Blue seas in Santorini, Greece

When you're on the ferry from Athens to Santorini, the water is blue - so blue that it's almost unreal, perfectly clean and the most beautiful shades of the ocean.

Santorini is the definition of a beach holiday - incredibly blue water, and a world-famous white and blue colour scheme that extends to pretty much everything on the island. That's a lot of whitewash that the residents of Santorini go through - and because the colour scheme is regulated, you're unlikely to see buildings in many colours other than white-and-blue.

Although Santorini is known for its beaches and coastal ambience, there are two things you should probably be aware of before you head to Santorini intending to have a day out of fun in the sun: first - that volcanic sand heats up really well, and second - that hot beaches don't always mean warm water.

Do not be fooled by how perfectly divine all this looks - the water was way too cold to swim in. There were probably fewer than 15 people in the sea, and I bet they were all Finnish ice swimmers!

Apart from Perissa beach, Santorini's other famous beach is Kamari beach, with its colourful beach chairs and incredibly awesome seafood. Quite unlike Perissa, it is possible to walk on the sand at Kamari without burning the soles of your feet!

Kamari beach is also a lot more of a tourist resort than Perissa, so there are a lot more options for shopping and dining there. There's a little stretch just next to the beach with a lot of shops selling everything from souvenirs to artwork, and lots of restaurants if you're feeling a bit hungry.

The best calamari ever!

Since Phyllis, Steven and I were pretty much starving by this point, the perfectly fresh and cooked seafood tasted a million times even better! The view wasn't too hard on the eyes either - a table right by the beach, looking out into the ocean makes for a great dining experience.

After we'd stuffed our bellies with food, we went out onto the beach and lazed on the deck chairs. It's the best feeling in the world, being fed and being able to just fall asleep basking in the warm Greek sun. Being around water always makes me feel so rejuvenated, and it's one of my favourite things in the world.

So when I hear waves rushing up on the shore and I go out to greet them, it feels like coming home.