The solution was to paint their houses light-colored by using whitewash which they made by mixing lime, water, and sea salt. As white color is a reflector of heat it worked perfectly to preserve the freshness and coolness of Greek homes.
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This might sound strange today, but the whitewash used to paint the houses contained limestone. Limestone is a powerful disinfectant, and not many others were in common use at the time. Greek citizens thus whitewashed their homes to help sanitize them and reduce the spread of cholera.
Every year before Easter, Santorini residents refresh the paint on their houses to get this clean look that you often see on the pictures from the Cyclades Islands. Houses in this part of Greece are traditionally covered with hydrated lime and water.
OIA, SANTORINICave houses are most evident in the Caldera villages of Fira, Firostefani, Imerovigli, and Oia, but also present in some of the historic interior villages such as Pyrgos, Emborio, and Megalochori.
The dominant white and blue colors of the Cycladic architecture are a symbol of Greece as they represent the colors of the Greek flag. What is more, they are in total concordance with the vast Aegean Sea that encircles the Cyclades and the bright blue sky creating a breathtaking, harmonious setting.
At the beginning of the 20th century, during the war, serious deceases, like cholera, plagued the Greek islands. Whitewash is a cheap, disinfectant material that was used regularly to limit the contagion. Back to that era, it was probably the most effective or even the only medium available for disinfection.
It was not until 1967, that these two colors became a mandatory choice when the Junta, a right-wing military dictatorship mandated that all buildings must be painted or repainted to white and blue. The regime believed that this measure would inspire patriotism and reflect nationalism.
Depending on your accommodation, or where on the island you are located, you will see signs asking you not to flush toilet paper in the toilet. Instead, you place your used tissue in the tiny bins next to the toilet. Most modern hotels are equipped for flushing.
Santorini is Massively OverpricedThanks to the influx of oil magnets mooring their yachts below the cliffs, one of those iconic cave houses in Oia — almost all of which are now converted tourist rentals — will run you over 500 euros per night.
The reason behind this color choice has to do with practicality. In the old times, Greek housewives would use a cleaning agent called loulaki (blue powder in English) which came in the form of talcum powder. It was widely and cheaply available across Greece.
Many visitors in Greece might have seen the white paint around the tree trunks. In the past when people didn't have all these agricultural concoctions to protect the trees from insects and bugs, they used a mix of slaked lime (calcium hydroxide), chalk (whiting) and water lime mixed with water as insect repellent.
Sherwin Williams Greek Villa isn't a true white or a creamy white, but it's one of the best off-white paint colors you can use that doesn't have a strong undertone. If you're looking for an off-white that's right in the middle, then this paint color might be for you.
The blue and white colours are the same as the Greek flagTo comply, people started painting the buildings blue and white, the colours of the Greek flag. This then started to become a trademark of Greece and drew a lot of tourists.
Technically, Santorini's tap water is safe to drink. However, it's also brackish, and the water supply system itself isn't always reliable. Single-use water bottles are popular in Santorini, but terrible for the environment.
Technically, Santorini's tap water is safe to drink. However, it's also brackish, and the water supply system itself isn't always reliable. Single-use water bottles are popular in Santorini, but terrible for the environment.
However, swimming in the clear blue water of Santorini is wonderfully refreshing. Since the beaches have coarse sand, there's little dust to cloud the water. Don't come to Santorini primarily for the beaches – come for the volcano boat tours, incredible views, wine, hikes, nightlife, and great food.
There has been no case of a white shark attacking a human in the Aegean Sea, but in 2018, near the island of Samothrace, fishers accidentally caught an individual of the species measuring 1.5 metres. Due to species protection, the shark was released into the water.