map of Crete Many villages and towns on Crete are called Kasteli (sometimes also spelled as Kastelli). This Kasteli is a small mountain village situated between Neapoli and Elounda. It consists of a group of old stone houses and quite a few small churches. The neighbouring village of Fourni has even got more churches and it looks like a competition is going on in this area who can put most churches in their village. Before you enter the village from the south side from the village of Houmeriakos it already starts with what appears to be a very old Byzantine church on the right hand side. It is standing on some agricultural land with a fence around it and there is no way you can reach it. It's on private property, or so it seems. All the churches inside the village have a sign next to them telling you what church you are looking at (the Church of the Prophet Elias or the Church of Agia Varvara for instance) but they don't tell you how old they are and when we were there they were also all closed.

Most of the houses are old an a couple of them are very stately and grand. All over the village there are flowers and there are grapes hanging everywhere. The appear to belong to nobody, and nobody eats them, they just hang and dry out and then fall on the ground. Of course there is "mandatory" monument in Kastelli as well. The village is rustic, with old rusty doors with beautiful door knockers, fruit trees, traditional stone buildings and here and there a kafenion or a tavern. There is above all the peace in Kastelli and the inhabitants just wonder why you are so interested in their village when you walk around and make pictures. For the lovers: there is a "light and cottage industry museum" here...whatever that means...