Santorini 1 - Santorinian Arrival

Everyone told us "You have to see Santorini, it is incredibly beautiful." So even with limited time, we booked a two-day stay and went for it. When our ferry pulled close to the island, we finally saw what everyone had been raging about. The cliffs towered over us on all sides - a mixture of brown and white sandstones - with multi-colored caps made of cities! Yes, towns and cities built into the tops of the cliffs. The way they were built directly into the rocks all over the island was interesting, intricate, impressive. To me it seemed almost like a futuristic island modeled off of Ancient Greek building templates. Way cool!




We pulled up to the port, unloaded our dozen suitcases (the family is very giving, both with love and gifts...), and took a bus up the zig-zagging cliff-climbing road that seemed to launch straight up the side of the island. Ten minutes later, my mom and sister started breathing again while the color rushed back into their faces. Just a few minutes from the top stood our hotel. It was a private villa for the family overlooking the sea, fully equipped with showers with all sorts of gadgets, a giant bathtub/hot tub, a laptop with internet and three flat screen tvs (which we didn't touch once).







Everyone threw on their bathing suits and proceeded to jump into the pool...What a relaxing afternoon after a long, long day of travel.











We finished it all off with a nice champagne toast at sunset and a great dinner out in town during the world cup final. Needless to say (but I'll tell you anyway), we were having an incredible journey through Greece and this was the perfect beginning to the end.