Got up at 5am to get the ferry to santorini. The taxi driver drove so fast to the port it was a little frightening. We got on the ferry absolutely exhausted and sat on one of the decks in a cane chair- quite uncomfortable for a 8 hour ferry. We stopped at Paros, Naxos and Ios on the way to let people on and off. We finally got to santorini it was soooo hot! My feet in my black shoes felt like they were on fire and the tar seal felt like walking on sponges. There are people everywhere with signs yelling to you to come stay at their accommodation. We eventually found our hostel truck. Everyone else had flash buses and we have a bright orange truck which was full of people and our bags had to go on the roof. The drive out of the port zigzags it's way up the steep hillside and the traffic is backed up so he keeps stopping and putting the hand break on. Santorini town/ suburbs are perched high above the sea on the cliffs. We stayed in perissa which is on the other side of the island on the flat by the sea at Hostel Anna. Our hostel was only a 2min walk to the beach. It's wired there are no footpaths so when you walk off the balcony you are on the road. Quite dangerous. People hire 4wd bikes and scooters to get around so they are everywhere- we just caught the bus into town when we needed to. It's weird in Greece you don't flush the toilet paper, you put it on the bin next to the toilet- I keep forgetting, naughty me. So that is kind of gross so the toilets smell. We went to the beach as soon as we got in as even though it was the evening it was very hot. The beach is a black fine stone beach and the water is still and so clear you can see all the way to the bottom (it looks like the source of the riwaka- how it looks like the ground is in reach but it is way over your head). Our first night we went with a girl in our room Rachel to a bar, which this very exuberant gay guy dances around trying to get you to come in. He was very entertaining. All the bars are competing for customers- so they all have great cocktail deals. After we had a drink there we went to the beach and had some drinks there- then went to one of the bars along the beach front. Bars stretch along the beach and a lot of them are open- sort of outdoor style. The bar we went to had a cool band playing- more chilled out music, very cool- definitely felt like we were on a tropical island. We danced for a bit then went home. The next morning we went to the beach- the sand was so hot it scorched your feet, so there are wooden walkways to get across the sand. It was so lovely to be able to cool of in the water. We got out and 10 min later had to go for another swim as we were roasting in the sun. There is an amazing bakery just down the road from the hostel which is open 24hrs and makes the most delicious Greek food and the people there are so lovely. The food looks so good it’s hard to decide on what to choose. In the afternoon we caught the bus into fira- the main town to look around. We went in at 4pm and the heat was still unbearable, especially with the sun reflecting off all the white buildings. We took some photos of the amazing view and me and steph went for a donkey ride along the caldera- felt a bit sorry for the donkeys, but it was something we had to do being in santorini and all.. Then we got the bus to oia along with every other tourist to see the famous sunset. People are sitting everywhere- when the sun went below the horizon everyone clapped. We got a gyro for tea- our staple diet here, cheap and filling. The next day I was awake early and rachel noticed so said to me and steph to come and watch the sunrise, so we went and sat on the beach and took some photos, a very peaceful way to welcome in the morning. We went back to bed and slept in late. There is an amazing bakery down the road that is open. 24hours and bakes everything fresh- so many goodies to choose from. We then went at three to see the black red and white beaches. You go on a boat and they dropped us at the black beach so we could have a swim and then picked us up and dropped us at the red beach, which we could then walk to the bus from. the red beach has big red cliffs behind it. It looks really spectacular. We went to get the bus and one came quickly but we had to change buses and the other one didn't come. The buses are very unreliable here, so steph and Rachel put their thumbs out and we eventually got a ride to our hostel. We went for a very late tea to the restaurant across the road then went to the beach with a group from the hostel for some drinks. Then we walked down to the beach bar and danced until 3.30am. The local guys love to be the center of attention on the dance floor and compete in dance offs. It was cool at first but they kept taking over the dance floor and we just wanted to dance. Santorini was everything I imagined and more. I can’t wait to go back and spend more time there. The people, the food and the sea are amazing. One of the best places I have been. The next morning we left for the ferry to ios at 11.40
