Santorini - Day 1

Today our morning started bright and early. As the previous post mentioned, we had to leave the hostel at 12:30am to catch our ride to the Athens airport.  Luckily we were able to find a decent spot and close our eyes for a few brief hours.

Trying to get comfortable in the Athens airport

The flight to Santorini is only 45 minutes long but it was quite a busy flight. We took off, the lights came on, the flight attendants served us drinks then picked up the trash, and then we landed. We arrived when it was still dark outside and someone from our hotel was there to pick us up and drive us to Fira, the capital of the island and where we were staying. When we arrived at the hotel, our room was all ready for us! So we were able to get some decent hours of sleep in before heading out to explore the island.

We woke up late morning and after checking in (reception had been closed at 6:30am) we ate a wonderful breakfast at a place recommended by the hotel called The Corner. It was the first good breakfast we’ve had since we’ve left the states. Steph ordered a savory vegetable crepe and Electra ordered yogurt with honey and a Greek omelet. The meal was complete with fresh squeezed orange juice and Greek coffee.

Breakfast

Immediately afterwards we headed to the beach. We took the bus to Pervivlos where there’s 7 km of a gorgeous long black sand beach. The Mediterranean water is gorgeous! Clear blue water and sky for miles it seemed and after walking along the water for a little bit, we paid to sit under a huge straw umbrella on beach lounge chairs. It was pure bliss. We got some frozen cocktails and relaxed for hours. The water was the perfect temperature and an amazing way to cool off when we got too hot from the sun. Of course, Electra tried very hard to be covered in shade the entire time.

On the beach!

Our cocktails

The view from our chairs of the Mediterranean

After a while we got hungry and wandered down the beach street looking for a good place to eat. We ended up going to this restaurant that had great authentic Greek food. We ordered a Santorini salad and a Meze appetizer (which is a large sample plate with lots of different appetizers). We were able to try Santorini tomatoes and fava beans – both specialities of the island. The waitress was quite a character and kept telling us about the Greek dancing night they host on Monday nights. It seemed like it’d be a fantastic time but sadly we’ll be gone by then. Our late lunch was delicious and the view of the ocean was incredible.

Our view from our table at lunch

After stuffing ourselves we walked further down the beach road to try and walk off some of the calories. Eventually we headed back to our original lounging location and relaxed some more until the sun set, drinking Mythos.

Our lounging area was empty by the end of the day

Bliss!

Waiting for the bus and quite happy after a wonderful day of relaxation

Then we caught the bus back to Fira and after a quick shower we headed out and stopped at a Gyro stand where we each ordered a gyro pita. It was delicious! We were however, afterwards quite full and tired so we headed back to the hotel for some sleep.

Dinner!