JCrete 2026 was just as good as the previous ones that I have attended, and that has been quite a few. I think my first time was in 2016 or maybe in 2015, but I am not entirely sure. It is a yearly tradition for me now to go to JCrete during summer.

For those that don’t know, JCrete is an unConference. That means that nobody is a speaker, and everybody is a speaker. The program is made up the program as we go, so you never know which themes that will be discussed. The only thing you know is that whatever happens is the right thing, and whatever outcome is the right one.

In addition to the sessions, which are limited to four half-days, there are excursions to nearby beaches, morning runs, walks, bike rides, hiking and diving. Something for everyone’s taste. And if there is something you want to do, it is just to propose it and see if anyone else are interested as well.

And then there is the food…OMG…the food. The lunches at the OAC are worth the trip alone. In the evenings we split up and visit different restaurants and tavernas in the area. One of the nights, there is a Cretan evening with local food and local dansers performing. And on Thursday, we had the traditional JCrete barbeque. Only this year, we couldn’t light the grills due to the extreme dry conditions and fire and fire risk. So the solutions became an old Cretan tradition of using the local bakery oven to prepare the meat and grilled vegetables.