Santorini

Santorini, despite it’s barren appearance at first glance, proved to be one of the most enchanting places we’ve been to so far. Don’t get me wrong- it’s barren. Being a volcano can have that effect on a place. We actually found out that most of the island dates from an earthquake in the 1950’s which destroyed the island. The government gave them the infrastructure they had lacked until then: we’re talking roads, electricity, ferry connections. From then till now the island has exploded into a beautiful sun-drenched island with two picturesque towns and an active volcano in the middle, surrounded by a Mediterranean so clear it’s like being on Lake Tahoe again.
Whitney and I have found Greece to be the most welcoming country we have been in so far. Everyone has been so wonderful to us and welcoming. It’s great staying in a place where almost every hotel is “family-owned” and the owner picks you up from the harbour himself. Our first night after getting to Stelios’ Place at Perissa Beach we went out for some gyros and drinks. It’s funny because even though it’s sunny and hot here by Seattle standards, it’s not yet full tourist season, and so things are still being built and renovated in preparation for June when the island population (12,000) is met with the tourist population (130,000). This was especially funny in a bar we went to where Whitney and I had drinks next to the dance floor which was thumping and the lights were strobing in time with the beats, but it was still just us and the bartender. However, the space and laid-back atmosphere of the island without all the tourists is great.
Our second day in Santorini Whit and I rented an ATV for the day and drove around the island. We had been looking forward to this for a LONG time and it was so much fun to drive across the island on an orange quad. The owner of the rental company (again, family-owned) showed us everything we should see on the island and we had a long day of ATVing around Santorini, getting lunch in Pyrgos, seeing the red volcanic sands at Red Beach, walking around Fira and finally getting dinner and watching the sunset at Oia. The buildings on the island are almost all made out of brick covered in stucco and whitewashed, which makes everything look really clean and smooth. We took so many pictures of the town and the caldera and are having so much trouble picking which ones to show. The blue-domed churches in Oia are probably the most widely recognized Greek architecture on postcards, and they were no less spectacular close-up. What was really cool were the super-expensive hotels with pools and eating terraces where one edge overlooked several-hundred feet of cliff to the Mediterranean below. The only unfortunate surprise for us was the drive back after dark from the top of the island to the bottom on an exposed ATV. As in it was cold. Very cold.
The next day we took a sailing tour of the volcanic islands in the middle of the caldera as well as the small town of Tharissia which became separated from the main island in the last big eruption. The volcano was pretty interesting, especially as we had a great tour-guide who told us all sorts of cool things like how an earlier civilization which this volcano wiped out might have been an explanation for Plato’s Atlantis. He also took a rock and dug a couple of inches down to show us steaming soil- evidence that the volcano is still active and gearing up for another party in 15,000 years or so. After this we went to the hot springs on the neighboring island. They were more like warm-springs actually, and there was an abundance of iron in the soil so it was like swimming in a pool of rusty water, but it was still fun. We wrapped up our time laying out in the sun at Tharissia before heading home to some gigantic gyros at Grandma’s Place.
Today we decided to do copious amounts of nothing. We read books next to our pool and went for a dip in the ocean since the wind had calmed down and I wanted to see how clear the water was up close and in it. It was so much fun, and we’ll come back several shades darker than we left.
We have another day and a half in Santorini before heading to Naxos, then Paros, then Heraklion before ending up in London and then Seattle! We can’t wait to see you all and look forward to hearing all the things we’ve missed (Mexican food- I can hear you calling to me, your siren song tugging on my heartstrings...). Much love!

Whitney and Chad