If you are into the Greek myths, you might have heard that Zeus seduced princess Europa in the form of a white bull, crossed the sea and brought her to the beach of Matala. There he changed into an eagle and flew her to Gortys where they had a son, which was king Minos.
Or you might have heard about Matala as the Hippie hub of the 60s!
 |
| Caves from the Neolithic Age in the northern cliff of the bay |
 |
| Hippie monument at Matala |
In the 1960s, hippies from all over the world, including many young US citizens who refused to participate in the Vietnam War, settled in the Neolithic caves and founded a large community. Joni Mitchell, Cat Stevens and Bob Dylan came to Matala. And nowadays, every summer, a music festival takes place at the beach.
 |
| Beach bar waiting for the new season |
In December nearly every restaurant or bar is closed, but from here you can hike in both directions of Matala and will find a fascinating landscape. In the north lies the beach of Kommós, in the south the Red Beach, which is only accessible on foot from Matala.
 |
| Behind the camping, we walked up to the cliff |
 |
| Bizarre sandstone |
 |
| Matala in the back |
 |
| Windy area |
 |
| Everywhere, sea squill was growing again from its large bulbs |
 |
| Beach of Kommós |
 |
| Sandstone cliffs full of treasures |
 |
| Big shells were everywhere! |
 |
| Fascinating sandstone cliff |
 |
| Easy to walk along this coast |
 |
| Only some gaps in the even surface |
 |
| Matala from above |
 |
| Many beach bars for the summer |
 |
| Cliff with caves during sunset |
 |
| Sunset at the bay of Matala |
 |
| Happy that we found one open restaurant! |
 |
| Fried courgettes and aubergines |
 |
| Cretan cheese with a crust |
 |
| I think it is 27,- ??? |
