Date received: Wed Jul 18 2001, 04:04 AM PDT
I like Santorini much better than Ios. Although rather touristic, it is a much more beautiful and peaceful island than Ios, and I have actually run into numerous people over 25. In my first 15 minutes on the island, I met half a dozen people, which is more than my entire time on Ios, where the teenagers would hardly give me the time of day.
I rented a bike for the first day, and tooled around the near side of the island. Yesterday, I met up with a few Creteans that I met on the bus, and the four of us rented motorbikes and took a tour of the whole island.
Santorini is a caldera, or collapsed volcano, and most of the buildings are pearched high up on the rim, spilling over the sides towards the crater below. It is a photographers delight, and I've spent much of the past two days taking pictures.
This afternoon, I make my way to Turkey, via the islands of Paros and Samos. I will only be on Paros for a couple of hours, and I don't expect to be on Paros much longer either. I am done with my brief island hopping diversion, and on my way to Istanbul.
peter
