Sunshine in Santorini

Quote of the day: “If you see me moving around on deck at all, it’s because of the beer: I’m either heading to the bar to put it in, or I’m heading to the bathroom to let it out.” Another “heavyweight” passenger.

Santorini was amazing. There’s no pier there, so we had to go ashore by tender, which gets you to the bottom of the cliffs. From there it’s either ride the gondola (which they call a cable car), walk up the steps, or take a donkey. Despite S & A’s recommendation we passed on the donkeys (they wouldn’t mind the smell of course – just like being at home in the cow shed!) and opted for the gondola…

Now I can’t stand gondolas, so it was with gritted teeth that I traveled to the top. (Fortunately I was facing the hillside, so I didn’t have to look down.) The town itself was wonderful. A different vista at every turn: narrow, cobblestone streets, cute little shops and views across the harbour to die for… which you could easily do if you leaned over too far!

We did coffee at a very classy café, which was almost deserted. When we saw the prices we understood why, but it was worth it for the ambience and the break from the crowds. We did a bit of shopping, but nothing extravagant, then lunched at another cliff top café… Greek salad and stuffed vine leaves… yum.

We decided to walk down the track, back to the tender to rejoin the ship, and that was a good decision. There was a long queue for the gondola, and many stressed Dawn Princess passengers worrying about meeting the deadline for the last tender. Achievement of the day: JB didn’t fall over on the way down!