Today I left Myknos to take the hyperjet ferry (which sails across the ocean) to Paros, then the regular, cruiseliner-like, ferry to Santorini. It was a bit cloudy and I was sitting in the shade on deck so didn't grease myself -- stupid mistake, I'm now red as a lobster. It was a beautiful trip, but nothing prepares one for the sight of the caldera. Santorini, or Thira as the Greeks call it, was once a round island, with a thriving Minoan cuulture. Several thousand years ago, a volcano in the centre of the island erupted, leaving the volcano, and a ring of island around it, like a doughnut. People have settle on this caldera, building houses the flit over the clifftops high above the sea, and despite volcanic eruptions and earthquakes that have destroyed their villages, have stayed.
When the ship approaches Thira, it looks like any other greek isle, but when it turned the corner, one starts to see the magnificent incline of the cliffs and the small white villages set precariously atop. Its an amazing view. The ferry docks and we board a small bus that scale the steep, zigzagging road to the top of the caldera. Stunning. My hotel isn't as grand as the hotel in Mykonos, and the view is rather poor. But two minutes walk from the hotel and one is on a footpath on the caldera and the sunset was amazing. It walked it until dark, then stopped at a sunset cafe, Zafora, to eat lamb stew and drink Santorini wine. Now, with I can feel the extremity of the sunburn, and the ever-present bobbing of the Aegean sea internally, but love it here.
I'm running out of minutes, more soon.
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