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Santorini
11 – 14 October
Santorini is a place that I have wanted always wanted to
visit, with its spectacular view of whitewashed traditional
homes built into the edge of a long gone volcano that
erupted many years ago. But after being there some of the
magic has gone. There is no denying just how visually
spectacular the setting is but it is also very touristy,
especially the main town of Fira.
Unlike Naxos and Koufonissi, we could barely get decent
service in Santorini let alone a smile from the locals. It’s
not an unfriendly town but it’s not overly friendly – and
it’s VERY expensive. For 20 euros we got a very basic, old
room in the back of an old woman’s house.
We hired a bike and visited some of the beaches on the
island – Monolithos, Kamari, Perissa, Vlihada – and ended up
at Red Beach. Being on a volcanic island all the beaches had
black sand but Red Beach is also set along high red/brown
cliffs which literally look as if they had just been cut
away from the rest of the mountain. The black sand was so
hot that we could still feel the heat through our towels and
it was a delicate process of walking to the water’s edge.
Here was where the black sand ended and the pebbles began
which made walking into the water quite tricky. But once I
was in – oh it was heaven! The water was just perfect.
Crystal clear and cold when you first jump in, the body
eventually acclimatizes and was so easy to float in the
salty water which felt amazingly soft to swim in.
Having seen so many amazing sunsets on this trip we weren’t
overly fussed about seeing the one in Oia but once again I
was mesmerized seeing it. People were jostling to get the
best viewing positions but once you walked further up the
town there were plenty of secluded spots. The town itself is
gorgeous – quite similar aesthetically to Fira but much more
colourful and peaceful.
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