We hated to leave Crete and the wonderful people we met there, but Sunday afternoon we were scheduled on the 4:00 ferry to Santorini, so off we went.
The ferry ride to Santorini was about five hours and we arrived at 9:00pm. We were booked for two nights at the Villa Evgenia Hotel in Fira and George, the owner, met us at the port to give us a ride to the hotel. George took over from his dad several years ago and has big plans for the hotel. We were the first guests of the season, he said they'd just opened the day before and only a few rooms were ready. He spent time with us whe we checked in, gave us a map of the island, asked us how long we'd be staying and then gave us suggestions on how we could fill our time.
One of his suggestions was to watch the sunset from the southwest point of the island. We thought that would be the perfect way to cap our first day on this beautiful island. But first, we went for a run on the winding two-lane roads along the rocky coastline, took our laundry in to be done (FYI - this service costs us 45Bahts, or $1.50, in Thailand and 12 Euros, or $18.00, in Fira. This difference between Thailand and Europe is a constant source of frustration for us and our travel budget, and we still haven't got used to it or like it - ha!), rented a car which turned out to be a Smartcar - easy to drive and we could park anywhere but kind of like driving a tin can - and set off to tour the island.
It's a small island and even stopping to do a 60-minute hike, we had plenty of time to see the sights and then make it to the village of Oia for the spectacular sunset. It wasn't just about the sun setting over the water, though, first we walked up a steep series of switchbacks to get high on the hill overlooking the sea.
Then we found the perfect place to watch the sun set. The hillside was in fact the star of the show with the sunset playing a supporting role. Picture in your mind every picture of Greece you've ever seen. The blue sky, white- washed buildings impossibly perched on the hillside, shutters and trim painted shades of blue. Add to that the rocky coastline, deep blue of the water and throw in a moon rising and you've got the general idea. Each day we say, "THIS is the best moment of the trip" only to top it the next day.
The next day we went back to hike the same trail we did the day before and added a 90-minute leg to climb to the top. It was a perfect morning and great exercise which gave us license to continue to sample the fabulous Greek food which we did for lunch before we made our way to the port to take the ferry back to Athens.
We arrived back in Athens a little after midnight. Since it was so late and our flight to Madrid was at 9:00 the next morning, we decided to save a bit of money and catch some sleep at the airport. We found a little room outside of the chapel. I spread a towel on the floor, put my backpack under my feet, used my daypack for a pillow and tried to get some sleep. Val took a picture and has threatened to post it.
Back in January it seemed as if the departure date for our trip, March 3rd, was so far off in the future. Then March 3rd came and it seemed like two months was such a long time to be gone. We knew the time would go fast, though, so we didn't look back and we didn't look forward, we just focused on maximizing each day. Now, as we leave Santorini and fly to Madrid, we hope to wring even more out of our time and opportunities. We're staying in a hostel in Madrid for two nights, right in the city center amidst all the action and history. Should be amazing fun.
The ferry ride to Santorini was about five hours and we arrived at 9:00pm. We were booked for two nights at the Villa Evgenia Hotel in Fira and George, the owner, met us at the port to give us a ride to the hotel. George took over from his dad several years ago and has big plans for the hotel. We were the first guests of the season, he said they'd just opened the day before and only a few rooms were ready. He spent time with us whe we checked in, gave us a map of the island, asked us how long we'd be staying and then gave us suggestions on how we could fill our time.
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| The view from our window. When the clouds went away later, we had a nice view of the sea. |
One of his suggestions was to watch the sunset from the southwest point of the island. We thought that would be the perfect way to cap our first day on this beautiful island. But first, we went for a run on the winding two-lane roads along the rocky coastline, took our laundry in to be done (FYI - this service costs us 45Bahts, or $1.50, in Thailand and 12 Euros, or $18.00, in Fira. This difference between Thailand and Europe is a constant source of frustration for us and our travel budget, and we still haven't got used to it or like it - ha!), rented a car which turned out to be a Smartcar - easy to drive and we could park anywhere but kind of like driving a tin can - and set off to tour the island.
 |
| I'm saying, "A door? In the side of a rocky hillside? I dunno what it's for." The beach was called Red Beach and there were rooms carved out of the rocky hillside. They looked abandoned, but may have been used by fisherman in the past. |
 |
It's a small island and even stopping to do a 60-minute hike, we had plenty of time to see the sights and then make it to the village of Oia for the spectacular sunset. It wasn't just about the sun setting over the water, though, first we walked up a steep series of switchbacks to get high on the hill overlooking the sea.
 |
| We walked along the coast on the left of this photo and then up the steep switchbacks you see in the pic. Look at the color of that sky. I thought only Colorado had skies that blue! |
Then we found the perfect place to watch the sun set. The hillside was in fact the star of the show with the sunset playing a supporting role. Picture in your mind every picture of Greece you've ever seen. The blue sky, white- washed buildings impossibly perched on the hillside, shutters and trim painted shades of blue. Add to that the rocky coastline, deep blue of the water and throw in a moon rising and you've got the general idea. Each day we say, "THIS is the best moment of the trip" only to top it the next day.
 |
| We saw someone else take a photo like this and we had to try it. Our attempt at "arty." :) |
The next day we went back to hike the same trail we did the day before and added a 90-minute leg to climb to the top. It was a perfect morning and great exercise which gave us license to continue to sample the fabulous Greek food which we did for lunch before we made our way to the port to take the ferry back to Athens.
We arrived back in Athens a little after midnight. Since it was so late and our flight to Madrid was at 9:00 the next morning, we decided to save a bit of money and catch some sleep at the airport. We found a little room outside of the chapel. I spread a towel on the floor, put my backpack under my feet, used my daypack for a pillow and tried to get some sleep. Val took a picture and has threatened to post it.
 |
| And here it is . . . |
Back in January it seemed as if the departure date for our trip, March 3rd, was so far off in the future. Then March 3rd came and it seemed like two months was such a long time to be gone. We knew the time would go fast, though, so we didn't look back and we didn't look forward, we just focused on maximizing each day. Now, as we leave Santorini and fly to Madrid, we hope to wring even more out of our time and opportunities. We're staying in a hostel in Madrid for two nights, right in the city center amidst all the action and history. Should be amazing fun.
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