We were in Paestum, Italy visiting the three Greek Temples there. I had added Paestum to our itinerary since I didn't think I'd make it to Greece for quite some time, and here was a chance to see the best preserved Greek ruins outside of Greece. It struck me funny that a group of nuns were visiting a place of ancient pagan religious rites. Of course, I did not ask what religion they were, so maybe it was an appropriate stop on their tour. I took the photo on September 25, 2004 during our three week dream trip to Italy.
Santorini is a barren, rocky Greek island just opposite a volcano, with black and red beaches and towns situated on high cliffs offering breathtaking views and fantastic sunsets. Santorini has a dramatic beauty as opposed to lush and green islands. The volcano is still active—the last eruption was in 1950 and caused an earthquake that destroyed many villages on the island. The island's official name is Thira and its main town, Fira, is also the capital of the Cyclades islands.
As we were watching the sun set from the cliffs of Santorini, we turned around to see the true beauty of this small, circular archipelago of volcanic islands located in the southern Aegean Sea - with pure white houses lining the cliffs and gorgeous sail boats resting in the water below. Yet, with all its beauty, it did come at a price. While there, the country experienced the warmest weather since the 40's (i believe), reaching nearly well over 110 degrees F. Not even the darkness of night would cool the weather down!
While walking into this restaurant in Santorini in the Greek isles the picture through the door was outstanding
A look from above at a beautiful restaurant in Santorini with the clouds blocking the view of the sea
The Temple of Posieden at Cape Sounion.
On the drive from Athens to Cape Sounion, we saw many of these prayer boxes. They are erected on the site where a loved one has lost his life in a car accident.
There are a lot of stray dogs at the Acropolis. I was busy taking pictures and when I turned around I saw my nephew (the clown) lying there with the dogs - couldn't resist taking the picture.