----- Santorini, Greece ---------------

For many years I have wanted to come to Santorini. I had first seen this dramatic island in the movie " The Big Blue", a movie about freediving. When you arrive to the island by boat, you have 3 options to reach the village of Fira high above. You can either take a tram, walk or ride a donkey to the top of the cliffs. The lines for both were so long that we hiked all the way to the top. Talk about a workout.

Santorini is strikingly beautiful. It is unique amoung the Greek islands with such dramatic cliffs caused by a volcanic explosion thousands of years ago. One legend states that Santorini was actually Atlantis and that when the island blew, it submerged the ruins below in the caldera as seen in my photos below. Interestingly, the government does not allow under any circumstances divers to explore the depths of the caldera. Santorini too is famous for its whiteclad villages nestled along is rugged cliffs making for great photos.

I rented a moped for 20 euros and drove from Fira to Oia. Oia is the village with many of the famous blue domed churches for which Santorini is famous for. It was great just walking the narrow winding paths through Oia and having no idea where they were leading me. Everywhere here is so beautiful, and the desire to take a photo of everything is strong. At the far point of Oia is an old building that is famous for peoples to gather and see the sunset.

One day I would like to return here and spend more time exploring the island. I must say that I did buy a few bottles of wine grown here in the dry rocky soil, which was sweet and delicious, different from the muscat and other sweet varietals found in the states.