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Until now, because I don’t dive, I’ve had to view the fascinating world under the sea at second hand on my television screen, or through the photos of others. Either that, or confine myself to a glass-bottomed boat. And, the last time I used one, the waters of the Red Sea were so clear that the glass bottom was superfluous. A new attraction on the island of Santorini is the tourist submarine. It was once claimed as a unique tourist attraction, but there are now about 40 in various places around the world. It can take visitors 30 metres below the surface, but it’s still unique in that, unlike other submarines, it’s equally at home running on the surface Now, although there’s nothing to be seen from a normal military submarine because it doesn’t have any view-ports, the Santorini Submarine was purpose-built by Subibor, in Spain, with a bubble for the pilot, and large portholes for the passengers to see out. And, there’s outside seating for the 30 passengers when the sub is running on the surface. There are three engines. Twin diesels drive it on the surface, and an electric motor takes over when submerged. And, where better to base it than Santorini, with its clear waters and history to be found on the sea-bed? When a volcano on the island erupted about 4000 years ago, it made what’s believed to be the loudest bang in human history. If there had been recording instruments in those days, I’d suggest those in charge of them would have been too busy concentrating on survival to pay them much attention. The eruption sparked off many legends. That of the lost city of Atlantis and that of the Flood … it’s even thought to have given rise to the story of the seven plagues of Egypt. It destroyed at least one city. The buried city at Akrotiri was found on the southern coast as recently as the 1960s, and a curious thing is that few bodies were found in it; it’s thought that the inhabitants had some forewarning, and were able to take refuge. Nevertheless, it wiped out a civilisation. The Minoans, who were the precursors of the Ancient Greeks had their centre at Knossos, on Crete, which all but disappeared in the explosion and the following tsunami, thought to be over 200 ft. high. And what was left was wiped out by a crop failure because of the falling ash … or by an invasion, depending on which archaeologist you believe! The eruption left the largest caldera in the world, most of which was under water, and what had been a large circular island was now several smaller ones. The largest of these is a crescent-shaped island now usually called Santorini, (St. Irene) although its official name is Thira … also the name of the main town The smaller ones are Thirassia and the uninhabited islet of Aspronissi. The islands of Palea Kamini and Nea Kamini were formed in later, milder eruptions. Here’s the bad news! The volcano isn’t extinct! It’s merely dormant, and last erupted as late as 1956 … and may do so again. But, you won’t see the volcano bubbling away on the sea-bed. A lot of the time, you won’t go anywhere near it, because the submarine will leave from Vlihada, on the southern coast, and take its underwater trip a short distance from there, because there’s more to show the passengers. When we got down to the sea-bed, we saw a few sunken amphorae. They’ve been around, and used for wine storage, ever since Man learned that fermenting grape juice made him laugh and fall over, so that was no surprise. But, the columns and statues … allegedly from the old city … a friend suggested that they might be the remnants of a ceremonial way … but did they have that style of architecture in those days? And, I saw on a recent TV programme that the vulcanologist thought that any city near the caldera would have been melted, if not vaporised. Akrotiri was only preserved because it was buried in pumice and ash before the main eruption. Maybe those artefacts were being taken to ‘recycle’ the marble, and fell from the deck of a ship, for some reason? But, definitely genuine and more recent are the sunken fishing boats. And, occasionally, there’s a diver, feeding the multi-coloured fish to attract them for the visitors. Maybe for the local fishermen, too? The trip is surprisingly inexpensive … less than fifty euros will buy a three-quarter hour dive; the actual price depends on the time of day you wish to take your trip. Our only regret was that, as cruise passengers on a tight schedule, it didn’t leave much time to spend on the rest of the island. We had to hang around the Atlantis Bar at Vlihada, where the submarine is based, waiting for the second party, before returning to Thira. And, most of our time in the town was spent queuing for the chair-lift down to the harbour, because we didn’t fancy the long, laborious walk down … and, the last time I rode a donkey, I got a flea! Nevertheless, the undersea experience made all the inconveniences worthwhile – and to want to pay another, longer visit to Santorini, for further exploration of a fascinating island. Resources: www.greektravel.com/greekislands/santorini Or, if you either have Broadband or the patience of Job, www.submarine.gr . You can contact the submarine company at (+30) 22860 28900 or greatblue@san.forthnet.gr Editor's Note: 
Keith Kellet is a regular contributor to The Traveler, and is based in Great Britain.
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