Mary’s Shoe Blog
Malta We were sitting in Malta one evening watching a lot of people go to the restaurant upstairs. There was a...
Santorini, Greece
We have been trying to get to the Greek island of Santorini for three years. During our first year cruising in Greece, we planned to sail there. But after some investigation, we learned that the only marina in Santorini was not deep enough for Berkeley East, and the water surrounding the island was too deep for us to anchor.
So we decided to take a ferry there, from Naxos, in August. Then we sat at anchor on BE and watched the thousands of people boarding each and every ferry, and we began to try and book hotels, only to discover most were unavailable. August was the busiest time of year in Santorini.
Then we made a plan to go at the end of the season, fly from Turkey after we put BE up for the winter. It was set, late October would be the perfect time. Not really. As we started making plans, we discovered that many things would already be closed and the weather would be chilly.
How about a trip in April before going back to the boat in year two of cruising Greece? Nope, too much to do at the boat and not everything was open there yet anyway. And so it went, every possible option that we could come up with simply did not work.
When we arrived in Crete in June of our third and final season in Greece, we finally found the right combination: a marina to leave BE in, not too far from a short ferry ride to the island of Santorini, at a time when it was less crowded, everything was open and the weather was good!
Crescent-shaped Santorini (or Thíra) is actually a group of islands within an active volcano. The islands that form Santorini came into existence as a result of intensive volcanic activity; twelve huge eruptions in the 16th century BC that caused the collapse of the volcano’s central part, creating a large crater in the sea (caldera). The edge of the crater is now fringed with small whitewashed, cube houses and hotels that hang off the cliffs of the towns of Fira, Oia and Imervogili.
Relaxing by the pool. It has been a busy sailing season, so time for a break.
Great lunch with a view!
Great view from the rim down to the thousands of people on cruise ships.
What started out as a casual stroll to dinner on a rock walkway quickly turned into a 10 mile hike along the crater rim in pumice/lava stones followed by 300+ steps down to a sunset dinner.
Night skyline across the rim and pool
Santorini is considered to be the most sought after places for a romantic getaway, where couples can gaze at crystal clear waters while perched on the rim of a massive active volcano in the middle of the sea! It was a great place to celebrate our 36th wedding anniversary a few weeks early.
Previous Comments:
Linda Dawkins
Breathtaking! So beautiful! Happy Anniversary.
Jan Cameron
Gorgeous photos! What a view.