Let me tell you a little story. I have been wanting a ‘real’ camera for years now, but didn’t feel like I could justify the cost. Last year, I decided if I hit my big first quarter sales goal, I’d reward myself. Well, our team didn’t hit that number. So, I continued to hold off. This year, I got a big promotion and decided I finally deserved a camera to record our travels. My photographer friend (hey Joy!) was helping me learn how to use it and analyzing photos to improve for the future. She convinced me to get a fancy schmancy lens to effectively capture our memories in Greece, and it took me a few months to pony up the money for that. I got it just in time for our trip, and figured I’d learn on the fly! I couldn’t have asked for better subject matter to practice with.
I tried to get a wi-fi device for the camera so that I could upload to the cloud immediately, but I waited too long and even Amazon Prime couldn’t get there in time. Ah well, I uploaded the photos to my computer as soon as we got home from Greece. The wi-fi device arrived last week, but I hadn’t plugged it into the camera yet.
I wrote a post about our time in Naxos last month, and then last weekend, I finally sat down to write up the rest of Greece. Santorini photos from camera uploaded to blog, check! I ran out of time to finish my post, and decided to finish it up Sunday night. I got home, all ready to relax and type up our trip memories, and realized hmmm, my computer isn’t where I left it?? Oh NO. My camera bag is gone…and my work laptop….and finally, the ancient iPad. Well, shoot! Not a good feeling at all. Long story short, we still don’t know how this could have happened and there were no signs of someone breaking in. I can narrow it down to a short period of time that I WAS HOME and not in that room.
I wish I could say this is the first time I have lost my memories, but sadly it is not. The week we were getting married, my laptop died and all my files were lost. I was too cheap to pay for iCloud prior to this, so I couldn’t recover any of my iPhone photos saved to my desktop either. That was pretty devastating, but I got an external hard drive after that so it wouldn’t happen again. And paid the 99 cents per month for iCloud…Fast forward five years, and I had been backing up my computer pretty regularly, and enjoying the iCloud storage for phone photos. Life got busy, and I continued to save all my photos to my desktop, but hadn’t backed up on the external since the spring. You can see where this is going. The only camera photos that are truly lost are the ones from Athens. Thankfully, I also took a ton of photos on my iPhone, so not all is lost. The cloud saved all my old iPhone photos, so that is a huge relief.
All this to say, USE THE CLOUD and have it back up your computer automatically! Maybe I am the last person on earth to not have a super duper backup system in place, but I will going forward. Material items can be replaced, but the visual memories? Guess we just have to go back to Athens again sometime.
But you know what? At the end of the day, life is good. We have our health (minus having mono, but whatevs), our animals (they thankfully didn’t escape during the burglary), and the ability to have these global experiences. I am so grateful for all of this, and having some photos lost is nothing in the grand scheme of things. I still love living in the city, but gosh darn it, this is why we can’t have nice things. Remind me to tell you about our neighbor’s poop revenge package some other time.
Anyway, back to the travel. Let’s get to Santorini, the land of lovers and millennials taking risky selfies by the cliff. Our time in Santorini was short, but sweet. It was a must-do while in Greece, and I’m glad we did it. But, I may have liked Naxos and Athens better because Santorini was so crowded and overrun with tourists.
There are very cute stray dogs and cats everywhere. They are clearly well cared for, unlike those in Argentina. But hey, I’ll pet anything since I’m safe from rabies. Bring it on!
WHERE TO STAY:
Since we were only there for a few days, we stayed in Oia the whole time. There are multiple areas of Santorini to see, each with their own merits. Oia was beautiful (as is pretty much all of Santorini!). We stayed in an Airbnb inside a cave. It had a little pool/hot tub and a small patio overlooking the water.
The iconic blue domed churches, seen in pretty much every picture of Santorini, were right behind our place. Tourists were lined up at all hours trying to snap an unobstructed photo. I opted for the postcard, since my attempts did not do it justice.
WHERE TO EAT:
No bad food in Santorini. I could eat Greek salads and Greek yogurt for every meal and be happy!
Oia Vineyart: This place had fantastic local cheese. I attempted one of the local spirits, described as fig liqueur, and it was disgusting. Apparently prickly pear is also referred to as a fig in Greece. I’m saving you the hassle of trying it yourself, since prickly pear and fig taste NOTHING like one another.
Passaggio: This centrally located restaurant has a nice rooftop with a view. We had huge Greek salads here after our hike toward Fira.
Dimitris Ammoudi Taverna: This was recommended to us as some of the freshest seafood right on the water.
Kastro: Great views, great food.
Vitrin Creperie Cafe: Loved this place! Excellent smoothies, crepes, coffee, and a sheepdog. Really, the last point is what led us there in the first place. Oh, and the view.
Meteor Cafe: A teeny little restaurant with french doors that open to the caldera, and extra outdoor seating across the cobblestone walkway. It was a nice little respite from the heat, and allowed for some camera practice time.
Melitini: cozy restaurant off the main drag, but not open in the morning.
Sun Spirit: excellent sunset views, but for a price
As always, the map at the bottom has even more suggestions.
WHAT TO DO:
Atlantis Books: Fascinating back story on this bookstore started by American college students. It is a must-see if you are in Santorini!
Sunset catamaran cruise: This was one of the most fun things we did! Unlimited wine, fresh grilled food on the boat, snorkeling, and a gorgeous sunset. We saw rock formations, the caldera, the black, white and red sand beaches. We met a raucous group of Australians and had a great time. One of them insisted on doing a photo series during the sunset. 99% of the photos are so ridiculous and involve Thriller dance moves, so this is all I got.
Explore the ruins of Akrotiri, which is like the Pompeii of Greece. It is also thought to be Plato’s inspiration for Atlantis.
If you have time, you can kayak around Santorini. We chose to go down to the rocky beach in Amoudi Bay and swim there. It takes a lot of stairs to get to the bottom, and we shared the path with donkeys who were much faster and more agile.
Once we arrived, we saw more adventurous people cliff jumping, but I was happy spectating. I’ve never been much of a thrill-seeker, and after observing an eventful cliff jumping incident in Jamaica, I will never ever do it. Thanks, Dana for scaring me out of that for life!
Hike: Hike the trail from Oia to Fira, or just part of it like we did. The path runs high-up along the Caldera for a wonderful view of the water.
Another suggested hiking route is Pyrgos, a fortress settlement to Kasteli Castle, and then traditional settlement of Exo Gonia. Stop at ArtSpace Winery, then to Panagia Episkopi, an 11th century Byzantine church.
TRANSPORTATION:
Santorini is accessible via plane or ferry. We opted to fly from Athens to Santorini, which only took about 30 minutes (vs. 8ish hour ferry ride). We then departed Santorini via ferry to get to Naxos, since it was only about 2 hours away. Keep in mind most things are not on time in Greece.
Once we arrived in Santorini, we boarded a bus arranged by our Airbnb. Someone met us at the bus in Oia and walked us right to the Airbnb. I don’t think we would have found our place otherwise, because there are no real addresses in Oia! The streets are very narrow and pedestrian only, with the exception of some mules.
There are plenty of taxis/buses available at the airport, and to get between the towns in Santorini, you can rent ATVs.
There is a cable car down to the old port, but we took a bus. It was nauseating, but I can’t imagine a cable car going down a cliff is much better than a windy road.
And because Santorini was so picturesque, here are a bunch more photos of nothing notable, just pretty.
Below is a map of all my Greece recommendations. Zoom to Santorini to see everything!
Summer vacation 2018- spolier alert: nothing crazy happened. No food poisoning, no rabid dogs, no missed flights or lost wallets. So tame! Except for the sunset cruise…more on that some other time. Let’s start with the most unique spot on our trip, Naxos. This Greek island is very rugged, and not overly touristy.
The correct path led us through the very small, sleepy village with a rapidly rising elevation. We followed the signs toward 
The views were spectacular. As far as the eye could see, there was nothing. Just rolling hills and white rocks dotting the landscape.
I think we could have gone inside the ruins, but I heard some jingling as we approached. I was concerned there were some mountain dwellers living there who would not be pleased with us crossing the brick wall.
Turns out they were security goats. Or at least goats wearing bells. I don’t know what happens when you make a goat angry, but wasn’t about to find out!
After checking out the castle from a distance, we trekked on through the small villages en route to Halki.
I found some photogenic cats along the way.
Oddly, we were the only people on the trail for 90% of the time. I questioned my sense of direction again, but we continued on the path, hoping I hadn’t led us astray. The signs were less than helpful; it was all Greek to me. (I was waiting for an excuse to use that one).
The sights along the way included all sorts of berries, grapevines, flowers, and bees. And shotgun shells. It all seemed safe and serene except for that last detail…
Once we approached Halki, there was a sign for a Byzantine-era church. After hiking all morning, what was another short walk? 
After the church discovery, we headed into the village of Halki for a little break and food.
Up first: coffee! 
After resting, hydrating, and caffeinating, onward to lunch! I had read great reviews on 
The chicken came right off the spit, paired with the freshest tomatoes. Maybe it was the appetite we worked up from hiking, but it was some of the best food I’ve had. All the meals we had in Greece were simple, but so fresh and flavorful. I’m still not sick of Greek salads after coming back and making one almost daily!
At this point, we decided to weigh our transportation options. We could try to find a taxi back to our hotel, or we could navigate 
Our hotel also had great food. I could not get enough of their Greek yogurt for breakfast!
The grounds were filled with plants, palm trees, and cats.
Cats seems to gravitate to us, no matter where we are. Of course, the mangiest-looking hotel cat wanted love. He snuck into our bungalow and then jumped onto my lap. Well, at least I am immune to rabies!
Here is a map of all the suggestions I have for Greece. Just zoom in to see Naxos pins. Stay tuned for 
All the big names are found on King Street, with little boutiques sprinkled in. Here are a few favorites.
Waterfront Park: Home to the pineapple fountain and a lovely cool breeze off the harbor!
All the things we didn’t do:
This is the only modern house we saw in Charleston. So unique!
WHERE TO STAY: