SANTORINI

The first time I heard of the island of Santorini was a few years ago when a friend was describing his trip to Greece and was raving about the island. I remember seeing pictures of beautiful white washed houses perched high on cliffs overlooking the majestically blue Agean sea. Since then, we met a number of people, including my parents, who came back with equally glowing reviews. So when we were planning our trip to Greece with our friends Ali and Alizeh, adding Santorini to the itinerary was a no brainer. And after spending two and a half days there this September, we can safely say that Santorini is as exceptional a destination as advertised - quite a feat in itself!   

Some painstaking research courtesy Ally and Vijiti led us to book a beautiful 2-bedroom villa in Oia, a "posher" part of Santorini in the north of the island, compared to it's more buzzing centre, Fira. After meeting the owner of our hotel, an old but feisty man named Rose with skin coloured intensely orange from a lifetime in the blazing sun, we were shown to our villa sitting a few steps down from the main alleyway at the top of the cliff. Walking down the steps, you could see a number of sparkling white villas with striking blue doors and window frames built along the incline of the cliff. Standing in our terrace surrounded by draping pink bougainvilleas soaking in the open view of the rich blue sea in front and the cliff-hugging white houses on both sides of us instantly brought home what all the fuss was about - this truly must be one of the most scenic places in the world.

Our villa, claimed to be built by Rose himself on the site of his grandfather's house which housed a space for a bakery and making wine, was nicely done up and very comfortable. Given its original structure was carved into the cliff itself, the villa retained its arched cave-like ceilings in the two bedrooms but was retrofitted with modern amenities, like air-conditioning. The selling point however, was easily the spacious terrace large enough to seat the four of us with a welcome umbrella to provide some shade.

Our mornings were usually spent sipping coffee and munching on a light breakfast on our terrace enjoying the sunshine and views. The story of the island's unique geography is linked to a volcano whose eruption 3,500 years ago sunk the center and formed the jagged cliff walls of Santorini. In the distance you can still see the remnants of the volcano’s other sides and it is said that the mythical city of Atlantis lies beneath the waters. I found it interesting that there were very few sailboats or ships to be spotted in the sea, which in my mind enhanced the naturalness of the stunning panoramic sea views as all you saw was deep blue water. The other striking feature was what seemed like an ever-present mist hovering above the water out in the horizon adding a bit more magic to the scene. In describing the list of attractions on the island, the tour guide Frommers says "the top attraction here is the island itself". No doubt.

One of the days, we ventured to Kamari beach on the south east side of the island, using the local bus service. Although Santorini is not particularly renowned for its beaches, there are a number of unique ones given the volcanic nature of the island. This one we went to was a black sand and pebble beach, which made getting in and out of the water walking barefoot on the hot stones quite a prickly ordeal. The water itself was a tad on the cooler side at first, but got better with time. Another day, we went into the main town Fira and strolled along the cliffside walkway enjoying the spectacular views on our left and ducking in to the occasional shop lining the inner alleyways to take a break from the sun.

One of the evenings, we walked down 200-odd steps winding down from the top of Oia to Ammoudi Bay known for its seaside tavernas. We had dinner at one of the places recommended to us and enjoyed a delicious meal of lobster spaghetti and grilled fish. The price of the lobster spaghetti - an eyebrow-raising 95 euros - certainly caused some concern at first, but since it was so highly recommended, we went for it (splitting between the four of us of course). It turned out to be truly tasty, fresh lobster atop pasta tossed in an herb and tomato sauce you just couldn’t go wrong with. The walk back up the 200-odd steps worked off a bit of that meal while strolling through the narrow alleyways at the top of the cliff lined with art galleries and jewellry shops took care of the rest.

On our last evening, we set-out to witness the much raved about sunset. We managed to snag a nice spot sitting atop a shop's wall above dozens of other tourists ready with fingers on their cameras to capture that perfect sunset shot. Not usually having the chance to take in a sunset in our every day lives, it certainly was a nice moment sitting cliffside watching the changing hues of the sky above the sea and enjoying the beauty and simplicity of nature.

As lovely as Santorini and its stunning natural setting is, one aspect of the island that was slightly surprising was how little ‘localness’ you experience. Much of the development along the cliffside coast in terms of hotels, villas, restaurants and shops has happened to cater to the tourists and the few people who may have traditionally lived in their cave-carved houses before Santorini was "discovered" have sold and moved out. To me, this is not too dissimilar from say, the resorts dotting the Caribbean coast of Mexico or Dominican Republic built solely for tourists. What is lacking is that little bit of "authentic" cultural feel. But perhaps that is both the boon and curse of tourism - it opens up new destinations to people, but in doing so, becomes beholden to them.