4/23/98: Strolled around Thera. Enjoyed the views. Walked down the trail of switchbacks from Thera to the “old harbor.” I began reading “Random Harvest,” by James Hilton. Ate a delicious dinner of sea food.
4/23/23: Sunsets from the cliff edge of Thera on Santorini were stunning. But the rest of the island seemed kinda bleak to me. As I recall, there was very little flora and fauna at all on the rest of the island. Which meant if you look north, east or south, you had a clear view down the slope to the water. Remember, this island is just what used to be the cone of a volcano. So, it really is cliff on one side, and a gradual slope down to the water on the other.
We did take a walk down to the water via the switchback to the “old harbor” right below Thera. The path was steep, and made with slippery gravel. But it was not as treacherous as the bus route up, since it had a wall along the outside edge to prevent falls. Well, what goes down, must come up. So, about half way down I began to think about how hard it would be to hike back up, especially since Ruth was still recovering from severe back pain from a surgery. Thankfully, at the bottom of the path, we discovered that there were a dozen or so local villagers who made a business of offering exhausted tourists a ride back up the steep path on the back of their donkeys. We opted for the funicular back up to the top.
At a café for dinner, we ordered calamari, expecting the deep-fried rings we were familiar with in the US. However, we were surprised to be given a plate that simply had an entire broiled squid on it! It was unfamiliar and startling at first, but still delicious.
