Santorini
After encountering a few “bumps in the road” in the night, we entered the magnificent caldera of Santorini just after breakfast this morning. We saw first hand how different this caldera is from that at Milos Island, where we’d spent the previous afternoon.
Both islands are part of the Aegean Volcanic Arc, which stretches from Isthmia to the southern Turkish coast. Milos’ caldera is almost completely enclosed, providing the most protected harbor in the Aegean, while the caldera of Santorini was produced so explosively that it is now a large, open body of water rimmed by three separate islands. Thousand foot high cliffs, with black, white and red layers of volcanic strata are topped with the bright white villages of Oia and Firá.
With breezy, white-capping conditions inside the caldera, it was a good day to spend our time ashore exploring Santorini. Shortly after breakfast we boarded our tender and made the trip across the caldera to the port of Athinios. This is the only spot on the island where our motor coaches could gain access to a landing due to the geography of the island.
Our first stop for the day would be the village of Oia. It sits at the northernmost point of the island but at the top of the ridge providing dramatic views of the caldera and the surrounding islands. Stella and Elli, our Greek guides, provided some local history, guided us into the village, to a dramatic lookout, and then we were off to wander the area on our own.
There were many photo opportunities of classic Cycladic architecture and how it has been adapted to the challenging topography of Santorini. One of the most popular features of Oia is the presence of many blue domed Greek orthodox churches with dramatic backdrops.
Aeolus is the name for the Greek god of wind and it was also the name of our restaurant for lunch. As we journeyed along the rim of the caldera to the South end of the island it was obvious that the Meltemi winds continued to blow and that Aeolus was not in the best mood. We arrived at the restaurant and it was obvious why they had chosen this location. The deck of the restaurant provided great views of Palaia and Nea Kameni at the center of the caldera and the rest of the island as well. We enjoyed a fine meal and then continued on to the town of Fira.
Fira serves as the central “hub” for the island. Upon arrival we visited the Nomikos Foundation and their exhibition of some of the wall paintings from Akrotiri. Akrotiri was an ancient Minoan civilization that was discovered after an eruption on the island in 1866. This find was buried for some 3,500 years and the wall paintings provide some insight to the Minoans and their way of life.
After viewing the frescoes we explored the town of Fira and its labyrinth of alleys, shops and cafes. Below we could view the Panorama on her mooring but she was about 1,000 feet below us.
There were three options to bridge this vertical gap. The most popular of these was the cable car. A brave few chose to ride the donkeys down the switchback trail and some walked the same trail as the donkeys to the landing below. All were present as our tender arrived to take us home.
We spent the rest of the afternoon at our leisure on board as the sun set over the far side of Santorini. After dinner we departed for our next destination and we were able to admire the lights of Fira and Oia high above us on the rim.
