From Dhiplori to Zaros
Sentence of the day:
Present moment, wonderful moment
Meeting of the day: Dimitri Psarras, Iraklio
We have got down from the mountain, we are in Zaros, in a very cosy hotel, Keramos. Ms Katerina has welcomed us
with a smile and an aperitif, quince jam, cake, peanuts and raki. Zaros is the village of the water: all the bottled water people drink everywhere in Crete comes from here. The walk of today has really been a stroll,
an easy small road dowhill up to Agios Ioannis Rouvas, a magic place. It is a pity we didn’t get here to sleep, I advise spending one night in this place. There is a stone small church, green meadows with plane trees and oaks, a refuge that is always open, fountains of springwater, the sound of the sheepbells and no human being.
From here the Agios Nicholaos or Rouvas gorges start: they are 4,5 kilometrs long, beautiful, not frightening, there is instead a nice small trail, with small footbridges and ladders. They must be more charming in other seasons when there is water in the stream. The trail ends near a lake, the Votomos lake. It has its rise from the springs of Zaros, it is a pity that it has been cemented and fenced. But the two taverns deserve a stop
there.
This evening we met Dimitri Psarras, promoter of the association Phoenix (http://phoenix-crete.org/)
It was one of the more appealing projects with which I got in touch and to meet Dimitri in person has been very
interesting. Dimitri has a great passion and a great global vision. In his work he is not interested in profit, his main
purpose is to work with people, to give opportunities, to furnish know-how where it is needed, to propose good
examples to copy. For this reason every year he goes to Italy, in Monfalcone, his wife’s town. Now he wants to
import in Crete the example of the didactic farms. He speaks Italian very well. In addition to a recovery centre for rapacious birds, that you can find on the website, he is trying to build an opportunity for the breeders of the Iraklio province to form a consortium that can sell their products directly to the consumers. He has a clear head, but prefers the step by step politics. He thinks that the future of Crete is in quality breeding and agricolture, not in the sale of its natural resources. Thus he gives a few negative examples: the
windpower which costs money to the Cretans instead of bringing profit, the photovoltaic energy which is almost always absorbed by the big companies with no local spin-off, and lastly the mass tourism.
Dimitri hopes that the crisis can lead to a sustainable utilization of the environmental resources.
I point out that in Crete it is difficult to build up nets of goodwill people: he too works in a very autonomous way. He says that everybody cares for his own side, is factious and driven by team spirit, so you are with us or you are against us. Tomorrow there are the elections and everybody is against all those who have a different idea.
Dimitri has given us another nice present: he has got us into his car and drove us to 
Kouses, a small village where we visit a shop, “Botano”, an herborist’s shop run by Yannis Giannoutsos. Mountain herbs of Crete,special teas of many varieties, spices. It is phantastic: there are herbs hanging from the ceiling to dry, perfumes,
a tea for any occasion to drink at the small table inside the shop: Visit the site: www.botano.gr.
Yannis comes from Salonicco, he has moved to Crete with his wife and has dedicated himself to his passion, the herbs.
Another surprise: Yannis invites us for supper, a party in his home with some of his friends, all of them are kind and interesting. One speaks italian because has studied geology in Palermo and now works as an organic farmer, one is a teacher, one is a forester,one a veterinarian. We eat grilled fish, garlic sauce and many other good
things. Thanks to everybody, it has been a splendid evening, present moment, wonderful moment!
Walkers of today Luca and Matteo
Technical notes:
lenght 12,5 kilometres
no rise and a descent of 1000 metres
Difficulty: easy stage, easy paths, esay to orientate
Strong points: the magic place of Agios Ioannis Rouvas, the Rouvas gorges.
