Friday, May 23
We got on the ferry and went up to the sixth level where there were some chairs and couches. the whole level was surrounded by window so you had great views of the sea and the islands. we were really tired so we took a nap but there wasn't very much room so we have to curl up on the chair. half of my body was hanging off but it was actually really comfortable. I woke up to hearing an old lady singing. I don't know if she was crazy or just really happy... haha. Rusty and I ate a whole bunch of our delicious cookies and Pringles that we had gotten at the store last night, and then eventually I got a salad from Goodies, their fast food restaurant on the ship. While hanging out, we did some reading and research about the island and got really really excited! We also did a little more planning for Athens. I had done so much planning for this trip that I didn't really finish planning and preparing for Athens and Santorini, so we got all caught up.
On our ferry ride we stopped at three islands before it was our turn to get off at Santorini. All of the islands were absolutely breathtaking! The ferry ride was about 8 hours but with all of the views of the sea and the islands it was definitely worth it. We came into our port at 3:30.
Island #1
Island #2
Island #3
When we finally got to the island it was a lot more dry and deserty than we had thought it would be, but the water was really bright blue and beautiful! We got off the ferry (which made horrendous beeping sounds while docking) and then wandered around to find a bus that would take us to our town of Oia. The bus had to go up a really steep road that was all switch backs, and I thought for sure we were going to fall off! Rusty wasn't too comfortable either. :) Once we got to the top of the island you could see the caldera, which showed the size that the island would have been before it erupted 3,700 years ago. The view from up there is absolutely unreal. It really is amazing; I've never seen anything like that. We continued on our way and saw a lot of cactus and vineyards and really cool views of the ocean. After a quick stop in another town we got to our town of Oia. When we got off we called Christopher (our host) and then we quickly got some delicious gyros. I love Greek food! We got in the car with him and he was really quiet, and pretty awkward. He asked to stop at the grocery store for some milk haha. We got to the place and went to the backyard to talk. It's a legitimate Greek Island Desert Oasis back there! There was a hot tub, hammock, picnic table, a brick oven and it was all over looking at Seaview. We had some orange juice while he sat us down and gave us some advice and ideas about what to do there. Christopher was really fun to talk to once we started going through some ideas, and he was really helpful!
Our ferry!
The first town we stopped at is on the right, then the town we stayed in is low down on the left
After putting our stuff in the apartment we decided to go into town on the bikes that he had there for us to us. It was a really quick 5 minutes from the house to downtown but it was all uphill. We thought it would be a fun little ride! Rusty and I started riding and quickly realized that we had some serious problems haha. There was way too much suspension on my bike and Rusty's back brake was so tight that he couldn't even move. We couldn't even pedal! They were all rusted out from the salt air haha. It was ridiculous. I got really mad and frustrated told Rusty to trade me bikes. He got off and gave it to me and I couldn't even move forward at all. I was so mad that I dragged that bike up the hill... it's funny now. :)
Well, eventually we got to Oia and we were so stoked to walk around! The little town is quaint and picturesque, just like what you imagine when you think of Greece. Actually, most of the pictures that you see of the Greek islands are taken here in Santorini in this town of Oia! So we just couldn't wait to explore. We walked around the town and then went down towards the water along a little path. We passed through some restaurants and climbed over some lava rock until we found a cool spot to watch the sun start sinking down. Apparently Oia is supposed to have some of the best sunsets in the world, but the special lookout spot was FULL of people. So we hiked back up and just stopped along the way to watch the sun finish sinking behind the mountains of a far off island (yes, so poetic). The best part was that Rusty and I couldn't help but laugh about the ambiance of the whole thing; the sunset really was beautiful, but the sounds we heard were Chinese and Japanese from the tourists all around us, and it smelled like donkey poop because the donkeys were used to go up and down that trail. Haha. And, when the sun finally went down everyone clapped! So funny. We walked around the town for a little bit before hopping back on our bikes to go home. Luckily for us it was mostly all downhill so we didn't have to fight so hard to pedal, but we did have to try to compensate for not having any breaks! When we got back to our apartment I noticed that the bed had a bug net around it, and me being the paranoid person that I am was sure that it meant that there were great, big bugs that would crawl on us at night. So I insisted on sleeping inside the net and made Rusty do it too.
Saturday, May 24
Another great day in Santorini! Today started by sleeping in, walking to town (ditch those stupid bikes), and then grabbing some delectable breakfast from a bakery (complete with buzzing flies). We got baklava, two pieces of peach cake, and a muffin. Breakfast of champions. Then we sat on a wall in the town and ate, watching a pack of mules walking down the streets and feeling like we were travelling back in time.
Not a bad view for breakfast!
After we finished breakfast we decided to go and rent a scooter so that we could get around the island. The place we went had a ridiculously mean man running it that said that he was Canadian (OK huge Greek accent) and that he couldn't rent scooters to Americans, only 4 wheelers. Rusty told him that he had his Motorcycle endorsement and showed him his license, and the man said that it didn't matter. We decided to go and try a different store, but it turned out that it was also run by that man because the lady said that getting a scooter wouldn't be a problem but when she called to get it the guy asked if it was us and she said yes and then, no scooter. So we ended up with a 4 wheeler! :) It was so fun! We decided to ride around the island and loved it. Our first stop was a cool lighthouse and then to an overlook with great views of the island.
The walls were made out of the same cement that they still use today!
There was an earthquake before the volcano erupted
The goldish colored chair was a toilet!
For grinding herbs/grains
After exploring the preserved city for a little while we bought some fruit from a man on the side of the road and then went to the red beach. We parked the 4 wheeler and then walked back to the beach and it was amazing! I've never been to a red beach like that before. The water was absolutely crystal clear and there were giant red cliffs behind the sand. There were lava rocks everywhere. We laid on the beach for a long time, and then went swimming and dunked all the way under in the Aegean Sea! Woo hoo! It was wonderful to just relax and play at the beach, swimming, talking, and laying in the sun. Then on our way out we passed a man in a speedo selling jewelry. We were intrigued and stopped to talk to him. He said that he had his PhD in Psychology but quit so that he could make jewelry and sell it on the beach. He only used the lava rocks that he found on the beach and he wound his own thread to use. The best part was the story that he told us about how a big German man didn't believe that the thread was that strong so he tried to break it and ended up being put in the hospital haha. Anyways, the jewelry was actually really pretty so we ended up buying some!
Our speedo friend
When we were done with the beach we decided to ride through the country side. We didn't have a map so we got a lost a few times, but I'm not sure why because there were all of these signs that were so helpful. We ended up driving through some really cool places and hit up a black sand beach before finally going home.
These signs were extremely helpful
We came back from our adventures around the island and got in the hot tub where we met a mom and daughter. We talked with them for a while and then went and stood out on our balcony to hang out and watch the sun set. While we were out there we heard them talking about us debating if we were Mormon or not haha. Rusty came out on the balcony and I told him all about what I overheard, and then a couple of minutes later I heard someone talking on their balcony! Apparently the husband and son stayed on the balcony instead of the hot tub haha. We heard someone talking about us and then were overheard while we were talking about them. Whoops.
Well, after that there's nothing left to do but go inside so we showered and got ready and went to town for our last night in Santorini. Our trip was about to end, and we just couldn't believe it! It had been so amazing but also very tiring, and so we had lots of mixed emotions. We decided to leave the camera at home and just go in and have dinner and walk around a little bit, and after seeing our meal and the views of the island at night we regretted that! We went to a fancy restaurant with beautiful views of the caldera and ordered really traditional food: olives and bread, Greek salad, souvlaki, yogurt and honey, and baklava. I wanted to make sure that the Greek salad wasn't just a salad, because you know, we're in Greece so a normal salad would technically be a Greek one, and he said it has feta cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onions. That was perfect so I ordered that. He brought out the appetizer and it was just a really big platter of olives. We had kind of figured that there would be something else with them, but they were just there with a couple pieces of bread. They are so salty that as we were eating them I could feel my lips start to shrivel up, so eventually we gave up on those. He brought out Rusty's souvlaki and my salad and he was right, it did have all of those things. And no lettuce! Haha. So apparently I've been making Greek salads wrong. It was really tasty, and had a huge slab of feta cheese. For dessert he brought out the greek yogurt with honey and the baklava. I ordered the yogurt because I had heard that this was what Santorini was known for, but when I started eating it I hated it. It tasted like sour cream. I've had plain Greek yogurt many times, and it is not even close to what this tasted like. But luckily for me Rusty really liked how it tasted so we kind of switched and shared the baklava and he ate the yogurt. The baklava was so good! Then we walked around for a little bit before heading home. When we got there Rusty grabbed the camera to go back and get some pictures of the island at night because it just looked so cool!
Sunday, May 25
Oh my gosh, our last day here! And then after this we just have one day in Athens and then we fly home. Seriously, we couldn't believe that the trip was over, it went by so fast! We checked about a church but the only one in all of Greece is in Athens, so that wasn't going to work. Before riding the buses down to the ferry we walked along a trail for a little while. We had heard that it was really cool if you like hiking (hello us) but we just had other things we wanted to do. So today we decided to go for a little ways. And let me tell you: it was hot. Like boiling. We were going along and I was having a great time (albeit a warm one) when all of a sudden Rusty says, "I can't do this anymore. I'm sorry. I can't. It's just too hot. I want to go back." Hahaha! So we went back and got some ice cream, and looked around at some views of Oia one last time before heading down to the port.
Our apartment!
These flowers smelled like Fruity Pebbles
This was right before Rusty told me he was done haha
We loved seeing these Peugot cars in Europe and Rusty always did this like the lion on the back
Returning the 4 wheeler
Our favorite look out spot
Once we were at the port we had lunch while waiting for the ferry. I got a gyro plate and Rusty got a Greek pizza, and I know that we always talk about how good all of the food is, but this Greek pizza was SO STINKING GOOD! A perfect way to end our time in Santorini!
Our ferry!
We got on the ferry and hung out on the deck for a while watching Santorini get smaller and smaller. Then we had some snacks, watched the Greeks with their worry beads and their loud conversations, and then tried to get some sleep before we got into Athens late that night. When we did get there we got a taxi to take us to the apartment and got totally screwed by him ha. He charged us WAY more than he should have because he was mad because our apartment wasn't very far way. So, yay for Greek taxi drivers.
The center of the crater
This guy though.
