Migration from Crete?

My ancestors are from villages around Sparta. One of my cousins told me that our Zarafonitis family left Crete at the start of the 1821 Revolution and went to the Peloponnese to find Kolokotronis and join the fight. I have heard that Kythera was almost like a gatetway between Crete and the southern Peloponnese -- almost like a gateway or stepping stone. If this is true, my Zarafonitis ancestor may have been in Kythera. Can someone please confirm if this information is true? Thank you. Carol Kostakos Petranek, USA