Walk to Oia 27 March

We woke to a glorious view of the caldera from our loft bed in the “cave”. Cloudy and rainy weather was forecast but the skies were blue, so after another yummy breakfast of coffee with Greek yogurt, walnuts, prunes and honey (also served as a dessert in many restaurants here, but  hey we're on holidays, so who cares), we decided to hike to Oia, on the northern end of the main island (as Santorini is an old volcano, the main island is a crescent and Fira is on the middle of the inside edge).

We headed out through the labyrinthine alleys of the Fira cliff side and it wasn't long before we encountered the notorious Santorini donkeys. As it was the low-season the donkeys, rather than carrying sweaty tourists, were hauling building materials for the many construction jobs in Fira (lots of construction, repairs and painting in progress in the lead up to the opening of the tourist season in a few days time - 1 April). 

Before long we passed the Three Bells of Fira and continued to walk along the winding walkways and alleys to the next village, Imerovigli where we took in the views of Skaros Rock.

After Imerovigli, the way became more of a rough track, mostly old cobblestone but sometimes loose volcanic scoria, as we walked through the countryside close to the cliff side of the island. There was plenty of steep sections, both up and down, and the walking was quite challenging, but the spring flowers were out, as was the sunshine, and the views were breathtaking; so we really enjoyed the journey.

A bit over three hours of walking, around 12kms, we arrived in the very beautiful Oia. After some spinach pie from one of the local cafes, we soaked up the iconic blue roofed chapels and views down the island; it was a lovely sight. 

One way along the walking track was enough of a challenge for us, so we set off to find the bus stop, arriving at Oia centre just in time to watch the bus drive off to Fira, with an hour wait, give or take, until the next….

Back in Fira, our hosts had recommended Svoronos Bakery so we dropped in for afternoon tea. Kerryn chose galaktoboureko (Greek vanilla slice - custard in phyllo) and I had a piece of fanouropita (sultana, walnut, cinnamon and olive oil cake with sesame seed “icing”) that was the size of half a house brick! We had our bakery treats with coffee on our patio, enjoying the view. No wind today, but the cloud and sea mist meant we were denied a Santorini sunset again…

Weary from the days walking, we decided on local takeaway - chicken gyros and Greek salad with beers and local white wine, rather than eating out. It was a good choice - delicious...then an early night.