sean's musings

On our last full day in Oia, I wanted to get up early for sunrise pictures. I didn’t quite get up in time, but 5:30 was good enough. To my surprise, my lovely wife got up too and wanted to go out with me. We were greeted to a very quite village, with some clouds allowing the sun to pierce through, giving some beautiful rays. As we walked through the village, 2 dogs started following us. Those 2 turned into 3 and eventually 4. By the time we got to the Castle, we had a posse of 4 dogs following us around. A classic scene unfolded when Amanda sat down to take in the scenery while I shot away. All 4 dogs lounged out as well with Amanda. Everyone was tuckered and needed a break

Today was spent picking up gifts, paintings, postcards and stuff we wanted to bring back home. We then rested up for our couples spa package. We finally got to see the inside of a real cave house, which was fantastic. I think I want to buy one We both got our massages, which was a bit awkward since a) they were in separate rooms and b) we both had men performing the massage. It was really nice though, and was topped off with a roman bath(together) full of mud, honey, milk and oils. Nothing like getting in touch with your feminine side in a gorgeous location. It was spendy, but worth every penny!

We ate and early dinner, and found a different sunset location. This time we set up closer to the windmills, where there weren’t as many people. It turned out to be a great spot for watching the sunset. Tonights sunset was bittersweet since it would be the last one we would see Hopefully it’s not the last one ever, as we both want to come back some time in the future.

While we really wanted to rent an ATV again, we realized that sunscreen should have been put all over our legs before yesterdays ride. We were both pretty burned (in a very odd pattern) so decided to take the bus into Fira and explore. We’d also found out that one of the famous pictures you see of Santorini is taken in the town just before Fira, Firostefani. We hopped onto the bus fairly early, and began our ride over to Firostefani. The ride was interesting, much like the ride to Delphi because the road was windy and very narrow. The steep dropoffs didn’t seem to phase the driver. We were the only ones that got off in Firostefani, as Fira is the capital and main tourist center on the island. Luckily the bus stop was right near the church where we wanted to take the picture.

After taking a number of pictures, which had an ugly power line in it, we walked to Fira, which is only about 10 minutes. We found a really cool coffee bar, Pure, which was all white, had free wifi, and was very European-Modern looking. The daily coffee jolt gave us what we needed to wind through the alleyways and shops of Fira. There were definitely a lot more shops than Oia, and was a bit more hopping, but overall I’m glad we are staying in Oia. We had lunch at a fantastic crepe shop. We’d had crepes for lunch a couple times this trip, but these were by far the best. When we told the owner/cook she said “I know” Apparently she’s been told plenty that their crepes are tops around. After doing some shopping, we headed back to Oia for some general relaxing and swimming in the hotel pool. We also decided to set up couples massages for tomorrow, as one last splurge before we head home. In the evening, I went over to the Castle at around 5:30pm to stake out a spot for sunset pictures. Amanda joined a bit later (what a trooper), and we waited for 3 hours as the sun slowly went down and I snapped pictures.

Last night we’d decided on renting ATV’s, so we checked a couple places for prices. It turned out the cheapest place for renting a 150cc ATV was actually right across from our hotel.

When filing out the paperwork for the ATV, the gentleman asked if I’d ever driving one. I told him it’s been a little while but yes. He looked at me again and said “Maybe it’s not good for you to drive?” I think he assumed I was younger than I am since I’d cut my hair before the trip. I look like a 18 year old kid, not a 29 year old man I suppose. He showed us how to drive it and wanted me to demonstrate I knew what I was doing. Apparently I passed with flying colors because he gave us the key and let us go.

Renting an ATV was simply the funnest thing we’ve done so far on this trip. Some of the other things may have been cooler, or more awe inspiring, but this was simply the most fun we had. For $25 euro (for 24 hours) we ended up with the best way to see and explore the island. Amanda hopped on the back and we started towards the capital of Fira. The road between the towns is a two lane, cliff top drive, and was quite windy. As we drove, we had to be aware of other cars trying to pass since the ATVs obviously are slower than cars. We stopped in Fira to grab a cup of coffee and take a quick look around. We plan to come back another day, so a brief glance was all we had. The plan was to hit a couple of the beaches on the island and simply explore. We made it down to Kamari Beach, which is one of the more popular, lively beaches. We ended up arriving sometime around 10am, so it wasn’t very busy yet. We walked along the “boardwalk” and looked at all the umbrellas and chairs that you can rent, along with all the clubs/restaurants along the main drag. From here we wanted to go to the “red beach”, so we headed in that direction. What happened was another story. See the roads are not terribly well signed, so we aimed in the general direction of the red beach. We ended up instead at the highest point on the island, at some sort of army lookout. We climbed a road until we couldn’t go any further. The view was beautiful of the whole island, and we pulled out the map for a bit of a reset.

The red beach is near the ancient city of Akrotiri, so we got our bearings right and headed down there. After parking in a really busy lot, we hiked a little ways around some rocky areas and saw the red beach. The rock that lines the beach is red volcanic rock, hence the term “red beach”. It was pretty cool looking, but we didn’t stay long. After snapping a couple pictures, we started back towards Oia, as we were as far south as we could go on the island. In one of the small towns we stopped and had lunch.

Afterwords, we headed to Monolithos, which is the beach we were going to swim at. On the way we stopped at the Santo Winery, which is perched beautifully on the cliff facing the caldera. We did a little wine tasting and got out of the sun for a few minutes.

The beach at Monolithos was more “family friendly” and the sand was much more like the sand we’re used to at the beach. The other beaches were a little more rocky, where as this one was more “normal” sand. We plopped down $5 euro for two chairs and an umbrella and went swimming. It was nice and peaceful, as well as nice to get out of the sun and under some shade for a little bit. We’d put sunscreen on, but failed to put a good amount on our arms and legs, since we’d already tanned a bit. However 6 hours riding an ATV in direct sunlight started taking it’s toll.

On our way back to Oia, we followed the signs, which ended up taking us the long way around. Sometimes the long way around though is more fun. We ended up in the middle of nowhere, with only a few cars passing us along the way. By the end of the trip we’d pretty much hit every section of the island.

Tonight we had our first taste of the sunset. As I mentioned in a previous entry, Oia is world renowned for it’s sunsets, and people from all the other villages make their way to Oia for the sunset. As we found out, every available perch is filled up with people along the northernmost tip of the village. We made our way to the castle ruins, which is one of the most popular locations to view the sunset from. There were people everywhere. The sunset itself was dazzling and after the last sliver of light disappears below the sea, everyone begins applauding. People start cheering, clapping, and whistling at what they just witnessed. It was a bit odd, but actually kinda cool. Afterwords everyone files back through the narrow streets and begin the nightlife. Whats weird is that everyone starts eating dinner AFTER sunset around 9:00pm. We’d had dinner at 5:30 or so and there was no one in the restaurant, but as we walked back after sunset, everywhere was packed. There was also a group of people playing greek music(and asking for change of course) and they were quite fun to watch.

Church in Oia

The flight itself was rather comical. It was supposed to be 45 minutes, but I think we were only in the air for 20. Enough time for the stewardesses to rush out complimentary beverages to everyone, and then turn around and collect the garbage. I couldn’t finish my coke fast enough before they were asking for the cup back .

We landed on a very small landing strip, with a very rudimentary looking airport terminal building. After being bussed all of about 300 yards to the one door, we went into baggage claim. Baggage claim consisted of one single turnstile for luggage to come out. We’re definitely on a small island

A little bit about Santorini. According to Wikipedia, it is about 120 miles southeast of mainland Greece, and is one of the southern most of the Greek Islands. It has an area of only 28 square miles and is essentially a volcanic island that collapsed, but is still active. It’s built a lot like Crater lake is here in Oregon, with an island in the middle, but it’s not encircled completely by land. When the volcano collapsed, it allowed the sea to fill up the caldera.

Santorini is probably what you think of when you think of Greece, or at least Greek Islands. White-washed houses built on cliffs overlooking the sea. Think the movie Mamma Mia (quite a few asked me if it’s filmed there, and actually it’s not, but perhaps is supposed to be based on Santorini), and that’s Santorini. It’s long been a dream destination for the two of us, and is considered to be one of the most romantic places in the world. The sunsets in Oia are world renowned. There are a couple major villages that are built on the cliff that most visitors stay in. Fira is the “happening” village with clubs that stay open all night, and a lot of shopping. It’s the main tourist village. Oia on the other hand is supposed to be much more relaxed, and where everyone migrates to in order to watch the sunset. We had chosen Oia, based on a lot of different recommendations from people, and namely the man himself, Rick Steves.

Now back to the trip.

We’d previously arranged for a taxi with our hotel, which would be the only time on our whole trip we’d used something other than mass transit or public transportation. Just as we’d expected, someone was holding up a sign with our name on it as we exited the airport. After loading our bags, the driver asked a large group of people waiting for taxis if anyone was headed for Oia(the driver told us Oia was the most beautiful village in all of Greece). One couple said yes, and he packed their luggage on the roof of the car and piled in with us. We were ok with this since it meant less money in cab fare The cab ride was something to behold, and quickly gave us a taste of what the roads were like here. Since Oia is perched on the cliff (about 700-900 feet), and we were at sealevel at the airport, we had to climb a bit. All the roads are two lanes, and our taxi driver seemed to know them well. He whipped around the corners, passed people in a few iffy spots, talked on his phone repeatedly, but eventually got us to our destination.

A nice young guy was waiting there to take our bags and we walked a short ways to the hotel. As it turns out we were a bit early and they were still working on cleaning the rooms, so they held our bags and asked if we could come back in 20-30 minutes. We decided to take a walk and get oriented with what was nearby, and mostly take in the scenery.

And boy was it spectacular. Wow, Awesome, Beautiful, Gorgeous, Fantabulous. Redonkulous. Not sure I have the right words to describe how beautiful Santorini is.

For one, I’m glad I brought sunglasses because with the sun, no clouds, and white EVERYWHERE, it was hard not to be blinded . White and blue everywhere. The main walkway through the town was pretty much white marble, all the buildings were mostly white, and blue doors and church domes everywhere.

Everywhere we walked on the walkway had a breathtaking view out over the caldera and into the sea. The walkway was lined with cafes, restaurants, shops, souvenir stands and markets. And that was just the top level of the town. As you peer over the edge, you see more houses, cafes, churches, etc essentially under your feet. This is going to be fun exploring!

After 20 or so breathtaking minutes we went back to check into our hotel. We’d found it online and read a lot of good reviews on Trip Advisor, so we were interested in seeing whether it met expectations. I will say that “traditional” Santorini houses and rooms are “cave rooms” which are pretty much just that. Caves built into the side of the cliffs, with rounded ceilings and rooms where your ceiling is the floor for the house above you. We did not get one of those rooms because they were quite expensive, but we did opt for a “sea view” room. However, I think if we ever come back, we’ll have to spring for the cave room.

Our hostess Rena introduced herself and took us into our room. At first glance I was slightly disappointed because we’d gotten a “double” room. In all the other hotels this meant one bed (which happened to have two double mattresses pushed together). This room actually had two separate bed frames, with two double beds pushed together. Essentially separate beds. But, when we looked at the balcony outside, it pretty much made up for anything we were thinking. The balcony opened up to a gorgeous view of the sea, with no obstructions. Being on the cliff, from inside the room it looked like you could walk off the edge of the balcony right into the sea. Rena was very sweet and asked multiple times “You like?” We told her yes and she gave us some pointers and tips about the island.

After settling in, we of course wanted to go out and see more. There are two small bays, or harbors below the town that we’d seen in pictures, so we decided to walk down to one of them. The trail leads from 700-900 feet above sea level, down to sea level. So the walk down was pretty easy, but we were dreading the walk back up. What we saw though made us laugh and amazed. Coming up the trail were donkeys with people on their backs. We thought “We have to do that!!”. So after checking out the harbor, we found the man with donkeys and asked how much. He said $5 euro. Now at first that seemed a bit much, but $5 euro to ride a donkey up a steep cliff in the heat? Count us in! Some australians had the same idea as we did and hilarity ensued. You can check out the video here

It was priceless riding that donkey up that hill

Grabbed some food, and didn’t watch the sunset tonight, but headed to the area where everyone watches to get some evening photos of the town. There are some windmills that I’d seen in so many pictures and we found them Can’t wait to see what tomorrow holds.