Leaving Santorini

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09 October 2014

On our final morning in Santorini we drove around the south of the island passing through thousands of acres of vineyards.

We visited the prehistoric settlement of Akrotiri the excavation of which from underneath pumice and ash left by the volcanic eruption was begun in 1967. It is now protected by an impressive bioclimatic shelter covering 1.2 hectares.

This was followed by a swim at the unusual black sand and pumice cliff backed Vlyhada beach, purchase of some wine at a family vineyard and a walk through the hill top village of Pygros with further extensive views before making our way back down the hairpins to catch the 15.30 ferry to Pireas, the port for Athens.

Although Santorini suffers from a surfeit of visitors of whom we were two, it generally seems to cope with them. There was a good chance that our campervan was the only one on the island during our stay. It’s difficult to convey in the photos the majesty of this unique geological feature.

We arrived at 12.30 and were met by Jenny, Wendy’s cousin who miraculously had been able to park her car right on the dock. She led us around the motorways of Athens to her house in a village outside the city.

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