On An Island (19/06/11)

Well we are finally on Santorini, and its is as good as everyone has said. Santorini was the scene of a huge volcanic explosion in 1613 BC that basically blew away all but two-thirds of the periphery, and is has been subject to volcanic action and earthquakes ever since, the last major episode in 1956. It is suggested that the story of Atlantis dates back to the destuction of the cities in this region at the time of the major explosion. But today Santorini is a major tourist destination, and famed for its sunsets over the caldera. We were fortunate to get accommodation at the top ranked hotel, a small family run business that only houses 12 couples. The views are amazing - the photo here is the view from our little courtyard outside our room. We were presented with a platter of fruits and icecreams when we arrived with a fruit cocktail ; there is a horizon pool to swim in ; and it is away from the main tourist towns and so is very peaceful. There is still a small Taverna only 100m away where we walked down for lunch : a Santorini salad ( baby tomatoes are a local speciality), fried zucchini : meatballs; and a spicy cheese dip. All with the usual fresh bread, and a Mythos beer - but a wine for Carmel. We then walked back to our hotel , and had a pleasant swim in the pool and a rest on the pool lounges for the rest of the afternoon. A herbal tea with some sweets was delivered to our courtyard at 5 pm, then some wine and nibblies after 7pm as we watched the sun go down. These are all complimentary - they really do make an effort to look after you. We were driven to a restaurant down the road for dinner at 9pm, where we still managed to fit in a mushroom risotto, chicken souvlaki and a dish of pork between pitta bread that is "the equivalent of a Greek hamburger". It was washed down with a litre of the local red, to nicely round off the day. Tomorrow we hope to explore the island a bit, but is is hard to venture too far away from our beautiful location.