CRETE ISLAND, Greece --
Just before I left Athens, the Greek respectables were aghast over an International Hippie convention to be in Crete. Crete happened to be my destination.

Undesirables from everywhere were reportedly converging on the town of Matala -- a fitting place. Ancient burial caves there have served as weird and increasingly popular shelter for young travelers for five years.

Convention news became the talk of the island. My wife, Jay, and I decided to locate in a secluded fishing village. Even there rumors poured in. The Athens News carried a story: Over 1,000 hippies have arrived and taken possession of Matala and are feverishly preparing for their congress.

Not since the 1968 Democrat convention, when hippies and yippies were said to be invading Chicago, had I heard such news. It was too much to pass up. So Jay and I left our fishing village to see what was happening in Matala.

Entering the town, we spotted a small group of young people. Most of the girls had long hair and wore old blue-jeans. The boys had long hair and some wore beards, beads, headbands and funning looking hats.

Come join us, said one of the boys. We are going up into the mountains for the hippie convention. Joni Mitchell, the folksinger, will be there. And we'll have food, too.

We hiked two miles to a tiny chapel in the middle of the mountains. The convention delegates sat in a circle on a grassy plot beside the chapel. No more delegates arrived to swell the original 34 and one puppy dog.

Some of them started playing bongo drums and guitars. Joni Mitchell got out a dulcimer and sang Mr. Tambourine Man to her own accompaniment. All the while, people passed around the food they had -- mostly bread and wine. It seemed like a communion service.

That's all that happened.

But, every Sunday, says a café owner in Matala, busloads of Greeks come here bug-eyed, hoping to see naked people cavorting on the beach or a bunch of drunken kids. The Greeks return home disappointed.

Main activity of the hippies living in Crete's caves is to get to know each other and native Cretans. During winter most of them stay here about two months. When the summer sun spurs mobility, the stay drops to two weeks.

There are about 40 occupied caves in rows along the mountainside above a narrow bay. Nearby Roman baths, flowering meadows and beaches are features of the area where the cave people spend their prettiest moments.

They also exert energy remodeling the caves. Most of the cave entrances now have bamboo or plastic doors. Interiors have a kerosene stove, lantern, cooking utensils and mats to sit and sleep on. The caves are large enough to accommodate about three people each. They are about seven feet high from floor to ceiling and 10 by 15 feet around the walls. Extra space is provided by ledges which originally held artifacts and corpses.

The caves are a real bargain, cool in summer and warm in winter. The only inconvenience is the walk to an adjacent field for water and to relieve bodily needs.

It cannot be denied that most cave dwellers enjoy drugs and sex. This is to be expected, as most of them come mainly from schools or the Army where such activities are the vogue.

But these cave-dwelling tourists, by and large, are as discreet as the traditional Greeks who pride themselves on their lovemaking and drinking abilities.