There are few people, places, or things on God’s green earth that words are inadequate to fully describe. Santorini, my friends, is one of them. Holy moly. Honestly you just walk around this place with your jaw dropped. The white washed villages perched on the cliffs is enough to make your heart stop. As I said before Santorini puts on quite the romantic charm.

 

After getting off the ferry lunch was a first priority. Let’s all give this man a round of applause for number of gyros he has consumed. Alarming or impressive? Hard to say. I’ve learned few things can come between a man and his gyro.

 

Note: these are not all mine.

 

Our transportation method of choice? ATVs. It was the absolute best way to get around the island and not to mention the most fun. We really came to love that little ATV of ours. It took us all around Fira (the capital), Finikia (our little town), and Oia (main town near us). 

 

The sunsets here are out of this world. The first day we got there we lost track of time and realized we only had a few minutes before the sun would disappear. We literally raced out of our cave home (yes, I said cave home), to our ATV and chased the sunset as fast as we could. It was so worth it.  

 

The sun does this magical thing along all the white buildings and caves and turns it all a shade of pink and orange and melts your heart a bit.

 

The next morning we woke up and headed to a few different beaches along the coast. 

 

After reading and taking a snooze or two on the beach we drove through Oia to Ammoudi Bay to check it out. I repeat the views of this place are beyond words. Also, note taken: paint everything white and it turns into a dreamland.

 

 

At the bottom of the cliff  to Ammoudi Bay we found these little friends. (Also, one night a few more like these were outside our door which makes it quite difficult to enter your home. A bunch of the neighborhood kids were giggling at Ben and I trying to navigate around these bad boys.)

 

Ammoudi Bay showed off its beauty and Ben easily found some things he could jump off of. (Naturally.)

 

After playing around in the water we headed back up to Oia to scout out the perfect spot for dinner and the sunset. Things required: good food, rooftop dining, and panorama view of Santorini. Check, check, and check. Reservation for two, please. 

 

I wish more than anything that what our eyes saw would match these pictures. Wandering the town at night was such a treat.

 

Here’s a little picture from back in our quite little town. I love the white and pink buildings agains the blue doors and colorful flowers. 

 

On our last day (or so we thought) we started to get ready to head to the ferry when we realized we actually were staying one more night in Santorini. We weren’t complaining one bit. We spent the day relaxing. The morning we headed to Fira, the capital, for lunch. Again, man and his gyro.

We spent the afternoon back at our cave and may or may not have taken a nap. Then, back into Oia for dinner, watch the sunset, and wander the town.

Santorini stole our hearts. It’s beauty is truly breathtaking. So thankful to spend a few days here with my best friend.

 

Crete has been the nicest change of pace. Rather than roaming and looking at sights and ruins, this time we drove in search of the bluest water we could find. When we found the bluest water, we sat there, swam, and took naps. I love this place. I love the crystal clear water, the slower pace, the flowers blooming everywhere, and their salads.

The first night we arrived we walked down to the main part of town for some dinner and the sunset.  After realizing that the local public transportation is woefully inadequate (and completely in Greek… it looks like a sorority tshirt everywhere we look), we rented ourselves a little car and hit the road. With map in hand we headed to Falasarna beach with the sounds of Greek music on the radio (it was all we could find, and it had the occasional Rihanna). We stopped by a nearby restaurant for some gyros and onward we went.

The water here is crystal clear and such a pretty shade of blue. The pictures don’t do the size of the mountains justice. They are massive! 
I didn’t mind laying under these umbrellas for an afternoon snooze one bit. 

The next morning we woke up to this view. We are staying in a studio apartment with a view of Chania Old Town and from our bed we can see the sunrise over the city. It’s perfect. And to step it up a notch, we get to have breakfast on our balcony with this view.

This time we headed to the other side of the island to Elafonisi. We pulled off at a wide spot in the road when we got hangry. A Cretan salad for me, and feta stuffed burgers for the carnivore (Ben). Goat cheese, I love you.  Greek tomatoes, I equally love you.

Alas! The most beautiful beach. I mean I’m still swooning over this one. 

 

Crete takes the cake on where the water meets the land thus far. Stand by for Santorini.
We are happy, relaxed, and burnt thanks to Crete. Here we come, Santorini!

 

(Blessings I don’t vom on the ferry.)

 

 

Do as Romans do. Apparently they walked a lot. Nonetheless, Rome was wonderful.

As soon as we arrived in Rome we were greeted by our kind host, Elisabetta. She was the absolute sweetest! After giving us a brief on how the busses worked and handing us the map, we were off! The sights of Rome were amazing. I’ve always been intrigued by the Roman history so walking around all of the ruins was right up my third grade history nerd ally.

Ben told me I looked like a watermelon this day.

After earning our dinner full of bread we found a restaurant off the beaten path a bit, which has always proved to serve us well. Ben had been wanting lasagna this entire week and finally got what he wanted. I, on the other hand, have been wanting vegetables all week, so I found them in a calzone. I can’t really complain.

Ben and I don’t mess around when it comes to gelato. We do our research. I’ll spare you the search and tell you right now- go to Gelateria Della Palma. So many flavors. It’s this ice cream loving girl’s dream come true.

The next morning we woke up to a wonderful Italian breakfast made by Elisabetta. Coffee, bread, jam, ricotta, yogurt, and fresh squeezed orange juice was quite the way to start our day.

Then off we were on our morning runs. I know I have said this before, but running in each new city has truly been Ben and I’s favorite way to explore. Elisabetta mapped out the best runs and showed us how to get to Campo di’Fiori where their Sunday market was taking place. We passed by the most beautiful panorama of the city, ran along the river, through the narrow side streets, and finally to our destination. We made our own little trail mix from the local vendors and had fresh squeezed pomegranate juice to share. Our original intentions were to bus back, but we decided to run a bit farther.

 

Father turned into the Colosseum. A dream come true I tell you. It is so, so big. 

After finally getting back to the house we freshened up and headed to Trastevere (literally means “this side of the river”). Trastevere is a quainter part of Rome and allows you to get away from a lot of the crowded streets. It was a nice break, and a lovely lunch. After lunch we looked around the markets and wandered through the colorful streets.

We spent the evening wandering around Rome until our legs told us “no more”.

The next morning was filled with another wonderful breakfast and time sharing our wedding pictures with Elisabetta which was so fun! She told us of a the largest park in Rome that was nearby and said it was a beautiful place to run. So, we put on our shoes and went for it. It was a nice change of pace from running on crowded streets to the paths in the park.

Then it was off to the Vatican after a lunch nearby! Funny thing is… only half of us got to see St. Peter’s Basilica. (Me.) As we were waiting in line Ben said he would be right back and then all of a sudden we were separated. The line continued inside, and so did I. Bummer for him because it was BEAUTIFUL!

Everyone else was taking a selfie.. so I did too.

By this point we searched for the Spanish Steps for the sole purpose of simply sitting down.

We kept seeing signs for Apertivo everywhere and wanted to figure out what this was. The answer is gold. It’s apparently all the rage now in Rome. You buy a drink and then they put out a buffet of food for you to snack on. I’m not talking chips and dip. More like couscous salad, vegetables, bread, fruit, salad, and a million other versions of rice salad. So cheap, and so good.

All in all, Rome lived up to the hype. Walking around the ruins was my all time favorite and enjoying a lot of pizza came in close second.

 

 

Tuscany you have been so kind to us.

After leaving Cinque Terre, Ben and I took a train to Florence. I’m not exactly sure what I expected from Florence, but apparently not enough. As soon as we started to wander around I could not help but just look everywhere in awe. I mean up, down, behind, across, everywhere you look it is so, so beautiful. Not to mention the smells and sounds. Florence smells and sounds like the epitome of Italy. As you walk through the streets you can hear the clinking of silverware, the smell of fresh croissants, sweet aromas from gelaterias, the sound of street performers playing accordions, and smells of pizza. I wouldn’t mind that combination any day. 

The architecture was beautiful. So intricate, so unique. 

Exploring together has been such an adventure, journey, and learning experience and I am really thankful for him. It’s been filled with a lot of laughs and maps, and a few “no, I think it’s this way”s.

Hello there dreamy carousel.

The bridges in Florence were my favorite. Walking night or day, the reflections were lovely.

And that was day one- filled with sunshine, unlike day two. Ben and I were rudely woken in the night with the loudest BANG I have ever heard. To say we were startled is an understatement. I would use the word terrified. Turns out when it thunderstorms in Florence the acoustics of the city carry that rumble all the way through every street and seem to shake the buildings. Goodness it was so loud. We woke up with the rain still falling and power out, but decided (after maybe sleeping in a bit… details, details…) the rain would not stop us from exploring a bit more. The first order of business was to find a nice little bakery for a cafe latte. 

The rain finally let up a bit and we travelled up to the Piazza del Michelangelo for a breathtaking view of the city. You don’t realize how big it is until seeing it from afar.

Florence, and Italy in general, is known for its fashion. Ben and I walked around as Florence’s worst dressed all day though. Hello large tshirt, Chacos, and rain jacket. I have no idea how people managed to still look trendy. You certainly can’t win them all. Just like only being able to take my iPhone around for pictures and not capture the best pizza we have ever had, or the sandwich Ben ate that was the size of my face. 

We woke up early the next morning and went on a little run and then off to Siena by train. Siena has been such a nice change of pace. After non stop going, the quaint and quieter streets of Siena offered a little rest. We arrived and ate a really late, really great lunch. La Prosciutteria makes a mean tasting board. The thing was massive and came with the best bread (you really can’t go wrong here). A whole lot of new tastes and flavors to try. So much so, dinner wasn’t even necessary. (Okay, we did have gelato.)

This morning when we woke we heard the rain yet again. But frankly, we weren’t too upset about it. In fact, we had the slowest of mornings and had breakfast partly made by our sweet host, and then sat some more. Then we headed to a coffee shop near by where they had a little croissant and caffe latte deal which is so hard to say no too. We sat some more, read, and chatted until heading back to the room.

The sun decided to show up this afternoon and we decided to go for a run to hopefully help all that bread we have eaten and our lack of any activity all day. I assure you running is the best way to explore a new place. The views were wonderful and we were able to reach the outskirts of town to see some of the parts we hadn’t the day before. We finished our evening make dinner back in the apartment and relaxing some more. It’s been real, Siena, and Rome, we are ready for you tomorrow!

 

P.S: See what I did there with the title?