European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 5, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Crete by Craig Martin staff writer. Off layers of t at the foot of mount Ida in Southern Crete lies the ruins of a sprawling Palace that dates Back about 4,000 years. The Palace of Praestus has a prosperous and disastrous history. The site was first excavated in 1900 and is still being excavated today. These excavations give a better picture than any other cretan palaces of that period the excavation revealed three distinct phases of construction before a wave of destruction forced the Palace to be abandoned in 1450 . The first Palace lasted three centuries altogether from about 20001700 . During that time it was destroyed twice by earthquakes and rebuilt. Pottery deposits of the minoan period Are found beneath the earliest floors showing that the Palace was originally built by the minoans about 2000 . After each destruction when the most valuable objects had been collected from the debris the palaces were built with no. Fundamental change in architecture. However the cavities were filled up with a Lime mortar aggregate containing crushed pottery which separated the different destruction Levels. The Walls were thicker with Timber ties incorporated in order to withstand earthquakes. Over the ruins of the old Palace a thick Cemen like fill was Laid upon which was built the new Palace that visitors see today. There was some reoccupation at the end of the Bronze age and in the Geometric period around 8 . There Are remains of a Temple and some houses from this period. The Palace was built around a Large Central court that has a grand Entrance with an elegant staircase from a West court. The main reception rooms Are immediately North of the court and 1 beyond them Are the main living quarters. As was typical of other palaces built on Crete during this time the Central court has a religious area next to the storerooms and workshops Are tucked away on the sides. The Palace also features several apartments including separate living quarters for the King and Queen. However the most distinctive feature a and the one that sets this Palace off from the other Tavvo on the Island a is the grand staircase walled in Fine Ashlar  of turks lepers and venetians walk spin Alonga one of the strongest fortresses on Crete and one wit the most unusual history stands on spinal Nga. Spinal6nga is a Small narrow Island in the Gulf of Mirabelli. The Anchorage of Ulounda was a Center for shipping lanes so the huge forbidding fortress was built by the venetians in 1579 to guard the Harbor. In 1630, huge gun emplacements were added to protect the fortress and thus it was thought to be impregnable. Throughout the 17th Century the fortress remained in venetian hands and was a Refuge for christians fleeing from the turks. Spinal6nga was one of the last holdouts against the turks Long after Crete had fallen. In 1715, a turkish Leader conquered the Castle and after a Long seige the venetians surrendered and a treaty was signed. After the turks were driven out of Crete in 1903, the cretan government turned the Island into a Leper Colony. They were housed on the Rock until 1955. It is said to have been the last Leper Colony in Europe. Now spinal6nga is a ghost town a reminder of the Community where lepers once lived. The Island is one of the main tourist attractions in Crete. You can get there by hiring a boat for about $5 per person at Ulounda a walking tour of the now silent streets of. Spin Alonga takes about two hours. Usually boat pilots will drop you off and pick you up two hours later. There Are no facilities on the Island so take your own food and water. Craig Martin a Lone Angler tries his Luck at spinal Nga where gun emplacements have been filled in with rocks. 8 stripes Magazine August 5, 1993