Hello from Santorini

Sunday, June 09, 2019
Fira, Greece
Santorini is one of the Cyclades islands in the Aegean Sea. It was devastated by a volcanic eruption in the 16th century BC, forever shaping its rugged landscape. The whitewashed, cubiform houses of its 2 principal towns, Fira and Oia, cling to cliffs above an underwater caldera (crater). They overlook the sea, small islands to the west and beaches made up of black, red and white lava pebbles. Certainly the most ruggedly beautiful of the Aegean islands, Santorini boasts the most sensational sunsets. It has a population of 16,000. The weather today was 28 degrees and a bit windy. We were delayed getting off the ship. We tendered in and got the cable car up to the top of the cliff. You arrive into the main town of Fira. We met our local guide and he drove us to Oia. Wow, this was amazing and the scenery was just beautiful. White houses, restaurants, shops and white with blue domed topped churches, overlooking the Aegean Sea. Just stunning and the jewel of Santorini the guide informed us. After some photos we had a quick cleanser in a pub overlooking the bay with our ship in the background. We then travelled to the highest point and lookout of Santorini. You could see the vast majority of the island. It was baron in some parts, but green with horticulture in other spots. It is very dry here and water is trucked in. It has a strong northerly winds for 80% of year. They have farming where they grow vegetables and small amount of fruit. They do have good wine here and vineyards are everywhere and it is amazing how they grow. They are small flat round vines that rely on the morning dew for their moisture. They are small and round to protect the grapes from the wind and the ground is rocky and volcanic. We stopped off at the guides little tiny village. He took some nice photos there and showed us his house. We then drove to the southern part of the island to Nisos. This is where they have the black beach. The rock face had so many colours consisting  of granite, limestone but primary iron ore that made it red in colour. The water was a deep blue colour and looked stunning from our lookout. What a spectacular site and a bit of a walking trek to get there. We then went to Agios Georgios bay for lunch in a local beachside restaurant. The food was nice and the menu was extensive and Mark and I were ready for a beer and local wine. We then made our way back to Fira, we browsed in a couple of shops and would of loved a beer in one of the restaurants overlooking the bay. Unfortunately the line to get back on the cable car was huge and it took us 1 hour to get onto the cable car. Then another 30 minutes to wait to board our tender boat. Whilst chatting with others they informed us they walked down the cliff and it took them 40 minutes. Although they did say that their knees were hurting them and many of them slipped over. Donkeys were available but it was also dangerous for them so people were discouraged from riding them down. In hindsight Mark was more than happy to have waited the hour for the cable car and save his knees for another day. Santorini was everything we had ever imagined it to be and much much more. We were lucky that there was only one other smaller ship when we arrived early in the morning. At 1pm another big ship arrived and the crowds were getting a bit overwhelming amongst the small streets. Our guide informed us they have had up to 7 cruise ships at once here and are now limited to 4 a day maximum. We have really enjoyed our time in the Greek Islands and our cruise on the Mediterranean. The weather has been really good and we will have to roll off the ship with ever expanding waist lines!!
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Comments

Conno
2019-06-11

Your guide took some great photos. Love Santorini.

Tracey Crawford
2019-06-11

Looks wonderful x

Nean
2019-06-12

just stunning !

2025-02-10

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