Oia is a small village on the north-western end of the island of Santorini. Its claim to fame is its sunset. Supposedly from Oia you can view the best sunset in the whole of Greece. Oia's position on the island does mean that you have an uninterrupted view of the sun as it sinks below the horizon into the ocean.

The problem is, you have to share this beautiful sunset with a crowd. Oia's reputation precedes it and the lookout points are so packed there isn't room to move. So if you think you're going to be able to enjoy a beautiful sunset - just you and your significant other, you might have to adjust your thinking a little to include hundreds of significant others.

Of course, it probably helps if you get there a little earlier to stake out a good vantage point. We were staying at Thira which was a bit of a drive away from Oia. We left Thira a bit late and ended up speeding along the highway, racing the sunset, trying to get to Oia before the sun sunk too low in the sky. After finally getting to Oia we then spent more valuable minutes rushing through the narrow alleyways looking for the sunset lookout point. It was a bit stressful. Maybe you shouldn't do that.

In the end, I didn't really rate the sunset from Oia. Mostly because on our evening at Oia the clouds obscured most of the sunset. We viewed more spectacular sunsets from our balcony at Thira. Like the one below.

Our visit to Oia was part of the Aegean Odyssey. Mum, Dad, Andrew and I spent a few weeks in Croatia and Greece with a quick visit to Slovenia and Austria in the middle. Other entries from this trip include: Abandoned Houses in Croatia, Breakfast on Santorini, Plitvice Lakes National Park, Sunset in Zadar, Sea Organ, Blessed are the cheesemakers and Climbing in Croatia.

On the great Aegean Odyssey of 2009, Mum, Dad, Andrew and I drove through Croatia to Ljubljana in Slovenia. With a few detours for sight-seeing it was a journey of over 600km done over the course of a week (I guess the distance shouldn't be that impressive to us Aussies). Andrew drove, I navigated and Mum and Dad sat in the back and felt uncomfortable when Andrew and I argued (which at least was less than on our first road trip in Spain).

One of our stops was the beautiful Plitvice Lakes National Park, which I've blogged about here. As we drove north, away from Plitvice towards Ljubljana, we began to notice abandoned, ruined houses. Not just one or two here or there, but dozens.

These are houses that were abandoned by Serbs as they fled the region at the end of the Croatian War of Independence. They are still empty because their owners haven't returned to claim them. Maybe because they don't want to return or maybe because it's just too hard.

I think these houses would be really interesting to explore from an urban decay perspective. Like the abandoned town of Paldiski in Estonia. However, Lonely Planet warns you against poking around in the ruined houses because there might be unexploded shells or mines in the ruins. Even the remote possibility of blowing up was enough to keep me away.

Our visit to Croatia was part of the Aegean Odyssey. Mum, Dad, Andrew and I spent a few weeks in Croatia and Greece with a quick visit to Slovenia and Austria in the middle. Other entries from this trip include: Breakfast on Santorini, Plitvice Lakes National Park, Sunset in Zadar, Sea Organ, Blessed are the cheesemakers and Climbing in Croatia.

During the Great Aegean Odyssey of 2009, Mum, Dad, Andrew and I spent four idyllic days on the island of Santorini. After our hectic schedule through Croatia, Slovenia and Austria, a few days of doing nothing(ish) was welcomed by all.

The island of Santorini is actually what's left after a massive volcanic explosion. One of the biggest eruptions in history. The volcano exploded and the caldera (the crater) was filled by the ocean. Some say that the explosion is the source of the myth of Atlantis; there was a city on Santorini that was lost forever.

Scirocco, our accommodation for our Santorini stay is perched on the edge of the caldera. Like most houses on Santorini it follows the traditional colour scheme - white washed walls and a blue roof. When the sun is out, and it usually is in the Greek Islands, Santorini is so blinding it hurts your eyes. Remember to take sunglasses. Mum and Dad stayed at Scirocco on their first trip to Santorini years and years ago. The same people run it and they remembered Mum and Dad from their first visit (they are obviously very memorable).

Every day, we'd breakfast on the terrace. Dad would pop up the road to the bakery and the deli for supplies. Every day for breakfast, I'd have prosciutto and cheese on a fresh baguette while admiring the beautiful view. A second course (breakfast dessert!) would follow of Greek yoghurt and strawberry jam on fresh bread while still admiring the beautiful view (or maybe I'd have my head in a book). It was a very tasty breakfast.

During the day we'd try to get out and do touristy stuff. We took a cruise out to the volcano and swam at some (not very) hot springs. We hired a car and drove to the archaeological site of Akrotiri. Like Pompeii it was buried by the volcanic eruption. Unfortunately, it's closed because in 2005 the roof over the site collapsed, killing two tourists. They are in the midst of constructing a new enclosure for the ruins (still...). We went to the the Museum of Prehistoric Thira to look at objects they've retrieved from archaeological digs around the island.

In the evening, we ate lamb for dinner, the boys drank ouzo and we played Get Janis (Diminishing Whist). Although more often than not it was really Get Jess. I seemed to lose a lot at cards on that trip.

It was all very relaxing and was the perfect way to recharge for the next busier part of our trip.

I keep meaning to try the Santorini breakfast at home. But really, I'm not sure that it would taste as good without that beautiful view. Surely the view is the extra special ingredient?

More photos (slideshow) on Flickr.

Our visit to Santorini was part of the Aegean Odyssey. Mum, Dad, Andrew and I spent a few weeks in Croatia and Greece with a quick visit to Slovenia and Austria in the middle. Other entries from this trip include: Plitvice Lakes National Park, Sunset in Zadar, Sea Organ, Blessed are the cheesemakers and Climbing in Croatia.

Plitvice Lakes National Park was my favourite of all the places we visited in Croatia. It was so beautiful.

There are 16 lakes in the park which are formed by run off from the mountains. The water flows from lake to lake over a series of waterfalls.

The dams which form the waterfalls are made from travertine, a type of sedimentary rock. The travertine is always being added to by the minerals in the water. This means, that the waterfalls are changing day by day.

There are lots of boardwalks which allow you to walk out on many of the lakes and right up to the waterfalls. Sometimes the water bubbles up through the boardwalks so it feels a bit like walking on water. There was even one set of stairs that had been turned into a mini-waterfall.

The colours in the lakes are amazing. The water colour is affected by minerals in the water, and by the light. On our visit to the park we started with a sunny day, then it was overcast followed by rain. The colour of the water ranged from a clear turquoise blue to a dark sea green.

I was really impressed with the park's setup. It's one of the most well organised national parks that I've visited. They have a great brochure with lots of suggested routes for walking ranging from 1-hour strolls to full day hikes. They have a little train that drives you around the park and ferries that you catch across the lakes.

Plitvice Lakes National Park is definitely at the top of my must-see list in Croatia.

More photos on Flickr.

Our visit to Plitvice Lakes was part of the Aegean Odyssey. Mum, Dad, Andrew and I spent a few weeks in Croatia and Greece with a quick visit to Slovenia and Austria in the middle. Other entries from this trip include: Sunset in Zadar, Sea Organ, Blessed are the cheesemakers and Climbing in Croatia.

Thanks to Caitlin for featuring this post on her blog, Roaming Tales. Check out all the other great travel links in her weekly round up.

Alfred Hitchcock said that the the sunset off Zadar is the most beautiful in the world. What do you think?

More photos on Flickr.

Our visit to Zadar was part of the Aegean Odyssey. Mum, Dad, Andrew and I spent a few weeks in Croatia and Greece with a quick visit to Slovenia and Austria in the middle. Other entries from this trip include: Sea Organ, Blessed are the cheesemakers and Climbing in Croatia.