That encounter occurred right near a sign I saw for a beach called Paradeisos, or Paradise. It was deserted. Just when I thought the irony didn't get thicker, I passed Taverna Paradeisos with its weather-worn exterior and barren porches. I guess paradise moved farther uphill on the island.
I returned to our suite just in time to greet Rumi bringing our terrace breakfast. She seemed surprised that I bothered to exercise independently on a step-laden island like Santorini, and she was right--I paid for it later. But in the moment I enjoyed the runner's high atop the caldera, stretching silently as I overlooked the Aegean.
ABOVE: Even the breakfasts are photogenic on Santorini.
After Annie awoke and we dined, Rumi returned to discuss the possibility of moving us next door to the more spacious Sailing Suite. On my earlier post when I bragged about the better plumbing in the Venetian, I neglected to note the leak from the bathtub that left standing water near the toilet. We were content to deal with it, but Tony offered us the Sailing Suite literally across a shared hall, so we consented. It had the same comfortable bed and lovely amenities, just with more width to the room and a shower that didn't leak.
As if upgrading us to a larger room (again) wasn't enough recompense, we had fresh flowers awaiting us when we moved our baggage. We completely understood why every review of the Sea Captain's House on TripAdvisor.com was a five-star rave.
After situating ourselves once more, we sought out a scooter rental agency so we could tour the rest of the island. Apparently an international driver's license is required for any two-wheel motorized vehicle(probably for the best), so that left us with a car or ATV rental. We got a 150cc automatic 4-wheeler for three days: 85€ with insurance.
ABOVE: Don't be jealous of our hog.
Mounted on our Road Warrior, we dashed off into the sun. Our first stop was the village of Imerovigli(name means "watchtower"), renowned as a quieter caldera-side village with wonderful panoramic views. It did not disappoint. We parked the hog and explored the village on foot, spying the large rock spire of Skaros from the walls of Aghios Georgios church.
I had read about Skaros in our travel guide: there was once a castle there built by Venetians in the 13th century, but it collapsed in an earthquake, leaving only pieces. A trail of rock steps and dirt path descended from the church, which we followed down and across to the castle remains. Skaros afforded us an amazing view of the volcano and nearby villages like Oia, Firostefani, and Fira.
ABOVE: Standing atop impregnable defenses before earthquake-proofing was invented. Volcano in background.
The hike down and across to Skaros wasn't too bad, but that of course left us with a harrowing return journey. The sky was hazy enough to keep the heat from being too unbearable, but we were still sweat-soaked and exhausted by the time we got back up to Imerovigli.
After stopping for water, we refueled with crackers at our Road Warrior before mounting up again. We drove through the small suburb of Fira called Firostefani, and on into the chaotic bustle of the island capital. It was awful just driving through the streets: tourists were crossing the road actively trying to get hit, and impatient Greeks on scooters were whizzing past us on the dividing line. It was like New York City to me: tons of spoken languages, traffic maelstroms, and asshole drivers.
When we parked the hog and found the walking streets of Fira, the foot traffic was nearly as bad. Fira is the drop-off and pickup point for all the cruise ships that visit the island. Hundreds of tourists hit Fira by donkey or cable-car from the caldera port, and they're all frantic to photograph, eat, or purchase as much of the island as possible before their ship departs.
ABOVE: Cable cars leading to the waiting cruise ships at anchor.
Fira has sadly modified itself (I'm assuming, because I HOPE the village wasn't always this way) to be a wham-bam neighborhood of stores for the urgent tourist. The streets were lined with petite store after store of "local" jewelry, fabrics, clothes, and kitsch.
Fira: best viewed with no zoom.
The only truly beautiful sight we enjoyed was the Greek Orthodox cathedral of Panayia Ypapantis. We were allowed to enter the church and light candles, but were forbidden from photographing or videotaping the beautifully painted walls and ceiling adorned with ornate iconography of Christ, the theotokos virgin Mary, and a few saints and angels. The explicit "no photography" sign didn't deter some disrespectful tourists, however, much to my frustration.
After walking Fira's alleyways and browsing among the boutiques briefly, we found our way back to the hog and departed. We drove back to Finikia at sunset, stopping at a restaurant called Santorini Mou on the edge of town closest to Oia[Website here]. As we were seated, our young waiter brought us several photo albums to browse: they were full of the smiling faces of restaurant guests, including one album dedicated solely to pictures of Billie Joe Armstong and Tre Cool of the band Green Day, who were apparently frequent visitors and friends with the owner.
We were told that the owner, Mihalis, had over 30 albums of guest photos. When I mentioned that we were on our honeymoon, the waiter brought us the special Honeymoon Album and promised us that Mihalis would sing a special song for us later. I secretly hoped it would be Billy Idol's "White Wedding."
Pictured: Mihalis, love child of Jimmy Buffett & Zorba the Greek
We ate garlic bread and zucchini fritters as appetizer, then fried calamari and mussels Saganaki (a gumbo-like bowl of boiled mussels, tomato, cucumber, lemon and oil) for the main courses. As we dined, Mihalis tuned his guitar and began playing some Greek tunes. He was shortly joined by his grandson on bouzouki, who was genuinely flattered when we guests clapped with approval after each song. One number included the refrain, "Santorini, Santorini...Santorini, s'agapó," which means "Santorini, I love you." we could not agree more!
After finishing our meals, we were brought an after-dinner shot that I mistook for ouzo; it had a different name, though(rakí, maybe?), and tasted like a medley of vodka and tequila. Opa!
That's about the time Mihalis was lubricated enough (he threw back a shot of something after every song played) to move to our table for a serenade. He and his grandson belted out "When I'm 64," a colorful, humorous tune about ageless love, and we were brought a half-pint bottle of champagne with which to toast the musicians at the end of the song. Mihalis was a fun-loving man and entertainer, embodying the best of Greek culture. He appeared to have only one responsibility these days at his restaurant: get drunk, sing to guests, and pose for photos. Good gig.
ABOVE: A champagne serenade
When we departed Santorini Mou--far later than planned--Mihalis hollered at me: "Dimitraki! [that's an affectionate form of "Jimmy" in Greek] Come again...and bring your CHILDREN!" we graciously thanked him and all the staff of the restaurant that had treated us so kindly, then made our exit.
We mounted up and returned to our room just after 11pm, exhausted but loving life.
Santorini Day 7 (June 8) Album:
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| Santorini: June 8, 2011 |
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Νικολάου Νομικού,Oia,Greece
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