After a morning exploration of Oia, we spent the rest of the day visiting other locations around Santorini. Here are a few images and stories.
Akrotiri
Akrotiri is a 7,000 year old city on the southern end of the Santorini caldera. It was the largest city of the Minoan period outside of Crete. (On a clear day you can see Crete from the city, some 60 miles away.) The Therans had extensive trade routes all over the Aegean and Mediterranean seas had a complex society and well planned city that included municipal sewers. The city suffered several major earthquakes over the centuries and was finally buried in lava and ash from the Santorini eruption. It is now a major archeological site which is still being excavated. The site is covered by an extensive building that shields it from the elements and allows visitors to see the site up close.
Additional photos are available here.
Lunch
I haven’t talked much about food, and I probably won’t again, but some of the local Santorini delicacies deserve mention. Tomato balls are a Santorini specialty. They’re essentially tomato fritters, and each establishment has its own approach to them, all of which I found delicious. Local menus also feature fava beans, usually done in a purée similar to hummus, spiced with capers and olive oil. Capers, which in my experience have been ignorable little green balls of salt, are a stand alone dish stewed with tomatoes here, and both the berries and the leaves are eaten (the latter pickled or marinated). The reason I mention these here is that we had a wonderful lunch at the Good Heart Restaurant on the way to the Akrotiri lighthouse and their renditions of these—especially the tomato balls—were the best we’ve had. It’s a wonderful place to eat—small, kind of funky, owned by Israelis, but featuring local dishes and cuisine. Highly recommended.
Akrotiri Lighthouse
At the opposite (southern) end of the caldera from our house in Oia is the Akrotiri Lighthouse. It was built in the late 1800s and still functions as a lighthouse. The building itself is not spectacular, but the bluffs on which it is built are beautiful and a favorite place to watch sunsets.
Profitis Ilias Monastery
Situated in the small village of Pyrgos atop the highest point on Santorini (568 meters) is the Moni Profitis Ilias (monastery of St. Elias). It’s a small monastery that still serves that purpose. Visitors are allowed if they are respectful, but the definition of that term is rather loose judging from my experience. The drive up is along a very steep, narrow road that barely fits two cars side by side. Aside from the monastery, the site offers a 360 degree view of Santorini and many of the other Cycladic islands in the Aegean. Well worth a visit.
