Santorini, Greece: the most truthful information about the island first-hand

Santorini, the middle-sized island in the Cycladic region, many are inclined to consider the legendary Atlantis. Perhaps this is so, because its modern appearance arose due to the devastating eruption of the volcano, which occurred about 1500 years before our era. As a result, most of the former Santorini went under water, leaving only pathetic fragments on the surface. Due to the subsequent eruptions, their outlines changed many times. As a result, now Santorini (Greece) is a ring of small islets: Tyrasia, Aspro, which means "white", Palea Kameni and Nea Kameni, respectively, "old stones" and "new stones," and Santorini itself.

He appears before tourists a huge steep rock rising from sapphire sea waters. All life on the island is at the top of this rock, and at its foot are numerous beaches and three ports: the central - Fira, Athenios and Oia.

To get to Santorini (Greece) It is possible by water and by air. The island has a local airport that accepts planes from Athens, Crete, Rhodes and Mykonos. In terms of capacity, they are small, in a season the place needs to be booked for a week or more, although the ticket price is quite high. You can fly to Athens by plane for 40 minutes. By ferry, this will take from 5 to 8 hours, depending on which ship. From the port of Athens, Piraeus, there are regular and high-speed ferries, which are multi-deck (with elevator) huge structures, on board which have comfortable rooms with TVs, sleeping cabins, shops, bars and restaurants of the McDonald's series.

Where to stay in Santorini (Greece), you can find it easily. And it is not necessary to book a hotel room in advance. In the port of Fira, as a rule, there are always barkers with detailed photographs of the rooms or the hotel, or simply rooms and whole houses. Although the place is better to book. The volcanic formation of the island causes some problems with drinking water. It is more reasonable to not drink water from a tap, but to take in mineral bottles, which in Greece is not carbonated. Fans of soda will have to buy expensive and small in capacity of a bottle of soda.

Cuisine Santorini (Greece), as well as on other islands, offers a lot of meat and fish dishes, as well as shrimp, octopus, squid, lobster, cuttlefish, called local "soup". Also in each restaurant, there are many vegetable dishes, including delicious "giant" beans and rice-stuffed meatless vegetables. Exotic for our tourists may seem boiled herb "Horta", which in Greece grows everywhere, but costs in stores from 4 euros per kilo. For information, about the same amount is a kilogram of chicken. Lovers of olives should be prepared, that in Greece they are very different from those that are sold with us. Hellenes believe that good olives must certainly be bitter. From alcoholic beverages to Santorini must be offered a local wine, which is three varieties - white, pink and red. Also there are very popular ouzo and crayfish, that is, grape vodka. From the Russian it is distinguished by smaller degrees.

Many interesting, history-rich islands have Greece. Santorini can boast of its own "Pompeii". The ruins, completely covered with ashes, began to be excavated at Cape Akrotiri. The city led an active life for 3000 years before our era, and even then they were able to build three-story houses and lay water and sewerage. Yet, upon arriving in Santorini, it is worth to visit two neighboring uninhabited islets - Nea and Palea Kameni. There you can admire the bizarre ledges created by the frozen lava. And the smell of sulfur will remind you that the volcano is not dead, it just rests.

Particular attention deserve island beaches. Their zest is that each of them is fringed by a multi-meter steep rock from frozen lava. You can go up to the city from the beaches by a multistage staircase, a cable car and, for a nominal fee, on a donkey. With such an unusual form of transport you will get a wonderful photo session. Pictures can be signed: "Greece, Santorini". Photo can not be signed, and so everything will be clear.

In the evening, an exciting nightlife begins on the island. There are night bars, numerous discos. Another spectacle, which in no case can not be missed - sunsets. This sight even goes into excursion programs.