Koum Kapi

Chania Koum Kapi

The beach of Koum Kapi at Chania (source: Google Earth)

Koum Kapi is the district just outside the east walls of the old town of Chania.

The name Koum Kapi is Turkish in origin and means Sand Gate (Kum Kapisi). There is indeed a gate in the Venetian walls here, leading to a sandy beach.

In the mid-19th century there was a Bedouin village at Koum Kapi, the district of the Halikoutes as they were called. Two to three thousand people, mostly working as boatmen, porters and servants, lived there in rush huts. No trace of the quarter remains today, and the huts have been replaced by smart, trendy cafeterias.

Today Koum Kapi is one of the prettiest parts of Chania, where the young people of Chania go to amuse themselves, especially on summer evenings.

• Halikoutes, the Africans of Crete