map of Crete This small Byzantine church is situated in the west of Crete, not far from Kissamos and just a little south of Kolimbari. If you come from the north you will see it on your right hand side after you have passed the village of Drakona. If you come from the south from Episkopi than you will see it on your left had side. The church is indicated by a brown sign. The Church of Agios Stefanos is very old (first Byzantine period - 9th century) and one of the first churches that was built after the Arab occupation. From the road it is a short walk to the church over a path surrounded by tall trees. The church was supposed to be open to visitors (but it was not) and it has interesting frescoes from the 14th century on its walls depicting the life of Saint Stephen. It is a very old, small church (one room) surrounded by tall pine trees and it is excellently preserved. Close by is another very interesting Byzantine church (Rotonda)

Dounias Taverna in Drakona

The Dounias Taverna is located on both sides of the road that runs through the village of Drakona. It is a "slow food" restaurant where everything slowly cooks in stone pots on the fire. The dishes are traditional Greek and all the products that are used come from the tavernas' own garden or they are local products. Everything is fresh. We had a lunch and tried only vegetarian dishes, although I understand that meat dishes are very good. The sweet pumpkin pie was good, the mixed stuffed vegetables were very salty and the other vegetable dish was not bad. The white wine had not much flavour. The home made bread with olive oil was very hard. The idea is very nice, the people are very nice, the views stunning, but the food we were not really impressed with.

Our verdict: a 7 out of 10