The Monastery of Agia Triada Tsangarolon

 sits in a large olive grove. The long stately driveway is lined with pairs of cypress trees, and on arrival you are greeted by this impressive renaissance stairway. The steps lead on up to a courtyard filled with orange trees, and entrance to the church. The monastic community is now very small but it still plays an important role in the religious and economic life of Crete. 
A Byzantine Imperial yellow flag showing a double-headed eagle and crown flies at the entrance. The flag does not have any official status in Greek Orthodox Churches, but shows an allegiance to the Patriarch of Constantinople. This is not dissimilar to the way that Catholic churches around the world fly the Vatican Flag.

The monastery has lots of cats which are very happy to be stroked and photographed but pictures showing the other incumbents are not allowed.

The church is built in a typically Byzantine architectural cruciform style and has three domes. At the front there are two pairs of Doric columns and a pair of Corinthian columns on either side of the main entrance.

The interior of the church is colourful and extremely ornate.

The monastery library has many fine, rare books, and the museum houses a collection of icons, and silver.

They produce and export organic olive oil, fine wines, honey, vinegar and soap made using their olive oil - all of which are highly regarded.

Having been given samples of their wines, and homemade bread dipped in various different flavoured oils and vinegars - all agreed that it was excellent.

Dutch Settlers and their Architecture in South Africa

Dutch settlers were the first of the European trading powers to set up permanent settlements in South Africa. In 1652 the powerful Dutch East India Company built a fort and established a supply station under the command of Jan Van Riebeeck on a site that later became Cape Town.

The Stellenbosch wine area is situated in the fertile valleys lying below the Drakensberg mountain range. This Western Cape area is just 31 miles from Cape Town, it is where many Dutch Settlers moved, cleared the land, and established farms. Vineyards began being planted when French Huguenots fleeing persecution in France during 1687 to parts of Europe were invited to South Africa by Dutch Settlers in 1688. They brought with them the skills of wine making from France which they shared with their Dutch hosts. 

An avenue of Eucalyptus saligna at a vineyard visited 
The arrival of Huguenots in Britain is of personal interest to me because it is understood in our family that my maternal grandmother was descended from them - her surname was Jacques. 

For much of the 20th century the South African wine industry received minimal international attention. Its isolation was exacerbated by the boycotts of South African products in protest against the country's system of Apartheid. It was not until the late 1980s and 1990s when Apartheid was ended, and the world's export market opened up, that South African wines began to experience a renaissance. 
It is in the heart of these winelands that the development of Cape Dutch architecture can be seen

The 'Wolf's nose' gables were the first front gables to be designed. They were built as a functional 'eyebrow' over a dormer window providing light for the loft above the front door. From this humble gable, based on the medieval architecture of the Netherlands, the style of Cape Dutch gables grew into one of the most recognisable 'settler' architectures in the world. 

By the mid-1750s, the gables at the Cape had reached their full height, a reflection of the prosperity at the time. From then on, gables would be defined by whether the edge was concave or convex in shape.

The Holbol Gable was a natural progression from the earlier bolbol gable as the fashion of the day moved towards the baroque. Its defining feature was a mix of convex and concave edges. 

The Neoclassical Gable was the last of the Cape Dutch gable styles before the Second British Occupation of the Cape in 1806. The style could be defined as singularly elegant, restrained and dignified. The pediment could be triangular, rounded or even sculpted.

Olive Groves, Vineyards, and Trullis

  The Province of Bari, Puglia, is home to olive oil, wine, and dwellings called Trullis.

 Trullis are scattered all across the landscape where they serve as both simple protective shelters and places to live. You see them in olive groves and vineyards, some are farm dwellings, or domestic homes, and Trullis are now popular as holiday lets.

There origins are obscure, though the name is traditionally applied to ancient round tombs found in the Roman countryside. These little buildings are said to cope well with summers heat as well as winters cold.

The town of Alberobello with its many conical 'hobbitesque' dwellings is considered to be the Trulli capital of the area.

Many of what were once homes have been turned into shops selling specialised local produce and restaurants

The pinnacles of the conical rooftops terminate in various different styles and

some of the roofs are painted with pagan, christian, or magic symbols considered to be a protective element for the residents dwelling inside.

There is even a Trulli church although it is only 90 years old.

  Alberobello is geared up to catering for the tourists, but we enjoyed having a wander around, and purchased several packets of specialised local pasta to pop in our suitcases.

Locorotondo 
We were very happy to have an opportunity to visit the unspoilt hilltop town of Locorotondo a few miles away. There we met a young Italian wine producer who showed us around his own beautifully preserved Trulli farm and vineyard. His wife gave us a tasty buffet of local produce and we sampled some of his wines.

This southern region of Italy is known as either Apulia or Puglia, but they actually mean one and the same thing - Apulia is the regions traditional Latin name from antiquity, Puglia its modern name.