We arrived in Santorini yesterday afternoon, and even though I was a bit drowsy from our previous night of sleeping on a bench at the port, I was so excited to finally be in Santorini! Our shuttle from the hotel was late to the port so we asked another guy holding a sign where to go, and he happened to be the hotel owner's brother. Go figure. So he made a call, batta boom batta bing, and our shuttle met us along with a few other travelers and shuttled us to the hotel.
It's not a super fancy hotel, but for 12 Euros a person per night and the incredible hospitality we have already received, I am more than satisfied. When brought into the reception/kitchen/lounge area, we were welcomed by a sweet woman named Poppy who quickly informed us of all the main things to do on the island. Soon after, her husband (also our shuttle driver) offered us each a bit of wine to toast to our arrival. It was perfect.
After settling in a bit, we went out to dinner with a woman we met on a shuttle. She happened to be from NY/LA and is now living in Rome, so we had lots to talk about over dinner. She gave us plenty of advice on what to do in Italy, especially Rome, and I am very excited to see what the Italia is like.
We hit the sack early since we were so petered out from the last two days. This morning I woke up early and contacted a couch surfer in Oia, the most popular scenic place on the island. We ended up meeting him in Fira which is about a 15 minute walk from where we are staying. He was an excellent host and welcomed us to Greece, showing us around his home in Oia and a bit in Fira. Ironically, he is from Serbia, but he lives in Greece and is a HUGE Ron Paul supporter. So funny. He and Colton had plenty to talk about. I feel like I need to brush up on my politics.... He introduced us to his wife (a Latvian. They met through CS) and his friend, also from Serbia. They were also super hospitable and offered us some tea and food.
Later, Colton and I ventured down the cliffs to a place where we could jump in the water! It was sort of shockingly cold, but eventually I got used to it and it wasn't too bad :) Sadly I tried to hold my nose when jumping in and ended up getting a head full of water up my nose. Not fun. But we dried off in the wind and I felt fine after a few minutes of blowing my nose.
We watched the sunset over Oia, so breathtakingly beautiful. Everything you see in pictures, except so much better in person. Then we went back to Fira for a light dinner at a super crowded restaurant where the food was delicious. From there we walked home. Again, Poppy gave us a tray full of food when we got back to the hotel. These people are so sweet, I could definitely get used to this way of life :)
Tomorrow we are renting a scooter for the day, who knows what new adventures will await us!
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