12 Apr 2015

Cyclades, part II

Santorini

We reached our hostel in Fira, the biggest city on the island, after dark and checked in. Afterwards we went for a short walk around the city centre. Despite it being pre-season, the main roads were already teeming with tourists. Most of them from China, it seemed, and mostly congregating in front of the numerous Chinese restaurants. As we eventually found out from a Albanian hostel clerk, groups of Chinese tourists travel to Santorini during the more affordable pre- and post-season and annoy the locals through extreme stinginess.

After a quick bite to eat we headed back to the hostel. Upon closer inspection, the rooms and especially the bathrooms turned out to be very…rustic. Wait, no: rusty. And somewhat grimy, too.

Kamari Beach and Ancient Thera

The next morning we got up and headed for the bus station to take a bus to Kamari beach in the southeast of the island. After a short ride through scenic, if sleepy parts of the island we arrived in Kamari and wandered towards the beach.

The beach - in case you hadn’t guessed.

When we tried to find breakfast however, we found almost nothing: It really felt like the town was only just about waking from hibernation. Wherever we looked, shop owners were slowly beginning to polish signs, paint walls and posts and prune trees and bushes. There were plenty of cafes and bars of course, but none of them were open for business yet. Instead, we grabbed some pies from a bakery and had a relaxed lunch on the beach.

As we sat there, looking at the waves, I couldn’t help but steal a glance or two at the people getting to work around us: They began working, but there was no rush whatsoever. They had coffee and tee, they chatted. There was a lot of yawning and lazy stretching going on. The whole atmosphere was not one of having to do stuff, but rather one of another day taking its course, the work unfolding on its own. I enjoyed watching this kind of effortlessness taking place, which stands in such a stark contrast, to say, the German attitude towards work.

After wrapping up these profound sociological musings, we headed towards the mountains fencing in Kamari in the southwest.

What is it with you and cliffs, Holger?!

We had initially thought we’d just hike the way up to the ancient ruins on top. And we started doing just that, in the mid-day heat and without a complaint. But then Holger spied a car about to pass us. We decided that, while of course we were hardcore, we weren’t donkeys, so we’d take the ride offered to us, thank you very much!

Up at the top we goofed around on the cliffs for a spell, before climbing up to the ruins of Ancient Thera

Having taken the easy way out on the ascent, we figured that we could easily do the descent on our own. But then Holger spied a car…well, you can see where this is going.

Down at the beach we went for a quick swim, observed by an audience of Chinese tourists. That clear, blue water looked so warm and inviting! While it wasn’t exactly warm, the hot sand and sunshine took the edge off the experience.

Back in town we grabbed a quick dinner before picking up a few beers and heading back for the beach.

Relaxing after a hard day’s work. And yes, those rocks were all warmed up by the sun. I felt like a lizard. A lizard with a beer and a smartphone.

Afterwards we took a bus back to Fira, had a pretty unspectacular dinner and a few more beers with said Albanian hostel clerk.

Oia (pronounced [ˈi.a])

The next day we decided to take a bus to Oia, the scenic town in Santorini’s northeast. If you get a postcard from the island, this is the town that’s going to be on there. It perches on the cliff overlooking the horseshoe-shape of the island and the vulcano in its middle. The town looks strangely organic as the white houses are built into the rock at random levels and seem to flow into one another. Narrow stairwells and footpaths connect the buildings. Everything is either white, or a light shade of blue. In bright sunlight the town would be blinding. Just as well: It was rainy and overcast as we got there. We walked around the buildings, most of which were either hotels, restaurants, art galleries or jewellery stores. Where the locals live (or if there are any locals to begin with) I couldn’t say. Deserted as it was, the town seemed like a nice destination, but I’d hate to be caught there in the middle of tourist season. I’d imagine the crowds there to be suffocating.

We managed to take a few interesting pictures before the rain forced us inside, into a cafe. Spoiler: I would come back here a few days later, in bright sunshine. I’ll post the pictures in a later article. You’ll be jelly, trust me.

At Fira I moved my stuff to another, less grimy hostel where I would stay for the next days. Holger and I lounged around the lobby for an hour or two, before he took a bus which would take him to the airport, from which he’d fly back to Athens.

Until next time,
Arne