Santorini and Mykonos, Greece

I think the main thing I have learned so far is that I really love holidays. I have made a promise to myself that I will go on more holidays when I get home. Also, I believe that I am supposed to be rich. Yesterday I was looking at all these luxury yachts floating out on the bay and I felt really strongly that I should be on one. Did I say ‘on one?’, I meant own one.
We made it to Santorini a few days ago, flying in around midday AND our plane left ON TIME!!!! We were joyfully reunited with our luggage at Athens airport. It was one of the happiest moments of my life, I had really submitted myself to the fact that I would never get it back! The drive from the airport to our hotel had me a bit worried, there’s a lot of rubbish floating around the streets and dilapidated buildings, it’s weird, Santorini has this beautiful front of the cliff but then just a few metres back it gets pretty ugly!
The hotel we stayed at was really basic, just a room with two beds, but it had a really pretty courtyard with vines climbing everywhere and a beautiful little pool on the roof. Justine was sick with a really bad cold so she had a big cold and flu tablet induced sleep at the hotel and I went for a bit of a wander around the town. At first I was wondering, “Is this it?” but then I came up some step and all of a sudden was at the top of this cliff looking out over the ocean with all these winding paths with shops all around. I was very excited.
That night after some time by the pool I dragged Justine out of bed to go night shopping. Nothing seems to get started until after dark in Greece. All the shops are open late and all the people come out. I think everyone is at the beaches during the day and then they come to town in the evening. Wandering around the town was so good, I can’t explain it. I think I need photos to explain it. Really pretty.
We spent the next morning by the pool reading and relaxing. I was clever enough to not put sunscreen on the bottom half of my right leg. I must have got distracted. I burned it really badly! Mum, I swear I really wasn’t even out there for that long!! But I burn myself once every year and then remember how easily I burn.
We went out for lunch at the top of the cliff. I love the differences between countries. The waiter we had stood around smoking and then put his cigarette down to bring us our meals and then went back to smoking. And you can smoke in buses. And everyone smokes. I hate it, everywhere you go smells like cigarettes.
In the afternoon we took the bus to the low side of Santorini where the beaches are. I had read in lonely planet about a nice beach called Perissa but we accidentally got off the bus a stop early at a beach called Perivolos. It ended up a much quieter beach. Me and Jus were fascinated because the sand is not sand but tiny little black rocks a bit bigger than poppy seeds. We couldn’t stop looking at it and touching it! The water is so beautiful and clear, you can see right to the bottom even when you’re out in deep water. I don’t think I’d ever realized how stressed I am swimming in the sea at home until I was swimming and started thinking, ‘No sharks… no jellyfish… no stingrays… nothing poisonous…” Although the downside to that is no lifeguards… J
The next day we took a boat out to the volcano. Santorini is a backward C shape, with the cliff being on the inside edge. It curves around another smaller island which is the volcano. So when you are standing at the top of the cliff you have this view of the volcano island. The word “caldera”is mentioned a lot, but I still don’t know if caldera is the volcano or the cliff?? Before we walked up the volcano the boat pulled into this little bay about 50 metres offshore and achored. The guides said, Ök, out you go!” and everyone on the boat jumped of and went swimming in the sea. When we were in Thessaloniki, Uncle Nick kept telling us about how the water is this beautiful blue color like nowhere else in the world, but I think I am a bit of a snob and didn’t really believe that anywhere else is better than home, but the water really is incredible. I just can’t stop looking at it. So we all went swimming in to the shore where there are hot volcanic springs. It wasn’t that hot but still nice. The water got all muddy towards the shore and it felt like the Yarra J It was really cool because the boat was full of tourists they were all thrilled to have had to jumped off a boat into the Aegean, so we were all swimming around grinning like idiots. Around the shore was steep rocky cliff and on the cliff were mountain goats!!! They are amazing, skipping around these rock faces so easily.
Back in the boat we went and then off to the volcano. Needless to say, it was Justine’s idea to go to the volcano. Anyone who knows me know that me and walking uphill just does not go together. Let alone in the middle of the day. But it wasn’t as bad as Mt Oberon and I had thought to wear my runners instead of sandals like everyone else. I was staring daggers into the back of Justine because she was skipping up the mountain like the mountain goats, but in her bikini giving Miranda Kerr a run for her money. I huffed up about half an hour after she’d reached the top. As soon as I got to the top I was satisfied and started heading back down to the boat. Once I got back to the boat I got and ice cream and sat with my legs over the edge of the boat – much more my kind of scene!
We got back to Fira in the early afternoon and had the best chicken souvlakis for 2 euros!! They put chips in the souvlaki!! It’s awesome! We went back to the hotel for an hour by the pool before we headed off to the airport for our flight back to Athens then back out to Mykonos. Surprise, surprise, both flights were delayed. It’s so frustrating, our flight to Mykonos was delayed for over an hour and it’s only a 20 minute flight!!!
We took a taxi to Petasos Beach Hotel on Platys Giaolos beach in Mykonos. We were so excited because I’d convinced Jus to let us stay at a 4 and half star hotel and this was it! We pulled up feeling a little haggard in board shorts after a day in the water, and there was a man waiting to get our bags out of the taxi and carry them up the stairs into the foyer for us. We were very impressed. The concierge met us in this pristine foyer, it is amazing, I’m sitting here now typing this. I’m talking modern chandelier, mosiaced reception desk, white couches, glass dividers, very fancy. While the concierge was telling us about the different pools and continental breakfast I was keeping an eye on a man suspiciously circling our luggage. I was worried that he was going to do a runner with them while our backs were turned and I was not letting my luggage leave me again that easily! Turns out he’s the man that carries your luggage to your room for you!! The nicest hotel I have stayed in is Aloha Motel in Cowes, so this is a very different experience for me!
Our room is lovely, huge window through from the shower into the room with a venetian blind. Very strange. We have a little verandah that you can see the ocean from. The hotel is less than 50 metres from this beautiful beach. Ben and Emma were here a few months ago and recommended this beach, turns out the hotel they stayed at is right across the road. This beach is lovely because it’s not a party beach with nightclubs, it’s much quieter and has lots of restaurants along it.
The next morning we put on our nicest, cleanest clothes to go to breakfast! The hotel is out on a little point and looks back at another beach called Psarous. This is where all my yachts are.
We spent the morning by the pool. There is a very strange thing that happens in Greece. At the beaches and hotels people come down and put their towels on the sun lounges and then go off for the day, and leave their towels there to reserve their lounges. So if you come down late morning there might only be a few people there using their lounges but you can’t use one because they’ve all been reserved. I really can’t understand this!! It’s so selfish! Me and Jus think that if anyone tried this at home people would go, “Oh, someone has forgotten their towel… Score!” and take your towel home. I was so tempted to go throw towels off the deck into the ocean.
Me, being me, and a very uniquely talented person, dyed myself blue. I bought a sarong in Santorini and had been laying on it by the pool. I went back to the room for a minute and realized I was blue from top to tail. Justine has tanned and very nice deep golden brown, and I have one red leg and dyed myself blue. We went down the beach for lunch and picked a restaurant called Niko’s. And yes, it was much better than Niko’s in Croydon.
Later that night we came back down to the beach for a sunset swim. I think I really could become a beach bum in Greece. They have beach umbrellas everywhere too. When we were swimming all these little fish came and swam around our feet. I freaked myself out a bit telling Justine they were piranhas. Came back to the hotel pool to unwind from a stressful day.
At about 9pm we jumped on a bus and went into Mykonos town for dinner. Mykonos town is like a white washed labyrinth and is typical of all the Greek postcards – blue doors and boganvillea (spelling??). I loved it! It’s like a market town, lots of souvenir shops and jewellery stores. We found a nice place to eat and were joined by some cats and a pelican. The pelicans here are all named Petros and are friendly and wander up into the town like they are doing their shopping. And you can touch them and put your arm around them for a photo. I didn’t trust it. Don’t pelicans have razor sharp beaks? I stuck to the cats and scratched their ears.
We spent the next hour trying to find our way out of the maze and back to the bus station. The town was built like a maze to confuse pirates. It weird because they don’t even have signs up saying, “Port this way, bus station this way”. We were two very confused pirates.
So that brings me up to speed with today! Justine spent the morning by the pool again and I took the bus back into the town to do a bit more exploring. Mum, you’ll be pleased to hear that a Canadian woman started talking to me on the bus because she heard me speaking to the driver and thought I was Canadian too. Isn’t that weird?
We didn’t really push ourselves with the sightseeing in Mykonos, we’ve really just stuck to the town and the beach and the hotel! I think we were both a bit exhausted from doing so much everywhere else. Tomorrow morning we will fly back to our beloved Athens airport and then on to London. The day after we start on our tour and go to Paris!! Me and Jus are both looking forward to being on the tour and getting to know new people. I think we are both hoping that it will be a bit like being on camp!
Ok, I think it’s time for tea!! Yiassis!!!! (Not sure what that means but everyone says it…)