Tues 20th May 2014

We got to Thira (Santorini) on Sunday after a bit of good sailing - first around the corner to a bay on Paros, then to the island of Ios (famous amongst other things for being the place where Homer was buried having died on a voyage nearby - and also for its naturist beaches).

A quick word about weather - it had been wonderful. Thira has probably over 360 days of sunshine per year. We caught two of the very few cloudy ones and even some rain! Really bad luck, so the pictures are not as vibrant as the postcard variety - go search online to see better! But it did not detract.

It is simply stunning. To approach by boat is special. You enter the caldera (7 miles in diameter) through a break in the land between Thira and what is now Thirassia. The original complete island was called Strongili - meaning round. It suffered many eruptions and earthquakes in its time, but the major eruption occurred in about 1530 BC, blowing the island to pieces and destroying the very cultured Minoan civilisation living there. It is said this eruption was between 3 and 5 times the size and strength of Krakatoa, and its affect was devastating across the Mediterranean (it is also linked to the demise of Atlantis as described by Plato). Further eruptions and earthquakes have helped to give its current shape. And it is still active now.

The steep-to pumice cliffs are rich shades of red, brown, green and slate blue. They drop straight down from up to 300m to the water and keep going for another 300m down. So it is strange to be sailing in a caldera with such depths beneath you. We did a complete tour by boat, including the central island of Nea Kameni (black lava and pumice, its centre still smoking) that is the crown or plug of the volcano itself. It was too deep and rocky to anchor, so we headed out of the crater to the south side of Thira to the only "marina" - or rather "safe fishing haven".

On Monday we hired a car with Viv and Alan to do the sights (and sites). First off were the excavations at Akrotiri. This had been the site of civilizations from mid-5th C BC. By 2000-1600BC the Minoans were well established. Wealthy, cultured and cosmopolitan, they were known for their artwork (painting, frescoes, jewellery, pottery, etc), their advanced engineering (in-house and town plumbing and sewerage systems. Education and architecture, etc etc. The eruption destroyed much of the city and evidence, but some was preserved by all the ash that buried it. A bit like Pompeii, except no bodies were found. It seems they had some warning of the blow and tried to escape. Lost at sea maybe in the ensuing tsunami?

Following an accident in 2005 that resulted in a few deaths, the excavations are now completely under cover with a grass mound cover as a bio protection, and strengthened by enormous deep driven piles. The scale and complexity of the site is amazing. Most of the paintings and artefacts are now in museums though, mainly in Athens. But rooms and public buildings, rainwater gullies and even an indoor loo (or basin) survive. Most buildings were 3 storeys high, so what we see is only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

Thence to Ancient Thira, 9th C, mainly Egyptian, perched high on the SE side of Thira. The drive up there was on a 1:10 hairpin bend vertical climb on a slippery metalled road. It was Monday. The site itself (large, c 1km long) was closed. C'est la vie. The view was terrific.

So we headed to the north tip of Thira to Oia (Ia) that is the picture-postcard town perched high overlooking the caldera. Stylish, with coloured buildings and blue domed churches. We leaned over the edge and tried to work out the size of the volcano - it is so big. We decided that if you picked up Guernsey and deposited it in the caldera, it would fit very nicely. Guernsey chosen in honour of our friends gathered there this week celebrating the HROA's 25th anniversary.

On to the capital Fira, Cycladic white cubey buildings perched on the 300m cliff with a cable car down to the landing stage. The other ways up and down the cliff-face are on foot (587 zig-zag steps) or by donkey. A very full day, topped off by a good meal at Dimitri's, just above our harbour.

The following morning we witnessed the spectacle of a fishing boat arriving. Its young skipper had called ahead for truck and ice. He unloaded his catch to smiles and photos. A yellow fin tuna, 8ft+ long, 240kg in weight and worth to him about 4,000 Euros. That tuna is now sushi in Athens.

Sorry, so long this one, but it was one of those experiences of a lifetime.