350 steps and counting

Being that Oia is perched on the edge of a caldera, there must be some way to get down to the shoreline at the bottom, right?  Actually, there are two ways.  First, you can walk down approximately 350 steps.  Now these are not your ordinary steps.  They are approximately 4-5 foot landings that actually take about two or three steps per landing to cross.  In other words, it’s a workout.  The second way to get down is to go down these same steps, but have a donkey do the legwork while you perch yourself atop its back.

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Tzatziki in Imerovigli

Tzatziki may be the greatest culinary development of mankind.  Whenever we went out to eat in Greece, as far as I was concerned, I was ordering tzatziki as an appetizer.  And if it came with my main course, I’d take it then too.

Kouloumpos Beach

During our time in Santorini, we found that far and away our favorite beach was Kouloumpos Beach.  Just a short ride from Oia, Kouloumpos is one of the most underrated and unheralded pieces of property on the island.  It was not featured in any of the travel guides and it is seldom featured in online “Go Here in Santorini” lists.  It’s hard to find information about it online; I almost feel like the locals are trying to keep the masses from figuring out it exists.

Exploring the island

On Day 3 in Santorini, we decided that it was time to get out of Oia and check out the rest of the island.  For those who are unfamiliar with Santorini, it is a small 35 square-mile island shaped like a horseshoe.  Getting around can be quite a breeze.  And if you want to go explore Santorini, I have one recommendation:

Rent a four-wheeler.

Sunset, take two

Tuesday evening, we headed out to enjoy another sunset.  This time, we got a spot on the most popular vantage point in Oia.

A photo-tour of Oia

The next morning, I woke up early, so I decided to take a brief tour of Oia before Jolyn woke up.  I quickly discovered that you really can’t take a bad picture in Santorini.

They don’t have sunsets like this in New Jersey…

What type of traveler are you?  Do you prefer to find a home base, stay local, enjoy your beach/balcony/pool, and catch up on R&R?  Or do you pretty much not sleep on vacation, feeling like every minute you sit inside your hotel room is a minute that you’re not using to see the sights?