Day 7 Booking Nightmare

I had trouble sleeping.  A couple of loud cats woke me up.  Nothing like a good cat scream to get you going at 3am!  When it was time for me to really get up, I knew it was the day for me to checkout of my room.  I showered up and slowly began to pack.  I was trying to get some information of the airport in Santorini but it kept leading me to an booking agent's number.  I knew beforehand that I've seen flights from different airlines coming in and out of Santorini.  I was puzzled why nothing was popping up on the airport's website.  I didn't have time to deal with it.  I had to pack my stuff quickly.
I went and turned in my keys at the front desk but asked if there were any room available in case I had to stay one more night.  It was now Monday and people probably checked out the day before.  I wasn't sure of their availability since it was a brand new week.  He reassured me that they had rooms for me if I decided to stay.  I felt a sign of relief!  I needed to go to Noma and look for Kostas to see if he could help figure how the airport's website.  I was confused.
Luckily he was there with some staff members.  I told them what was going on but he was more concerned about running to Fira to get some things.  It was slow at the restaurant and it would be a good time for him to run his errands.  He explained I would have to go to a booking agent and Fira would be the place to find one.  Since I had access to the restaurant's wifi I tried looking at flights myself.  Some of them were unreasonable.  I couldn't find a flight that would go straight to Bari.  The flights I kept finding were heading back to Athens.  Hmmm.  This is getting frustrating.
I messaged my friend in Italy and told her what I was up against.  Since originally I was suppose to have left last night to Mykonos and stay there today, she was under the impression I would be arriving in Bari tomorrow.  She wasn't ready to get me from the airport tonight, so I had to make sure my flight would land there sometime tomorrow.  Upon my arrival to Greece, her boyfriend's car was having problems with the clutch.  She figured she'll get a rental when I arrived but there were no cars available for her yet.  So much for the "playing it by ear". 
Kostas came up and asked me if I wanted to ride with him to Fira.  He had a couple of stops to make and I could accompany him.  I said sure.  I figured he could help me find a booking agent.  I remembered that young couple I met back in Athens when I was trying to find the museum.  They told me the airport at Santorini was a mess and now I understood what they meant.
Off we went to Fira.  I was surprised by how much vacant land there is in Santorini.  I saw more abandoned buildings too, but Kostas showed me where there were also new development.  He is very proud to work there during the season.  "Where else in the world could you work on an island like this?", he asked.  Good point.
When we got closer to Fira I saw the charter buses ahead.  Now I see the flow of people coming in.  We stopped by an electronic store to pickup a new phone.  The prices were pretty reasonable on major items such as washers and dryers.  For the most part, there wasn't much of a selection on some items, but then again, island life wouldn't require the importance of  such mainstream gadgets.
We continued on to two banks before we made our way to the market.  Kostas grabbed his avocados for the restaurant as well as a huge bag of coffee.  As usual, it was a hot day indeed and I could see how preoccupied he was getting.  His phone kept ringing off the hook.  I felt like a little kid riding around seeing and learning things I did not know about Santorini.  I saw a group of girls get on some ATVs with the guide helping them with their helmets.  They looked very inexperienced.  Kostas said it was hard to determine who knows how to drive European, and who are tourists who have no clue.  It was an unsettling feeling knowing those girls were going to ride the streets in those. 
We rode back towards Perissa.  Kostas reassured me he will help me book a flight once we got back to the restaurant.  I guess that's a "no" for looking for an agent.  Change of plans. 
Once we got to Noma, Kostas went straight for the kitchen to drop off the items.  I didn't want to be in his way so I found myself a table in the corner and started looking for flights since I was on wifi again.
I was getting frustrated.  There were some flights that looked reasonable, but whenever I went to purchase them, the flight would disappear.  I didn't understand if I was doing something wrong.  I kept messaging my friend that I was stuck.  She took my credit card information and started looking herself.  Between me and her exchanging messages on when I'll land in Bari, seeing if she'll be able to pick me up at the airport, and how much the ticket would be, we kept losing the flights.  It was beyond nerve recking!!  Sometimes a staff member would ask why don't I go to the beach to unwind, but I had to find a flight to Italy!  I was finding flights that would land me in Bari on Wednesday, and knew I had to take a train out to Rome on Saturday.  I would not be spending much time with my friend and that was the whole purpose of me flying out to Europe in the 1st place. 
After a while of being discouraged, I noticed that Kostas seemed to be upset that I did not want to stay longer in Santorini.  I tried to explain to him that I needed to see my friend.  I understood his sensitivity of me wanting to leave Greece so soon, but in the end, I still had to fly to Italy.  He decided to take actions in his own hands and started to look for flights for me when he had some downtime at the restaurant.  I can see it from his perspective that he just didn't think I experienced Santorini that much and that one day and a half was not that long.  But he found a flight to Athens for about a 100 euros leaving at 9:30pm that evening.  We had to think quickly so he continued to look for flights from Athens to Bari but only one that popped up seemed reasonable.  I would land in Bari the next day around 2:30pm, but to get there was not as easy as it seems.  I had to fly out of Athens at 6am; land in Turkey for a 3 hour layover, and then fly out at 12pm to land in Bari.  That was a lot of flying.  I agreed to it only because I would land in Bari the next day.  Any other flights that popped up would have me landing there on Wednesday, and I did not want to miss a day more without my friend.  We had our own plans and I did not want to miss something.  I hit purchased with a sign of relief.
But then I remembered my conversation from the couple I met back in Athens.  The ones from North Carolina.  Their voices echoed in my head.  "It was very unorganized."  Hmmm.  What did they mean by that?  I figured I would play it safe and head there two hours ahead.  By this time it was already after 5pm.  I went walking down the beach to kill some time.  It was getting busier at the restaurant and I did not want to get in their way.  They held my luggage for me.
Some time passed and I knew I still had to make it to the airport anyways, so I walked back to the restaurant and they called a cab for me.  I said bye to Kostas and the rest of the staff, but I couldn't find the father and daughter back at Ntomatini.  Luckily me and the daughter had exchanged info that night we all went out, but I felt sad leaving like that. 
I walked back to where the beach was closed off.  I knew that was the pick up spot for my cab.  I didn't wait that long.  It did take about 15 minutes.  A good looking cab driver pulled up next to me.  Only when I'm leaving would something like that happen!  We started to talk about Santorini as we were driving through the island.  He said about 15,000 people live here and he's one of them, even during off season.  I love talking to the locals about their way of life.  It gives you an inside perspective that you wouldn't get off from some tour book.
He repeated the same thing that I heard from the other cab driver I had encountered the night before.  He is one of the 39 cabs that circulate in Santorini.  When he pulled up the airport he flirted with me and said next time he'll invite me over to his house for some wine.  lol.  Sure.  "Next time."
I walked into the airport and sure enough, it was mayhem.  Lines were forming outside of the entrance.  I saw a ticket kiosk and tried to print up my boarding pass.  After several attempts, I could not get the settings to go to English, so I grew frustrated and stepped in line for the check in.  Hopefully the agent will see my information that I have purchased my flight.  Kostas had printed up my confirmation number on a piece of paper.  I couldn't get wifi at the airport.  I looked around and saw that people were having the same problems with the kiosk.  I just don't understand why they won't put an "out of order" sign on it.  People were lining up to a lady sitting behind the glass office by the entrance.  All she kept telling people were to get in line and they will help you.  At one point she disappeared and people at the kiosk looked very confused on what to do next since they couldn't get that thing to work. 
Finally it was my turn.  The man behind the counter checked my confirmation number and looked over my passport.  He asked if I had a carry-on but I knew my bag would be too heavy so I checked it in and paid the 35 euro fee.  He told me we were all set and off I stepped to the side.  I was getting very anxious again, so I decided to take a melatonin, even though I knew it would be a 30 minute flight.  The thought of getting in a small airplane and flying over the sea was terrifying to me.  Out of no where I see the man behind the counter lugging my bag around and putting it on the counter to go through the x-ray machine.  He looked very frustrated. 
I got into another line to go through security and that took a while.  I wasn't feeling any better.  Once I got through, I had to go to the bathroom.  Luckily no one was in there because it only had two stalls.  This airport was tiny.  People had no where to sit. 
They announced our flight over the intercom and people got up and formed a line.  A bus took us to our plane.  I was praying that the information was correct that it would be a 30 minute flight.  We haven't even took off and I'm terrified.
They didn't turn on the air conditioner til the plane was fully packed.  It was getting unbearably hot in there.  I was having a hard time trying to calm down.  I popped another melatonin and prayed over and over again.  Finally we had our takeoff.  The lady next to me had her window shade up the whole time.  People had the gps screen on their video screen.  I started to relax once I saw the number of islands we were passing.   Sure enough, Athens was in the horizon and I knew I was going to land soon.  I felt so relieved!

Day 5 Santorini

The next day me and Simon woke up early and he drove me to the bus station.  Again my nerves were getting the best of me.  I was planning on catching a ferry in Athens to Santorini at 2pm, but first I had to get out of Kalamata.  We said our goodbyes and off I went via bus for another 3 hour ride.  I was destined to arrive in Athens at 11am, which gave me plenty of time to get on the boat.  I had trouble napping on the bus because it was so hot again and they didn't turn on the ac.  Once I arrived at the bus station I hopped on a cab with written note that had instructions Simon wrote for me.  He knew how worried I was in case I got a driver again who only spoke Greek.  The instructions read that my destination was for the port for Blue Star Ferry.  My cab driver understood my note and did what it said.  She even even asked someone which lot to pull into for Blue Star Ferry.  She drove me to an office and said this was it, (in Greek), and helped me with my luggage.  Then off she went.  I walked up to the office and of course, everything was locked.  The doors, the windows, everything.  It didn't look opened for business.  It was officially Saturday and it began to sink in that I might not get on this boat.  I looked around and saw the Blue Star Ferry was docked, so I knew that was my boat.  I decided to ask people, but of course, no one knew English.  There were some people sitting on benches at the port but they did not know about the office opening up or not.  I saw some patrons walking up to the boat and decided to do the same.  A man was standing outside the ferry and gave some instructions to a couple so I knew he was the one to ask.  He laughed when I walked up to him, and it dawned on me he might not know a thing.  But he did confirm that this boat was leaving at 2pm for Santorini.  He told me to check with the office for tickets to board.  I verified that the office was not open, but he insisted that it was.  I walked back over and still no luck.  The port was very quiet and Blue Star Ferry was the only boat at the port.  It made me nervous to think I might miss it.  I concluded maybe I was suppose to purchase my ticket online, but now the wifi was acting up at the port.  Go figure.  I walked back to the boat to ask some more questions.  Now the mystery man has disappeared (of course), and I walked up to another woman who was staff.  I asked if I could purchase my ticket on board, but she replied no.  I had to get them at the office.  I told her they were closed.  She spoke Greek to another staff member and he said something back to her.  "Come back in one hour", she said, (referring to the office).  Ok.  Maybe we're on to something.  I thanked her and went back outside and sat on a bench.  It was now 12:30pm.
The crowd slowly started to grow.  It made me feel better that I was not alone on this boat, but at the same time no one was speaking English (or Spanish for that matter).  Eventually I saw something happening at the office and I quickly ran over to see if it finally opened.  One window was up, and there was a ticket agent taking care of a customer.  Whew!
I purchased my ticket and ran over to the boat.  There was now a bigger crowd than before, and everyone was waiting anxiously to board.  Finally a staff member came out to greet the crowd and we slowly boarded.  To my amazement, the boat did take off at 2pm, but I conclude that the office officially opened back up after 1:15pm.  That's too close for comfort for me.
I was very nervous about the boat ride because I hate boats as much as I hate planes.  I didn't even realize we were in motion when I settled in.  Hey, this isn't so bad after all!  The Blue Star Ferry was  huge and I didn't feel a thing.  I managed to take a nap onboard, but for the most part, the ride was very boring.  You can't  look out the windows for a view because it would get misty and foggy from the sea.  I counted the hours away, and knew something was happening when people kept getting up and walking out.  I was curious to where everyone was going.  I saw people go through the exit door and decided to follow them. 
Little did I know, I walked into the most beautiful sunset I have ever seen in my life!  Everyone around me was completely mesmerized!  I couldn't help snap pictures off my iphone.  People were doing the same.  The crowd grew bigger and bigger.  We were approaching land and I knew we were going to dock soon.

What a sunset!!!

I've never seen anything like this!!

Having fun on snap chat...

Once we landed we were greeted on our way out.  It was after 7:30pm and I was worried it would get dark soon.  I wanted to figure out how to get to the restaurant that my friend Simon was recommending.  A friend of his runs the restaurant but has some rooms to rent at the back for me.  I started to feel overwhelmed and noticed all the commotion around me.  People were holding up signs with names.  There were charter buses driving in and out.  I heard someone yell out that they had shuttle buses to take you to your hotel for 20 euros.  I ran up to him to see if he would help me get to the restaurant.  He escorted me to a shop where I paid them via credit card and he handed me my receipt.  He then told me and other the patrons to line up and someone would come get us.  We waited shortly and then another gentleman lead us to a bus.  We hauled our suitcases at the back and met our driver.  He asked us each where were we going.  I knew I was heading to Perissa Beach.  We hopped on and he began to drive up the cliff.  I swear those roads are so narrow!  He finally reached the top and off we went.

So many things happening at once, but luckily I found my destination...

Our driver explained how the island was divided into 3 parts,  Oia was at the top of the island, Fira (the downtown of Santorini) is in the middle, and then Perissa which was at the other side of the island.  We all looked out the window to checkout our surroundings.  It was refreshing to hear some people speak English.  I was curious to where they had sat on the ferry.  I haven't heard English in a while. 
Little by little he dropped off the passengers.  I was the last one left.  He told me he didn't know that Noma restaurant had rooms.  I told him I was suppose to meet someone there.  I really didn't know what I was walking into.  He dropped me off by a gate and said the beach was closed off for driving at night.  He gave me directions to where the restaurant was.  I tipped him some euro coins and off I ran.  I noticed some streets were relatively quiet.  Maybe this part of town was closing down.  It was officially dark outside.
I ran up the beach and saw a string of restaurants and venues.  It kind of reminded me of South Beach, but more quiet.  There were people taking strolls, but some of the business were closed already.  I found the restaurant and noticed how busy it was.  I walked up to the host and told him I was looking for Kostas.  He ran towards the back.  I saw staff looking at me but I still didn't know who was who.  The host ran back up to me and grabbed my suitcase.  Another gentleman asked me to have a seat.  I watched the crowd who were mostly enjoying their dinner.  There was a soccer game on tv.
The gentleman who seated me turned out to be Kostas.  He was busy but he told me to wait for a bit.  He then joined me and we were officially introduced.  He was a friend of Simon back from Chicago.  I liked that he knew him well.  I felt relaxed again.  The host returned and Kosta told me to follow him to the back and he'll show me where I'll be staying.  "Why don't you go freshen up and get settled in and come back?  You can have some food if you're hungry.  I have some friends who came in from Athens too.  We're all suppose to go out after wards.  You could join us if you want."  I told him all I wanted to do was take a shower first, but agreed to come back once I was freshened up. 
I followed the host and he took me to a motel area.  They had a beautiful pool  I walked into the office and they gave me my keys and walked me over to my room.  It was small but it would do.  I was really looking forward to my shower. 
I got my second wind plus I realized it was Saturday night.  I rushed over to the restaurant once I got ready.  By now it was past 10pm.  I felt good freshened up.  I sat by the bar and ordered a glass of white wine.  It was windy in the evening so I wore my kimono jacket.  I was worried it would be too hot to wear on my vacation, but now that I was technically on an island, it came in handy for me.



Saturday night at Noma!

After a 3 hour bus ride and 6 hour ferry ride, I needed this!

Happy girl!

Sweets!

Kostas joined me for drinks.  He was surprised I wasn't hungry but I explained to him that I bought a foot long sandwich at the bus station and ate the rest of it on the boat ride.  He brought over a fruit tray anyways and we both snacked on it.  His friends stopped by the restaurant and we all introduced ourselves.  I was feeling good.  They insisted for me to join them for some live music and I agreed.  We closed down Noma and walked over to Mythos which was further down the beach.  There was a duo on stage and they were fantastic!  They were called Namaste and they sang Greek music while both playing the guitar.  The crowd was mostly Greeks so that was a nice experience.  We had a good group going and I was having fun.  People were dancing.  I loved it!

This place was happening!

After a while Kostas suggested we hit up Fira so we walked back to the restaurant to grab his car.  Off we went into the night.  I didn't realize how much action was happening at Fira.  There were a lot of people bar hopping.  Some of the cobblestones were hard to walk on because of how narrow the pathways were and the steps.  We made our way to Tango which was super packed with people.  Again, I looked around to see what kind of people were there.  I couldn't make out the crowd, but the smoking was telling me there were more Greeks than tourists.  I enjoyed the music but it wasn't a place to dance.  It was more of a place to look very cook (if you get what I mean).  Kostas and his friends ended up ordering bottle service.  We made our way to our table but I grew very tired because of the sitting.  I had been on a 3 hour bus ride plus a 6 hour boat ride.  I needed to move.

Outside of Tango...

The crew!

A young woman in the group sat next to me and we started to hit it off.  She was bored as well and wanted to go to some other spots, but she needed a co-pilot to come with.  I wanted to see other places too so I volunteered to go with her.  She went up to her father (who was Kostas friend) and told him we would be back in 30 minutes.  They work at another restaurant right by Noma.  Her dad runs that place and needed help for the summer.  She agreed.  Who wouldn't work in Santorini for the summer??
We got the ok, and off we went.  There was a lot happening at Fira and I didn't know where we were heading.  A string of pubs, bars and restaurants were lined up back to back.  I noticed high end retail shops, too.  We stopped by a lounge that was playing house music.  We got curious and went inside for a bit.  We took a shot of tequila and made our way to the next spot.  This time, we walked into a Greek club and everyone was going nuts in there.  I was having so much fun!  My new friend kept dancing and singing to the music.  We took a couple of shots in there.  Before we knew it, we had to head back to Tango.  We made it back in time before the rest of the group noticed how long we were gone.  We finished up our bottle service and decided to hit up another club.  We walked into a place where there was a live dj spinning house music.  The crowd in there were definitely house heads, dancing away.  I was growing very tired, but my group did not want to end the night just yet.  They kept ordering drinks at the bar.  Eventually we staggered our way to McDonalds to sober up.  I was beat.  I joked to the daughter that this was too much for me.  "What do you think Mykonos is?"  I was confused.  "It's all party!  That's what it is!"  My eyes widened.  "It's all nightlife", she confirmed.  And at that moment I realized I was not going to Mykonos.