Santorini, Greece

Aug 28, 2010

I have several friends who have been working on ships and sailing the world for over 20 years and when asked their favorite port, so many have replied without hesitation, "Santorini".

So, I was really looking forward to visiting this wonderful Greek island for the first time. It did not disappoint.

Again, I volunteered to escort one of our organized tours which afforded me a terrific opportunity to see much more of the island than I would have on my own.

Just as a bit of background: the group of islands which includes Santorini was originally one huge island created by the top of a volcano ages ago. I believe it was around 1,700 BC the volcano erupted, blowing the center of the island to bits but leaving a circular group of islands surrounding what they call a "caldera", or "cauldron" in spanish (maybe Greek too?). There is some speculation (but I gather very little evidence) that the original island could have been the lost island of Atlantis which was destroyed in the cataclysm. 

This also left Santorini with huge cliffs that drop very dramatically into this "caldera" sea and give it it's famous crescent shape. Imagine you had a pie and the center exploded, leaving all sorts of edges but the center collapsed. The edges are the islands that remain of which Santorini is the largest.

The challenge of course is to get from the sea, up those sheer cliffs. There is no port and ships must anchor, although I did see, from a distance, a beach with black sand created thanks to the volcanic history.

Early in the morning our ship anchored for a short time to disembark those of us heading out for excursions. The island provides tenders which transported us to a very secluded little dock at the base of the immense cliffs where we met our tour buses. The number and severity of the switchbacks our buses executed to reach the top was impressive and a bit unnerving as we ascended like a little trail of ants back and forth to reach the top. The ship then set off to take the independent travelers to the main dock on another part of the island.

The first stop on our tour was to drive to the very summit of the tallest mountain on Santorini. From there we had a fantastic view of the entire island, also called Thira. The wind was tremendous; why they don't install some wind turbines is a mystery. Seems the perfect spot. It was a short stop, we got some wonderful photos and perspective of the island and moved on.

The principal crop grown on Santorini are grapes and the island is known for its wine. The vineyards are very unusual in that they are grown in small patches on terraces all over the island. I think something like 70% of the arable land is dedicated to this export. The vines are kept very close to the ground and wound around each other, creating a sort of basket as the vines mature over years. This protects the fruit (almost all white grapes) from the strong north winds and allows the foliage to take advantage of the dew both morning and evening which is the only irrigation the plant receives. 

We drove from the south end of the crescent shaped island to the extreme north end, crossing the narrowest part of the island which is only about 2 kilometers or 1.25 miles across at that point. The entire island measures only about 7.5 by 4.3 mi

Our destination was the village of Oia, pronounced: EEE-ah.

When one thinks of Santorini, indeed even Greece itself, many are thinking of the magical Mediterranean village of Oia. It's as if the Greek identity and even its flag are pulled directly from the blinding brilliance of its white washed buildings contrasting with the blue domed churches and azure sea and sky.

The village was very quiet, we were very fortunate to be the only ship in port which is so rare as to be practically unheard of. Built at the very top of the cliffs and and northern point of the island, homes, hotels, churches, restaurants and shops cling in terraced fashion down the face of the cliffs, reaching to the sapphire sea of the caldera below.

I suppose a poet or someone could write about it, but for me, the best way to appreciate it is to see it. I wish the photos did it justice:

Our final stop was the town of Fiera, located closer to the center of the island. This is also where the main dock is located, far below the town. Traffic was the worst of all of my travels this trip; drivers have no regard for pedestrians at all and we had a few scary moments getting our group of 30 guests from the bus parking area, up a steep road to the main square.

Lots of shops selling everything from junk souvenirs, to some very nice artwork, photographs, hand made textiles like linen shirts and beautiful lace table cloths and of course, loads of jewelry. It was a bit of walk, but very pleasant, thru the town to the stop located right above the actual dock area.

There are 3 ways to get up and down between the sea and the town of Fiera:

1. You can hire one of the famous Santorini donkeys to carry you up,or down, the steep steps. I think for thousands of visitors over the years, it's been a rite of passage to ride the donkeys of Santorini.

2. You may walk many hundreds of steps up the dozens of switchbacks which are carved into the face of the cliff. Quite a feat esp. because you share the route with the donkeys which create land mines for you to maneuver along the route.

3. In the mid-80's a funicular, or cable car, was installed and for a fee will gently and efficiently carry you up or down the cliff while affording a really terrific view. We were lucky that our tour included tickets for the cable car and that's how we descended to the dock to meet the tenders which returned us to the ship.

My only small regret was that working as an escort I wasn't able to try out any of the wonderful little sidewalk restaurants and the tempting Greek food, but I'm going to have many more opportunities on other Greek islands in the weeks to come, so it's no hardship.

We're at the small Greek island of Mitylene today but it's only a half day and also a tender port. I developed laryngitis yesterday and have almost no voice so I'm staying onboard and trying to get some vocal rest.

We arrive in Istanbul, Turkey in the morning;

Yamas! from Santorini!