Within the caldera, a morning haze softened the edges of the jagged lava flows and blurred the horizon as the Sea Cloud pulled away from our Greek tender and made for her anchorage between the islands of Nea and Palia Kameni. As we began our tour of the island of Thera it was hard to decide which side of the bus offered the best view: dramatic cliffs plunging into the sea to our left and terraced lava flows of grape vines, tomatoes, and grains gently sloping off to our right!
Church was just letting out as we arrived in the main square of Oia to start our stroll along the cliff top alleyways of this picturesque community of colorful, art galleries, cafes, and boutiques. As the sun climbed, so did the temperature and the azure blue sea began to sparkle like diamonds. One wondered if there was a might magician in the sky, creating all the dream-inspired vistas around each corner. All too soon it was time to head to Pirgos for our lunch of Greek mezades at the Kallisti taverna. Nektario, the owner, served us a wonderful meal of Santorini specialties, including his own chilled white wine, grilled white eggplants, stuffed cherry tomatoes, fava bean humus, tomato fritters with mint and basil, and bubbling hot and spicy bougiourdi. The pièce de résistance was perhaps the portokalopita (orange cake) at the end of the meal.
The Museum of Prehistory with all the ceramics, bronze artifacts, alabaster Cycladic figurines, and frescos recovered from the archaeological excavations at Akrotiriwas the highlight of our afternoon in Fira. It was evident in the naturalistic way that that swooping swallows, frolicking dolphins, and swaying papyri were depicted in their art that these early peoples were attuned to every nuance of their island environment. Stepping out onto the black basalt cobble streets of Firawas was like stepping into a blast furnace after the blessed cool of the museum. Most of our shipmates made haste through the maze of shops to catch the cable car down to the early tender to get back to the ship and partake in the promised swim in the deep blue waters of the Aegean. Although the water was still a bit bracing this early in the season, it felt really, really great! As the sun started to make its slow descent towards the sea, it bathed the white houses cascading down the rim of the caldera in a soft shimmering golden glow, bringing our magical day came to an end.
