NOTE: My camera’s memory card glitched and we basically have no pictures from our trip until we hit Athens. I may try and find images online, just so you have a sense of what we saw/ are talking about. (And will credit if I do.) But keep that in mind as you read these next posts.
We were so grateful our place was so close to the port, it meant we could sleep until 6 and not rush for our 8am ferry departure. Having booked our tickets in advance, we walked right up to the kiosk and got our tickets in just a few minutes, even better we got our tickets to Naxos as well.
Greek ferries are kind of amazing. Huge, practical, and very comfortable. We were on SeaJets’ Caldera Vista which, I gotta say, hauls ass across the water. It was impressive. We’d paid extra for ‘club class’ and I’m not sure it was worth it because our seats were the WORST. Everyone else had forward facing seats, our faced one another. So we were knee to knee for 2+ hours. 🙁 That said, I found the MAD music tv channel fascinating as I read my book and munched my fresh croissant.
Debarking in Santorini, we made our way past the crush of tour bus goers and found our taxi driver (arranged through our accommodation). He was picking up several other couples, so we waited a bit, and then were taken about 30 mins up into the hills.
We stayed at Luna Suites (http://lunasantorinisuites.com/), booked through Airbnb. We were met on the road by Fortis and walked up . . . up . . and further up into the hills above the village of Pyrgos. Our place is lovely, with traditional architecture, sun beds, an outdoor jacuzzi, and neatly laid out kitchen.
After a quick change, we popped down to the village for a breakfast at Agaze (agazesantorini.com). We shared an omelet and enjoyed the local orange juice. Perfect! If thsi seems rushed, it was. We had a 2pm pickup for our Sunset Boat Tour with Spirodakos Sailing Cruises (santorini-yachts.com) arranged by our accommodation.
The cruise was lovely. We were ‘upgraded’ to a motor launch because the winds were a bit uncooperative, I guess. We didn’t love that — it was pretty rough getting into and out of the harbors. But the first swim spot was special: sapphire blue water and a ton of fish to snokel with. We skipped the hot springs, and the third swim spot was too cold (not the company’s fault of course!). They fed us a huge meal of fried fish, sauteed chicken, grilled shrimp, bread, pasta, and the inevitable greek salad. There were nectarines for dessert. During the tour we were given bits of info about the island and what we were seeing. The downsides were that we were one boat of MANY and there was always a sense of being rushed. Our first driver (pickup and drop off is included) was a self-indulgent, rude, boor and I was glad to hear he’d be moving on to a new company. Our second driver was so silent we thought he was driving past our location and had to call out for him to stop — turns out he was just going a little further to be able to turn around. The price was 170eu ea, and I’m not completely sure it was worth it.
We were tired after the trip, but also hungry. So we trekked back up to our room, changed and refreshed, then went along the top of the hill to Rosemary Restaurant (http://www.rosemarysantorini.gr/en/). This is a small and elegant restaurant we were thrilled to discover. J. tried the local specialty of Tomato Balls (a kind of a fritter which J did not enjoy, but not the kitchen’s fault) and then we both shared the lettuce salad with avocado and a pomegranate balsamic vinaigrette. (YUM.) My main was a fish burek — a phyllo wrapped concoction of fish, carrots, pine nuts, and raisins; J. had grilled meatballs (keftedes) with rice and grilled veg. Our dishes were sublimely wonderful. We were given watermelon as a ‘dessert’ and happily meandered back to our place to read for a bit and enjoy the night air.
(9/12)
