We flew from Kathmandu to Athens via New Delhi and Abu Dhabi on day 158. The New Delhi airport stole the show, showing again its dominance in the “worst travel experience” category. Touching down in Athens we were met with the classic Greek institution of the strike. No trains, buses, taxis, or boats for 2 days. So much for the ferry to Santorini. We quick-booked some tickets to fly the next day and rented a car to get to a hotel. We saw a tiny bit of Athens, but this day was all about recovering from New Delhi’s customer service. Somehow, even being told that our ferry was cancelled was better than the purgatory of the New Delhi waiting area. At least we knew where we stood. 18-hours later we were in Santorini where the strike (at least the original one) would not affect us.
Santorini is a tiny island that was once much larger. One of the problems with settling on a volcanic island is, well, the volcano. There were ruins on the island of a very advanced culture back in the 17th century B.C. A couple of earthquakes followed by an island-sinking eruption basically broke the resolve of the settlers. Fast forward a bit and the current island is post-card-pretty from every angle, now sporting an ocean-filled volcanic sinkhole called “the Caldera” that covers more than half of the original island’s area, 1000-foot cliffs, white-washed homes and blue-dome-topped churches, and the aforementioned ruins – nicely preserved thanks to all of the volcanic ash.
After Nepal, we were in great shape for walking the steep narrow alleys of Fira and Oia, and we were way past overdue for a few (essential) things. We spent two weeks walking the beaches, checking out the ruins, exploring the cities, and surfeiting on hot showers and bakery goods. It was a wonderful recovery time for us following our Himalayan trek, although somehow the inability to drink the tap water or flush the toilet paper followed us over 5600 miles. Also, if you don’t mind not swimming in the sea, I highly recommend February to visit Greece. Overall the weather was windy (island), but warm, and there were absolutely NO other tourists. We had entire beaches, historic sites, and sometimes even city streets entirely to ourselves. Plan a little around the siestas and the strikes, and get to this little strip of paradise in the off-season. So worth it. –ALaff
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- Beautiful little churches dot the island. Unfortunately, most are actually family owned/operated, so are unavailable to enter.
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- If white-washed churches are your thing, then visiting Santorini, Greece is definitely a must.
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- Yep.
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- Er, yep. But they’re so darn picturesque! Oops, expletive in the church caption. Sorry.
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- A view of the volcanic island in the center of the caldera.
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- We boated over to the volcano one afternoon. There are active hot sulfur vents along the path. That’s Anna in the distance.
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- Steep cliffs leading to the city. The water is such an amazing azure blue here. It’s hard to describe.
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- The port of Oia.
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- The beaches are all varied, from boulders, to black sand, to red.
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- I’ll have a goofball on the rocks, please.
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- Here is one of the oldest settlements on the island. Wonderfully preserved under the volcanic ash. The site is still being investigated today.
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- Mostly intact urns and other tools and artifacts remain.
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- As well as fully intact murals. Not bad for 3600 years ago.
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- When you go, if the views are stunning enough, climb up to the lighthouse.
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- Of course, climbing takes a toll.
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- Obligatory quintessential Santorini shot.
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- Sunset is a daily (nightly?) ritual here. People line up to take it in. Gorgeous every time. Goodnight Santorini. Hope to see you again.