- Supermarkets and Markets: What You Need to Know
- Antiques and more
- Olive oil: for internal and external use
- Hand-made
- It is better for fur coats with an accompanying person
- Leather is always in fashion
- Gift for real men
- Delicious souvenirs
A beautiful Greek island with unique nature and three warm seas is a popular European resort. Tourists are attracted by a first-class beach vacation, a huge number of historical monuments and natural attractions, and excellent Greek cuisine. And also exciting shopping, which turns into the usual desire to bring souvenirs to friends and memorabilia from your vacation.
Supermarkets and Markets: What You Need to Know
You can learn about the fact that trade on the island goes on at night on the very first day. In any supermarket you can buy any souvenirs presented in street shopping rows. But you can bargain at the bazaar, and the discounts will be significant. But in the supermarket there is an opportunity to pay by card. Although cash is welcomed by everyone, and the seller in the store will give you a discount only if you pay in cash.
When planning a trip to Crete, it is worth considering the seasons of sales: winter ones fall in January-February, summer ones - August-September.
Antiques and more
Greece has always been a mecca for archaeologists and antiquities lovers. And most of the events of ancient Greek myths did take place in Crete. For collectors, there is a large selection of copies of exhibits from local archaeological museums. Moreover, the copies are of good quality - applicants for their production undergo a fairly serious selection. There are even copies of images on the walls of the palaces of Heraklion, found during excavations. Such purchases are for the connoisseur.
Simpler things made by local artisans have nothing to do with archeology. But the dishes stylized as ancient Greek will become a decoration of the house. It is impossible to pass by the ceramics: amphorae, cups, jugs, vases, figurines. The main thing is to think over how to bring this fragile beauty home.
In memory of history and mythology in any souvenir shop you can buy:
- statuettes of ancient heroes, many of whom were born in Crete;
- figurines of ancient Greek gods made of ceramics, bronze or marble;
- busts of the scientists and philosophers of Ancient Greece, glorified in centuries.
Olive oil: for internal and external use
This is the most purchased product on the island. The aroma of olives is felt everywhere. The choice of pickled olives is also wide, there is something to bring home and as a gift to friends. The more difficult it is to choose the oil. The best is cold pressed and with a shelf life of no more than a year. You need to carefully study the labels. And, of course, it is worth buying oil in cans, and not in glass containers, given the flight.
For female beauty, they bring high-quality natural cosmetics based on the same famous olive oil, with herbs and essential oils. It is advised to purchase cosmetic series for care in pharmacies, it is a little more expensive.
But for gifts, you can bring inexpensive cosmetics from stores, it is also guaranteed natural:
- famous soap - beautiful, fragrant, in pretty packages;
- shower gels, often in gift sets;
- bath foams with essential oils;
- body milk.
Hand-made
This is exactly what it is worth taking from the island. The narrow streets of the Cretan towns are one big bazaar of folk handicrafts. Local embroiderers work miracles. Although the main ornament is the olive branch, a variety of patterns are invented from it. It should be added that only natural fabrics are decorated with embroidery. You can buy embroidered linen products in specialized stores. Although it is less interesting than in the bazaar, from the hands of the embroiderer herself.
Buy for home and for themselves:
- linen embroidered tablecloths;
- handmade woolen fabrics;
- kitchen kits - towels, runners, napkins;
- flokati - a blanket or cape made of fine, perfectly dressed sheep's wool.
Eyes run up from patchwork art, and from woven rugs with drawings on any topic. And there are incredible embroidered landscapes, created by the hands of their selling Greek women, they can be viewed as in an exhibition. Blankets, carpets, shawls, lace - many of them were made by grandmother's tools according to old technologies.
All handicrafts and other souvenirs can be bought in one of the supermarkets in the resort area. But on the street it is more interesting and you can bargain.
It is better for fur coats with an accompanying person
The variety of "soft gold" here is perhaps the widest in Europe. The legendary Greek fur coats are sewn in the north of the country, and the main market for them is the Greek health resort island of Crete. Backpackers' wallets serve as a major contributor to the industry. Therefore, there is an abundance of fur shops on the island. The most important thing is to navigate correctly. There are outlets that are open for one season, without worrying about reputation. In such places, they often sell Chinese fakes, short-lived in wear. It is worth looking for stores belonging to large retail chains.
As a rule, in hotels, a fur coat tour of fur shops is organized for those who wish. This is the best variant. Accompanying guides cooperate with retail chains, their shops and will recommend them. The guide can be immediately informed in which price segment you intend to make a purchase. This is fine because the goal of manufacturers is to satisfy customers with different budgets. Therefore, each chain has stores focused on a different customer profile.
Leather is always in fashion
The island's leather goods are renowned for their high quality and excellent tailoring. Local craftsmen create beautiful things - bags, wallets, belts, jackets, suitcases. Many bring leather backpacks from Crete - an unusual style, light and beautiful. In the workshops, you can order a leather item to your taste. Traditional Greek shoes - sandals and sandals - are also made by skilled craftsmen. Moreover, you will not see labels of famous brands on Greek leather goods - manufacturers are proud of their work, they do not need to make fakes under brands to confirm the quality of the products.
Gift for real men
Local blacksmiths are famous for their high quality steel products. Copies of the famous handmade Cretan knives can be brought as a gift not only to a hunter or a fan of cold steel. Such a magnificent souvenir will be appreciated by any man. The blade of the knife is engraved. This is the text of an island Greek song - a message to the future owner of the weapon. The main thing is to keep your purchase receipt and not to take the knife in your hand luggage on the plane.
Delicious souvenirs
Greece is famous not only for olives and oil. Greek wines and cognacs, coffee, cheeses, honey of unusual taste and oriental sweets - all this, having tasted on vacation, you also want to bring home.
