Turn off the main Chania-Rethymno road at Paleloni, and you will find the road winds down for a mile or so into a picture-postcard bay. This taverna is right on the bay, offering the freshest fish, an upmarket Cretan wine list, and views of the sea from every table. A deservedly popular spot.

Near Paleloni, Chania, Crete

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High above Crete's Lasithi Plateau is this extraordinary late Minoan site, slung across a strategic mountain pass with views to the sea below. It's a steep 30-minute walk up from the nearest road - though when I visited, I saw a man shepherding his goats on the plain below from inside his 4x4. The site was excavated by John Pendlebury, the archaeologist, whose grave you can see at the Allied War Cemetery at Soudha Bay.

Near Tzermiado village, Lasithi, Crete;

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Tucked under the Westway at the ordinary end of Portobello Road, this Lebanese cafe/bar is charming, unpretentious and impeccably run. Eat souvlaki from terracotta plates (supplied by the Spanish supermarket across the road) - then move on to cheap cocktails while listening to funky eastern beats. The exposed brickwork and low tables might come over all Hoxton, but the pretension factor is low - and so are the prices.

299 Portobello Road, London W10 5TD. Nearest station: Ladbroke Grove

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Who says Athenians only go out to see and be seen? This little cafe/bar is a place to find young media types dressed down, listening to The Jam, The Kinks & the Cure, and putting back a few too many Belgian beers. Journalists and web designers abound.

Karytsi 10, just off Stadiou, near Panepistimio or Syntagma metro. Opposite the Mousouri theatre

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