SANTORINITHE GREEK PARADISE

Santorini or Thira as it is otherwise named is one of the most beautiful and unique in beauty islands of Greece and throughout the world. It is the most southern island of the Cyclades in the south of the Aegean Sea.

Intriguing history, awesome volcanic landscape, cosmopolitan atmosphere, breathtaking

sunsets, deep blue sea, the volcano, are just some of the reasons that make Santorini the most popular holiday destination in Greece!! Santorini has a metaphysical energy that becomes you as you sail into the Caldera rim and gaze up the steep cliffs.

Fira, Oia, Imerovigli are just some of the villages that are built into the cliffs with magnificent view of the Aegean sea, the volcano and the nearby islands of Ios, Folegandros and Sikinos.

Santorini is the most extraordinary island in the Aegean. You sail into a strange, enclosed sea, shut off by the Burnt Islands. The volcanic cliffs of Santorini are red, brown or greenish, surmounted by a string of white villages. It is rather like a model of a monster's jaw made by some infernal dentist; a sinister and alarming place, like nowhere else.

Jetting out from the deep blue sea its volcanic sheer cliffs topped with gleaming white village homes and churches, resemble snowcapped mountains. The thunderous fury of nature left its mark on the island, the home of Greece's last active volcano which still smolders today. Layer upon layer of red volcanic rock interspersed with white buildings and specks of greenery form a visual demonstration found nowhere else.

 

The entire center of the circular island sank into the sea during the tremendous volcanic explosion of 3.500 years ago. The eruption caused tidal waves which virtually wiped out the advanced Minoan civilization of Crete 70 miles to the south. Some scholars believe that the island is part of the legendary lost continent of Atlantis which supposedly slipped underwater during the disaster.

What remains today of Santorini is a large crescent-shaped island enclosing a vast bay, the largest caldera on earth (7X14 miles). There are also four much smaller islands around the main large one which are called Thirassia, Nea Kameni, Palia Kameni and Aspronisi

From the sheer cliff-top, where the villages are built, you look down on the gentle, green outer slopes of the mountain: the sea has filled the crater of the volcano. The contrast between these two faces of Santorini is dramatic and extraordinary. 

The beauty of Santorini must depend on light and line; there is hardly any vegetation apart from vines, and the volcanic earth has no charm of color, unlike the earth and rock of the limestone islands. Yet it has a strange and uncanny fascination of its own. It has rightly been called the black pearl of the Aegean. The sunsets of Santorini, with the Burnt Islands in the foreground, the islet of Thirassia behind, Sikinos and Folegandros farther off, and the great rock of Christiana, are among the most exciting aesthetic experiences that the Aegean can provide.

Santorini has 13 villages. Fira, also known as Thira or Hora, is the island's capital. It is situated 27, 5 m. above the sea and may be reached from the port of Skala climbing the steep, 566 broad steps. This should only be attempted by the untiring while the traditional way up the zigzag path is by renting pack mules or donkeys. For those who prefer modern conveniences, a funicular lift is available. The cable car lifts 800 persons per hour. The duration is only two minutes and offers unforgettable views of the volcanic island.

Story, museums & churches

Santorini has a great history, starting from the Bronze Age. The large excavation at Akrotiri, has verified that there was a great civilization on the island. The excavations which started in 1956 brought to light an ancient city very well preserved, which was entirely buried beneath a very thick layer of ash from the great eruption in 1625 as the latest studies have shown.

Herodotus, who speaks about the early history of Santorini, tells us that the island was initially called Strongyle, the Round One, from its shape, later Kallisti, the Fairest One, because of its beauty, and after the Lacedaemonians' arrival and the foundation of their colony, they gave the island the name of their king, Thera. The name Santorini was given by the Crusaders after a small chapel of Agia Irene (Santa Irene).

 

The Volcano

The last huge eruption of the volcano was 3.600 years ago, in the late bronze age. Millions cubic meters of ash and pumice were blown to a height of up to 36 km above the island. The removal of such a large volume of magma caused the volcano to collapse, producing a caldera. Ash fell over a large area in the eastern Mediterranean and Turkey. This ash buried the ancient city at Akrotiri and is feeding the myth of lost Atlantis. The Kameni Islands, Palea and Nea Kameni, formed after the caldera. Eleven eruptions since 197 B.C. have made the two islands. The most recent eruption at Santorini was in 1950 on Nea Kameni, the northern island. The eruption was phreatic and lasted less than a month.

Lost Atlantis

There is a story thousands of years old about a "lost island" in the Atlantic Ocean. The story was told by the ancient Greeks, and had been handed down from father to son for many generations before the Greek philosopher Plato wrote a famous story about it, about 375 BC. The island of Atlantis, according to Plato, was really a series of islands. Imagine in the center a hill, surrounded by a ring of water; the ring of water surrounded by a circle of land, then another ring of water and one of land, until there were nine rings of water and nine of land.

 

The islands had been created by Neptune, god of the sea, for Cleito, his beloved. From their children the king and people of Atlantis were descended. The island was very rich, and the people content. The city was built of black and red stone; the roofs of the houses were of red copper and flashed in the sun; and there were two beautiful temples, one surrounded by a golden wall and the other with silver walls, golden pinnacles, and a roof of ivory.

In 1967, a city buried by a volcanic eruption in 1500 BC., was found on Santorini. Archaeologists say this might be Atlantis.

Museums in Santorini

 

Museum of Prehistoric Thera

The Museum of Prehistoric Thera houses finds from the excavations at Akrotiri, conducted under the auspices of the Archaeological Society at Athens, the earlier excavations at Potamos, made by members of the German Archaeological Institute at Athens, and rescue excavations at various other sites on the island, carried out by the 21st Ephorate of Antiquities for the Cyclades and Samos, as well as objects discovered fortuitously or handed over.

The exhibition is structured in four units, referring to the history of research at Thera, the geology of Thera, the island's history from the Late Neolithic to the Late Cycladic I period (early 17th century B.C.) and the heyday of the city at Akrotiri (mature Late Cycladic I period, 17th century B.C.)

 

Archeological Museum of Thera

It was built in 1960 by the Ministry of Public Works in order to replace the old museum (built in 1902), which had collapsed during the earthquakes of 1956.The Museum contains the following collections:

Sculpture , ranging from the Archaic to the Roman period / Inscriptions, ranging from the Archaic to the Roman period. / Vases and clay figurines, dating from the Geometric to the Hellenistic periods.

 

Churches in Santorini

 

The Monastery of Profitis Elias

High atop the Profitis Elias peak, in Pyrgos village, is the monastery with the same name. The museum of the Monastery contains all types of ecclesiastic items, Byzantine documents, sacred vestments of archbishops and bishops. It also hosts displays on shoemaking, printing, candle making and wine making.

Agios Nikolaos Marmarites

To the left of the road from Megalochori to Emboreion stands a rectangular temple. The monument dates from the 3rd century BC. Today it is used as a chapel consecrated to Saint Nicholas. (Saint Nicholas is the Saint who protects seamen)

The Church of Panagia Episkopi

Located in the village of Mesa Gonia is the beautiful Byzantine church of Panagia Episkopi. Built in the end of 11th century by the empire of Byzantium Alexios Comninos. Some of the Byzantine paintings and hagiography can be seen even today as well as the marble temple of the church.

Hotels in Santorini

Santorini has a wide variety of hotels to meet all tastes. Whether you are looking for a villa perched on the cliff overlooking the Aegean sea and the volcano, or a hotel located on one of the superb beaches of Santorini, you are sure to find what you are looking for. Santorini hotels have style and character.

Most of the hotels on Santorini open in April and close at the end of October. The hotel rates differ depending

on the season. Low season rates apply to April, May and October. Mid season rates apply to June and September and high season rates usually apply to July and August. These two months are the busiest in Santorini.

Agriculture

Fava Santorinis

Due to its unique ecology and climate, and especially its volcanic ash soil, Santorini is home to unique and prized produce. Santorini tomatoes are renowned; they are cherry tomatoes that are extremely tasty and sweet, and with an intensely red, staining colour. Santorini "fava" is a purée made of the hulled, then sun-dried, then boiled legume Lathyrus clymenum - not from the yellow split pea as in the rest of Greece. The white eggplants of Santorini are very sweet, with very few seeds, and can be eaten raw. The katsoúni is a unique local variety of large cucumber which , if left unpicked when green, turns yellow and acquire a sweet taste almost indistinguishable from that of melon.

Cuisine

Local specialities:

Brantada Koskosela (local Strapatsada) Santorinio Sfougato Tsounisti (Manestra) Melitinia (dessert)

Wines of Santorini

Wine is mainly produced on two Cycladic islands: Santorini and Paros. Nevertheless, Andros, Tinos and Naxos also produce decent table wines.

By far though, Santorini reaps worthily the laurels of the most important wine-producing island of the

Cyclades, if not of the whole of Greece. It is also the most interesting island in this domain. Its microclimate presents a lot of particularities: the volcanic terrain of Santorini is a mixture of chalk, slate, coal, ash, lava and pumice. It is extremely dry during the summer when the grapes mature and temperatures during daytime are very high. On the other hand, this island is being mercilessly beaten by the north winds- the "meltemia" (etesian winds) - which prevent the accumulation of humidity on the grapes during daytime. During the night though, when temperatures drop and the climatic conditions become relatively humid, the volcanic terrain absorbs this humidity, thus feeding the grapes.

The result of this unique combination of climate and terrain is that the Santorini grapes mature fast and retain their acidity. Like everything else on the wind-swept Santorini, the vines are also unique. In order to protect the vines from the meltemia, the people of Santorini prune them in such a way that they look like a wreath within which the grapes grow..

Nowadays, only a few of them are commercially exploited for wine production. The most important variety is the Asyrtico, which dominates the island followed by the white and light Aidani which resembles the Muscat.

Excursions in SantoriniThere are many sights to see in Santorini. Downtown Fira is lined with booking agencies for all kinds of excursions. A popular day trip is on 3 masted schooner that sails to various places in the caldera. The boat visits the volcano and  to a place of hot springs where you can jump off the boat and swim in tepid waters. You also visit a taverna and have a delightful Greek meal. At the end, the boat deposits its passengers in Oia where you have a choice of riding up to the mainland on a donkey or walk up hundreds of steps to the village.

      Santorini is a hiking and walking paradise. A popular jaunt is walking the caldera path. It starts in Fira and passes through quaint little villages like Fira -Stefani and Imero-Vigli. The whole walk can take up to four hours. There are beautiful side paths down to the water. It is important to seek out land-marks so as to avoid getting lost. It is best to start this walk early in the morning. There are little taverna along the way to rest and have a glass of wine and small meal. The walk ends in Oia.

     Oia is a beautiful village best known for its exquisite sunsets. These streets are paved with old marble. Here in this delightful village many tourists come and rent a traditional mountain home called an aposcapho. It is a simple dwelling built into the mountainside with all the necessary but rustic accommodations. It can be a bit

daunting to find your house in the dark on very steep mountain paths but the spectacular view is worth it. Many locals come to Oia for the excellent cuisine. Tavera Katrina is at the end of the island and has an unbelievable view. A typical repast would be fresh fish such as lithrini, tomato kefethas, tzaziki and Greek salad accompanied by a local wine. This is an extremely romantic place that will be cherished in your memories.

Polina Thanasara Γ’2

2015