Santorini, also known as Thira, is located in the Aegean Sea and was the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in the world – today’s remnants are a submerged volcano and a caldera. The island was first inhabited by Minoans, then Phoenicians, and then Venetians, and, due to its central position in the Aegean, it became an important trade center and naval base. For me, it was the second encounter with this magnificent island. I designed a summer trip, commencing with Santorini, continuing with Folegandros and lastly reaching Ios as well (I have written a separate blog post for each island). Santorini was happy to greet us in the late hours of the evening, and, as a welcome gift, it laid a dark black tapestry filled with shiny stars dancing around their illuminated Empress to guard and protect our sleep. When the dawn broke, the scenery was absolutely spectacular – on the verge of the caldera, enjoying a typical Greek scrumptious breakfast, while the breeze gently caressed my hair, the deep blue waters ran smooth, no waves involved, nothing but the mere undulating movement of the sea. On the edge of the Santorini’s caldera, many beautiful villages have been intricately built, featuring white-washed luxurious villas, surrounded by electric blue pools and bougainvillea flowers hanging from above, in a studied complex yet so simple Cycladic arrangement. On my first visit to Santorini, I stayed in Imerovigli, which is a 5 minutes’ drive or 10 minutes’ walk from Firostefani (even the names are extremely fancy and melodious!), the location for this summer’s escape. We rented a small car, and drove until the other part of the island, a region called Kamari, headquarters for black sandy beaches, daytime parties on the beach and cheerfulness. We tried out several spots for sun tanning, enjoying the crystal clear water beneath which the black sand or pebbles loomed – Kamari beach, Perissa beach and Perivolos beach. All beautiful, equipped with sunbeds, tavernas, small restaurants, shops, and a general state of serenity and kindness. The sun took care of us throughout the entire day, as we explored and photographed everything around. If you ever come to this part of the world, you should plan a short visit to Emborio village on Thira, near Kamari. I have discovered it on my second trip to Santorini and I instantly fell in love with it. Imagine a village close to the sea, but not exactly on the shoreline, composed of narrow alleyways decorated with pink bougainvillea flowers, so narrow it is almost incredible people can actually walk by, doors coloured in hues of violet, blue, green, yellow, imprinted in the white walls of old houses, somnolent cats lounging around small traditional Greek churches with blue domes, and silence prevailing as if the entire village is asleep or completely abandoned. This hidden village’s name ranges from Emborio to Emboreio and Emporeio, and my feeling is that it was once a castle, it sure looks as an intriguingly beautiful one. Time flies when surrounded by beauty, so sunset was almost upon the island. We quickly drove to Oia village, the most famous spot for sunset on Santorini, which was extremely crowded by that time, but we still managed to find a good location to watch the sun sink inside the sea, painting the sky in marvelous colourful symphonies. Oia village would get its deserved attention and allotted time the following day. Since night already dominated the sacred pathways of this interesting island, we decided to walk from Firostefani to Fira, the island’s capital, on a cobbled passage way, connecting Fira to Firostefani, along the coast, with a spectacular view over the caldera. Fira is a very lively small town, with many shops, some luxurious, some traditional, featuring volcanic stone products and not only, alleyways and stairs, bars, pubs, ice cream shops, coffee places, terraces, restaurants, all lit up in warm lights, alluring clients. On the “rooftop” of Fira rests the Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral, a beautiful and big church, which was surprisingly open for faithful people even in those late hours of the evening. Fira was packed with people, main roads were blocked, it was a very pleasant feeling of craziness altogether. But my eyes and mind were ready for dreaming, already… Another day on Santorini island, another morning with breakfast served while glancing at the caldera, and Therasia (Thirassia) bathing in sun rays just before my sleepy eyes. I quickly grabbed a long, blue, light dress and we drove to the village of Oia. To me, Oia is a very special place, many beautiful memories, many kind thoughts have crossed my mind while being here – I always remember this village as being the extreme beauty on the extremity of this majestic island, from here and on to the next island there is nothing, and you can actually feel this while being in Oia, on top of the world, faced with the unending blue of the Aegean. We took many pictures at the remnants of Saint Nikolas Castle, built on a cliff by Venetians. From there on, we descended the stairs towards Ammoudi Bay, a small golf, with turquoise waters, comprising some taverns, few boats and many rocks and boulders, bordering the red steep cliffs of Santorini from the serene mint blue and cyan hued sea. Seafood dishes awaited for us at lunch, so we gladly indulged. On our way back to Oia, we climbed the 265 stairs, and came across with tired donkeys, resting and hiding from the sun. Apparently, tourists enjoy the donkey or mules rides up and down these stairs, but I think that is just cruel to those poor animals… Before waving goodbye to Oia one more time, I desperately wanted to visit the Atlantis Bookstore – a true blessing for passionate readers. It is a tiny bookshop, with inspirational messages engraved everywhere around, with cute books both in Greek and other languages (stamped with Atlantis Bookshop inside), with cats crawling around lazily, with a friendly dog welcoming you inside. This bookstore is quite visible from one of Oia’s main alleys, you have to go down some stairs in order to step inside, and all I can say is that it is so worth visiting! Our next stop was the Red Beach, approximately one-hour ride from Oia village, at the island’s opposite extremity. After we reached the parking lot, we walked for about 15 minutes more on cliffs, surrounded by barren vegetation. But when we finally got to see it…It was such a surprise to see the steep immense red soil wall behind the tiny beach plunging into the azure water. The contrast created is unimaginable: profound red versus perfect turquoise, in a scenery apparently detached from stories about other planets. We relaxed on this windy beach for a while, even the sand is a beautiful intriguing combination of red, magenta and black intertwined. The water here is also very clear, featuring pebbles inside. Unfortunately, so many tourists arrive here, walking or by boat, and few actually take care of it, so I was shocked to see so much garbage, gathered in one corner of this otherwise incredible beach. We headed towards Athinios port to wait for our ferry, which will have arrived with a 3 hours delay due to bad weather conditions by the sea. So, while waiting, we witnessed one more splendid sunset, on shore, surrounded by deep ink blue water, and protected by the nearby omnipresent Moon. The trip to the following island – Folegandros – was a very turbulent one, the sea was extremely agitated, our ferry was not a very big one, so once again we experienced something new and adventurous, quite awkward though, as we were super anxious to feel the land under our feet again while being on the boat… The legendary island of Santorini is a land of gratitude, where I learned to be grateful for each sunrise and each sunset I witness, every day, and not take these simple concepts as given commodities. There is nothing more romantic than watching a lover (the Sun) die each day for his beloved (the Moon) to come back to life each night, for eternity, while painting their meeting place (the Sky) in surreal coloristic patterns, and adorning it with tiny glowing crystals (the Stars) to alleviate her solitude and longing. Since I, myself, live inside my own world of textures, colours, thoughts and emotions, I tend to be more attentive to how colours dance around me and how they create ideas, how they inspire, how they overwhelm. Thira is nowadays an island brought to life by its incredible hues palette, and from this, its beauty strongly emanates. I can’t help thinking about the association between Santorini and the Phoenix, rising from its ashes, surrounded by even more light and beauty. Although it is part of the Cycladic archipelago, Santorini is different, and not only in terms of landscape. It streams uniqueness and you, as a traveler, can vividly feel it and have no better option than to obey and continue this legacy. |