After a two hour ferry ride with our niece and nephew still in tow we land at Santorini, a romantic island known for its cliffs and sunsets.
We are staying at a small hotel in Firostefani that clings to the side of a cliff like a cat climbing up a tree. 
Seems like one shift in the earth and the entire town will fall into the sea. Santorini is an active volcano which had the largest eruption ever recorded. The Eruption! The island is basically a part of the outer ring, or caldera as it is repeatedly referred to, of the volcano. It is believed that the ~1630 BC eruption caused a tsunami with waves as high as 500 feet and more powerful than 40 atom bombs. The significance today is that the eruption sprayed 25 feet deep ash over an entire town called Akrotiri. This ash preserved the town “as is” for thousands of years. Presently the site is being excavated and is thought to be the oldest town discovered in modern times. Some experts believe it can be the lost underwater city of Atlantis. These ruins date hundreds of years before the ruins of Athens and Rome, so this is a big deal.
We then make our way to a wine tour. It is amazing how the grapes are grown in this hot, steamy and often aggressively windy climate. They wrap the grape vines in a basket shape on the ground and the grapes grow inside the basket in order to preserve water and to hide from the basking sun or excessive winds. We then wind down our time in Santorini relaxing on the black sand beach and soaking up the beauty of a few memorable sunsets.
We get up early to connect with our new home for a few nights, looking forward to chilling in some remote coves and island hoping. We board the catamaran in the coolest little fishing town on the tip of the island. Sotos, our Captain, jams out to some reggae (more on this later) and we are on our way. We cruise north and stop for a swim in several remote coves only accessible by boat. Unfortunately a group of ladies end up in the same cove and proceed to sun bathe European style on a giant rock protruding out of the water in the middle of the cove. After Tyler and I snorkel nearby to make sure everyone was safe we head to the island of Ios.
Ready to chow
Ios
And I am not talking about the iPhone operating system iOS. Ios nicknamed the “Mecca of youth” lived up to it’s name. We all said the same thing; the island and town were built to host a party. It looks like your typical Greek setting, hillsides lined with white houses integrated like Legos and configured for maximum access through the windy walking only streets. You get lost every few minutes but it doesn’t matter when every corner is another bar or restaurant. Coach style buses shuttle everyone between the beaches and up the 2-mile road to the town center. A few words of wisdom from our captain set us on our way, “There will be free shots everywhere but don’t drink them and order a specific type of vodka not just any vodka.” A few pizzas, a Nutella shake and some dancing rounded out the night before we rolled in at 4 am to catch some shuteye before heading out on the boat for another day pulling into mystical coves that awaited our arrival.
The last stop on the catamaran brought us to a cliff diving spot, another memorable sunset and dinner at a small fishing village where we shared scorpion fish soup and, as the menu stated, red wine from a barrel.
Our last day in Greece consisted of a short flight to Athens to get a little culture before leaving our final deposit towards the Greek debt. First stop is the Parthenon; there is something surreal about standing on the same steps as Plato, Socrates and Zeus. I felt a similar feeling when we stood at the Nazis rally grounds at the podium where Hitler gave his famous motivational speeches. Don’t get me wrong; I am not comparing the great philosophers with psycho Hitler. Just noting that if you just stop and think about what you know about the era you can almost feel like you lived it. Three thousand years ago they figured out how to do things that I still can’t figure out today, so much for evolution. Building three story structures from marble, cranes to hoist the material, fresh water piping throughout a city of 30,000 people and voting on important items are just a few of the impressive accomplishments of the region.
Side note, I received an Instagram lesson from Tyler today. I am so old and out of touch. I might have to start putting some pictures “on the line” soon. Disclaimer from Linda…I have an Instagram account “on the line” but don’t use it much.
For future travelers The Greek islands are very similar to the Caribbean; with hundreds of islands, some developed but most untouched and both set up for maximum relaxation. I always felt the Caribbean is underrated and now I can make a first hand assessment and support my view with some facts. Both the Caribbean and Greek islands have a laid back atmosphere, set up for vacationers, great weather, easy access, not terribly expensive and beautiful landscapes. But for some reason millions of people flock to the Greek islands every summer hoping from island to island on giant ferries and the Caribbean doesn’t get the same attention. In Greece, each island with a small town of a few thousand explodes to host millions over a six-month period. I might be biased because we love the Caribbean but one can get a similar experience in each location minus the party, European cuisine and accents. In summary, if you want the beach and island feel save yourself 18 hours of travel and hit the Caribbean. If you want a little more beauty, bigger party and more dramatic landscapes hit the Med.
wherearethediamonds 