The first time we were in the Louve, almost three years ago, we were a little manic. It’s a huge museum, much larger than the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, and we wanted to see the entire thing. We practically ran through the entire thing but we saw just about everything. It took six hours and we were absolutely exhausted. This time we felt much more comfortable. In fact there was only one thing that we really wanted to see and everything after that was gravy.
We had tickets for the first entry at 9:00 am. The first thing we did was head upstairs to see the Mona Lisa. We’d seen it before but it almost seemed impolite to go to the Louvre and not see what is arguably it’s premier exhibit. As displayed the painting is actually much less impressive than you might think. First of all it’s rather small. It’s also covered with glass and, for security reasons, you’re not able to get closer than 15 feet. From that distance you can barely see it at all. I took some photos with a 70mm lens and the painting barely filled half the frame. That’s pretty absurd. I never thought to bring a long lens when visiting a museum. Most everyone else was taking pictures with their phones. It’s hard to imagine how bad those photos are. At least mine is at a high enough resolution that I can blow it up and still have a picture of some quality. We suspect it’s actually a scheme to raise money by getting people to purchase prints in the gift shop.
(Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci)
Now it was time to see what we really came for. Leonardo de Vinci only painted four portraits of women and we had it in our minds to see them all. One, of course, is the Mona Lisa. We’d already seen Lady with an Ermine in Krakow and there is one at the Smithsonian in Washington, DC called Ginevra de’Benci which we have plans to see sometime later this year. The last one, called La Belle Ferronniere, is supposed to be in the Louvre. We asked one of the docents where we could find it and he said it was on loan to Abu Dhabi. We were absolutely heartbroken. It had been the one thing in the Louvre that we were dying to see and now it was out of reach. It took us quite a while to get over our disappointment. We later learned that it is on display at the Louvre in Abu Dhabi, a museum created in 2017 as part of a thirty year agreement between France and the city of Abu Dhabi.
After that we spent a lot of time in the section on Italian art. We were able to go slowly and really study many of the pieces in detail. After that we made an obligatory stop at “The Winged Victory of Samothrace”, a greek sculpture of the goddess Nike thought to be from the 2nd Century BC. Nike is portrayed standing on the bow of a ship with the wind rippling through her clothing. It’s a wonderful sight and, unlike so many Greek statues that are only known through their Roman copies, is absolutely original.
(Winged Victory of Samothrace)
Normally we would spend a great deal of time viewing the paintings from the Italian wing but this time we decided to spend a significant amount of time in areas of the museum that we would typically gloss over. We saw Napoleon’s apartments, art from the East and spent had a great time exploring ancient Babylonia where we found a recreation of an ancient palace and humongos sculpted walls that were in pristine condition.
(Entrance to Ancient Babylonia Palace)
Of course we couldn’t help exploring the French sculptures and the enormous two-level sculpture garden. By now we were getting tired and so we decided to have lunch at one of the cafes in the museum. Deborah had the onion soup, which was pretty good, and I had a plate of forgettable eggs benedict.
After lunch we saw the rooms where the royal jewels were kept. You have to remember that the Louvre was originally built as a castle in the 12th Century and was converted to a palace that was used as the primary residence of the royal families until The Palace of Versailles was constructed during the reign of Louis XIV in the 1690s. On August 10, 1793 the building was officially repurposed as a museum that primarily contained art from the royal collections. Today it is the largest museum in the entire world. It’s important to try and notice the building as well as the exhibits. It really is beautifully decorated.
The next collection was Roman sculptures. It was almost as good as being back in Rome. There are two very nice sculptures by Michelangelo on display. Neither had been completed. A sentimental favorite was a Roman copy of a now lost Greek original from from 150 BC of a person in a reclining position. Bernini thought that the statue lacked something so in 1619 he carved a mattress which the figure now rests upon.
The last section we saw was Greek sculptures. Given that we’d just come from more than two months in Greece we felt confident of our abilities to properly discern what we were about to see. Surprisingly most of the works were Roman copies of Greek originals that had been lost. We did, however, find three large stones from the pediment of the Temple of Apollo from Olympia. There were also some surprisingly large and intact pieces from the frieze from the Parthenon. It seemed odd to have to travel to Paris to see what you’d expect to see in Greece but in any event we were delighted to see them.
(Procession of the Panathenaic Festival from the Parthenon)
We really wanted to go back and see the Dutch/Flemish paintings but by this time we just didn’t have the energy. All told we spend 8.5 hours in the museum this time, which was 2.5 hours more than the last time. We thought that was a triumph in and of itself. By the time we left we were quite exhausted and had almost gotten our disappointment at not seeing La Belle Ferronniere.
We accidentally published a draft of this article. Here’s the completed article. Sorry for spamming your mailboxes.
Tuesday, February 5
We’ve begun the first leg of our trip back to the United States. This morning we took a flight from Santorini to Athens. We returned the rental car and the agent quickly spotted the damage we had done on the first day. We hadn’t taken the extra insurance but had coverage through our credit card. In all the years we’d been renting cars we never had to use it so it would be interesting to see if it really had any value. We were charge €100.00 for each of the three “dings” plus tax at a rate of 24%. It came to about $400.00.
The flight to Athens was short and uneventful. We had booked through Aegean Air but in fact were taking Olympic Air and Aegean Shuttle. Miraculously, the ticket agent told us that our bags would automatically be transferred to the Paris flight. We were surprised because in another experience like this we had to claim our bags and then go through the whole checkin/security procedure again. During our four hour layover we had a bite to eat at one of the few eateries available. The food was unremarkable.
Our flight for Paris boarded on time and was scheduled for 3.5 hours. During that flight we not only got beverage service but a full meal consisting of something resembling lasagne with meat. It was quite tasty too. No wonder Aegean has been voted the best small airline in southern Europe for the last nine years in a row (that’s a whole lot of qualifiers). Our flight got in at 6:30 pm Paris time / 7:30 pm Athens time.
We planned to take the train from Charles De Gaulle Airport to Gare du Nord and then take a taxi from there. We bought tickets for the train but when we tried to enter the station an agent told us that there had been an accident and the trains were not running. If we wanted to get a refund on our tickets we would have to go to the customer service desk. We could only get a refund that day. One look at the line at the customer service desk and we decided that we’d use the tickets on our return trip. We were told that there were busses that went into town and that we could buy our tickets on board.
We found the bus station nearby. It was an absolute madhouse. Everyone was taking the bus. When the bus to Gare du Nord arrived there was a mad crush to get on. Without being seen the bus driver had disappeared and there was no one to buy tickets from. We just stayed where we were (as if we could even move if we wanted to). Ten minutes later we were on our way. The schedule said it would take 65 minutes to get to the station. The ride was pretty bad. The bus was jerking the whole time and very few of us had someplace secure to hang on to.
After existing the bus we found a taxi and arrived at the hotel a few minutes later. The driver had put our baggage in the car but when he started driving we couldn’t help noticing that he was coughing badly and constantly blowing his nose. He was obviously pretty sick and probably couldn’t afford to take the day off. We really didn’t even want to hand him our credit card but we didn’t have any smaller bills and he would have touched the change just the same. We’re taking extra vitamins and hoping we don’t get the plague.
Our hotel, called the Moxy, is near La Bastille. The clerk told us that it had opened just three weeks before. We were offered a complimentary drink but we were just too tired and said we’d take a rain check. The hotel still has that new car smell. It was designed to be a little funky to appeal to Millennials. The room is fairly small but has odd little touches like miniature oil drums for nightstands and motion sensitive lights under the bed rim that go on when you walk nearby (or in the middle of the night when you ruffle the covers). It might not be our ideal hotel decor but it will do just fine for the week that we’ll be here.
Before going to bed we setup the computer so that the pictures from Greece would have a chance to sync. They were done before we were asleep.
Distance walked: 2.8 miles
Wednesday, February 6
We went in search of breakfast. The hotel had a nice looking Continental style breakfast but at €15.00 per person we were hoping to do better. We found a little coffee shop that advertised coffee and croissant for €2.29. The croissant was exceptionally good but it turned out that the advertised price was for espresso and not cappuccino. At a cost of €15.00 / $17.25 it cost us half of what the hotel would have but was still outrageously expensive.
We’d been to Paris before and knew that it was very expensive. Given all the places that we’ve been in Europe only London has been more expensive. We were going to make a real effort to try and stay within our budget. Normally this would have been impossible but we were paying for our hotel with rewards points and so it cost us nothing at all.
We planned to meet an old friend for lunch and so killed some time by visiting Notre Dame. Yes, we’d been there before but it never gets old (pun intended). We’d even climbed the bell tower but we just didn’t seem to have the energy this morning. Besides, it was a little cold and quite windy. It was probably unpleasant way up there in the belfry.
(Notre-Dame Cathedral)
Construction on the cathedral started in 1160 and was finished in the 14th Century. It’s an incredible place. From the outside you’d never guess how cavernous the interior is. Everywhere you look there are magnificent stained glass windows and there are a huge number of chapels. We were surprised to see that a few of the chapels were redecorated and dedicated to different saints. We suspect that local parishes are given the opportunity to sponsor these chapels on a rotating basis. It’s a great way to keep the church relevant and for it to raise funds.
(Notre-Dame Cathedral)
On the way back to our neighborhood we walked through Isle Saint Louis. We wanted to check the hours of one of our favorite restaurants called Berthillon. You’ll be hearing more about that place later in the week.
We still had some time before meeting a friend from school for lunch so we went in search of a place to get phone service. Why did we need phone service when we’d purchased four months worth when we were in Greece? It’s a long story. When we purchased a SIM card in Athens we got one month free and purchased “packets” for three additional months. The plan was supposed to provide service anywhere in the EU. Our phone stopped working when we were in Nafplio. A lengthy visit to the local Cosmote store was unfruitful; we had to call Cosmote’s customer service line for help. After a lengthy call we were told that we should have had almost 2 GIGs of data left and that someone from another department would call us back in about an hour to follow up.
Surprisingly, about an hour later, we did get a phone call. It turns out that the additional “packets” that we purchased were all set to expire on the same day. It seems it’s impossible to buy packets for dates in the future. As compensation we were given an additional 30 days and 10 GIGs of data. That should have lasted until we left Paris but upon arriving in Paris we found that we had no service. Ugh! We bought a package from Orange for €40.00 / $46.00 that is good for two weeks, 10 GIGs and lots of texting and talk. It was their least expensive package. At least the service is good.
We met Claire for lunch at Cafe de L’Industrie. We’d originally known her from our time at Juilliard Pre-College and went through our Bachelors and Masters degrees together. She and Deborah were fast friends and had even played together in a quartet. Clarire was a French national who spent most of her adult life living in New York City. A few years ago she returned to Paris. We had a wonderful time. The food was great and we had fun rehashing old stories.
Before heading home we stopped at a bakery to get some food for breakfast. We couldn’t help trying some of the pastries and bought a chestnut cream filled eclair. It’s hard to believe that we’ve never even seen chestnut cream before we got to Rome. We like it a lot.
Distance walked: 8.6 miles
Thursday, February 7
Our plan for the day was to visit the Basilica in Saint Denis. It’s about six miles north of Paris which is a little too far to walk so we decided to take the subway. We walked over to where we’d seen the subway before, towards Boulevard Richard Lenoir, and got distracted by an outdoor market. They were selling all sorts of fresh meats, fish, cheeses, pastries and even clothing. We walked the length and breadth of the market and had a great time just enjoying the scents that were wafting over the booths. We bought some of apples, clementines and a loaf of what we thought was olive bread (it turned out to be raisin bread) and walked down the stairs at the subway station marked, “Chenin Vert”. We’d taken mass transit all over Europe and figured we’d wing it. It was Paris after all, they had to have a good and easy to use metro system.
At the bottom of the stairs all we found were automated ticket machines. The problem was that we were expected to pay by zone and there was no guide to tell us which zone Saint Denis was in. We did a quick Google of how to use the subway and it appeared that it was zone 1, part of the greater Paris area. Anyway, we knew that the ticket was supposed to cost €1.90 / $2.20 per person and that option came up with the right price. We entered through the turnstile and found train number five. We were looking for number eight.
It seems that there are multiple stations in the area with the same name which have access to different trains. How inconvenient. We left the station, walked to the one that Google maps had suggested and found the number eight. We tried to use the tickets that we’d purchased moments ago but they didn’t work so we purchased new tickets.
The ride took about 40 minutes. We had to change to another subway along the way but there were no complications. Like most major cities the different subway lines were built at different times. The design of the stations and the cars themselves were somewhat different between the two lines but everything was still clean, efficient and modern – just the way we like it.
The Basilica of Saint Denis is just a short walk from the metro station. Originally the city of Saint Denis was a separate city but today it is a suburb of Paris. The basilica is famous for two reasons. It’s choir, when completed in 1144, was said to be the first to use all elements of Gothic architecture. It’s more well known, however, as the place where many of the kings and queens of France are buried. Nearly every king from the tenth to the eighteenth century was buried there. The site originated in 475 when Saint Genevieve, the patron saint of Paris, purchased some land with the idea of building Saint-Denys de la Chapelle – Saint Denis being one of the patron saints of France; his relics can be found within the present day structure. Charlemagne was present for the consecration of an earlier Carolingian version of the church in 775.
The Basilica of Saint Denis is the second largest church in Paris after Notre Dame. As with so many of these huge Gothic churches it’s impossible to judge the size of the interior simply by looking at the exterior. We’re big fans of flying buttresses but this building was built only with standard buttresses.
We entered through the main doors which led to the back of the church. As with most Roman Catholic Churches there was no charge for admittance. If you want to see the back of the church or the crypts where the burials are you have to pay a fee of €9.00 / $10.35 per person. Credit cards are accepted. Most of these old churches have no heating and this one was no exception. It was incredibly cold on the main floor and even colder in the crypts below. We had to keep moving!
Here are some of the highlights. There is a huge and elaborate monument to Henry II (father-in-law to Mary Queen of Scots) and his wife Catherine de Medici on the main floor. There is a nice monument to Lous XIV and his wife Marie Antoinette on the main floor but their remains are contained in modern caskets in the crypt. Perhaps the most fascinating portion of the crypt was a huge chamber that contains the remains of the Merovingian and Carolingian dynasties starting from the fifth century. There were lots of dusty sarcophaguses haphazardly strewn about in a dimly lit space. We were not allowed entry to this area but it would have been fascinating to see what was down there. Most of the information plaques are written entirely in French so it was not always easy to discern some of the information. Audio guides are available for an extra cost.
(Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette)
We had lunch in a French bistro type restaurant in the square near the basilica. To try to warm up we both ordered the onion soup and then shared a warm chevre salad. The soup was rather bland and hardly tasted of onion but the salad tasted almost as good as it looked.
(Warm Chevre Salad)
On our way back we decided to get off on a different stop and head over to Bertillon for dessert. Along the way we encountered one of our favorite churches and couldn’t resist going in for a visit.
The Church of Saint Eustace is another large Gothic building. Constructed between 1532 and 1632 it has all of the requisite components to make it a great church. There are towering vaulted ceilings, stained glass windows and a huge number of chapels. For us there is just something about it that is warm, inviting and friendly. One of the chapels is dedicated to Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of musicians. Appropriately enough Mozart’s mother is interred there.
(The Largest Chapel at Saint Eustace)
Finally we were on our way to Bertillon. Over the years we’ve traveled a good part of this earth and we can tell you that, for our money, Bertillon makes the best ice cream on the planet (before we get angry emails just remember that ice cream and gelato are not the same thing). Their ice cream is sold all over Paris but they have only one shop and it is located on Isle Saint Louis.
In addition to ice cream they also make sorbet, which we have never tried. You can get scoops of ice cream but their menu includes some incredible combinations of ice creams, sauces, macaroons, crepes and all sorts of toppings. Deborah ordered coffee ice cream served on an almond macaroon which came with a cup of dark chocolate sauce. I had chocolate ice cream served over a meringue topped with milk chocolate sauce severed with chestnut cream and whipped cream. They were freaking awesome and at almost $18.00 cost more than lunch!
(Coffee Ice Cream at Bertillon)
Before heading home we walked over to a market that we’d read about. Located in the Basille district, Aligre Market has been around since the days of the French Revolution. It had the same types of things we’d seen in the outdoor market in the morning but now, since our next stop was our hotel, we were able to buy a small wheel of brie. It cost about $3.00. We also saw a booth that was selling foods that were typical of Madagascar. They had some small fried fish fritters that smelled so good that you can guess what happened next. The fritters were made from ground fish, cornmeal and some peppery spices. They were gone before we left the building.
What do you do when you’re staying on an island that’s actually an active volcano? You take a boat ride! In season there are many options for tourists but this time of year we could only find two: a catamaran tour of the Western parts of the island and a trip to the island in the center of the volcano and the nearby hot springs. We went to the volcano.
The tour starts at 11:00 am but, because of weather and sea conditions, doesn’t run everyday. The procedure is to check with Pelican Travel each morning (even other travel agencies referred us to them for this trip) and find out whether the trip is on. If you get the green light you pay your €20.00 / $23.00 per person and walk down to the old port to meet the boat. Give yourself some time because the walk is down a long steep set of 600 switchback steps. Walking down doesn’t seem like much of a challenge but it was harder than it looked. In season there is cable car you can take but it was down for maintenance now. The other option is to make the trip via donkey for €5.00. We decided to walk.
(Public Transportation: Donkeys)
About 20 people showed up for the tour and we left on time. Our first destination was the Island of Nea Kameni. It’s a small uninhabited island in the center of the caldera. The entire island is a park. There is a booth that is supposed to collect €2.50 in cash per person for entering the park but no one was there to take our money. We had 1.5 hours to roam about and see what there was to see. There are trails and even picnic tables throughout but we went straight to the top so we could enjoy the best views.
The trails are somewhat rustic and much of the footing is stone and gravel. Along the way we found some interesting things. There were a couple of small craters from previous seismic events and even a couple of vents where hot sulfur scented gasses were escaping. After 35 minutes or so we were standing on the highest peak enjoying a view of the entire caldera, the volcano rim where the towns were built and some nearby islands. After a few days of rain the day was warm, fine and clear. It was a great experience.
Back on the boat we headed to a passage between Nea Kameni and a small island called Palea Kameni. There is an inlet where the water is said to be much warmer than the surrounding ocean. It is heated by the volcano. During the warmer months people will jump off the boat, swim for the cove and enjoy 15-20 minutes of frolicking in the warm waters. It was way too cold for us and no one on the boat that day was quite that adventurous.
The cruise concluded by rounding the other side of Nea Kameni and heading back to the port. The entire cruise lasted about three hours and we had a great time. The next issue was: how were we going to get back up the hill? We thought about taking the donkeys but figured that we could handle the stairs. We knew from climbing so many bell towers in the past that 300 steps was a pretty strenuous workout but even though there were twice as many these steps were fairly low and were spread out. We figured it wouldn’t be so bad. We were wrong!
We started off at a quick pace but soon had to slow down. It was arduous and the sun was hot. About a quarter of the way up the first wave of donkeys sped by us. It was amazing to see how quickly they climbed. Soon after we were regretting our decision. By the time we were almost to the halfway point the riderless donkeys were coming back down to pick up some more passengers. We thought seriously about taking one but were too stubborn to give up. In all about 75% of the passengers took the donkeys. We walked and we were the last ones to reach the top.
In the late afternoon we drove to the northern most town on the island called Oia. We had come equipped with a recommendation for dinner but found the restaurant to be closed for the season. We walked up to the top of the hill and saw a hillside filled with white houses, white hotels and white restaurants. It was the quintessential picture of Santorini – just like you see in all of the advertisements. We found a pizza restaurant called Skiza Cafe with a magnificent view of the caldera and settled in for dinner. The restaurant boasts that it makes its own dough and all of its own pastries in-house.
(Town of Oia, Santorini)
We ordered a large Greek pizza. It was very good and the crust was quite tasty. We also had a recommendation for dessert at a cafe that was supposed to serve the best baklava on the island. We weren’t sure it would be open so we ordered a piece of banana cream caramel torte and decided that if we found the baklava place, and it was open, we would buy some to take home. The torte was really quite delicious. It turned out to be a great decision.
(Banana Cream Caramel Torte)
We continued walking around the town. We were looking for the ruins of Oia castle. It is reputed to be one of the best places to watch the sunset on the entire island. Along the way we found the baklava place. The sign outside said that each piece was priced at €9.00 / $10.35. We didn’t care how good it was. This was one set of tourists that weren’t going to be taken advantage of.
We got to the castle about an hour before the sunset. There were a number of people there and as time went on more and more came. By the time the sun was low in the sky there must have been 150 people crowded into a pretty small space. Everyone had their camera at the ready. We all watched as the sun got lower and lower. When the last rays crossed the horizon a bunch of people waved and shouted, “Good Bye” and everyone left.
Distance walked: 7.4 miles and 114 flights (that’s DEFINITELY a record!)
Saturday, February 2
This morning we visited Akrotiri. 3,500 years ago this town was home to a thriving late bronze age civilization based on Minoan culture. The population abandoned their town just before the volcano erupted and buried their city in ash and mud. Extensive excavations started in the late 1960s and in 2005 the entire site was enclosed in a modern temperature controlled building. Excavations are ongoing. Very little of the site has been fully explored but what little work has been done has revealed some interesting information. Like Pompei, the town is very well preserved. Cost of entry was €6.00 / $6.90 per person. Cash only.
The lack of bodies and personal effects, like jewelry, lead researchers to conclude that the town was abandoned in an orderly fashion before the eruption. The town was well organized and included storage areas, workshops and even a sewer system. Many of the buildings were three stories high.
Walking around it was apparent that no work has been done at the site for some time. There is a nice elevated path that takes visitors through the site and most structures can be seen from multiple angles. Bracing can be seen in many of the buildings and concrete had been used to reinforce some areas but most of the site is just a ruin. There were few informational signs.
Very few buildings have been extensively explored. One, the so called West House, was where the remains of several large frescos were found. In front of it there was a nice video that talked about the life of the village and showed a reconstruction of the house. It was very informative.
After leaving the site we decided to go exploring. The famous Red Beach was nearby and we wanted to see it. We had been told that it was closed but we were going to try just the same.
We followed the signs and found a small beach with large reddish stones. Near the road was the white church that is featured in all photos of the area. To the side was a sign that pointed to a trail that led to the beach proper. We followed it up a small hill and were treated to a view of a large cove and a rocky beach. The beach was short and behind it was a tall sheer cliff made of red stones. It was a very pretty sight.
(The Red Beach)
Our next stop was to the highest hill on the island that was topped with The Monastery of the Prophet Elijah. As expected the drive was up a steep, narrow mountainous road with many switchbacks. When we finally got to the top we found a place to park and tried to enter the monastery. It was closed. The sign said that it was open from 9:00 am – 3:00 pm every day but those must be in season hours. One of the other tourists we met there said that it was only open for a short while at 8:00 am during this time of year. We weren’t too disappointed because we were even more interested in the view. From the top of the hill there was a grand 360 degree panorama of the island, the caldera, the ocean and the islands beyond.
For dinner we tried out a new restaurant that was a few blocks away from the town center. We’d eaten at the souvlaki place near our apartment several times now and wanted to try someplace new. We ordered a Greek pizza and a pork gyro. The pizza came remarkably quickly but we waited a long time for the souvlaki. Eventually a scooter arrived with a delivery and with it came the gyro. It seems that they get their gyros from the souvlaki place in the center of town. So much for wanting to try a new restaurant. That’s a first for us.
Distance walked: 2.9 miles
Sunday, February 3
We went to Coffee Lab for breakfast. Their coffee, which is pretty good, only costs €1.60. Our breakfast consisted of a small meat pizza and a strawberry donut. We’re really missing not having a kitchen.
Close by there was an Internet cafe that advertised printing services. We went in and printed the boarding passes for our trip to Paris. The store had a bar from which you could order drinks and several long rows of computers. Just about every workstation was busy with gamers equipped with headsets. It’s not the kind of thing we expected to see. Then we headed over to the Museum of Prehistoric Thera.
We hadn’t intended to see this museum. The prehistoric period is not too interesting to us but someone on the boat trip told us that it had artifacts from Akrotiri. We were confused. Akrotiri was late Bronze Age, not Prehistoric, but apparently that is the name that they use to describe that time period on this island.
It turned out that the museum was free because it was the first Sunday of the month. There was a nice writeup about the history of the island, the eruption 3,500 years ago and a nice collection of pottery.
One of the most interesting exhibits was a cast of a wooden table. The wood had long ago decayed but it left a void in the ash and mud that modern day archeologists were able to fill with plaster as was done in Pompei. The resulting details show a beautifully and intricately carved table that was produced over 3,500 years ago. We love that kind of stuff!
(Cast of 17th Century BC Wooden Table)
The real stars of the museum, however, were the frescos that had been found in Akrotiri in the West House and the House of the Ladies. The largest frescos were fragments. The missing pieces had been drawn in by hand. From a distance it was hard to tell what was original and what had been added but they were still quite beautiful. The most impressive was a complete fresco that has been nicknamed The Fisherman. Representations can be found all over the island and on many tourist wares. It was something to see. Other frescos from Akrotiri can be found in the Archeological Museum of Athens (we already saw them!)
After our harrowing experience of the past couple of days we decided to take it easy. In the morning we explored the town of Fira on foot. The area is replete with shops aimed at tourists but most of them are closed this time of year. The only shops that are consistently open are the Jewelry shops. We don’t usually buy “stuff” in those places but it can be fun to look.
We started our day by having breakfast at a local restaurant. Because we typically stay in AirBNBs we normally have a kitchen and eat breakfast in our apartment. This saves time and money. Our hotel room has only a small refrigerator.
Our choices for breakfast were rather limited but there was a restaurant near the main square that was open and busy. We figured that was a good sign. We ordered an omelet with bacon, ham and cheese and a Greek omelet. Deborah ordered a double Greek coffee and when I saw that they had Illy brand coffee I ordered a cappuccino. The omelets were very tasty. When the bill came we saw that the coffees cost €3.50 and €4.50 respectively. Ouch! That’s high even for a tourist area. We won’t make that mistake again.
(A Greek Omelette)
Just steps from our hotel, at the top of the hill, there is a magnificent view of the caldera. Santorini is much more than your typical island – it is the most active volcano in the southern Aegean volcanic arc and was the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history. That eruption occurred 3,600 years ago and may have led to the collapse of the Minoan civilization. It formed the caldera that we see today.
The towns are actually built on the rim of the volcano. The crater is filled with water. There are several small islands in the middle of the crater and there is a hot spring that people swim in during the warmer months (it’s actually just a place where the magma is closer to the surface). If there is a serious eruption at least we will have the pleasure of knowing that the narrow walkway where our car got stuck (and the car itself) will probably perish along with us.
(Yes Folks, That’s a Volcano)
There are a number of churches with great views of the caldera and many of them seem to be of the Catholic faith. Santorini, which is an amalgam of Saint Irene, belonged to the Venetians for a long time. In fact, in 1480, the island was given by the Duke of Naxos to Domenico Pizani for marrying his daughter Florenza. Italian ancestry is apparent in most places.
In the afternoon we got back in the car and made a grocery run to a Lidl. We bought some supplies including food for breakfast the next day. We tried to find one of the parking lots that was closer to our apartment but that led us down some very narrow streets and up a winding hill. When we got to the top we turned around and went back to the first parking lot. It is just outside of the main part of town and has easy access to main roads. Our options seem to be to walk a little further to get the car or navigate those mountainous roads. It wasn’t a hard choice to make.
Distance walked: 3.3 miles
Thursday, January 31
Our expectation had been to go to Crete for 1-2 weeks after Santorini. This morning we tried to do some planning. Getting around this time of year is proving more difficult than we imagined. The ferries only seem to run once a week. The cost for a ride to Crete was about €400.00 per person which was way more than we expected (we had researched this some time ago but probably had relied on in-season schedules). A flight would cost well over €100.00 per person and would take most of the day as we would have to travel back through Athens. We really wanted to see the remains of the Minoan civilization but reluctantly we decided to make Santorini our last stop in Greece.
Where are we going next? Well, our plan had always been to fly back to the United States because we have several family functions to attend in the coming months. Our destination is our new adopted home of Las Vegas, NV. We think we’ll spend a year there before deciding what to do / where to go next. Given that there were no direct flights to the western US from Greece we decided to make a stopover for a week somewhere in western Europe to help keep the flight to a manageable length. Our original thought was London. It is a major gateway between the US and Europe, has great option for flights and is one of our favorite cities. We were, however, worried about BREXIT and could get no good information about it. Still, our flight would be in February and we didn’t expect to be affected. Because London is so expensive we thought we’d use our remaining Marriott points and stay in a nice hotel but we didn’t have enough for a week in even the cheapest hotel available.
We’ve never been to Venice and thought about going there in spite of the fact that it really wasn’t too far west. The most direct flight would take us from Santorini to Athens to Rome to Venice. That wasn’t going to work. We briefly considered a few other places like Madrid and Barcelona but finally settled on Paris. They, too, have great flight options and we could stay for more than a week in a hotel if we used our points. We booked our flight to Paris via Athens and our flight from Paris to Los Angeles. What would retired life be back in the US? We have no idea.
In the morning we visited the Archeological Museum of Thera. The cost was €1.00 per person. We suspected that it would be small but it turned out to be a single room. There were just a few artifacts from several digs and the descriptions were all labeled in Greek and French. We thought of it as good practice for when we would be in France in the coming week. It’s really hard to recommend this museum.
(Vase from Sellada, Santorini from 370 BC)
Next we drove over to the Wine Museum. Conveniently the museum also doubles as one of the oldest wineries on the island. We assumed it would just be a ruse to get us to sample/buy some of their wines but that was okay because that’s just what we intended.
The Museum at the Koutsoyannopoulos Winery charges €10.00 / $11.50 per person but that includes a tasting of four wines. Credit cards are accepted. The exhibits were more interesting than we expected. In addition to the usual information about wines it talked about the history of the winery and the unique conditions on the island that contribute to the quality of the grapes. The volcanic soil and the arid conditions combine to make for much lower yields than typical wineries but endow the wines with unique characteristics. The strong winds whip up sand which can damage the grapes. To help with this the vines are twisted into round basket shapes. The grapes are carefully placed inside the baskets to help protect them.
(Grape Vines Twisted into a Basket)
Of course the proof was in the pudding. Our tasting started with a white wine that was strongly reminiscent of a riesling. It was slightly sweet with a fruity flavor. We liked it a lot. This was followed by a red wine. It’s main characteristic was a strong bouquet (mostly oak) and a flat taste. We really didn’t care for it at all.
The third and fourth wines were both made from dried grapes. We’d never heard of making wine that way before. Surprisingly, the wines were similar to ice wines, which are made from grapes that have been left to freeze. The wines were sweet and syrupy and had a strong flavor. The first one was made from red grapes and the second from white. We liked the first one best and purchased a bottle to take back to our hotel room. It was similar to a tawny port but with an alcohol level of only 10%. This was the very first product that was produced at the winery when it was started in the 1870s. We learned that the other one is used for communion at all Catholic churches on the island.
Afterwards we drove out towards Akrotiri. It’s on the western most part of the island where there is an archeological site that we planned to see. It was too late in the day to see the site but, wanting to see more of the island, thought we’d go to the farthest point where there is a lighthouse and excellent views. There were many places to pull off the road and enjoy the view as we went along and we did just that in several places. When we were finally within walking distance of the lighthouse we encountered a deep depression that covered the entire width of the now dirt road that was filled with water. We decided not to take our chances.
It was past 6:00 pm when we got back to the hotel. The manager confronted us and told us that we’d be moving to the other hotel at noon tomorrow. In an very angry voice I said, “No”, and then explained that we’d planned to take a cruise the next day and would be on the boat at that time. Deborah stepped in and said the same thing only in a much nicer tone. The man was very frustrated with us and finally said that he’d make other arrangements. That was fine with us.
