There are some places that are so famous that either attract you so much that you dream of visiting them or repel you and you think me, there, no way.
The island of Santorini is a magic place, a miracle of nature and its beauty is great! Because of all that, it is also a very very very famous attraction. A small island of about 15.000 inhabitants that hosts up to 2 million visitors! Yes, that's right, the number is astronomical for this tiny spot on Earth, this island of Cyclades in Aegean Sea, Greece.
For all the above, Santorini has always been a place that attracted me and repelled me at the same time. But my father was dreaming of going to Santorini and didn't care for the rest. So, a few years ago, we gave an appointment with my parents to meet there as it is in a way in the middle between the mainland and the island I live on.
Back then, I was not taking a lot of photos and most of them are family photos, reminders of the three of us having fun. But I found some cute ones :)
Let's start with some juicy general info. The island is a living breathing volcano, silent since 1950. The biggest eruption took place in 1650 BC. Before this, the island was round (that was also its name "Strongili") but most of it sank and the "caldera" (the lagoon as described below) was created. From the boat, you can travel through the history of Earth by looking at the geological layers.
Santorini from above, by Earth Observatory, NASA
The islands in this photograph (taken from the International Space Station) are arranged in an oval shape. They are all that remains of what was once a large, circular volcano.
The largest island in the ring is the tourist mecca of Santorini (also known as Thira), while the other islands are Thirasia and Aspronisi. The three pieces are what remains after an enormous eruption destroyed most of a volcanic island. Water from the Aegean Sea rushed in to fill the void, forming the central, 12 kilometer-long (7.5 mile) lagoon.
The lagoon is surrounded by high, steep cliffs on three sides. Several towns occupy the top of these impressive, near-vertical cliffs (roughly 300 meters, or 1,000 feet), appearing as white stipple patterns from the traditional whitewash paint that is almost exclusively used on these islands.
Earth Observatory, NASA
Today we are going to Oia, a beautiful village that is famous for the spectacular sunset as the sun dives in the sea. People, especially couples, come from all around the globe to see this beautiful sight. Well, if anyone thought of it, I agree, come on it's just a sunset. We wanted to visit the place and we chose to go earlier to avoid the hordes of people at the evening time, but we found good food and wine. Santorini is also famous for its wines.
It's pretty early in a afternoon, but many already go to castle to find the perfect spot. How crazy is that? I am returning to the tavern and my parents.
But will come back to see what's going on. Yeap, they keep coming!
The time passed and we found ourselves still there. We decided to go with the flow and truth is we enjoyed it. We found a cafe that was a bit remote and therefor very quiet and I became full tourists for a while!
Funny thing is that there was mist, as I guess it usually has in summer when the temperature is really high and the sun didn't dive into the sea. But it was so beautiful, I must admit.
This is my entry to wonderful #wednesdaywalk by @tattoodjay!
Happy walks and happy travels everyone!