Sandy and Tom: SANTORINI, GREECE

SANTORINI, GREECE

Certainly the most ruggedly beautiful of the Aegean islands, Santorini boasts pitch-black beaches, white washed cliffs and sensational sunsets. Also known as Thira, this island owes it dramatic landscape to one of the largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history. In approximately 1600 BC the volcano that made up this island erupted in a catastrophic explosion known as the Minoan eruption. What was once the island of Thira sank to the bottom of the caldera and the sea rushed into the abyss to create the great bay. The bay, once the high center of the island, is 1,300 in some places, so deep that when boats dock in the small port of Athinios, they do not drop anchor. Our ship could not drop anchor so it just tried to stay in one spot the day we were in port. We were tendered from the ship to the port which is always an experience but it went very smoothly.

The lagoon-like caldera that was created in this eruption measures 32 square miles and it is 300 to 400 meters deep. Along the caldera are cliffs rising 1,100 feet, with the white clusters of the towns of Fira and Oia perched along the top.

On tour we were driven to the top to visit the ruins preserved in the ancient city of Akrotiri, dubbed the Minoan Pompeii. Life came to an abrupt halt in the flourishing Prehistoric city of Akrotiri during the final quarter of the 17^th C. BC when its inhabitants abandoned it due to powerful earthquakes and the enormous volcanic eruption that followed. The volcanic material that covered the city and the entire island has provided excellent protection for buildings and their contents down to the present. The settlement’s large area, its sophisticated city planning, (to include toilets in the houses), multi-story buildings adorned by superb frescos, rich furnishings and house hold effects, all testify to its high level of development.