Thursday March 26, 2009
Today we woke up to blue skies and bright sun! We were sooo excited to be able to go on a boat tour of the volcano and hot springs so we packed our lunches, a change of clothes, and headed out. We decided if we were going to swim in the hot springs this totally granted us the right to buy tacky tourist towels displaying a cartoon map of Santorini. I’ve learned to never pay asking price, anywhere, and got the shop owner to lower the price!
Our tour departed from the old port of Santorini so we had to walk down one million 50 thousand switchback stairs to get down to it. At the bottom we met up with every other tourist on the island taking advantage of the beautiful day. The first sailboat was full so we waited for the second to arrive and boarded. We quickly departed for the volcano once everyone was on board and had a smooth 15 minute sail over to the volcano.
We piled out of our boat and spend an hour and a half exploring the volcano. The terrain was rocky with pretty rust colored ground cover in areas. Every 50 ft we would discover a new beautiful view and half to stop for another round of pictures. The volcano is still active and at the top we found a small bit of sulfur smelling steam seeping out of the ground.
From the volcano our boat headed for the hot springs nestled in the second and smaller volcanic island. The water is too shallow for the boat to pull all the way up to the springs so we had to swim about 50 meters in the Mediterranean to get there. We were aware of the swimming part but not about how freezing cold the water was going to be. I was expecting maybe 65 or 70 degree water…NO it was estimated to be between 55 and 60 degrees.
Back on the boat we changed into our dry clothes and ate our packed lunches before arriving back at the old port. There was no way we were walking back up those steps so Jenny and I opted to hire donkeys while the other girls stuck with the gondola. The donkeys were so cute clad in colorful attire and ringing bells. The donkey man didn’t speak English and basically just helped us get on our donkeys and off they went on their own. It was amazing how well trained they were. The donkey man eventually caught back up to us but he only whispered a few words the entire 20 minute ride to keep the donkeys in line. I was sooo much fun to effortlessly climb the cliff with a beautiful view.
For the rest of the day we spent some time exploring the various shops that were open. Tons of locals were out doing maintenance work on their homes and businesses getting ready for the nearing high season. We didn’t get to see the energetic summer Santorini but I think the “back door” view had its own pluses that made the trip just as much fun.
Today we woke up to blue skies and bright sun! We were sooo excited to be able to go on a boat tour of the volcano and hot springs so we packed our lunches, a change of clothes, and headed out. We decided if we were going to swim in the hot springs this totally granted us the right to buy tacky tourist towels displaying a cartoon map of Santorini. I’ve learned to never pay asking price, anywhere, and got the shop owner to lower the price!
Our tour departed from the old port of Santorini so we had to walk down one million 50 thousand switchback stairs to get down to it. At the bottom we met up with every other tourist on the island taking advantage of the beautiful day. The first sailboat was full so we waited for the second to arrive and boarded. We quickly departed for the volcano once everyone was on board and had a smooth 15 minute sail over to the volcano.
We piled out of our boat and spend an hour and a half exploring the volcano. The terrain was rocky with pretty rust colored ground cover in areas. Every 50 ft we would discover a new beautiful view and half to stop for another round of pictures. The volcano is still active and at the top we found a small bit of sulfur smelling steam seeping out of the ground.
From the volcano our boat headed for the hot springs nestled in the second and smaller volcanic island. The water is too shallow for the boat to pull all the way up to the springs so we had to swim about 50 meters in the Mediterranean to get there. We were aware of the swimming part but not about how freezing cold the water was going to be. I was expecting maybe 65 or 70 degree water…NO it was estimated to be between 55 and 60 degrees.
We could see a lot of tourists wearing swimsuits under their clothes but when it came time to jump everyone magically became very hesitant. Jenny was the first one to jump followed by Erika, myself, and then Mel with eventually 15 or so other brave souls. As soon as my body submerged in the water I was completely stunned. There was no option to turn back once I was in so I suffered through the 50 meters of freezing cold water that gradually became warmer as the sea transitioned into the hot springs. No one told us that by “hot” they meant lukewarm but I was able to swim in far enough to sit in a warm area and rest against a rock in the sun for 15 minutes before bearing the icy swim back to the boat. It was an absolutely miserable cold swim but I don’t regret it one bit!
Back on the boat we changed into our dry clothes and ate our packed lunches before arriving back at the old port. There was no way we were walking back up those steps so Jenny and I opted to hire donkeys while the other girls stuck with the gondola. The donkeys were so cute clad in colorful attire and ringing bells. The donkey man didn’t speak English and basically just helped us get on our donkeys and off they went on their own. It was amazing how well trained they were. The donkey man eventually caught back up to us but he only whispered a few words the entire 20 minute ride to keep the donkeys in line. I was sooo much fun to effortlessly climb the cliff with a beautiful view.
For the rest of the day we spent some time exploring the various shops that were open. Tons of locals were out doing maintenance work on their homes and businesses getting ready for the nearing high season. We didn’t get to see the energetic summer Santorini but I think the “back door” view had its own pluses that made the trip just as much fun. For our last night in Santorini we went out to dinner at another local restaurant. It was an adorable little spot with only a few other tables with guests. Jenny and I split their specialty salad featuring their “special sauce” that was more of a vegetable and vinegar puree than a sauce but still very good. For my main course I went with Mousaka because I’ve never actually had it before….when in Rome. I don’t have anything to compare it to but I think it was really good!
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