Santorini

September 7, 2009

Today was a bit of an unusual travel day. We were actually able to sleep in until 7:00 am, and I made sure Cory and Elaine had done most of their packing the night before, including the tent. What this meant is that they slept outside on their mats in their sleeping bags open to all the elements. The funny thing about this is it was quite windy, and Elaine the queen of deep sleep was unable to sleep. She looked quite funny wrapped up in her mummy sleeping bag with a pareo wrapped around her head and only her nose and mouth showing. Even with that little showing the mosquitoes still made a valliant attempt to fly up her nose. She was not amused. She was cold and Cory was hot and everytime she slid over in his direction the last thing he wanted was body heat. It was quite comical to watch, it reminded me of them sleeping on Mt. Sinai. It wasn’t quite as cold though.

It was a relaxing morning as all they needed to do was shower, and pack up their toiletry kit and the sleeping bags. Paradise provided a bus ride to the ferry terminal. We had to take two ferries today, as the direct ferry to Santorini was completely booked up. Our first stop for a brief period of time was at Paros and then on to the big ferry for the trip to Santorini. The first ferry was a “fast” ferry. Cory and Elaine surmise it is what B.C. should have had with the fast cat ferries of a few years ago. The ferry was about the same size as the old B.C. ones and was indeed very fast. It was quite entertaining to see the faces of the fellow passengers go from nicely tanned to pasty white as the wave action took its toll. Cory and Elaine mentioned that their friend Anne would have to fly to Santorini if she ever decides to venture here.

Both Elaine and Cory have been looking forward to Santorini for a very long time. I have often heard Elaine say she feels the need to go to Santorini. She has no idea why, but just feels it is something she must do. The guest bedroom in their house is painted blue – Santorini blue, and it is verrrrrry blue. As the ferry neared the dock I could sense Elaine holding her breath in eager anticipation of setting her eyes on the island for the very first time. Would it hold the aura and mystique she expects it to? I think both of them were visibly surprised on how all the buildings seem to be at the top of the Island hugging the cliff tops and indeed in some cases built right into the sides of the cliffs. It was easy to see the different areas. The port was an absolute crazy madhouse with buses and tours and people holding up signs offering rooms. All Cory and Elaine were looking for was the sign for Katerina and John’s place. This is where we are booked in for at least 2 nights and hopefully more. John met us and drove us to his place in Perissa beach, all the while being an excellent tour guide and pointing out the various places we might want to go like his brother’s market or his sons rental business etc. The more different the country the more similarities there are in the end.

After checking in we went for a walk. The black sands of Perissa beach go on and on and on, and that is how far it seemed we walked. Along the beach we noticed many signs. A set of two loungers and an umbrella is available for 5 Euros. Some restaurant/bars will offer them free to their customers. They are supposing you will be spending money on 2 Euro beers or 3 Euro mixed drinks. Yes, Cory and Elaine were smiling, as the prices are considerably cheaper than in Mykonos. I know they were worried because people had told them how expensive Santorini was. After walking the beach for close to two hours Elaine and Cory stopped to have a rum and coke for 3 Euros. It was the first rum and coke in a while and it tasted very good. They chuckled when they found out it was 7 year Havana Club rum from Cuba. (Very expensive stuff when outside of Cuba. They think there was a slight error in the barman’s choice )

There are some restaurants that have touristy prices, but they also saw a sign at one restaurant that was offering roast lamb and potatoes for 6.50 Euros. A price that would be difficult to match back home.

Katerina and John’s place is very popular and we must wait until tomorrow to find out whether we can stay more than 2 nights. We have told them we are interested in a week or more. The cost is 17.95 Euros. It is only a few more Euros than our tent site in Mykonos, but for this we have a bed, a private bath, and a fridge in our room. There is also a small postage size swimming pool. Some of their rooms have a small kitchenette, and they are going to try to get us in one of those. Those rooms are also 17.95. Elaine might be able to heat up a 1. 79 Euro can of soup yet. There is a little market next door, and Elaine and Cory picked up a package of six 1.5 litres of water for 1.60 Euro. Back in Mykonos they were happy to get one bottle for 1.50. In the opposite direction of the market there is a bakery that is open 24 hours. It was hard to decide what to get. Cory got Greek Salad in a pie (he said it was fantastic and way better than it sounds) and Elaine got a spinach and feta pie. For dessert they are going to split a chocolate long john. Everything seems to be family oriented here as John’s son rents scooters and ATV’s, and John’s brother runs the market next door. The price of a scooter for a week is about half the cost it was in Mykonos. Once we have a better idea of how long we will be staying, we will be able to firm up our plans and see if we even need a scooter. Internet is also next door, and is also half price with a much better connection. That is good, because I need to get my entries and photos for the journal uploaded.

It seems that Santorini will be a nice place to spend some time.

It is late and I know that both Cory and Elaine are looking forward to a good nights sleep. Tomorrow it will be off to the Laundromat and then hit the beach.

Elaine may be in need of some therapy fortunately we found the perfect place. There is a place called shopping therapy, and really with that kind of therapy what else could anybody possible need?

Sep 7, 2009

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