Greece, Day 196

Day 1

Pona and I arrived at Gatwick airport at 1.00 in the morning. We were both so tried but so excited! There were people all around us sleeping on blankets & huddled in groups. As I am not one for pulling all nighters, I ended up sleeping on the cold airport floor, using my bag as my pillow. Concrete floors get pretty cold & uncomfortable after about an hour, but by that time (4.30 am…yay) we were able to check in. Pona and I were so giddy it was ridiculous!

The minute I stepped off the plane, I knew I was in Greece; there were small white washed buildings scattered everywhere, water on all sides and a huge cliff in the distance. Pona and I were dressed for London weather (sweaters, jeans, scarves) and the first thing I did when we got to the hotel was change into SUMMER clothes...I was pretty excited. I was struck by how traditional everything was, how everything was exactly how I had pictured it. We had a small balcony outside our room

and all we could see were white homes with blue shutters, laundry hanging outside of windows. The architecture in Greece is so simple, yet so distinct and bright. The noises were very distinct as well. Sitting on the balcony, I was surrounded by noise of outdoor radios, clinks of cutlery and squeals of children. The air smelt of Greek food and sea salt, a good combination if you ask me!

Day 2

Pona and I were both struck with how relaxed everyone is in Greece; the heat makes everyone slow down. We sat and ate breakfast for two hours on a patio and just watched the world go by…it was pretty lovely!

We then took a bus to Oia (I was amazed at the simplicity of the bus system. There are only about four greyhound buses to take you to different parts of the island and the timetables are printed on a single piece of paper, hung up on the wall in the bus parking lot). We travelled up a cliff and the view out the window was so amazing.

Oia was just how I pictured it-hotels and houses perched on the edge of the cliff looking out onto the sea. The main path was made of marble and the white buildings were almost blinding.

Sunsets in Oia are supposed to be truly breathtaking and unique, so Pona and I decided to wait to watch it set. It was a bit of a fail because it was really cloudy and we were quite disappointed! There is an area built of stone perched really, really high above the village where people gather everyday to drink, eat and watch the sun set.

We could see the whole village and because everything is open (I love the walls that have doors in the middle of them, yet no roof) we could see everyone in the whole town who were walking outside.

Day 3

Today was a truly amazing day. Pona and I walked down the hundreds of steps down to the port to catch a boat to the Volcano. As the boat got father away from Fira, the village got smaller and smaller; seeing it from far away made me realize just how high it is perched on the cliff.

See the zigzag at the far left of the photo? Those are the steps that people use to get from the town to the port (most people use donkeys because there are hundreds of steps).

We climbed the volcano that created the island of Santorini

and the views from the top were breathtaking.

We then got to the hot springs which were amazing. We had to swim around the boat and all of a sudden the water got really warm, as if there was a line down the middle of the sea…it was bizarre!

We then made our way to a very, very small island called Thirasia.

It was quite amazing to see this island, simply because it was in the absolute middle of no where. It opened my eyes in a way to, as naïve as this sounds, the world- that people live on tiny islands, thriving off tourist business. What a way of life!

We then took a boat to the port of Oia, where we suntanned for a very long time. There was no one around and it was so beautiful and calm. There was one restaurant, the owner sitting on the patio. I wondered how much business he got daily (probably next to nothing) and thought again of the different ways people live their lives.

Day 4

Today we went to Kamari Beach, a black sand beach. The sand gets SOO hot and I could see waves of heat coming off of it! The water was so blue and there was a huge cliff to our right.

Pona and I found a spot under some umbrellas,

stayed silent for about five minutes and then looked at each other and went, “this is pretty much the life.”

Day 5&6

We did some more beach relaxing both of these days. On day 6 we tried a new beach called Perissa Beach and we both liked it better than Kamari. The sun beds felt like actual beds…Pona and I felt a little guilty about all the relaxing we were doing so on day 7 decided to climb up a cliff……

Day 7

Ancient Thira sits on top of a huge cliff near Perissa Beach. The ancient homes and cemeteries were dug up by archaeologists in the late 80s. The buildings date back to the Hellenistic era (just before the Roman Empire emerged). The walk was uphill and was supposed to take less than an hour. Pona and I felt so accomplished walking up the cliff! We met some people near the middle who told us to be really careful near the top as the wind was really strong. We were almost to the top but had to stop because the wind was too strong. There were no barricades along the edge or anything, so we decided to turn back. The views from where we climbed to were spectacular!



Day 8

Today was amazing. We went to Red Beach, a small beach backed by a huge cliff of volcanic rock. The winds were really strong today again and the tide came up all the way to the cliff. The waves were as big as me! I felt so lucky today to be standing on that beach, surrounded by miles and miles of turquoise water and the crunching sound of the waves as they curled over. The beach itself was tucked away and there was this moment when we rounded the corner of the cliff where I sucked in my breath, taken by the beauty of it all. It felt so much more beautiful because of the fact that it was tucked away and private. It was then that I felt overwhelmingly lucky to be there, to be tasting the salt of the water on my lips and listening to the waves crash on the rocks.

Day 9

Today was such an amazing last day. We started out at the market, looking down all the small lanes we hadn’t been down before. We then made our way to the Port by walking down all the stone steps. Walking down those steps made me feel as if I was in a completely different world-the view for one thing, but also the fact that there were donkeys lined up along the stone (Pona called them “Beasts of Burden”…it was a little sad) and old men herding them up and down the cliff.

The donkeys are actually really intelligent-they know where to step, not to trample or kick people, when to stop and when to go. There was one blocking the way and I TRIED to talk to it instead of pushing it out of the way like everyone else, when Pona said, “You do know that you’re talking to a donkey…”

We took a donkey on the way back up and it was an incredible experience! Once I calmed down and realized that my donkey was really not stupid and knew what it was doing, I was able to enjoy the amazing view beside me.

I wondered today what Santorini would be like if it wasn’t touched by tourism. I think it would hold even more magic-it would be so surreal to any outsider. Riding the donkeys up the cliff today made me realize that they are not just there for tourist fun, they are there because that is the traditional way people get around.

We then hopped on a bus to Oia to see the sunset properly this time. It really was amazing and I am so glad that we went back to see it again. It was an amazing sight to see all the people lined up around the village, taking photos and enjoying the view.

The world really is a beautiful place, filled with interesting people, eccentric traditions, lovely smells. I feel so fortunate to have witnessed small moments of beauty on this trip, to have been to places not everyone can say they’ve been to. I just can’t wait to see even more of what the world has to offer.