Verses of Crete - a poem

Crete poem

Poetical impressions of wonderful Crete!

Turks, Minoans & Venetians

Do these cultures rub off on Cretans?

This thought holds nothing but irrelevance

With Cretans there is simply no malevolence!

They smile, they greet, wave say “Ya….Suss”

A helping hand, an extra serve, no fuss

Coast to coast three hundred gorges

A love for Crete, this scenery forges

Mountains, hills, rivers and roads that wind

Beaches hidden,  sometimes hard to find.

Sage, oregano, parsley & thyme

Almonds, oranges, lemons & lime

Orchids, poppies, wildflowers to find

Figs,  avocados and all other kind.

But king of them all, is the ancient olive tree

So many everywhere, as far as you can see

In winter blacks nets are laid on the ground

And multitudes of olives drop without sound.

They cover the valleys, the fields to the sea

A way of life, a vocation, you’ll agree!

In summer water flows thru through pipes that are black

Metered at places where they meet in a pack!

Villages abound with ladies in black

A donkey or two, a white house & a shack

Walks along aquaducts took us to many places

Meeting goats, sheep, guard dogs with friendly faces

Tavernas on every road seem to greet

The passing tourist, in time to eat.

Healthy eating, Cretans take pride in their diet

A lesson for us, and perhaps we should try it

The mountains seem to cover the isle

Endlessly stretching mile upon mile

Little white churches appear in cliff sides

In valleys, around corners trying to hide

And just when you think you’ve seen it all

Another mountain edge, where you might fall

Water tanks atop all living abodes

Solar panels all over to ease power load

Even their driving is without too much fuss

Tho the guide books seem to say its not thus

Even telephoning & smoking while driving a bus!

They mostly drive with caution & far less bolder

Than Italians as long as you move to the shoulder

That’s the edge of the road that they treat as a lane

Its easy to do and not really a pain.

From Venetian wash houses to Minoan remains

We have gone to a lot of trouble and great pain

To portray Crete & Cretans in such a good light

So its goodbye dear Crete and to Crete a goodnight.