June 29 & 30

We took a taxi to the Rome airport and the traffic was light because it was a holiday for Saints Peter & Paul.  Rome traffic is crazy.  People double park anywhere making it difficult to get down some streets.  Right of way belongs to whomever gets in front first (or has a larger vehicle.)  Red lights & stop signs seem to be mere suggestions.  Pedestrians are supposed to have right of way in crosswalks, but you still have to be careful when you first step out.

The flight to Athens was uneventful and we had a room at the airport Holiday Inn.  We didn't have time to continue on to Santorini and Athens city was too far for a taxi for the next morning flight.

On the 30th we had a noon flight of 45 minutes to Santorini, Greece.  Santorini is constantly windy but the temperatures are moderate and comfortable.  It cools down at night, but still warm enough for shorts & a golf shirt.  We checked into the Mariana Hotel, about 300 meters from Perissa Beach and went to the town of Perissa for a snack and to scout out the area.  The beach is volcanic black sand and there are a lot of the younger crowd here enjoying the beach, bars & restaurants.  The street along the beach is 6 block of bars, restaurants and the occasional tourist or convenience store.  Prices here are quite low with a glass of wine costing between $2.50 and $4.00.  A liter carafe of local wine is $6.00 to $8.00.  A filling dinner for 2 with wine costs less then $30.00.  We returned to the hotel to check emails etc and returned to town for a late dinner; late for us that is.  Kitchens stay open until midnight.