Posts Tagged ‘travel’

Every summer has a story

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Photos by Antonio Giannakos

Every summer has a story, Santorini has the best…

The first time I visited Santorini was in 1998 with my pen pal friend from Holland (Bianca, if you are reading this, where are you?). Second time I visited Santorini was in 2003 with another friend of mine. Now I am about to tell you a crazy story. That friend of mine, in the summer of 2003, fell for a guy whom she met in Mykonos. That guy told her that at the end of August he would be working in a bar in Santorini. So now you can imagine why I went to Santorini in August 2003. I had to sacrifice myself to accompany my friend who was in search of her love. It was the last weekend of August, the end of the summer. My friend and I were sitting in the living room and the school was closed. There was nothing to do, we were listening to radio music, we didn’t talk. We were little sad that the summer was coming to an end and that the school was about to start again. Suddenly someone (I don’t remember whether it was me or her) popped the idea to go to Santorini for the weekend. It was around 18.00 and the ship was departing from the port of Piraeus at 22.00. I went home, put some things on a sac voyage and we both met at the harbor, a little bit before the departure of the ship. Don’t ask me where we found accommodation because I don’t remember at all. We had a specific mission to carry out. We didn’t even care that much for issues such as accommodation. But don’t worry, we didn’t stay on the streets.

10 years later I am back to Santorini. What is that thing that makes you love a place forever? What is that thing that makes you keep a place forever sealed in your heart? What is that thing that makes you wanting to come back to a place over and over again? I guess that magic in the air in combination with the mind-blowing landscape. Once I arrived this summer in Santorini, I pinched myself, still hardly believed it, but yes I was back again.

You might wonder now if we met that guy, the reason for the trip to Santorini in 2003….No, we didn’t. It was just a summer love. It stayed in my friend’s memory like that. You know, one of those summer loves that you wish you could have next to you in the cold winter nights.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” Mark Twain

Dreams come true in Ikies

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Photos by Antonio Giannakos

I have been dreaming of that specific place for a long time and have been patient till that day the cobblestone alleyways in Oia would lead me to the extraordinary scenery that would take my breath away. I did my research on the internet, I couldn’t be wrong. I wanted something special for the last weekend of August and I knew where I could find it. Once I arrived there, I closed my eyes, I reopened them, I pinched myself and later on I thought…Oh yes, dreams come true in Ikies.

Ikies and the view in front of its apartments is the dream of a photographer. I wanted to take pictures of each and every small detail of our beautiful maisonette, pictures of each and every angle of Ikies traditional houses. If you follow me on Instagram, you have already seen some of my pictures that were uploaded real time. I even took a selfie while I was waiting for my friend to come (generally I never take selfies, although that kind of photos seems to be very popular lately.) We then snapped some pictures together, trying at the same time to be quiet and discreet for the other guests of the hotel.

There are many luxury boutique hotels in Oia that have a panoramic view of caldera. What makes Ikies Traditional Houses different and stand out from the others is its key position. It is situated exactly on the edge of the village Oia, which means you don’t need to go out and walk around. You don’t need to leave your maisonette to go to the other part of the village to see the sunset, like loads of tourists do. Just sit in your balcony, and you will have all that you need that will make your stay unforgettable. A better position cannot be found in Oia.

Needless to write more, just to thank the lovely girls at the reception and the whole staff for their kind welcome and their excellent service.

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