choice is seemingly end- less – depending only on how far you want to go and what you need. We only paddled in a few places, but that was qu- ite enough for us to want you to swim here yourself. For star- ters there’s Phalasarna, which has been declared one of Euro- pe’s best beaches and among the most beautiful in the world. Soft, white sand, turquoise wa-

Air Serbia » Er Srbija | 25

Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator