I only had a short time in Santorini but here are my top picks for soul soothing adventures to try:

1.  Climb Skaros Rock
Skaros Rock is beautiful and it's not a difficult climb at all for a moderately experienced hiker/climber.   That being said, there is no safety anything - no signs, no ropes, no fences, no guards.  That adds to the majesty of the experience but you should also be careful.  The winding trek up Skaros is pretty easy until you get to the very top.  Then, you have to really climb and it's not a place you'd want to fall.  When I went, a German couple was ahead of me.  The woman was unable to make the final ascent to the very top of Skaros rock, which is a flat expanse of rock from which you can stand and drink in the horizon and the Aegean Sea. It's soul shattering (in a good way).  The man scrambled up.  I followed.  The getting up was easier than the coming down.  The German left the top before I did and when I started to lower myself down over the edge, I saw he and his partner had waited for me to make sure I was able to get down ok and offered help if I needed it.  They were incredibly nice.  This is just to say, be nice, offer help, and be careful.  Don't climb alone.  DO NOT buy tickets to tour Skaros Rock.  There is absolutely no need.  It's a waste of money and you will get a much more soulful experience out of exploring it yourself.  It's just going up and down - you're not going to get lost.

2.  Fira
If, as I recommended in my Part I, you stay in Imerovigli, you should take the easy hike to Fira one day - it's a half day adventure but you could turn it into a full day easily.  Fira is a touristy little area chock full of street vendors, museums, churches (including the gorgeous Catholic Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist, which is definitely worth a visit), shops, and restaurants.  Finding a vegetarian restaurant was challenging, but I found the locals were easily able to adapt dishes to remove meat for me and the amazing wines and rich beans, herbs and vegetables made everything a pleasure to dine on.  The walk to and from Fira took a long time for me not because the distance was great but because the views were spectacular.  I kept stopping to just drink it in.  Each moment was better than the last.  More on Fira here.

3.  Oia
If the views between Imerovigli and Fira were great, the views on the hike between Imerovigli and Oia were spectacular!  The Oia trek is several hours and some of the ground is really stony and gravelly so wear good hiking shoes if you want to be comfortable.  The hike itself is a wonderful adventure and then you can take the opportunity to explore Oia.  I hated the touristy part of Oia, with the marble ground and uber expensive shops - it just seemed a little gauche.  But, that's easy to skip!  Just stay local.  The restaurants are great.  I highly recommend Floga, which has wonderful food and gorgeous views if you dine on the terrace.  If you go, my absolute favorites from the menu were: the Greek salad, Santorini fava beans puree,  the traditional Santorini tomato dumpling with basil, the steamed mussels, the wild mushroom risotto, and their fresh fruit platter.  More on Oia here.  

4.  The Sulphur Springs and a Day Long Boat Trip Around the Caldera Bay and to the Volcano
Generally, the island is small and easy to navigate.  You don't need to pay for tours and I wouldn't  recommend it - it would take away from the joy and spontaneity of discovering the island for yourself.  That begin said, I would recommend spending money on only two things: a sail around the Caldera Bay which takes you to the volcano and the sulphur springs and a tour of the wineries.  Learning about the volcano is pretty cool and the Caldera Bay is incredible.  Experiencing it from the water as well as from the land is breathtaking.  The sulphur springs are super touristy but if it's part of the boat ride, jump in and check them out.  To know in advance:  the sulphur will dye all your clothes brown so DO NOT wear a white swimsuit or anything you don't want to turn a bit rusty in color and don't wear any jewelry.  The "hot" springs are also not hot.  At best, they are tepid.  Also, if you're asthmatic or pregnant, don't go.  The sulphur can cause health issues for you.  Last, know that the boats can't anchor in the springs; they anchor a little bit away so you have to swim out to the springs.  It's not that far but it's enough that if you're in bad shape or not a good swimmer, it's going to be more scary than fun for you.  There will be really sharp rocks just under the water as you swim up to the springs, so just be aware of them.  More on the springs here.

5.  Winery Tour
As I mentioned in Santorini Part I (the food), the wine - particularly the dry white wines - of Santorini is famous and the fame is well deserved!  I'm going to quote Greeka.com here because they say it better than I can:
"The volcanic soil and the special climate of Santorini give a unique taste to the local wine. The wine of Santorini was famous all over the Mediterranean basin in the ancient times and even today it is exported in many countries of the world. Vinsanto, Nychteri and Mezzo are just some of the local varieties that can be found in many restaurants on the island and in various cellars in the world. A very special thing to do on the island is visit some of the many Santorini wineries, spread all over the countryside. Most wineries in Santorini are actually found in the central and the southern part of the island, in the villages of Mesa and Exo Gonia, Megalochori and Messaria. Large vineyards surround the wineries, which can be visited individually or in an organized wine tour. The most famous Santorini wineries are Santo Wines and Volcan Wines." Source: www.greeka.com.  Click here for details on multiple wineries in Santorini.

FAVA BEANS, TOMATOES AND DRY WHITE WINES ... love these three items?  You are in luck!  Santorini is known for these three local specialties and they are amazing.  
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First, the fava beans.  The SANTORINI (not just Greek, but particularly Santorini) fava beans are pretty famous.  The EU actually even gives them PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) status.  They're readily available as appetizers and even main courses in most of the restaurants I visited.  Santorini is very dry and arid, making the soil extremely unique and difficult for growing.  The fava beans that result from this soil are often described as richer, creamier and sweeter than normal fava beans.  They're soft and yellow in color.  So, yeah, they are delicious and for someone, like me, trying to follow the vegan lifestyle, they are a veritable powerhouse of deliciousness and nutrition. 

To make the traditional fava beans, you prepare them according to the directions on the box (boil them in water usually or vegetable broth) and then mash them into a creamy paste, adding chopped onions, capers, lemon, and olive oil.  I liked adding rosemary and some of Santorini's famous tomatoes, as well.

Now, the tomatoes!  Santorini tomatoes are also unique in that this type of tomato grows only in Santorini.  They are teeny tiny little tomatoes.  Many say the particular flavor comes from Santorini's volcanic soil and the tomatoes sure are tasty little suckers!  If you get a chance, try "omatokaftedes," which uses tomatoes soaked in oil with a blend of native Santorini herbs. Source: www.greeka.com

Finally, the dry white wines.  If you spend more than a day in Santorini, you must make a tour of the wineries part of your trip so you can learn all about the amazing way they grow grapes in this dry soil with NO IRRIGATION and, of course, sample as many local wines as possible.  I love dry whites and these were amazing.  I was grief stricken when I was told customs would only only allow me to pack two bottles to take home.  This site has a great rundown of the wines in Santorini:  www.winesfromsantorini.com/grapes.html

Post script:  I got stopped by security in the airport during my layover in Paris and they removed jars of capers, tomatoes and fava beans, along with two bottles of white wine, from my luggage for inspection.  Thank God the French understand the importance of food.  They waved me through and wished me happy eating and drinking!

Santorini is a Greek Island in the Aegean Sea.  There are 2 principal towns, Fira and Oia, on either end and, in the middle, where I stayed, there is a magical place called Imerovigli.  Most of the homes and hotel rooms are whitest white in color and stand out brilliantly against the very blue sea.  They are built right into the cliff, which were shaped by a volcanic eruption around the 16th century BC.  From these homes, you look out onto the caldera (crater).  There are much tinier islands nearby with the famous red, back and white pebble beaches.  Santorini isn't a swimming island.  It's a hiking island and a "watch breathtaking views" island.   To get to most of the more well known beaches and famous sulphur springs, you must take a boat out to them.  Tantalizingly, the island is linked to Atlantis.  I'm just going to quote Wikipedia, because they say it succinctly:

"Archaeological, seismological, and vulcanological evidence has been presented linking the Atlantis myth to Santorini. Speculation suggesting that Thera/Santorini was the inspiration for Plato's Atlantis began with the excavation of Akrotiri in the 1960s, and gained increased currency as reconstructions of the island's pre-eruption shape and landscape frescos located under the ash both strongly resembled Plato's description. The possibility has been more recently popularized by television documentaries such as The History Channel program me Lost Worlds (episode "Atlantis"), the Discovery Channel's Solving History with Olly Steeds, and the BBC's Atlantis, The Evidence, which suggests that Thera is Plato's Atlantis."

​More here.

The island has virtually no fresh water.  The water to the homes and businesses is processed through a de salinization plant and is a little salty.  Santorini is famous for its dry white wines (the vineyards on the island are like none I'd ever seen before and there is no irrigation system), tomatoes and fava beans, all of which I enjoyed immensely.  If you can go, I highly recommend it.  I am going to write a little bit on the topics of food, adventure, relaxation, and beauty in a series of 4 blog posts.

For this Part I, I'm just going to briefly address when and where and what to bring.

WHEN?
Santorini's primary industry is - you guessed it - tourism.  During the off season (November - April) the island virtually shuts down like a ghost town.  Things begin to start back up again in March and the summer season (June - August) is the most popular and crowded with the best swimming weather.  I don't care for crowds, especially not crowds of tourists, so I chose to go off-season, in October.  The downside is it can be chilly and it's always windy - even in the summer.  I am a native New Yorker so I have a thick skin and I still went swimming in both the ocean and the pools but a hot weather native would probably have cringed to do the same.  If (when!) I return, I think I'll aim for September - not too crowded and a bit warmer.  Nonetheless, I was very happy with my October visit and, if you like to hike, the weather is really perfect for it - not too hot and not too cold.  

WHERE?
Fira and Oia lie on either end and, in the middle, where I stayed, there is a magical place called Imerovigli.  All are touristy - it's the economy of the island.  However, some are more touristy than others.  Fira and Oia are really, really touristy.  Fira is full of little shops and museums and hotels in a never ending cascade.  It is a bustling little area and charming, if very "shop-y."  Oia has some marble walkways and glitz - like the fancy Prada or Versace stores and caters to the extremely wealthy Middle Eastern and Asian tourists.  You will see ladies stumbling on the cliffs in ridiculous, expensive high heels and fancy dresses that won't stay down in the island's never ending gusts of wind.  Unfortunately, I witnessed a lot of "bad" tourist behavior in Oia such as the loud, bejeweled man who threw a temper tantrum in a restaurant because the waiter brought him a drink before bringing his food (he had apparently wanted them together) and another man who complained the breathtaking, splendid views were boring and screamed he wanted his money back.  And, then, of course, the silly tourists with their fancy brand bags, looking to buy Gucci and Chanel (why?  Why?  Why?  You can get that almost anywhere if you want to spend too much money for very little).  On the bright side, Oia is a lovely fishing village and the locals are so nice and the food is great.  My pick:  Imerovigli.  Imerovigli is made up of many hotels and restaurants, like the other two, but somehow manages to seem magical, quiet and local (at least in October, anyway!).  You can easily access the magnificent Skaros Rock and both Oia and Fira are a short hike (Fira) and a several hour hike (Oia) away.   I cannot describe how stunningly wonderful I found Imerovigli and I vastly preferred it to Fira or Oia.  Again, the locals are really wonderful and the food and wine is equally fabulous.

WHAT TO BRING?
1.  COMFORTABLE WALKING SHOES!  The buildings are built into the side of a cliff.  There are many places cars cannot access.  If you want to take full advantage, have comfy shoes and be prepared to walk, climb and take a lot of stairs.  I showed up in high heels and promptly removed them and never put them on again during my entire stay.

2.  JACKET AND WRAP
Even in summer, Santorini is very windy.  bring a light wind resistant jacket and a wrap for going out at night, especially if you go in the spring or fall.

3.  HAIR TIES
Again, windy.  Be prepared.

4.  A MEDICAL KIT
There is very limited medical care and no hospital on the island.  If something really bad were to happen, you'd have to be flown to Athens.  A simple medical kit is a good idea, especially if you plan on doing a lot of independent hiking and/or  have allergies (so, if you nee done, bring an Epi-Pen, things like that).

I blogged about what I feared would happen in the 2016 Presidential election back in December ("A Despot for the Holidays") in which I made some Nazi comparisons.  Now, my worst fears have been realized and some older, uneducated people have voted for a candidate endorsed by the KKK who bragged about sexual assault, wants to bar people from the country based on their religion and has endorsed some of the most racist platforms in recent history.  I think we should all be protesting, very loudly.  We should be begging the electoral college to do their job and maintain the system of checks and balances - to protect us from exactly what just happened - (read the petition here).  

On November 10th, while some people were voting for one of the most divisive people in US Presidential history, others were remembering the anniversary of “Kristallnacht” when Nazis in Germany torched synagogues, vandalized Jewish homes, schools and businesses and killed close to 100 Jews, humiliating, beating, and/or raping many more. The Nazi party was buoyed by the apathy of non-Jewish Germans who did not step up to protect or defend their Jewish neighbors and turned a blind eye to the horror. https://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005201 Now, in the United States, the dramatic rise in post-election hate crimes is worse than it was after 9/11.  http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/11/12/post-election-spate-hate-crimes-worse-than-post-911-experts-say/93681294/  If, like the Germans in 1938, we turn a blind eye to it, we are complicit in it.

One symbol of unity, of standing with our fellow Americans and rejecting the hatred espoused by the candidate, his team and his supporters, is the safety pin.   Wearing the safety pin symbolizes solidarity with our Muslim, Mexican, gay, black, Asian, and other neighbors.  Some say the safety pins are stupid, just another vestige of white privilege but I disagree.  They are a quiet and simple statement and I'd like to see them on everyone.  Not just white people should be wearing them.  We should all be wearing them.  We should all be rejecting apathy and, unlike the Germans in 1938, we should stand strong to protect ourselves, our friends  and our neighbors.

The safety pin actually has a Nazi reference, too: during the Nazi occupation, the Dutch wore secret safety pins to symbolize unity against the Nazis.  "A silent flip of the collar. A subtle twirl of the hem. If a safety pin was underneath, that person was a friend" and did not support the Nazis. https://timeline.com/safety-pin-brexit-trump-dutch-12ce84093550#.ris7n4npd.  So, now, as Hitler-like "leaders" around the globe stoke racial and religious bigotry and hatred under the cloak of "nationalism," there are many things we can do to show who we stand with.   A safety pin is a small symbol but it is one of them.

Jen Gabriel made a passion project into a tool to motivate countless people with her "40 by 40" challenge.  Watch some of it here!  It will inspire you!  It did me!  In order to address a number of stressful (to put it mildly) life events, find herself again in all the drama AND to instill excitement, adventure and positivity into her life, she challenged herself to do 40 new things before she turned 40 years old.  She accomplished the goal and has moved on to "50 by 50."  I asked her to share how the rest of us can similarly fill our lives with fresh new adventures and maybe even do some good for the rest of the world by making those adventures altruistic!  Read on and then get ready to start your own adventure-packed journey!

You inspired a number of people with your blog about your "40 before 40" project - doing 40 new adventures before the age of 40.  How did you come up with the project?

About two years before my 40th birthday — in the spring of 2014 — I began noticing an evolution in my conversations with friends. Gone were the juicy tales of exotic travels and summer romances, replaced by the headaches brought on marriages, mortgages, full-time jobs, young kids, and aging parents. And then there was the tough reality of aging: chronic knee pain had ended my triathlon and downhill skiing days, a few of my childhood acquaintances had passed away, and one of my best friends has an incurable cancer. As I reflected on mortality, and my passageway into middle age, I was worried.  Would “real life” become a barrier – or even an excuse -- that would keep me from embarking on new and fun adventures? With that, 40 before 40 was born. The name itself is pretty self-explanatory: I challenged myself to do 40 new things by the time I turned 40, in July 2016. 

How do you make sure you hit the goal?  Do you have a schedule?  A calendar?  

I’m the kind of person who adds something to a to-do list just to cross it off, and I applied that same philosophy to this project. As I lived my life, and traveled for work and pleasure, I made the effort to find adventures. It worked! In Denver, I stumbled upon a cat café. In NYC, I booked myself into a Lyra class a block from my hotel. A bit closer to home, in upstate New York, I found a sunflower maze.

How can others learn from "40 Before 40" and dare to try it themselves?

One of the most surprising, and certainly unintentional, outcomes of this project was how it inspired others in my life to think about turning their own passions into personal happiness projects. And they were so creative! A college friend is trying to perfect 16 new recipes in 2016. Another is introducing her daughter and greyhound puppy to one new park every month. And my mom is embarking upon her own “7 before 70!” I love how easy it is to adapt this project into something that works for any lifestyle, or to support any personal goal one may have. 

What if someone is almost 40 and can't complete 40 adventures in time - are there options for them?

The wonderful thing about this kind of project is that you make your own rules. If planning gives you hives, then embrace spontaneity; if you thrive with a schedule, create one! Maybe you want to try one new restaurant a month, or stop at every roadside attraction you pass in a year. This kind of project should never feel stressful – that’s not the point of it – so think about the things that bring you joy, and make it work.  The only “rule” I would strongly recommend? Document your journey. I already had a blog, so writing about each adventure was natural for me (goingbackhome.wordpress.com). But you could take photos and post them on Instagram, or keep track on Twitter or Facebook – or even go low-tech and tape a list to the fridge! It’s a great way remind yourself that this project is a priority. It also serves as a great conversation starter.

For those seeking to "do good" - whether we're talking about animals, the environment, etc. - can "40 before 40" (or "50 before 50" and so on) be tailored to focus on that theme?  How do you suggest choosing the adventures?

“Doing good” can often mean making lifestyle changes, and it’s hard to do that in one afternoon. But it can be done in a series of afternoons! If I were to think about structuring this project around a goal to reduce my impact on the environment, I might commit to making one change each month.  Maybe in month one, you start to compost. In month two, you take down your paper towel holder and commit to using cloth rags. Other months could be dedicated to starting to regularly bike to work, or making your own household cleaners, or cleaning up a local park. I love this idea because, in isolation, none of these things seem significant. But after a year, you’ll have changed 12 habits – and that makes a pretty big difference!   

What was your absolute favorite adventure and why?

That’s a hard question! The answer changes if I think about my favorite adrenaline rush (indoor skydiving) or my favorite laugh (rolling in a giant hamster ball down a hill in Kentucky) or my favorite “WTF” moment (getting slapped with tree branches at a spa).  If I were forced to pick just one adventure, it would probably be the day my husband Scott and I spent at a tree-top adventure park. The experience of navigating an obstacle course suspended in space highlighted the things that I think make our marriage great. We’re fiercely independent, and I think we both believe we’re strong enough to do things on our own. Most times, we are. But when life throws us a particularly difficult challenge, we have each other. We’re an amazing team. 

Was there any adventure that turned into a complete disaster?  Tell us all the details, if so!  We promise to commiserate mightily!
Last summer, Scott and I spent a week in the Adirondacks, and I stumbled on an ad for something called “U.S. Airbag.” The concept seemed fun: pay $10 and jump off a 40-foot platform into a giant airbag. When we arrived, we learned that individual tickets were $10 but a pack of three cost just $25. Without a second thought, I bought us both three packs. Tickets in hand, we finally went outside to look at the airbag, and that's when we witnessed a former paratrooper – that’s right: a former professional badass – on top of the lift, having a total meltdown. He just couldn’t do it. The teenaged employee kept lowering the lift... until it was actually touching the top of the airbag. The paratrooper finally jumped. Then it was my turn, and as soon as the platform reached its maximum height, I shut off my brain and went for it. There was nothing enjoyable about the experience. Nothing. And I had to do it two more times! (After this experience, Scott was a bit more reluctant to blindly follow along on my 40 before 40 adventures. I can’t say I blame him.)

You're now doing "50 before 50."  How is that going?

40 before 40 introduced me to so many activities that are now an ongoing part of my life. As soon as I turned 40, there was no question in my mind that I wanted – and needed – to embark on a 50 before 50 project.Of course, the difference is that I have 10 years to accumulate my adventures, rather than 27 months, so the pace is a little more reasonable. In September, I kicked off 50 before 50 with a trip to the 47th Annual Prairie Land Fall Festival and Steam Show, which was held near my Grandma's home in Jacksonville, Illinois. (I daresay, if you’ve never ridden a “wobble wagon,” you haven’t really lived a full life.)
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In terms of this kind of adventurous, life-loving project, what does the phrase "Ethical is Beautiful.  Be Beautiful" mean to you?

On my 39th birthday, my sister-in-law/best friend was diagnosed with cancer, and I quickly became a primary caregiver. In my exhaustion, I came to resent 40 before 40. It felt supremely stupid -- a pointless initiative started by a little girl who naively believed the world was her oyster. I was close to ending the project when I was given a chance to talk about it at my caregivers support group, and I mentioned that I had found a sunflower maze just a few miles from our local hospital. Sitting for a few minutes in a huge field of happy, bouncy sunflowers brought such joy to an otherwise dark moment. The next time our support group got together, two people thanked me for the tip, adding they had visited while waiting for their loved ones to finish chemo.

At its surface, 40 before 40 was a very selfish project. It was all about me, my fear of allowing my age to keep me from trying new things, and my need to feed my passion for new experiences. It was never my intention to inspire others. I’m not delusional and am aware the impact was small: a few people created their own projects, tailored to their schedules and interests. But perhaps I’m most proud that it lead two total strangers into a field of sunflowers that provided a well-deserved respite from reality. That's what I find beautiful about this project: I stayed true to who I am, and applied my values and personal ethics to my decisions. In doing that, I made a difference in my marriage, my relationships with family and close friends, and my community. I take all of that – and an everlasting passion for learning, challenging myself, having fun, and laughing!  – into 50 before 50.  Consider crafting your own adventure and join me!