Miniatures and Donkey Stairs

Our last Blog was on August 12.  And even then we were three months behind in our stories.  I was trying to decide whether to skip and catch up to what we are currently dong now or start back in June when Lee and Katie came.  I decided to do a bit of both, so from here on out the Blog stories won’t necessarily be in chronological order.

There is an old set of stairs that used to run from the harbor up to the city gates of Chania in Byzantine times.  The stairs are are still there and you can walk up them.  Donkeys could still walk up them too.  I really liked those stairs the first time I saw them but didn't realize the first time I saw them that they were the access from the sea to the old part of the city at one time.  I only realized this after we visited the Naval Museum in Chania.  There is a diorama of Chania in the Byzantine times.  It shows the donkey stairs, just as they are located today.  So, why am I telling you this?  Those of you that have come for a visit have likely seen the Donkey stairs because I never tire of telling people about them and showing them.  I also like to walk up them.  So beware, if you come for a visit, you will be likely to see these stairs and I will try to get you to walk up them.  Also, I will try to get you into the museum to see the diorama that show the stairs.  This is a more difficult task because it has limited hours of operation.

I really like old stairs because you can do something that the people that lived there so long ago did too.  I have likely also showed many visitors the display of miniature buildings and churches in Vrises that were made by a local artist.  The same artist that made the church that we bought that sits on our front porch.

A few weeks ago, Grier approached the subject of the Donkey Staris and the miniatures.  He was very kind but wanted to let me know that he had noticed that many of our visitors didn't appear to be as interested in the stairs and the miniatures as me and that I might want to consider that maybe these two things aren't necessarily very high on the list for places to visit for everyone. 

In the future, I will try to restrain myself.  I have many pictures of the stairs and miniatures, but will restrain from putting them in the Blog for now.  But they may creep into the Blog when you least expect them!