Traveling west across Crete, the island’s character changes markedly, its landscape becoming more lush and forgiving, and its seaside towns sleepier and dreamier than bustling Iraklion.

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The city of Chania is filled with romantic, winding streets, and is one of the few urban centers on Crete where you can still find a quiet spot. However, like Iraklion, the city boasts a long and complex history, beginning with the ancient city of Kydonia, which survived from about 3000 B.C. through the seventh century A.D. It was later occupied by the Arabs (823-961 A.D.), after which came the Byzantine period (961-1252), and occupation by the Venetians (1252-1645) and the Turks (1645-1897). In 1898, when the Cretan State was founded, Chania became its capital. In 1913, Crete was unified with Greece.

The Labrys Dance Group from the Cretan Association of New York, under the direction of Nikos Zoulakis, performed a couple of nights ago. Chania’s picturesque Firkas Fortress, built in 1629, provided the romantic backdrop along the city’s Venetian harbor. In this video, the group dances the Pentozalis, which is believed to have ancient origins.

According to Greek mythology, the god Kronos killed his father Uranus and usurped his power. Kronos then married his own sister, Rhea, with whom he started fathering children. But Kronos became paranoid that he would succumb to his father’s fate, so he began swallowing his offspring one by one. When Zeus was born, however, Rhea tricked Kronos into swallowing a rock wrapped in a blanket, and instead hid the baby in a cave on Crete. As the legend goes, the Kourites, the guardians of the cave (Ideon Andron), performed this noisy dance—filled with stomping—to stifle the baby’s cries, which ultimately saved his life.

In modern times, the dance has been associated with Crete’s 1770 revolution, led by Yiannis Daskalogiannis, against the Turks. The stomping is believed to represent the army preparing for battle.

This entry was posted by Eti Bonn-Muller on Thursday, July 23, 2009. Discussion of this blog entry is now closed.

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