Slowly approaching a round sitting area, right above the cliff, while admiring the clear blue water and Spinalonga Island in near far, I suddenly heard a tired meow. Right in the shadow of a small table an orange cat was napping, looking up to me, irritated, and after a second she was going back to sleep. At the end of April, Plaka was not flooded by tourists and it felt very relaxing to stroll around the small village by the waterside. If not even the strolling cats mind you strolling around by yourself, you are safe to say that they are used to the calm environment. Plaka is located on the north-eastern side of Crete, in Lasithi, in the municipal unit Agios Nikolaos. Plaka is near Elounda, in the Gulf of Elounda, which is bigger and more popular than the small village of Plaka.
As the Lunch Stop of Route 2 Plaka was an ideal location, to enjoy good food in a lovely environment. Greek delicacies at Taverna Giorgos, while basically sitting almost right above the water, followed by a stroll around Plaka afterwards. Small, individually owned shops, one restaurant next to each other at the beachside boulevard, many parking possibilities for cars, now and then a group of bicycle riders and boats coming into the tiny harbour, before taking, even more, tourists to Spinalonga. As far as I’ve seen there are many parking spots that are free of charge if you are coming by car, such as I did, and there is even a small supermarket with a remarkably good selection. Drinks, snacks, cheese, noodles and of course also greek olive oil in souvenir-sizes.

Pictures: Strolling around Plaka, with a view of Spinalonga Leper Island on Crete