calling from some city...

Today we arrived in Santorini, Greece. In one word, Santorini is: breathtaking. Santorini is one of the places I was most looking forward too on my trip and it even though we have only been here 1/2 a day, I can already tell it will not disappoint. It looks even more amazing that it did in the photos I saw, which I didn’t think was possible.

We had a very early wake up today. I did not want to get out of bed when Scott woke me up at 6:30, but I quickly got up once I remembered we were leaving to go to Santorini! We checked out of the hotel and took the metro to the port. Once we got there, it as chaotic and seemed overwhelming. We did find the office for Blue Star Ferries, the company we were taking, and headed over there to find out where our prepaid tickets were waiting. The woman instructed us to go to Gate 1 and they would be there. I was a little worried because the other people I saw walking around already had tickets in their hand. We also were supposed to be there an hour early, so we only had about 15 mins to find the gate and get them. The port is absolutely massive so we started walking. Luckily Scott spotted a bus that drops passengers off at each gate, so we got on that. We were lucky to do so because the gate was really, really far away and it would have taken like a half hour on foot to get there. Sara stopped the ticket window and we had no problems getting out tickets and then boarded a little after 8.

We got on the ship and found a booth in the main indoor area of the ship that had lots of booths and tables and a small coffee/snack bar. The booths were long so Scott was able to stretch out and fall asleep and Sara and I had the other one to curl up on. The ferry ride left at 9 and it was about 5 hours long. I was really worried about getting seasick so I just tried to sit there and listen to my music. The ship was really big, but you could feel it moving more than I expected too. Overall it wasn’t a bad experience. I felt a little nauseous for the first 2 hours or so, but then laid down and managed to doze on and off for the next 2.5 hours. I didn’t really sleep but the time did go by pretty quickly. So overall the ferry was fine though I still am not a fan of boat traveling.

I am glad we took the ferry though because of the view of Santorini as we approached. Huge cliffs just rose up on both sides of us; it was unbelievable. We got off the ship and took note of the houses that were just sitting on top of the cliff and the way the roads were literally carved up the mountain. We found the driver that was picking us up and me and Sara just tried to take as many pictures as possible as we drove up the mountain. I can’t even put into words how magnificent the views were.

We got to Manos Villa and we immediately got an upgrade for the night; we might have to change rooms tomorrow but at least for now we have 2 bedrooms and we each have our own bed. We also have a little balcony that looks down into the villa pool! We decided to head to the beach right away, and hopped on the bus. The town buses here are really nice- they are coach buses and the bus stop is literally right outside the vila. Once we got there I was still feeling a little queasy and couldn’t really eat, even though I hadn’t had a full meal all day. We went down to the beaches of Kamari, which are black sand/stone beaches. Kamari is amazing. There are little shops and restaurants lining the main street along the beach. One side of the beach stops at a huge cliff that jets out in the ocean, forming like an encave of beach and water. Gorgeous. The water was also quite warm, though I decided not to go in today. Like Barcelona, the current is really strong so I will be careful when I do go in. 

We stayed out on the beach for a while and then walked along the road to the shops. My nausea had quickly passed and I had gotten a pita sandwich at around 6. So, none of us were really super hungry but needed something for dinner. We decided to get Belgium waffles at this cute restaurant/bar. They had many different types you could get so I got one with nutella and bananas. It was huge and delicious and completely hit the spot. After dinner we walked around some more and bought postcards, and then caught the bus back to the villa.

We have the next 3 days here. Tomorrow we are renting scooters for the day and exploring the islands and beaches!