There are three ways to get to the top of Santorini's capital, Fira. You may climb 598 steps to the top take one of the six cars of the funicular or ride a donkey..
We took the funicular! There was no problem going up this morning. However, later in the day, it was a problem! There were four large cruise ships in port all departing at about the same time. We waited 1 1/2 hours in a line to get down on the funicular. Bill and I had stayed to do a little shopping and fortunately, we sent Duffy and Trey ahead with the guide. The line was long, but the guide with them talked to the funicular people and managed to get them to the front of the line! Yea! We got caught in a line of 100's of people....we were a little worried because the last tender to our ship was 6:30 pm. Ship sailed at 7:00 pm. We finally got in the funicular at 6:00 pm! When Bill and I finally boarded the ship, we were 12 & 13 on board so there were only 11 people yet to get back! Cutting it close! Whew!
But back to,the glorious part of the day! Santorini is a result of probably the largest ever volcanic explosion in recorded history. The volcanoes here is still "active" but the last explosion here was in 1956. In the first eruption in 1620 BC, there was no loss of life. They had warnings from the volcanoe and everyone evacuated leaving their homes in perfect condition because they planned on returning. They returned about 100 years later. Originally, Santorini was a pirate base. The homes here were brightly painted different colors so the sea farers could tell which home was theirs! The domes of all the churches are painted the bright blue. This was done so invaders/pirates would know they were holy places and leave them alone...
We loved walking through the amazing labyrinthe of narrow pedestrian streets with charming restaurants and shops on either side..It is all just amazingly beautiful--- even with the hordes of visitors! There were amazing views of white washed houses on hillsides leading down to a topaz blue sea.
After our walk through Fira, we got in our trusty bus and proceeded to do a drive around the whole island---beautiful...we even drove to the highest point on the island (near a Greek Military Base) for some amazing photo opportunities!
After lunch in a wonderful cafe, we did a little shopping before sending Duffy and Trey back to the ship.
One of the photos I'm publishing is a gentleman who had a drone camera! I snapped a photo just after he launched his drone!
The scenery is the story of today. One other note, this is a big wine producing area. But, due to the volcanic foundation it is difficult for the grape vines. The vines here are not trained upward (too windy and the sun is too harsh). So, in the spring when the new shoots come out, they braid the twigs to form a basket so the fruit will hang down inside the "basket" and the leaves protect the fruit from the hot sun! In October, after the grapes have been harvested in August, they cut the vines way back. I had a glass of the local wine at lunch and it was quite good..
Even after the funicular, there was quite a bit of climbing!
One of the blue domed churches.
The braided twig "basket" of the grape vine...
Photos of the 1956 eruption....
We drove to the lighthouse on the island. This was one of the views!
Donkeys and humans transgressing the 598 steps. One aside story.. We had two ladies in front of us in the funicular line. They got scared they were going to miss the last tender and decided to walk down. One of the ladies was quite large.. As Bill and I sat down on the tender back to the ship, who should board right behind us but the two ladies! Turns out the donkey pathway down was very slippery. Seems there is precious little "cleaning" on those steps! The one lady's knee gave out and they begged a donkey guide to walk her down. She then had a disagreement about what to pay the donkey guide. She allowed that it was the best 10 Euro she ever spent !
Coming up in the funicular!
That's all for tonight! Tomorrow it's Mykanos!
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