| Erin's Santorini Journals 5-11-02 Saturday we slept until about 9:30am, then made it down just in time for the sparse breakfast of bread and tea. We'd heard the beaches of Santorini were of black sand and wanted to go see, so we quickly dressed in our suits and made the 10 minute walk to the closest beach. Sure enough, black sand! It didn't look as pretty as the white or tan beaches, but the volcanic sand didn't stick to us and was easier to walk on in the morning. We laid out and enjoyed the sun for an hour or so before trying the water, which we found to be painfully cold. Usually the ocean is cold and you quickly get numb, allowing you to swim for a while. But this water was so cold that it stung and burned, and never got numb! So I didn't swim, and Glenn only dunked and came right out. We were among the very few people on the beach, and had a very comfortable 4 hours of sunbathing with the bright sun and a cool breeze blowing. I was careful to reapply sunblock regularly, but as the day wore on it got very hot on the black sand. I convinced Glenn that it would be more comfortable back at the hotel's pool, where the water would be slightly warmer and there would be chairs on the deck, so after stopping for refreshments (we had a fridge - yea!), we returned to the hotel. The views from our balcony hadn't been excellent in the morning mist, but in the afternoon were stunning. The water was a deep gorgeous blue and all the houses & hotels were white, with large hills towering above for a very impressive effect. Once inside, I found that I had burned my chest pretty badly, so I went to the pool pretty covered up in a shirt and sarong. It was nice by the pool, and we stayed out there relaxing, reading, and talking to other guests for several hours. Finally I went in and washed up, and got dressed up a little (just for a change of pace, I occasionally try to look nice). We walked down the road a ways to find dinner, and had a very nice mixed grill special for 2 at 'God's Garden Restaurant.' Sated with meat and wine, we headed back to the hotel around 11pm, noticing flashes on the other side of the mountains and wondering if it was a laser show. When we got to our room, I lotioned my burns and we crashed for the night. Before we were fully asleep though, we heard thunder and sudden rain outside, and I stood on the balcony to watch a very impressive lightning show! The rain poured down ferociously, and the lightning and thunder were exciting and loud, but quickly passed over us and out to sea. A very nice way to end our first day on Santorini! |
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| The gorgeous city of Ia, at the other end of the island from Perissa, where we stayed! |