MEDITERRANEAN ISLANDS - Clean Breaks: 500 New Ways to See the World - page 83

112 head inTo The mounTains
of CreTe

By staying in and visiting places like Anna-
Malai - and there are several other similar
places like it throughout Crete - you'll support
rural economies and help to stem the exodus
of people away from their homes, which will
ultimately preserve their culture. And you'll be
treated to something a little more authentic and
appetizing than resort-style moussaka.

Anna-Malai House is an elegant and simply
furnished villa overlooking the White Mountains
in western Crete. It is 4km from the white
sands of Kiani Akti beach, where there's a small
taverna that's popular with locals on Sundays.
Come here on any other day of the week and
you'll have the place to yourself.
Owned by a local - Stelios Botonakis - Anna-
Malai is typical of an increasing number of old
cottages and rural houses in Crete that have
been restored and offered as holiday lets, in a
backlash against economic migration from rural
communities to coastal resorts. Stelios often
runs trips to the nearby Taverna Lemonia, one
of a handful of olive farms still using traditional
olive presses, as well as to the nearby village of
Malaxa, where a local has set up an organic food
cooperative offering tasting evenings of organic
dishes and local wine.

Need to know British firm Pure Crete rents out
a range of locally owned and restored houses
and villas throughout Crete, including Anna-Malai
House. In April and May, it runs wildflower-walking
holidays (“Crete in Bloom”) led by botanists and
environmentalists. For more see W www.purecrete.
com; T [phone].

113 sea kayakinG alonG The
dalmaTian CoasT, CroaTia

A necklace of islands licked by glimmering
waters, Croatia's Dalmatian Coast is one of
Europe's most
beautiful shorelines.
And by far the best
way to explore it is
to get in a kayak
and paddle out,
meandering leisurely
between the islands
as you sit a few
centimetres above
the water, taking a
dip in the glassy sea
or soaking up the sun
on empty, white-sand
beaches. Adriatic
Kayak Tours, an
organization based
in Dubrovnik, offers
small-group trips
lasting from a few
hours to a whole
week; they also run
quirky themed tours
such as “Cliffs and

Hvar town and outlying
islands, Croatia