Santorini, Greece
No coffee, just an afternoon nap.
We woke up at the crack of dawn (maybe even earlier) to catch a ferry to Santorini. The Port of Pireaus is where all the cruises and ferries leave Athens. As instructed, we arrived an hour before departure, only to find a closed ticket office, feral dogs and homeless men sleeping in the waiting areas. Suddenly, everything woke up and we boarded the Flying Cat 4, our highspeed boat to the Cyclades.
We found our seats and prepared for our 5-hour trip. Then, he walked in. Danny Bowien, founder of Mission Chinese and father of Stoner Chinese Cuisine. Yennie has been a fangirl since David Chang sold out. And having used to lived in the Mission neighborhood in SF, we ate at it all the time. Yennie mouthed to Bryan who it was and then, we were both starstruck. We tried to keep it cool. He’s on vacation with his family, so keep to yourself and shut up. 😅
Yennie has been carrying her Gravel & Gold tote bag around. And, to someone who knows the Mission, they know what it is. A few hours into the trip, Danny (we’re on a first name basis because he obviously didn’t give us his full name or occupation) asked if we were from SF. We started talking about SF, the Mission, moving from SF to the East Coast, traveling around the Mediterranean, and BERKELEY. Son knows a lot about Berkeley: Berkeley Bowl, Cheeseboard, Grégoire, even Café Intermezzo. According to Bryan, Yennie kept her cool and wasn’t too zealous or creepy. 🙌 We hadn’t anticipated running into a celebrity, muchless one that really matters to us. Mission Chinese is one of the best things about SF and it made us miss home a lot.
Once we arrived in Santorini, it was a bumrush of hawkers in the Thira port. We had to rent a car, so we took an overpriced taxi to the airport Avis. Thank goodness Bryan learned how to drive manual in Menorca! It has made our visit to this amazing little island so much better. We had lunch at Falafel Land and zipped through Fira to get to our cute spot near Oia.
Our goal was to swim in the ocean. The Avis guy told us there was a beach near Oia, so we headed over there, with no knowledge of how to get there. We thought we’d park the car, then walk, as the Internet told us. But, we kept walking and walking and walking and didn’t meet the beach. WTF. So, we got back in the car, drove down the road and then discovered the “beach” was a small strip with black rocks with huge waves. Luckily, there was a bar. So, in frustration, we sat down, had some beers and watched the sea.
But, we were here, so we descended to the beach, greeted by two leathery ladies, who were happily topless. We waded in the waves, which felt marvelous, and just spent the next hour or so watching the sun melt into the horizon. Man, the sun scales. 😂 Sunsets are beautiful everywhere. And, we’ve been so blessed to see them in a few different settings that they are becoming old news to us. #spoiled
Though the beach was pretty empty, most of the people on the beach now included a few groups of people taking glamour shots, with a crew. A Chinese couple, who we decided were recently engaged or married, were dressed up in formal wear, posing for a photoshoot. We watched them kissing for about 3-5 minutes straight, without coming up for air. Yup, that’s some #nextlevel people watching. But, this is what people mean when they say Santorini is “touristy” - you can’t avoid it. We will survive.
Dinner was at Melitini, a tavern-style restaurant that served a lovely menu of mezze and grilled things. We had a mindblowing “pickle purse,” which was a stuffed eggplant, tied with strands of mustard greens, grilled cheese, garnished with scallions, parsley, and onions, and “sausage stew.” The food is so good, the island prices don’t bother us that much. We were in the company of all Americans, so we found ourselves self-censoring a bit, especially about how annoying Chinese tourists are. We are such hypocrites because we are part of the problem - LOL.
Red Wine
0.5 Liters
Melitini, Oia 847 02
