A panoramic view of the town of Oia on the north end of Santorini from our hotel. With the island of Therasia forming the other edge of the caldera, the water is stunning, the cliffs are breathtaking, and the white buildings seem to melt down the side of the island.
Our fourth stop in Greece was Santorini, the southernmost island in the Cyclades group southeast of mainland Greece and routinely rated one of the most beautiful islands in the world. For me and Mark this was our second trip to the island, having spent a few days here in 2012. I am glad to report that it’s just as beautiful today as it was then.
This view on Santorini practically defines the beauty that is Greece. Photo credit to Dan, a more serious photographer than Mark or me…
Down on the rocky coast there’s an area where, if you’re both lucky and adventurous, you can find a place to nestle into the rocks and then jump into the sea. I LOVE swimming in places like this – the clear water, the island looming in back, the town of Fira off in the distance. Heaven.
The interesting part of Santorini’s history is that the current island is the result of an absolutely massive volcanic eruption that occurred in the mid-second millennium BC. The explosion blew the island known as Thera to smithereens, with the much of the land collapsing into the sea, creating the caldera that today gives Santorini much of its beauty. To give a sense of the magnitude of the explosions, scientists believe that it was about four times as powerful as the volcano that erupted on Krakatoa in 1883, by far the most powerful volcanic eruption of modern times. The Thera eruption, in fact, is cited by some as the genesis of the legend of Atlantis.
An important part of each day was to sit down with Dan & Laura around 7:45, order cocktails, and watch the sun set over Oia
Today, then, the western side of the island is an extremely steep cliff down to the sea, with the smaller island of Therasia forming the other side of the caldera. The white buildings along the edge of the cliff end up looking like a Dalí painting come to life the way they all but drip down the side of the island. Interestingly, today’s beauty is also in part the result of a big earthquake in 1956 that destroyed most of the buildings in Oia (the most beautiful part of the island, on the north end). As they rebuilt it became quite the tourist mecca.
Santorini is beautiful, whether day or night. Another Dan Germain special
Mark on his way out of our hotel. Can the blue get any better than that?
Laura and her matching bougainvillias. Whites, pinks, blues – the island is a riot of color.
Another early evening view from our hotel. There is a steady parade of boats crossing the caldera that make it all that much more beautiful.
I thought we needed one more picture of Oia, the water, the cliffs, the boats, the beauty
OK, this is Crete, not Santorini. Remember my post on Crete when I talked about full moon over the Venetian Harbor and how we didn’t have any pictures? Turns out I just hadn’t downloaded the pictures yet. So here it is, in case there was any doubt about that nearly perfect moment.