Oia - the Sunset Capital - IgoUgo Oia Journal

Oia - the Sunset Capital

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Overview

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Santorini is said to be one of the most photogenic Greek islands and although Perissa is fairly ordinary if not a little run down the rest of the island lived up to expectation. The clear blue skies and turquoise waters of the Calmera Sea were the perfect foundation for photography and the whites and blues of the Greek churches just shone out as the sun glistened off the rooftops. Since returning a friend has told us that Santorini appears in the top 100 places “to visit before you die”. Certainly you can’t leave it until after that event, but I can understand why it features. It is after all everything that a Greek island should be.For those who’ve read my previous journals you’ll know that...Read More

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Thalami Restaurant

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Restaurant | "Thalami"

The Oia Streets Photo - Thalami Restaurant, Santorini, Greece

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The Thalami is split by a walkway and has a terrace overlooking the Caldera with huge parasols to keep off the vicious Greek sun. We had wandered the streets of OIA and were both photo’d up and virtually on our knees. However, we were determined to stick around for the sunset and so settled for this restaurant with a sea view. The Thalami it was to be and we were pleased to see that prices were nowhere as inflated as those closer to the centre of town. I guess from the more central restaurants you would get the best views of the sunset but we were having difficulty in determining the best place to be in order to appreciate that event.The Thalami balcony was subject to a gentle breeze bu...Read More

The Thalami is split by a walkway and has a terrace overlooking the Caldera with huge parasols to keep off the vicious Greek sun. We had wandered the streets of OIA and were both photo’d up and virtually on our knees. However, we were determined to stick around for the sunset and so settled for this restaurant with a sea view. The Thalami it was to be and we were pleased to see that prices were nowhere as inflated as those closer to the centre of town. I guess from the more central restaurants you would get the best views of the sunset but we were having difficulty in determining the best place to be in order to appreciate that event.

The Thalami balcony was subject to a gentle breeze but also a veritable plague of cats and the odd visiting dogs. For our starters we opted for a Santorini special; tomato fritters as well as a garlic dip. The presumption was that we were sharing so the bread arrived; just nice chunky pieces of a light white bread followed by the garlic dip. It was a significant dish full with a single olive planted nonchalantly in the centre. We were ravenous, walking works up an appetite and the waiter had hardly turned his back and we were pushing chunks of bread into this tasty but strong tasting dip. It was almost as if we were on CCTV because we had literally just finished our last mouthful of the dip when the waiter delivered the tomato fritters. He was not the smiliest of individuals, in fact he was right miserable. No matter we were eating and not here to socialise with the staff.

The fritters (four large ones) were really tasty. Once again the CCTV was affective because we had barely finished chewing the last morsel of fritter when our main course, Moussaka arrived. It was more appetising looking than you can imagine with a little grated red cabbage and a slice of carrot at the side. The Moussaka, mass baked, was cut into squares and it cannot be accused of being hot. Warm yes. However, there was plenty of it and although initially I though it was quite tasty I ended up with a rather unpleasant after taste. Indeed I struggled to wade through the final few forkfuls, perhaps the starter had been more substantial than I realised and the Moussaka was set to weigh fairly heavy for the rest of the evening.

Having devoured our food we sat back and enjoyed the views of the Neakameni, Palea Kameni, the small island of Aspro and to our right the large craggy island of Thirasia. You certainly cannot knock the view even if the food is a little less than stunning. The odd potential diner and the sour faced waiter threw us some evil looks assuming that we, having eaten our food, should vacate our table. I certainly wasn’t going to be rushing off and wanted to rest up a little (we’d had a long day) before setting off to view the sunset.

The cobbled street that split the restaurant is half was extremely busy and the restaurant must almost be at the highest part of the town so you get great views in both directions. Just as we were contemplating moving on a line of donkeys trundle past; obviously part of the local taxi service, so we settled back for a little longer giving them the chance to vacate the thoroughfare. We enquired for the bill and just as I expected it arrived in the blink of an eye. Here was a place that wanted to move diners on and our perception of being part of a production line had been confirmed. As the attitude of all the staff had been less than friendly and the food mediocre I made a very clear decision not to tip.

This is not a place I’d recommend to the discerning diner – it satisfied our need for a quick meal, but that’s all I can say about it. I’d say give it a wide berth.
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Member Rating 1 out of 5 on July 2, 2008

Thalami Restaurant

Santorini, Greek Islands

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Imerovigli

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Attraction

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Just off the Thira – Oia road is the small village of Imerovigli. The detour we felt was well worth it because here you will be able to appreciate some superb views across the volcanic remains of the islands that make up Santorini. But first we stopped off at the small and friendly bar/tavern Eotia. It is on the main street and having parked up our hire car we headed to the taverna, made use of their facilities before taking our seats (a couple of comfortable two person settees) under the shade of a large raffia canopy. The shelter from the blazing sun was most welcome and we sat back to enjoy a litre or so of water and an iced coffee.There was no expectation that we should have more a...Read More

Just off the Thira – Oia road is the small village of Imerovigli. The detour we felt was well worth it because here you will be able to appreciate some superb views across the volcanic remains of the islands that make up Santorini. But first we stopped off at the small and friendly bar/tavern Eotia. It is on the main street and having parked up our hire car we headed to the taverna, made use of their facilities before taking our seats (a couple of comfortable two person settees) under the shade of a large raffia canopy. The shelter from the blazing sun was most welcome and we sat back to enjoy a litre or so of water and an iced coffee.

There was no expectation that we should have more and no pressure to move on. We enjoyed the respite and the gentle music playing in the background. At one point as scratching my head I felt a sharp pain and not content with stopping the scratching I gently rubbed my scalp. Wooo – it was like several needles entering my scalp and, being a bloke, I immediately panicked. I thrust my head in front of my wife and almost pleaded with her to check it out. I could see the signs that said "you big baby" and then after some gentle probing she gasped. Apparently there were several small "needles" stuck in my head. She struggled to extract these barbed foreign bodies from my scalp (there were a good dozen) and as they were very fine they were problematic to find. In the end we decided that these must have been "inherited" from our trip to Ancient Thira – you remember it was windy and I was hatless. I sat back relieved only to see that my antics had been observed by several other diners at the Eotia. Some were so concerned that they enquired if I’d been stung by an insect. I explained the story and perhaps they too thought that I was "a big baby"

Excitement over, we set about the business of re-hydrating ourselves before we headed towards the blue dome of Imerovigli’s main church. Although like most towns we discovered many more churches as we wandered through the narrow, steep alleyways that eventually took us to the fantastic coastal views of Santorini. We are becoming accustomed to the twisty turnings of these quaint villages and Imerovigl is no different to the other s we’ve visited other than the fact that here we see several typical Greek women sitting out on chairs outside their doors. Most smiled benignly at us whilst the occasional one seemed to want to sell us something. Once again we were disappointed with the fact that all the churches had firmly locked doors ^ a couple of the churches seemed unused and run down, But the views in this village across the sea were superb.

Although there’s not loads to see in Imerovigli, "the balcony of Santorini", it has to be worth a call. Apparently the largest part of the town was destroyed in the 1950’s earthquake and many of the residents left the island and headed for Athens. Now it’s a quiet spot which is totally unspoilt by tourism and it is alleged that the sunset here almost matches the delights that we later saw in Oia.

As we were leaving the village I spotted yet another church just off the Oia road. This one is accessed by a narrow dirt track and although the view from the church was excellent it was yet another one of those closed Greek churches. Indeed this one seemed to be erring towards derelict although it was still obviously used by a small monastic group.
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Member Rating 3 out of 5 on July 2, 2008

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Santorini Villages: Fira and Oia

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Attraction | "The Streets of Oia"

The streets of Oia Photo - Santorini Villages: Fira and Oia, Santorini, Greece

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A walk around Oia is an absolute delight and it is absolutely right, in my opinion, that it should be viewed as one of the most photogenic of all the Greek island villages. Mind you I’m not alone with that view as was evidenced by the number of tourists trekking around the streets with cameras and tripods. Indeed right at the start of our entry to Oia a young American couple were taking photographs of the same view that I’d spotted and throughout the day we bumped into each other several times enjoying a quick exchange about the numerous photo opportunities that were around the town and sharing amusement that we seemed to be "stalking each other" through the town. Mind you I did feel a sense of achiev...Read More

A walk around Oia is an absolute delight and it is absolutely right, in my opinion, that it should be viewed as one of the most photogenic of all the Greek island villages. Mind you I’m not alone with that view as was evidenced by the number of tourists trekking around the streets with cameras and tripods. Indeed right at the start of our entry to Oia a young American couple were taking photographs of the same view that I’d spotted and throughout the day we bumped into each other several times enjoying a quick exchange about the numerous photo opportunities that were around the town and sharing amusement that we seemed to be "stalking each other" through the town. Mind you I did feel a sense of achievement if I was taking the photograph before her or if she was nowhere to be seen. I guess she felt the same!

Despite the fact that there are hoards of tourists all seeking the best place to take a photo, it’s still possible to find secluded alleyways away from the crowd. We followed our instinct on numerous occasions and ended up with some superb vantage points across the bay. There are plenty of cobbled tracks that take you past old original houses and like other places we’d viewed on the island there’s a wealth of photogenic doors and windows. I know that everyone takes pictures of the Greek doors, but why should we be different!

But Oia is reputed for its windmills and I have to report that we were not disappointed when we got our first view over the town across to the town’s mills. They were nestling on the side of Oia’s cliffs and like limpets seemed to defy gravity. Of course they are no longer used for the original intention and although a couple seemed to be disused others had been converted into private residences, holiday lettings or the focal point of a restaurant. Us tourists were swarming around them like a plague of locusts and although with patience it was possible to take a shot without the other "sharp snappers" their presence was ever presence. Oia is almost a victim of its own popularity but so far it has retained its historical identity and shops, restaurants and holiday lettings have been merged into the cultural heritage of the town, Let’s hope that they don’t develop it any further as it must be on the edge of good taste.

Although Fira is reputed to be the best place to shop on the island I reckon Oia must run a close run second. Although you won’t find the volume of shops here, there is somehow a greater charm about the streets and the shops of Oia. The guide-books say that the shops in Oia are "equally important, even though less shiny and more ethnic compared to that of Fira". I’d certainly concur with the fact that there is a greater ethnic feel to the art and craft shops and the art galleries are compact and when compared to the glitz of Fira. That doesn’t make them, in my opinion, any less attractive and we saw work that was more inventive and original than that of the art galleries of Fira. Of course we checked out techniques and inventiveness with the intention of passing on the ideas to our artist son who might be able to adapt some of the "recycling options" by using drift wood or ancient timbers as the medium for some of his work.
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Member Rating 3 out of 5 on July 3, 2008

Santorini Villages: Fira and Oia

Santorini, Greek Islands

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The Sunset

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Story/Tip

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Oia is reputed as having one of the best sunsets and certainly if you’re on Santorini it is the ONLY place you should be if you want to experience a memorable setting of the sun. We’d had a long day’s tour of the island and we were getting quite sightseeing weary. However, it was a clear night (as most had been to date) and we were told that sunset would occur around 20.20hrs. So we took in a meal and then, having ascertained the best place to enjoy our viewing of nature’s show, headed for the old castle. It was just after 19.30 when we left the restaurant and having popped in a couple of shops on route we were sure that we’d be in plenty of time to get a comfortable spot from which to wait for the ap...Read More

Oia is reputed as having one of the best sunsets and certainly if you’re on Santorini it is the ONLY place you should be if you want to experience a memorable setting of the sun. We’d had a long day’s tour of the island and we were getting quite sightseeing weary. However, it was a clear night (as most had been to date) and we were told that sunset would occur around 20.20hrs. So we took in a meal and then, having ascertained the best place to enjoy our viewing of nature’s show, headed for the old castle. It was just after 19.30 when we left the restaurant and having popped in a couple of shops on route we were sure that we’d be in plenty of time to get a comfortable spot from which to wait for the appointed hour.

We took the left turn down the steep incline to the castle walls and were stunned to see that already the crowds were beginning to build. Not deterred I was confident (I’m always optimistic on holiday as it makes up for my normal cautious pessimism) and I strode down the narrow path before taking the steps up to the castle enclosure. It was absolutely rammed full and it was immediately clear that there was no way that this site would give us an uninterrupted view of the sunset. So I head off back to town but notice, just a few yards down from the castle a raised grassy bank. It’s not too hard to clamber up and from here I have the perfect view and no-one can get in my way as the walkway back to the town is a few metres below me.

It turns out that this view was better than I imagined as I have a 270° view of from the town along the sea, across to the volcano, back out to sea and along the coast and back up the hills to the outskirts of Oia. Just perfect for watching the many different hues as the sun makes its way down the sky. The atmosphere is building up nicely and the crowds grow. This is almost approaching the assemblage for a rock concert and people are cramming themselves into almost every crevice. The tripod brigade are out in force jockeying for position and the range of cameras is from those old fashioned ones that “run off film” (I can hardly remember the time when I used to buy rolls of film for my holidays), mobile phones, point and shoot digital up to the higher spec SLR’s.

As soon as the sun started to dip (and it seemed to take an absolute age) the cameras started clicking and bleeping. There were some superb views, as the sun began to descend and reflect on the sails of the small boats, but more stunningly on the white builds that cling precariously to the side of the rock that makes up the town of Oia. An eerie orange hue took over the town and on a beautiful clear night the sun was reflected almost perfectly in the gentle ripples of the sea. The crowd was almost silent as the sun continued its descent and watchers clicked off their camera shutters to catch that one memorable photo of this fantastic sunset.

A final click of lens as the sun takes its final dip into the sea and as it does so several of the crowd burst into spontaneous applause. Some where heard to shout “unique” and “awesome” and I didn’t quite have the heart to say that they’ll be able to experience a similar event he following day. Sunset, at Oia, is fairly predictable so you’re almost guaranteed to see a marvellous light show.

It truly is a great sight, but be warned if you're wanting to bid a hasty retreat you will strugg;le as everyone in the crowd has the same though and the narrow cobbled streets of Oia are soon congested as everyone heads out for the car parks. Just take it easy and enjoy the whole experience, After all you're on holiday and there is no need to rush anywhere. Read Less

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Oia - the Sunset Capital