You’re currently baking under the sun on Santorini.

This picturesque island in the Cyclades archipelago is famous for its spectacular sunsets and for bringing luck to lovers, almost like fastening a lock to a bridge’s railing and throwing the key into the river or sharing a kiss during a new moon when stars fall and the nightclub plays. The island is commonly associated with the aquamarine-colored domes of churches (literally the color of sea water). The blue of the domes gives the impression that it takes on the color of the sea, turning green on summer days, and together with the water, it darkens on stormy days.

On the island, there are about 300 churches and chapels that were built to protect fishermen during their long sea voyages. The white houses carved into the rock, or more precisely into solidified lava, contrast with the blue domes. Today’s buildings on Santorini were constructed upon an ancient civilization that was destroyed by a volcanic eruption. And this could actually be read as some sort of metaphor. Archaeological research is still uncovering valuable artifacts, such as a stone sacrificial table with a painted underwater landscape, among which dolphins swim.