October 18 Samarian Gorge

October 17

         The day began at six in the morning with an Austrian man, Tomas, telling us, “once you start, you cannot go back”. This was his warning to us while on the bus heading over to the Samaria Gorge. The Samaria Gorge, the largest gorge in Europe, is 16 kilometers, which is about 9 miles long. Fortunately for us, we were only hiking one way, and that way was down. So off we went the whole gang of 19 abroaders. We started off altogether, but slowly we split up. In the end I hiked with Austin, Dallen, and Casey. This was one of the most beautiful hikes I have ever done, and I cannot wait to post pictures. The rock face showed its beauty as the sun lit it up. The gorge opened up onto the beach. We made great time and had about four and a half hours to spend at the beach. The beach had waves! So Casey and I played around in them while Dallen ate lunch and Austin drew in his sketchbook. After about two hours the rest of the group began to join us, and Austin and I hiked up 25 minutes to a castle we on top of the gorge. Even though it took about ten minutes to find the trail, it was well worth the adventure, and we were given yet another spectacular view. We walked back down and onto the ferry, which left at 5. The ferry too us to our bus, and the bus took us to our hotel two hours away.

         The people who had not had dinner already grabbed a bite to eat. Dan, Thanda, Austin, Tori, Enyo, and I went to a wonderful restaurant on the harbor where they gave us free appetizers, coffee, and dessert. What a great way to end an exhausting day.