SANTORINI - The Goddess of Greek Islands
Written: Apr 13 '00 (Updated Aug 14 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Beautiful sunsets, interesting beaches, fascinating history, and maybe even Atlantis?
Cons: Heavy tourism, true Greek culture is all but gone, many businesses close during off-season (Nov -Apr).
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| kifwebe's Full Review: Greece |
Included in this review are details of my trip to the enchanting Greek island of Santorini in the fall of last year, including exerpts from the well worn pages of my daily journal and information on where to stay, what to see, and when to go. Admittedly this review is wordy, but I felt it was necessary to include all of the information herein to give an overall view of both the positives and negatives of this intriguing Greek island.
Last fall, I flew into Amsterdam, the first stop on what would be a three and a half month adventure throughout Europe and northern Africa. It was a bit difficult to contain my excitement for visiting the Greek islands throughout the first leg of my tour, which included Holland, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and Italy.
But finally we reached Brindisi, a town on southern Italy's eastern border that seemingly exists for the sole purpose of draining as much of your money as possible on the 15 minute walk from the train station to the dreary ferry port. The ferry ride was in a word, brutal, lasting 18 hours and consisting mainly of restless sleep and untimely loudspeaker announcements. The ride from Patras, Greece, where the ferry dropped us off, to Athens was 4 additional hours of hell, as it sputtered along at an unbelievably slow pace and honked its horn almost constantly. And as far as I was concerned, outside of its historical significance, Athens was no real joy either. I found it to be polluted, noisy, and blatantly rude, never mind overpriced and a bit intimidating.
Needless to say, my excitement for Greece was waning. But there was solace. From Athens, my girlfriend and I toured the Greek islands of Paros, Naxos, Mykonos, and Santorini, all members of the group of islands known as the Cyclades. Of the four, I was most impressed with the overwhelming beauty and charm of Santorini, an island which at one time was quite a bit different not only in terms of inhabitants and culture, but in geography. About 3500 years ago, the group of islands which now represent Santorini were not a group at all, but a single giant volcano. It was around that time that the volcano exploded and sank. What now remains is a crescent-shaped island where the majority of local inhabitants live, a small group of surrounding islands, and at the center of the crescent, a small island which contains the still active core of the volcano. You won't see any lava here, but you can see signs of activity, which I will talk about later. In fact, there are still major earthquakes associated with volcanic activity, the most major recent example of which occurred in 1956 and completely destroyed almost every structure on the island. This lends itself to tourism in a number of ways. Of course paranoia keeps some tourists away from Santorini, which a few scientists theorize may have been the location of the ancient sunken city of Atlantis. But because almost everything has been fairly recently rebuilt, this island has many amenities that others do not.
Arrival on Santorini, or any of the Greek Islands for that matter, is something of a sensory overload. If you arrive via ferry, the views of the towns dangling from the layered red cliffs along the way are pretty amazing. You'll pretty much have to fight for a spot along the railing of the ship to get a picture of this, because the clicking of cameras is almost as prevalent as the buzz of excitement that fills the air during the approach. (You can also get flights from Athens, but ferry is by far the cheapest option.)
When the ferry opens its doors and people flood out, be prepared to be approached by dozens of people touting their hotels and offering accommodation. I would recommend taking one of them up on their offer, as this is what we did on all of the Greek islands without incident. In fact we were very pleased with the quality of the accommodation, the convenience of being driven to the hotel (insist on this as most will have a van or car), and of course the price. Keep in mind that bargaining is the rule here, and you are in control. For the most part there will be enough accommodation for everyone, and if you aren't happy with the price you get from one hotel owner, simply move on to the next. I reached the island at the tail end of tourist season in early to mid October. Many of the hotels on the island had been closed for the season, and bargaining for price was extremely easy. I expected to pay no more than $12 to $15 dollars a night for a hotel room at this time of year, which I would share with my girlfriend. Expect that to nearly double in peak season, but there is no need to pay any more than $25 a night at any time. Be sure the hotel owner is clear on exactly where the hotel is. Some will claim that their hotel is "in town", without specifying which town they are referring to. The major towns on the island are Oia (pronounced ee-ya), which is the nicest and therefore most expensive town on the island to find a room, Fira, the oldest and largest town with its share of restaurants and shops, and Perissa, which is isolated from the other two towns but more convenient to the best beaches on the island.
I stayed in Perissa, which is located on the southern tip of the island and is right on the black beach, whose black sand is a result of previous volcanic activity. If you travel out of season, DON'T stay here. Many of the restaurants, scooter rental shops, and grocery stores will be closed, severely limiting your choices. You will definitely want to stay in either Fira or Oia in that case, and simply visit the black beach, either by bus or scooter. You can also rent a car on Santorini, but it's small enough to manage on a scooter, and buses from end to end run at least hourly. Be careful on scooters though, as roads in Greece can sometimes be a free for all.
The following are excerpts from the journal that I kept during my trip. These clippings highlight the main attractions to be found on the island:
Island Tours: "...We managed to stumble on a travel agency that sold tickets for tours of the island, which would allow us to see its main attractions for a brief time and to learn a bit of its history...It was an expensive tour, but it sounded comprehensive and interesting. The bus arrived about half full and picked the two of us up. I wondered why everyone on the bus greeted me with such a sour look until I reached my seat and realized that the box of juice I had been carrying under my arm had been spewing all over the aisle of the bus. Unfortunately I couldn't see that because I was carrying my backpack on top of the juice. Anyway, I dried off and the bus headed to Acrotiri.
Acrotiri is the site of an archaeological undertaking which has been going on for decades. When Santorini's volcano erupted, it spewed massive amounts of lava and ash, completely covering what was once a thriving civilization of Minoan influence from the larger Greek island of Crete. In other words, a completely preserved 3500 year old city is still mostly buried on the island. The inhabitants apparently fled, so there are currently no human remains. But we got a good sense for the civilization through its two story homes and sewer system...To date, their written documents have not been decoded, so all that is known is based on the artifacts left behind...
...From there we boarded a large sailboat which was bound for the island containing the still active volcano. The sea was extremely choppy, but to my surprise nobody seemed affected. Along the way we spoke to 2 Swedish women who spoke flawless English and insisted that I was a Viking descendent...The boat arrived in a makeshift port and instructed us to be back in an hour and a half, so off we went. I was a bit disappointed that the tour was not guided because we really didn't know what to look for (a miscommunication caused this, the tour was supposed to be guided). After a long, uphill, very rocky climb we saw a steaming rock face covered with sulfur deposits which were apparently what we had come to see...From here there were stunning views of the surrounding islands...
...From there, the boat would take a short trip to a place where we would be given an opportunity to swim for 30 minutes in the hot sulfur springs. Incidentally, the boat could not navigate the hot springs, so we would have to swim about 200 yards in the open sea to get to them. Both Sarah and I took the challenge. The springs were not exactly hot, but more closely resembled luke-warm, muddy soup. It was still refreshing...
...Our next stop was a small island which was very sparsely populated. It could be reached only by boat and its inhabitants were mostly fishermen. The guide said that the island was a close representation of the main island about 30 years ago, about the time when it first received electricity. (Pack a lunch, as the prices for food on this island are quite modern.)...People were told that the majority of the island's town was atop the hill before us and to see it would require a 20 minute walk or a 10 minute donkey ride. Donkeys could be hired for about $3.00 at the port, but we walked of course, and although we were exhausted at the top we actually managed to beat the donkeys. They got the last laugh however, because most of the walk involved carefully placed steps around the immense build up of manure. There were some interesting dwellings in the town, almost resembling cave dwellings, which were carved into the side of the hill...
...Last we headed by boat to the town of Oia. Oia was the most beautiful spot we had seen on the island to date. It truly was the postcard Greece, and it was a popular place to watch the sunset. We bought a bottle of wine and sat on the steps in front of an art boutique and watched the beautiful sun disappear behind the horizon..."
The Black Beach: "...After a late start, it seemed as though the black beach would be a good place to spend the day...We walked to a somewhat isolated spot and spent most of the day sunning and swimming. The waves were a bit strong on this side of the island, so we stayed fairly close to shore...The fine black sand was truly beautiful, with the major exception of the number of cigarette butts mixed in with the sand. I spent about 20 minutes clearing our small patch of beach of hundreds of them..."
Fira: "...That night we took a bus to the town of Fira but were disappointed to find mostly tourists who had stepped off of cruise ships along with mostly shops and restaurants catering only to them. Prices were a bit high and Greek culture was all but removed..."
The Red Beach: "...We were tired of our plans being dictated by bus schedules, and decided to rent a scooter. We started out a bit timid, Sarah due to her lack of control over the bike, and I due to her trepidation. (We were sharing one scooter.) I first rode on a small street near the beach to build our confidence. It was there that I discovered the scooter was not an off-road vehicle. Sarah asked if I could stop for a second, so I pulled off onto what I thought was a gravel shoulder. It was sand however, and we went down. Luckily, the sand broke our fall, and the situation was more funny than tragic. We brushed ourselves off and headed toward the red beach. It turned out to be my favorite beach to date. It was separated from the road by a path over a craggy rock formation, and its beach was of a fine, iron-rich sand. The water was extremely clear and calm, and of the perfect depth and temperature. You could swim hundreds of yards from shore, with water depth varying from 7 to 10 feet. The beach was located in a cove which protected it from waves. We spent hours there, and then headed back to Oia to watch the sunset once again..."
Santorini also has great food and some night life, consisting of rather typical American-style dance clubs and bars (Greek tavernas are all but nonexistent, at least in a traditional sense). Food quality was sometimes sketchy, but for the most part good food was available and grocery stores were plentiful enough to present a viable option. Be sure that if you choose a self-serve restaurant, meaning you order from a glass display case rather than a menu, that you ask about prices before you order. You may be surprised when the bill arrives otherwise. In general, you will find plenty of good activities on the island, even if all you do is meander through the streets of Santorini's towns or laze around on the beaches for hours on end. Expect to see a glut of tourism, which is the main drawback to the island in my opinion. Definitely do not miss the red beach, the black beach, and the sunset in Oia, and if you can afford it, the island tour is worth it for history alone. If you are looking for postcard Greece, look no further than Santorini.
Recommended:
Yes
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kifwebe
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Location: :noitacoL
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