Gerolakos Villas - Creta

Gerolakos means old hole or valley in Greek. I asked our host Lefteris why the villas were called “old hole”. He is a very thoughtful man and when asked a question he takes his time to answer it. He runs the family business and in the year 2000 he built the villas on the land and began renting to tourists. They were constructed in an authentic style of the stone houses of the area with the exception of modern electrical works and air conditioning. Lefteris laments that the houses have too much that is not authentic. Gerolakos was in his mother’s family for many generations before his father inherited the land with the marriage to his mother Maria.

It’s the middle of the afternoon and Lefteris has come by to bring us some tomatoes and cucumber from his mother’s garden. We drink a glass of raki, a local liquor made with grapes. The hum of cicada can be heard outside. I ask him if I can take his picture and he poses for me in the exact same way for each of the three pictures I take. There’s a big warm smile in each.

There are many Archeological sites in Crete as the human habitation here is thousands of years old. The Minoans are thought to have lived here as far back as 6900 BC. In 2000 BC the great temple of Knossos was built. The Mycenaean’s from mainland Athens came to Crete and overwhelmed the ancient Minoans after a major volcanic eruption occurred about 1400 BC on the island of Thera (Santorini). It was believed that a tsunami engulfed Crete as a result and destroyed the navy vessels that protected Crete and the surrounding islands from invaders. Seizing the opportunity the mainlanders took over. During the Classical and Hellenistic periods the island grew in population and it was here the origin of Greek mythology began with Zeus, King Minos, Minotaur and a host of others. It also became a combative city state and a haven for pirates. In 69 BC Crete was conquered by the Romans. As part of the Byzantine Empire Christianity spread however it fell into the hands of Iberian Muslims in 824 AD but taken back by the Byzantines in 960 AD and held until 1204 when the Venetians took over for the next 400 years. The Renaissance culture flourished under the Venetians and produced artists and writers most notably the painter El Greco. In 1718 Crete came under the control of the Ottoman Turks for the next 2 centuries. Hostilities festered between Christians and Muslims and Crete was the focus of an intense rebellion during the Greek War of Independence in 1821. While Greece retained its independence Crete did not and it remained under Turkish and at times Egyptian rule. It was not until after WWI and the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923 that Crete became part of Greece. Unfortunately independence from a hostile foreign state was once again to befall the Cretans who valiantly fought against a German invasion in 1941 only to lose. The first encounter the Germans had with a hostile local population the Nazi’s underestimated the fight to take the island and sustained heavy casualties. In response a heavy toll was excised upon the civilian population with mass genocide committed by the Germans. Cretan resistance fighters continued the struggle throughout the occupation.

Leftaris considered my question and said this was always the name of the land because it was shaped like a hole before the olive trees were planted by his father. How long has your family lived in Crete I asked. I don’t know he said but it has been a very long time. Crete in many ways is a series of old valleys replete with rich history and a resilient people.