A Greek Odyssey – day 4

Classical Greek

Today we got up early to catch the first bus to Thira (7.30 am) and from there get another bus to take us further north, to Oia at the end of the island, arriving in this much instagrammed village of white washed houses and blue domed churches before 9 am.

One of the first sites we saw after we got off the bus and entered the town square in front of the church was a young lady, in a beautiful, long, very long, blue dress being told to run whilst chased by a photographer and videographer, there to capture the blue dress dazzling and billowing behind her, against the pristine white walls of the church and unblemished azure blue sky. Welcome to the world of Instagram, tik-tok and instant likes! The setting was stunning, and the crowds yet to materialise, hence this shot could happen, and we could also begin to explore relatively unencumbered and crowded by the masses.

We wandered the alleyways and streets and were rewarded with spectacular views – this was the classical Greek image of whitewashed houses clinging to the cliff face as they tumbled down to the sea, and the contrast of the brilliant blue of church domes sat atop classic white churches. This was the image you conjure up when you visualise a Greek village, and it did not disappoint. We stopped for breakfast in a taverna overlooking the white houses, blue domes, the sea and distant islands. The food was delicious, but we did have to pay for both the quality of the food and the quality of the view. As we sat and ate our Greek yogurt, there were only a couple of other customers, it was chilled and spectacular in equal measure.

We spent a couple of hours ambling along the pretty streets, but by 11 am any semblance of peace and tranquillity had evaporated into the hot air – the number over visitors had swelled and the chance of an uninterrupted view had vanished.

We decided we’d had enough, and fought our way through the thronging alleyways back to the bus stop and caught the bus to Thira – standing room only – and from there back to Kamara beach where, after lunch on our balcony, we spent the afternoon on the beach; I spent most of the time in the sea, as heavenly to me as the view of any blue domed church.