19 May 2012: We had seen photos of Santorini and read a bit about it but nothing could have prepared us for the awesome approach to the island. The ubiquitous whitewashed buildings of the towns cling to the top of a 300 metre high volcanic cliff which took our breath away.

View Paros - Santorini (Thira) in a larger map We then travelled by bus up to the town, another amazing experience, the narrow 2 way road twisting over and over with countless tight hairpin bends, the buses waiting before the turns with an unwritten understanding of who goes first. We watched the Blue Star Line ferry grow smaller and smaller as we ascended.

The Santorini group of islands is probably the only volcano in the world with its caldera (crater) in the sea. Today’s configuration has been brought about by many eruptions over the years one of which (1,600 BC) was the biggest volcanic eruption to take place in the entire world, ever, and may have marked the beginning of the decline of the Minoan culture as far away as Crete. The small islands in the centre, Palea Kameni and Nea Kameni, are the ‘cones’ of the volcano.
View Santorini in a larger map The civilization that was blown away is thought to have been the lost city of Atlantis and archaeologists continue to uncover artifacts to support this theory. The town was buzzing with tourists, both back packers and cruise ship visitors and we quickly found a hotel with views of the sea and set about exploring.

In further explorations the next morning we discovered the cable cars coming up from the old port and the donkey track that zig-zagged up 587 steps to the town also from the old port.

The time passed and we caught the bus back down the cliff, our bus driver having one hand on the steering wheel and the other holding

his mobile phone to his head whilst he made several calls, one ordering his lunch that was delivered along the way!