28jun-1jul15, Santorini, Greece.
Chris dropped
the boys and myself at the Crete port in Heraklion, returned the rental car
nearby and was back with us boarding within the hour. After our 1:50hr crossing
we made a swift military style exit from the boat, any dawdling got yelled at
(we were).
We were to stay on the main island for three nights. No secret to tourism, the painfully expensive accommodation in Santorini lead us to simple accommodation, ‘Hotel Manos’ in Karterados near Fira.
After a quick unpack, we were straight off to Fira,
the capital. Fira’s
whitewashed cubist houses lined the cliff tops. They spilled over and down the terraced
rock, the views over the underwater caldera
were magical.
We decided
not to participate in a donkey ride. While it was fascinating to look at the
mass of donkeys brightly saddled travelling up and down the steep steps to the
sea, we couldn’t help but feel sorry for them.
We enjoyed
the wander through the picture perfect town, stopping for dinner to enjoy the
famous orange sun set, the reflections and glow were spectacular.
As night came
the boats on the water displayed their underwater lights which cast a
mesmerising glow through the deep water. The
depth of the caldera, at 400m, made it impossible for any but the largest ships
to anchor in the protected bay.
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Fira, Santorini |
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Fira, Santorini |
It was a pretty awful night’s sleep, a huge fight broke out by the pool
between a drunken versus a sober group that went on till the early hours of the
morning, plus someone accidentally stumbled into our ‘locked’ room at 4am.
The following day we travelled by bus to Oia, the postcard-perfect
village at the north of the island. Also famed for its sunsets, it was pleasantly
less hectic than Fira.
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Oia |
After wandering through the small town, past the windmills, we made our way down the steep steps past more donkeys, to Ammoundi Beach.
Here we enjoyed a lovely lunch looking out over the strung up octopuses at
the blue water and back behind us at the steep red cliffs encased in their
white buildings.
After walking further along the water’s edge we came across to a rocky
swimming spot. Lachlan was completely gorgeous asking for help to climb higher
and higher up the rocks with only his jandals on his feet – he had many
admirers.
Chris and Jarvis built up the nerve to swim across to a cliff top diving
point. With a
mother's protectiveness I hoped Jarvis would take the safe option and climb
back down.
On the other hand,
I wanted him to do it because I knew that conquering that fear will make him
feel fantastic about himself and give him an unforgettable memory, which it
did.
Much higher than it looked, Jarvis was thrilled at his accomplishment,
he overcame his fears and plunged in a little after Chris. A highly exhilarated
Jarvis swam back to shore fully recharged.
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Ammoundi Bay |
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Ammoundi Bay |
After the stresses of public transport travelling to and from Oia, slow
and irregular service, we decided to rent a car for our last day. The banks had now closed down for the week.
The man we hired our car from asked for cash as he
wouldn't be
able to get the money out if it was paid by credit card. Greece’s economic
crisis was in full force (a billion euros had been withdrawn in a day from the
banks), I was pleased to have euros in my wallet.
Santorini is not known for its beaches, but we still decided it was
worth a look. We travelled to Kamari, which is probably one of Santorini’s most
touristy beaches. Not prepared for the dark volcanic sand, we were pleased to
find that
there were wooden boardwalks on the beach and multiple cafes which
rented out covered seats. They provided some protection from the burning,
radiating sand. Here we ate and lounged around.
There was a nice stretch of shops on the beachfront. From one of these I
bought Lachlan a toe ring for his
finger, it sparked the realisation that he was still so little and that it
wouldn’t last for much longer.
Kamari Beach |
This was the
last time we got to walk through this spectacular town, along its cliff edge,
past its beautiful people posing for that postcard shot, past its white cube
houses and blue domed chapels and into its flamboyant romantic sunset.
The following
morning, we boarded our early ferry to our final destination in Greece, Mykonos.
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