Two Sisters in Santorini

It's been four weeks since I arrived here in Thessaloniki, and I'll admit, I've started to really miss friends and family back home (especially my dog!). So when my sister, Jessica, arrived last Thursday, I was happy to see a familiar face. And on Friday, our sisterly adventure began! We hopped on a plane to the beautiful Greek island of Santorini, about 170 miles southeast of the mainland.

As soon as we arrived at our hotel, we were greeted with beautiful views of the landscape against the sea. White-washed buildings with tiny stairs surrounded us. Our first mission was to explore. And pictures. Lots of pictures. We took our time climbing each narrow step to new and unseen paths that led us up and down the island's cliffy landscape.

After trekking further up the mountain, we decided it was time for some food. We started to make our way to the northernmost town of Oia, where the views of the sunset are said to be some of the best in the world. However, we didn't quite make it that far- our journey would've been another hour and a half...our stomachs were a little too demanding at that point to let us walk any further. So, we found a restaurant with a view and plenty of time for drinks and dessert before the sunset. After our sweet teeth were sated by some baklava and chocolate soufflé, we spent some time at a church that sat just below the restaurant where many people lounged, waiting for the perfect view of the sun's daily departure. Wanting a more quiet viewing of our own, we headed back to our hotel to watch from the patio outside. It was the perfect way to end our first night in the island once called Thera.

Saturday morning, we were greeted with a complimentary Greek breakfast with another amazing view. The day's mission was to find a beach! We settled on Red Beach, at the southern tip of the island, called Akrotiri. It proved to be quite a walk from our central location of Firostefani, so after about an hour of walking, we called a mini bus that took us to the red rocks that hid the beach. It was more of a hike to the shore than we expected, but the rocky walk gave me my most unique beach experience yet. We spent a few hours under the sun on the red and black sand (our sunburns prove it!) and ate sandwiches (slightly peppered with sand carried by the wind) on our beach towel. We dipped our toes in the water and were surprised by how cold it was! It wasn't a very hot day but the sea was almost to cold to swim in. I dared a few minutes mostly submerged, but found it very hard to walk on the all-rock-floor. However, it made for some good rock-hunting.

And then, it was again time to search for food! We headed back to Firostefani and found another rooftop restaurant with its very own windmill and delicious Margherita pizza. Not seeing any super appetizing desserts on their menu, we headed out to find another chocolatey something at another nearby place. We found the perfect, inexpensive chocolate soufflé at an eatery right next to our hotel. We ended up going back for our meal the next night.

After another breakfast of pound cake and bread, we set out to the main central town of Fira where small shops and jewelry stores lined the streets. We browsed and perused the many touristy trinkets before lunch time. This trip seemed to be revolving around finding a place to eat, no complaints from me! I, of course, had to go for a gyro, but Jessica was a little nervous to try one just yet (I told her she had to try one before leaving Greece...more on that later). After another hour or so of passing by small stores, we spotted a place full of seats in front of tanks of fish. "What could this possibly be!?", I wondered. The famous fish pedicures! For 10 euros, we spent 15 minutes with our feet in the tanks of water, tiny fish tickling at our toes. This breed of fish literally picks off the dead skin to eat; kind of gross but it gets the job done and leaves your feet silky smooth!

We spent the rest of our day eating crepes and coffee and reading in the shade (it was a hot one, and we didn't have much energy for any more excursions). One last pasta dinner got us ready for a quick flight back to Thessaloniki, where Jessica would stay for three more days.

On Tuesday, we met for gyros, as promised. I took my older sister to a small stand just down the street from my apartment. I have dubbed them my favorite, and their price of 2.70 euros doesn't hurt. I couldn't wait for Jessica to take her first bite! After eating about half of the huge pork gyro, she gave me her verdict: not awful, but she probably wouldn't order one again. Okay, I can live with that; more gyros for me, I guess!

Jessica is now on her way back home, and I leave in only 1 week! Our time here has flown by so fast, and I am going to miss my new friends more than I can imagine, but this place of memories will never leave me. 'Til next time!