Santorini
It was amazing to wake up and look at the “snow” capped cliffs of Santorini. We sailed in the Caldera as the sun was rising. A local tender took us to the only port of the island, Athinios, where we started our tour. The winding road going uphill exposed us to a breathtaking view; a huge caldera with two small lava islands in the middle of one of the craters. We took the road leading north to the traditional settlement of Oia. Along the way we could see the vineyards that produce the famous Santorini wine. We could also see the dramatic color changes of the volcanic soil. Oia is a very picturesque town and gave us great photo opportunities. We wandered around the shops, some of which was very artistic. From Oia we drove to the southern end of the island where our lunch was arranged at the restaurant “Aeolos” which also has great views of the caldera. We tried the very flavorsome local cuisine, including a real Santorini specialty- Fava pure’.
Our last stop in Santorini was the main town Fira. First, we visited a small prehistoric museum full of wonderful frescos that were found in Akrotiri; a city that was buried under the lava. It is amazing that so many daily objects have survived to testify the existence of a whole city and its people, which disappeared from the earth in just a few seconds.
After the museum, we wandered around before we took the cable car down to the pier from where the tender took us back to the Panorama. The wind had picked up a little and the water was choppy, making the step from the tender to the boat a true challenge! All aboard, the captain set sail for Los to find a sheltered bay to anchor and spend the night.
It was amazing to wake up and look at the “snow” capped cliffs of Santorini. We sailed in the Caldera as the sun was rising. A local tender took us to the only port of the island, Athinios, where we started our tour. The winding road going uphill exposed us to a breathtaking view; a huge caldera with two small lava islands in the middle of one of the craters. We took the road leading north to the traditional settlement of Oia. Along the way we could see the vineyards that produce the famous Santorini wine. We could also see the dramatic color changes of the volcanic soil. Oia is a very picturesque town and gave us great photo opportunities. We wandered around the shops, some of which was very artistic. From Oia we drove to the southern end of the island where our lunch was arranged at the restaurant “Aeolos” which also has great views of the caldera. We tried the very flavorsome local cuisine, including a real Santorini specialty- Fava pure’.
Our last stop in Santorini was the main town Fira. First, we visited a small prehistoric museum full of wonderful frescos that were found in Akrotiri; a city that was buried under the lava. It is amazing that so many daily objects have survived to testify the existence of a whole city and its people, which disappeared from the earth in just a few seconds.
After the museum, we wandered around before we took the cable car down to the pier from where the tender took us back to the Panorama. The wind had picked up a little and the water was choppy, making the step from the tender to the boat a true challenge! All aboard, the captain set sail for Los to find a sheltered bay to anchor and spend the night.
