Big Trip (Part 2): Santorini

We left Athens for the island of Santorini via another early morning flight. This time we had to wake the kids up at three in the morning. Who planned this crazy itinerary?? (I did the itinerary planning, I'm joking.) Again, the kids took it in stride and we loaded into a taxi and then a bus which took us the rest of the way to the airport.

Sora: "This is grounds for emancipation!"

Too dazed to be impressed by the bus ride

We arrived in Santorini just in time to catch a lovely sunrise and took the bus into Fira. It was too early to check into our hotel when we arrived, so we dropped our bags off and walked into town. The streets were virtually empty at such an early hour, so we got breakfast and waited for the town to wake up.

"Breakfast is better with four straws."

In spite of our exhaustion, we decided to book a sunset cruise to see the volcano and hot springs (although Nik's mom was too tired to join us). We then went back to our hotel and passed out in the lobby while they got our room ready. Fortunately, they cleaned the room quickly (perhaps they felt sorry for us), so we checked in, took a quick nap and then head back out.

Asleep in the hotel lobby

We walked Fira's labyrinthian and steep old streets to find the tram that would take us down to the old dock. The area was charming, but with it's kitschy souvenirs, it seemed to cater mainly to cruise tourists. Kai fell asleep in the stroller along the way and it's unfortunate that he missed the tram ride down to the dock. The towns on the western side of island are precariously balanced on the edge of a cliff, but that didn't become apparent to us until the tram dipped down into the caldera. The tram ride felt like a straight vertical drop down and you could see the steep pathway where other more adventurous travelers either walk or take donkey "taxis".

Fira perched on a cliff

Donkey "taxis" awaiting passengers

We thought that Kai would wake up by the time we loaded onto the boat, but amazingly he remained asleep in his stroller (poor boy must've been exhausted). As we sailed away from Fira, we appreciated the view of the cliffside towns and headed towards the volcano. For a nominal fee, you can hike up to the top of the volcano and view the island. But in the searing Mediterranean heat and with two young children, we didn't even bother and we stayed in a shaded waiting area by the dock. Kai woke up as we were waiting and we then passed time by watching fish swimming in the clear blue-green waters.

Sora wants to get back on to dry land.

Crystal clear Aegean water

Family portrait with the volcano behind us

"I'm on a boat!"

We then cruised to the hot springs. What we didn't realize prior arriving was that you had to jump off of the boat and swim out to the hot spring area. With the kids, that wasn't an option, so we hung out on the boat. Kai enjoyed watching all the passengers jump off of the boat into the water and eventually, even Nik managed to jump in for a very brief dip in the Aegean Sea (although Kai freaked out for the 30 second interval that Nik was gone).

In the distance, you can see the zigzagging path up to Fira

Nik takes the plunge

As sunset neared, we cruised to the northern tip of the island and in the distance, we could see throngs of tourists gathered in Oia to catch a glimpse of the famously picturesque Santorini sunset. At this point, we whipped out the tablet so Kai could watch Thomas because there was no way a toddler was going to sit still and stay quiet on a boat to watch the sunset. The sun dipped lower and the one of crew members gave us cups of white wine. Though nice (as most sunsets are), the sunset that evening wasn't extraordinary; however the experience of having our family together on a sunset cruise in a far off country was truly memorable.

"What sunset?"

Nik tries to pry Kai away from the tablet for a moment

The lovely town of Oia

Sunset watchers and Oia

The sky darkened and our boat headed back to Fira. The boat docked and we took the tram back up to town and then headed back to our hotel for a night of much-needed rest.

The next morning was decidedly low-key. We ate the continental breakfast provided the hotel and spent the morning playing in the hotel pool with the kids. Kai and Sora both had lots of fun and loved it!

Kai: "I'm not sure how I feel about this, Baba.."

Kai:".. OK, this is pretty fun."

Perhaps it was a combination of the fact that Kai and Sora both still need naps, jet lag, the exhaustion of traveling with kids and the midday Mediterranean heat, but as we traveled Greece, we adopted the Southern European habit of taking a siesta. So after our fun morning in the pool, we all took a brief nap.

Refreshed, we caught the bus up to Oia and ventured into town. With whitewashed walls, bright blue domes and vibrant purple bougainvilleas, Oia is what you envision when someone mentions the Greek islands. With the midday sun beating down on us, we decided that it was a good idea to stop for lunch and get out of the heat.

Sora loves Greek salad.. and tomatoes!

After lunch, we walked down Oia's broad pedestrian walkway. Although still geared towards tourists, the shops definitely had a more "boutique" feel compared to Fira. We snapped photos, and got a little dessert along the way.

My little girl eats everything, including lemon granita :)

With sunset fast approaching, we walked to the western tip of the town. Even though we were an hour early, there were already crowds of people who had staked out the choice spots. We waited for sunset and Sora, who had been such a trooper through the entire day, started running out of energy. Sora had been eyeing a pair of girls from Kentucky who were eating Pringles and the girls offered her some. Desperate to make it to sunset, I let her have the Pringles and she loved them (I've become that mom). The crush of people became horrendous as the sun lowered.. it was at least five people deep on a narrow pathway. And in spite of the Pringles, we didn't quite make it all the way to sunset: the crowd was just too much, and Sora was tired and cranky. Maybe we'll try again one day.

Nothing accompanies sunset better than Pringles.

Crowds of tourists gathered to watch the sunset

The Santorini sunset view that you don't see in the pictures

Too tired to wait for sunset..

.. but not too tired to ride a donkey statue!