What better place to live than at the top of a hill? One 365m tall nonetheless.
That might have been what an ancient civilisation living on the island of Thera (Santorini) thought when they built what are now ancient ruins but what back then consisted of an amphitheatre, houses and churches, amongst other buildings. Why live at the top of a hill, you may ask, not least on a volcanic island? Well, there's obviously the reduced risk of being invaded without having to build any fortifications, and there's also lots of space, so I'd imagine that would be useful. Oh, and the view is lovely.
The best thing about the ancient ruins that were kindly left here is that you can also go and visit this place. The first thing you have to do is get up that hill, accompanied with a long, winding road. You could do this by running up it, having a leisurely hike, rock-climbing, going up in a car or quadbike or, as I saw one advertisement say, by donkey. I took the leisurely hike, which took about forty minutes. After this, you then have to buy tickets and climb a bit more (no other transport available) before you finally end up amongst these ruins. You're pretty much free to roam around and take pictures and what not, perhaps wondering how ancient civilisations managed to construct such a place and how it then managed to collapse. There's also a lovely view (have I mentioned that yet?). It was rather interesting seeing the whole of Santorini Airport from up here and watching the planes land, even more so as I would later walk around the airport perimeter before catching a flight - it was nice to see the change in perspective. But I won't get opinionated on my own blog.
Ancient Thera is a very ancient city - 11000 years ancient in fact, having been founded by Dorian colonists in the 9th century BC. Their leader was called Theras, hence Thera. Over time, the city became a trading hub, due to its location along the Aegean Sea, with other cities such as Athens and Corinth, and later became a naval base for the Egyptians in the 4th century BC. This city remained inhabited until a volcanic eruption in 726 AD, when people finally moved away. Unsurprisingly, they never came back, and instead the rest of Santorini is populated. Thera lives on as the name of the island (Thira) and as the capital of the island (Fira), though most people call it Santorini (which is completely unrelated in etymology, it being a reference to Saint Irene).
At least the ruins didn't move away, so anyone can see it. It's more interesting than most of Santorini, in my opinion.
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