For Easter, Don’t Go to Church, Go to Santorini!
Before you click away thinking this is an attempt to convert you into the Greek Orthodox Church, it is NOT.
It is an attempt to convert you into all things Greek.
Santorini is one of the most well-known places in Greece. It is the poster child for any Greek Island advertisement and a favorite of photography and travel magazines.
Why not? the colors are intoxicating. It has great food and world-famous wine.
There is fascinating sightseeing including some of the best Minoan structures still standing.
There is a reason why more than two million tourists, and some travelers, visit the island every year.
So What Does Santorini Easter Have to do with This?
A quick Greek Easter 101. Easter is the most important holy day in Greece. Even more than Christmas. It represents rebirth.
The egg is the symbol of fertility and new life in many cultures around the world. For Greek Orthodox Christians, the egg represents the empty tomb after Jesus arises from the Crucifixion. They dye the eggs red, to represent his blood.
A Greek Easter tradition is a game they call Tsougrisma. Two people hold a hard-boiled egg in their hand. The goal is to tap the opponent’s egg hard enough to crack it, but not yours. The winner receives good luck for the following year.
The Greek Orthodox Church follows the Julian Calendar. Therefore, Greek Easter is usually later than other Easter celebrations. (Gregorian calendar.)
Not all Greeks are Greek Orthodox, and not all those who are, go to church every week. However, there is still a very strong faith in the church and those who do attend, take it very seriously.
Therefore, the week leading up to Easter Sunday is very important to many Greeks.
Once Again, Why Are We Talking About Santorini Easter?
Well, for one, crowds. Santorini will always have crowds. But in April, the cruise ships are just beginning to return. Europe is not making an exodus to the Mediterranian en masse.
In April, the rainy season is almost over and daytime temperatures are usually in the mid-sixties.
More than 140 hotels now stay open year round on the island. The locals are returning fresh from their off-season vacations.
There are three excellent reasons why a traveler should visit Santorini around April.
The fourth reason is the Santorini Easter.
What’s so Special About Santorini Easter?
We know it is an important holiday period. That means all generations of the family turn out to keep traditions that are thousands of years old going. Besides egg-breaking, there are other events that only take place at this time of year.
Holy Week
People will fast and go to church once a day Monday through Wednesday. Although the services are in Greek, they are interesting to listen to and watch.
Fasting means no meat, fish, dairy or alcohol. Don’t panic, restaurants still have all of those for the non-fasting. But they also have delicious vegetarian items they might not have on the menu for the rest of the year. Worth a try for something unique.
Thursday
The women dye the red eggs and bake the sweet Easter bread they call Tsoureki. They press the whole red eggs into the dough. Other treats include melitinia, a pastry with a mizithra or anthotyro cheese filling. There is also a non-cheese variety (almonds) for those fasting. Also, try wine cookies.
Good Friday.
Here is where Santorini Easter really differs from much of the rest of the country. It starts out like other places. It is a day of mourning. You will see young girls decorating the Epitaphios with flowers. This icon is usually a large embroidery, with rich adorning, bearing the image of the dead body of Christ. This cloth is only used for the services on Good Friday and Holy Saturday.
They carry it through the streets on a Kouvouklion, which is an intricately carved canopy they hold above the crowd. This is the funeral procession for Christ.
While this takes place during the day in most towns and villages, in Pyrgos, they are placing cans full of flammable material on every house, church, path, and wall that has space. They also place them on the remains of the Venetian castle. I did not say candles, I said cans. Think coffee and paint cans.
At dark, they light all of the cans (thousands) before starting the procession. (epitaph.)
Regardless of your religious beliefs or level of spirituality, if this site doesn’t move you, you may be dead.
Great Saturday.
The people gather around 11:00 PM at the churches and the priest passes the Holy Flame. People light the candles they brought with them and attempt to take the flame back home with them after midnight. Mass begins at midnight.
The fireworks come next. If you can arrange transportation, the view from the monastery of Profitis Ilias, allows views of almost all the firework demonstrations across the island.
Easter Sunday.
The Santorini Easter Sunday is like Easter anywhere in Greece; Church and lamb. The 40 days of fasting is over. They roast whole lambs over a fire pit for several hours for the family feast to follow.
Before anyone says it, All Greek lamb is wonderful. Every family has the best preparation.
And just lamb would be enough, but this is Greece. At least 100 additional items will accompany the lamb, many only made for Easter.
Of course, there will be local wine and other spirits.
Santorini In a New Light and Temperature.
If you have been to the island before, it was probably in the hot sweaty dead of summer.
In April, you don’t have the sweaty tourists crammed into a small sealed cable car gondola with you. Or sweaty bodies pressing up against you on a tour in a small space. They may still have questionable bathing habits, but you have a little arm room.
Then there are the assorted smells from the donkeys and their path markers. Although fragrant, they’re not as stomach-turning as they are on a sweltering summer day.
It is a great chance to see the locals of Santorini out and about. Hopefully, you can meet some of them. There really is more to this island than taking pictures of the caldera.
The Rest of The Story.
In addition to the unique Easter experiences, there are those other things to see and do that attract the millions.
See the Minoan ruins. It amazes me how many tourists come here that never visit Akrotiri. Dating thousands of years before Pompeii, it is Greece’s postcard of a moment in time.
Taste the foods traditional to Santorini. Some are PDO (Protected Designation of Origin,) and need to be sampled. This is in addition to the Easter specialties.
Smell the bouquet at one of the island’s award-winning wineries. There are enough to make a full day of touring and tasting. Each one is different than the last.
Listen to the wind as you stand among the ruins of Ancient Thera, more than 1,000 feet above sea level.
Feel the Greek magic of this island when the mobs are not trampling it underfoot.
Why do you want to go to Santorini?
Read more on Santorini.
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