scenes on my way to Oia

From the end of Oia, I was able to turn around and look back to see where I had been during my daylong journey through one of my favorite places that I have ever traveled to. I was able to see my starting point, the town of Fira, and the curvature of the island that I followed to reach my destination by sunset.

During my glances back, I felt like I was looking at the famous scenes of Santorini that I had just experienced in the wonderful, diverse artwork.

looking back from Oia

During the cooler evening air, I searched and found the best seat in the house, so that I could finally watch what my goal of getting to my destination by sunset was all about, and what Santorini is famous for – the sunset itself. I sat for over an hour watching the sky as it faded from the blue of the day, to the oranges and reds of the sunset, to the darker star-filled nighttime sky. The sunset was breathtakingly beautiful, and now I know why so many people flock to this area for this experience.

other Santorini scenes with churches

I focused on taking pictures of one specific cross on the top of a church overlooking the water, using up the last of the film that I had brought with me.

When the show was complete, I did not want to walk all the way back to Fira in the dark. I opted to take a bus back, and during the half-hour ride, I reflected on my day as I watched the places that I had walked through go by my window.

I thought about the blue domes and the pastel colors of the churches; I thought about the church bells and the steeples; I thought about walking on the rooftops; I thought about the whitewashed homes; I thought about the blue seas and the blue skies; I thought about the zigzagging of the cobblestone, the paths, the trails, and the roads; I thought about the layering effect of the hillside towns; I thought about the “summits”; I thought about the wildflowers and the views; I thought about the local Greek food; and I thought about the expertise and sheer talent of the artwork.

I was glad that I brought my hat, sunscreen, water bottle, snacks, and sunglasses with me on that day. I was especially thankful that I brought my camera and all that extra film! And I was truly delighted that I reached my destination by sunset…

Sweet Travels!

All photos taken by Debby.

Two hills, strewn with wildflowers and spectacular views. I felt like this was the “hiking” part of my walk as not only did some of the paved and cobblestoned roads that I had been walking on turn into a rocky trail, but also, I had reached the highest vantage points of my day. From here, I was able to see the curvature of the island of Santorini; I could look back at where I had been, Fira; and I could see ahead to where I was going, Oia, my destination by sunset.

a “summit” marker; where I had been, and where I was going

wildflowers, spectacular views, and the curvature of the island

churches on the hillsides near the summits

A couple of times throughout my day, especially because those snacks I had with me had been eaten, I stopped to dine on some local Greek food to sustain me. Yum! There is nothing like the combination of eating the local food while looking at local scenery of this beautiful island!

After most of my day had passed, I arrived at the town of Oia, almost attaining my goal of reaching my final destination by sunset. I wandered slowly through the town, glancing into several shops to see what the locals were selling. There were many souvenir shops, some music shops, and lots of art shops. It was these local art shops that I found to be fabulous.

The theme of the wonderful artwork that I was looking at was mostly the same – the amazing scenes of Santorini with the whitewashed homes; the blue splashes of color of the church domes, the seas, and the skies; along with the occasional pastel colors of some buildings. But the mediums used to create the artwork, as well as the artistic styles, varied widely, from paintings of watercolors or oils, to postcards, to sculptures. The diversity of this artwork was just as beautiful as the scenery itself!

samples of the diversity of Santorini artwork

One of my favorite mediums for the Santorini scenes were paintings that were actually made out of pieces of earth, including the volcanic rock that the island itself is made of. These paintings looked three-dimensional, and really impressed me, with their earthy tones and depth. I called this local “earth art.”

local “earth art”

During my meandering around Oia, ironically, I then came across this building that looked to me like this “earth art” that I had just seen in the local shops. I took my own “artistic” picture for comparison.

my “earth art”

Earlier in my day, I even had a wonderful opportunity to stop and watch an artist at work creating his paintings of the very towns that I had been walking through. Such expertise and concentration!

artist at work

Please read my final blog for more about my Santorini journey, including more photos, as I finally reach my destination by sunset.

Sweet Travels!

All photos taken by Debby.

This arrangement made it easy and fun to explore. The streets themselves varied from being paved or cobblestone narrow streets and paths, to rocky trails, to roads that were wide enough for cars. Many of those narrower streets were organized in such a way as to make it seem as if I were wandering through a maze, zigzagging around and through and over and under the homes and churches, allowing for many options of which direction I could travel.

Narrow Path and Rocky Trail

Not only did the layout of the towns give me plenty of choices for exploration, but also because the towns were built on hills, there was this layering effect of the homes and churches. As I would walk on one street, not only were there buildings next to me at my level, but there was also a layer just above me, and a layer just below me.

And because of this layering effect, there were actually a couple of times when I was able to walk right from my layer right up on the top of the roofs of some churches of the layer just below me. I’m not really sure if I was supposed to do this or not, but it allowed me to walk right up to the steeples and church bells to see them up close! I loved that! And it made for some fun and artistic photos.

Church Bells and Steeples from the Roof Tops

These walking-on-the-rooftop experiences not only made for great views of the architecture of the churches, but also gave me fabulous landscapes right through the steeples of the churches to other Greek islands, and to the blue skies and blue seas beyond and below.

Greek Islands and Blue Skies and Blue Seas Beyond

Blue Seas and Boats Below

Good thing I had that extra film with me!

Please read my next blogs for more about my journey, including more photos, to my destination by sunset.

Sweet Travels!

All photos taken by Debby.