Leaving behind the antiquities of Knossos and the aqueduct of Agia Eirini (St. Irene) at Spilia, the first organised hamlet one comes across is Patsides.
At an altitude of 250m, the hamlet, which has been regenerated, is of special interest for visitors and primes them for the full development and high aesthetics characterising the entire Municipal Unit of Archanes. Patsides is the northernmost residential part of Kato Archanes (Lower Archanes) Postal Code district. The geomorphology of the location is exceptional and Patsides is at a comfortable distance from the hustle and bustle of Heraklion. Recently, small taverns serving excellent food have opened here and they are a pleasant option for the recreation of Heraklion residents.
Kreipe Monument
At the crossroads of the old Heraklion-Archanes road with the new National Road, opposite the Chapel of Agiou Sozontos (St. Sozon), there is a monument marking where Nazi General Kreipe was abducted. It is a work by sculptor Manolis Tzobanakis constructed with wire. At exactly this point, on the night of April 26, 1944, a group of British soldiers and Cretan resistance fighters set up an ambush for the automobile carrying the Commander of Eastern Crete, General Heinrich Kreipe, whom they abducted and transported to Egypt as a prisoner.