Earth of Chania
Perpetuale Ode
From the depths of the Earth of Chania echoes a song. Born in its womb centuries ago, the song keeps traveling until its first breath to the light will pacify it. You listen to this song where the olive trees embrace the sand, where the sea meets the sky, where the gray colour of the rocks is smoothed by the blinding sunlight, where yesterday's stones, carved to perfection, lose the battle by the raking cement.
The melody of this song sounds sometimes sweet, sometimes fierce, nostalgic and dreamy, sad r triumphant, even monotonous or inharmonious.
However, always exceptional.
This strange melody, a chorus song coming from a place far beyond conquers the senses.
It is the Perpetual Ode to the Earth of Chania
Chania has an awesome beauty created by seducing contrasts and their combinations.
Chania turned into a vivid picture, printed in paper by a sensitive eye that seizes the moments and transubstantiates them into timeless prolific meanings.
Kostas Papakonstantinou achieved this by being a photographer and traveler at the same time. Next to his images, Penelope Ntoundoulaki's lyrics created a harmonious synthesis that led to the birth of this book. What you hold in your hands does not tell a story, it sings through lyrics and images about Chania.
You will listen to this song through magical pictures and the secrets of words.
You will be swept away to an extraordinary journey.
You will be the pilgrim to a journey in tie and beauty. A beauty stubborn enough not to be lost, and strong enough to survive nowadays' intolerable cruelty.
You are about to admire the sea and find peace in the boundless olive fields.
You will feel awe at the sight of the wild mountains.
Wandering in the Old Town and Tampakaria will feel your soul with nostalgia about lost loves.
Seeing the ruins of the Venetian Walls and the fall of the Vasileousa (Byzantine Empire) will bring tears to your eyes.
You will experience the Cretan tradition at the stone-built houses of the villages, in the everyday tools of the households, in the woven embroideries of the loom.
Your soul will shiver from faith and you will feel the presence of God in all the monasteries, churches and chapels.
You will be amused by the legends haunting old Romaic and Venetian castles, just like the stories of Nikiforos Fokas noble men.
You will wander Chania under the warm winter sun.
You will see the countryside with the eyes of a true traveler and not those of a rushing tourist.
You will realize that both in summer and in winter, Chania is a hospital and beautiful land.
A blessed land.
Through this journey, we had the opportunity and joy to see Chania under a new perspective.
We approached Chania with a fresh look and genuine admiration, like an unexpected love, having forgotten its existence.
We shall go no further.
We welcome you to our lyrical stroll, a celebration, an echo and a Perpetual Ode to the Earth of Chania.
Antonia Botonaki-Papadomanolaki
