March 9th & 10th

We are combining the 2 days in 1 post because there is not much to tell. Our weather continues to be perfect with clear blue skies and cool but gets warm if in direct sunlight. We had no exceptions planned for either port since we know them well so our plan was to meander into town when we felt like it. In both places we were also the only ship in port. Santorini is our only tender port on this 9 day cruise but you have to use the local tenders and not the ship’s tenders. This is actually better since the local tenders hold a lot more people. The last 2 times we have been to Santorini the lines for the cable cars were so long we ended up walking up. This time the boat offered cable car tickets for any passengers going out on their own. The tickets were paid for by Viking and are 20 euros each way. That is a nice perk and one we have not had on any cruise line we have been on to Santorini.

We went down and got our 4 tickets, 2 for each way, and then got on the tender for the short ride to the dock.

We were going to walk up if the cable car line was too long but there was no line and we got right on for the ride to the top. The ride takes 10 minutes and this was the first time we had ever done the cable car in Santorini, so another first for us this trip.

Once we got to the top we walked around and got some pictures of the churches with the blue domes which Santorini is famous for.

Usually there are tons of shops along the narrow cobblestone streets but the season has not quite started yet so a lot of stores were closed still.

Our boat in the distance and all the houses on the cliff top. Santorini was divested by a volcanic eruption in 16th century BC and the 2 main towns, Fira & Oil cling to the cliffs above the caldera or underwater crater.

We have never been to Santorini when it has been this quiet or cool. It’s usually packed & HOT. Every shop we went in we were the only ones.

After walking around for a couple of hours we decided to get some lunch and found a nice restaurant overlooking the water. Santorini has its own beer brewery and they make the “donkey” beers. Yellow, Red, White and Crazy Donkey. They have great t-shirts and Kathy got a yellow donkey last time we were here. Her favorite is Red Donkey since it is a red ale but they don’t have a Red Donkey t-shirt.

After lunch we wandered around some more and then we decided to walk down the famous donkey path. Since it is off season they have not brought the donkeys out yet which they use to carry people up and done the cliff side. Linda & Michael saw some in town but none going down to the bottom.

There was no one on the path. You can see Kathy is way ahead of me on the left and on the right you can see how the path zig zags. Usually we are dodging donkeys who will run you over, and also trying to avoid the waste from the donkeys. This time it was a nice easy stroll, if you can call 588 steps easy!

When we went to board the tender we were greeted by another of our crew from the 23/24 world cruise. Karen who was the greeter at the restaurant and remembered everybody’s name, preferences and who they usually sat with. She has been promoted to service desk and excursions. As we are going back to the boat you can see the path that leads up to the top of the caldera.

We had dinner with the 6 of us in the Italian restaurant, Manfredi’s, and Karen’s new husband, Mark Micheal is the restaurant manager so he took great care of us. He kept bringing me hunks of parmesan cheese and checked on us several times. We have been in the private dining room several times but never for just 6 of us so that was very nice.

Olympia

Our next stop was Katakolon which is the closest port to the site of the original olympics. We have been here before also and besides going to the olympic site there is not much else to do. We took our time getting off the boat and walked into town. The shops were also just starting to open up and get ready for the season so a few were closed but most open and asking you to come in. Katakolon is like an old western town. Really has 2 streets about 2 blocks long. The waterfront area is lined with restaurants. It was a little intimidating going into the shops because you were the only ones there and the owners followed you around explaining everything to you.

Our boat at dock

We managed to find a few things without looking and ran into Linda & Michael and Kathy & Micheal. At one point we were convinced that we were the only people in town and everyone else had gone on tour.

We stayed in town for a couple of hours and then headed back to the boat and had some lunch. The buffet was very quiet since everyone was on tour and people were not expected back until after 1pm. The rest of the day was spent as a relaxing sea day.

We are having some great sunsets.

Next stop is Corfu, Greece