It was a lovely sunrise...
Wow! Unlike the other ports where the towns were built along the coast, buildings in Fira (the capital of Santorini) are along the top.
So here is where I really missed my camera and zoom lens. The phone just doesn't cut it for that purpose. The zig-zaggy line is the path the donkeys (and humans, if you choose) walk up and down. Most people take the cable cars.
Ready for a day of sight-seeing!
There were lots of boats ferrying people back and forth. The ship's tenders alone could not bring people in fast enough.
After a quick ride, we were on land...
A little touristy perhaps!
I can't imagine constructing these buildings on what seemed to be a small ledge...
Heading up in the cable car...what a money maker! It was £6 per person one way and you couldn't buy a return trip. I'm not sure why that was, unless it would allow return ticket holders to get ahead of those in line (and that became an issue later).
It was about a minute ride with 6 cable cars each carrying 6 passengers...
A view of the windy donkey path...imagine how difficult it was to build it.
Huh! Interesting spotted rock...most likely man-made.
At the top! We weren't sure how long the tender would take from the ship or how long the line-up would be for the cable cars, so in the end, we had plenty of time before meeting our tour guide at 9:30.
Which gave us time to look around...
So far only two ships in port...
Which is a lot of passengers for the 6 cable cars...
We stopped in a restaurant for a cappuccino and a chance to look at the view. One thing I noticed...there wasn't a lot of privacy. Everybody sort of looks down onto the next person...
More selfies...
It was a pretty yummy cappuccino!
Many people have these little pools...some weren't much bigger than bathtubs. And there go the donkeys down the path...
Our guide arrived and we started our trip from Fira to Oia (pronounced Ee-a) on the northern part of the island. The island is only about 18 km long, so it wasn't a big trip!
As this part of Fira is pedestrian only, we followed our guide to where he had left the van.
OK, I honestly only noticed the No Photos sign after. I was admiring the glass and the beautiful bougainvillea.
Making note of the signs in case we got turned around on our return trip...
Make way for the donkeys...they seemed to be in good condition. I hope they are treated well.
Have a good day, donkeys!
Our van for the day...
And we were off...the first thing we noticed was the grapevines.
This is unique to this area...they are like baskets and the grapes grow on the inside. With the sandy soil and windy conditions, the grapes are protected in this way.
Once again, our guide, Apostolos, went to park the van for our tour of Oia, which is also a pedestrian-only area.
The dog was looking longingly at the cat...
On the left is our guide, Apostolos...look at these sidewalks!
Oia is at the northern tip of Santorini and is known for its architecture, cobblestone lanes, pristine whitewashed buildings, cafés, shops and blue-domed churches.
Not a lot of privacy...
Many of the traditional houses were built into rock (almost like caves) with few windows.
Someone has started the tradition of leaving a "love lock"...
There are beautiful, high-end shops...
A fishy pedicure, perhaps?
Stunning views...
This is the Gumby Group, as we called ourselves. We met Lori and Calvin that morning, and it turns out we were all flexible in what we would do that day. So easy to travel with people like them. While I was waiting to meet them on board the ship, one of the staff asked if our group was all there. I said I wasn't sure as I hadn't met them before and didn't know what they looked like. She was quite taken aback. "You're spending the day with people you haven't met before?" Uh, yup! It's the Cruise Critic way!
What an amazing place...
A cat!
Hey...another Pinocchio! Look at the beautiful blue domes in the paintings. Almost the colour of the sky...
A very tall chair...
What they lack in privacy, they make up for in scenery.
This is a sea captain's house built in the 15th century.
Apostolos gave us some free time before returning to meet at this church...
He brought us past these buildings en route to a café he "trusts." Would you like to buy a little blue door?
There must always be maintenance required to keep the buildings so white.
A building that wasn't following the colour rules, but had lots of pretty flowers.
And the café that we stopped at...you couldn't beat that view.
Look at the size of some of these "pools"...
A little island below that seemed to have some sort of building on it...
Barb was smart and ordered a piece of baklava. When in Greece... It was soooo good!
I had some sort of espresso...whoa, it was strong!
I decided to head down the path further, while Barb, Ed and Jim meandered back towards the church. Lori and Calvin had already gone exploring. Hey, another rogue building--a renovated sea captain's house.
Narrow walkways and crowds of people...I cannot imagine what this place is like in the summer.
Ooops! Sorry buddy, I didn't mean to take your photo. I didn't even see him there, but that bougainvillea was hard to miss.
Food for the strays...love it.
I had broken out of the throngs of people...these buildings were all different colours now.
And this was the end of the path, unless you wanted to go to the fortress below. I decided to pass on that to avoid being late.
Heading back...oooh cat pottery. Admire and move on!
The Gumby Group was all on time, and we headed back to the vehicle for the next part of the tour. We were doing the highs and the lows of the island!
Windmills!
Our next stop, after lots of hairpin turns up a windy road, was the Holy Monastery of the Prophet Elias. What a view!
The monastery, dating back to 1711, is on the highest point of the island.
I'm guessing he might have been telling us about the earthquake in 1956...
A squinty selfie...
Intriguing...
You pretty much had 360 degree views...
Huh...it looked like an open pit mine below.
The Gumby Group!
I felt like these were secret codes; however, anything written in Greek is pretty much a secret code. No wonder they say, "it's all Greek to me!"
Our next stop on our whirlwind tour (although it was actually pretty relaxing) was the black sand beach...
Not too many takers today, but I imagine it's a popular spot in the summer...
Except for the colour, the sand reminded me of the pebbly beach in Brighton, England...
A view of the monastery...
Lori and I took the opportunity to walk in the water. Considering it was the end of October, the water was amazingly warm and refreshing. Now to brush all the pebbles (er, sand!) off my feet.
Heading back to the van...
A cactus and lava rock...
Our last stop for the day...Gavalas Winery, a family owned winery since the late 19th century.
Heading down...
Loved this!
The different kegs...
An area for stomping grapes...the juice then flows through the opening into the basket-like container.
We were hungry and the platters sounded perfect for sharing.
Yum! It disappeared pretty quickly. We moaned over the tomato paste so much that she finally told us we could buy it at the grocery store. I think we were hungry!
Cheers to the Gumby Group...an awesome day!
She explained the wines that we would be tasting...
Her English was impeccable...
Pretty happy...we all agreed it was one of our most memorable tours and days!
An old corking machine...
Pomegranates on the trees...
And with that, our lovely tour was over. We headed back to Fira and got in line for the cable car. As we kept walking and walking to find the end of the line, you really couldn't do anything but laugh.
We peeked in people's yards as we were waiting...no privacy!
And checked out the shops...no one would dare get out of line to buy anything.
"Save water, drink wine!" We were doing our best.
We had now turned the corner and were at least within sight of the cable car ticket office. I can see now why there are no return tickets. Can you imagine trying to cut in front of these people? In the summer, they might have five ships in port on the same day. I cannot imagine what the line-ups would be like.
Almost there!
Looking at us like we are the asses!
Whee! We made it!
Ready to line up for the tenders...amazingly there was hardly any waiting time.
Heading to the ship...
Goodbye, Santorini...you are amazing!
One of the last tenders returning...
A souvenir of our day from our travel agent. Thanks, Allison!
In the dining room that night...I have no idea what Jim is doing!
I don't think the meal was memorable, but the waiters and the desserts were. We had two waiters from the Philippines and they were like a comedy team.
And a blog wouldn't be complete without a photo of Ed holding Barb's purse...Jim is getting in on the game as well.
A truly awesome, amazing day...tomorrow we will be in Katakolon, the birthplace of the Olympic Games!
1 comment:
Loved Santorini! Will post a pic of the painting I bought there.
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