How North Korea Could Cripple the U.S.

How North Korea Could Cripple the U.S.

A single nuke exploded above America could cause a national blackout for months.

By R. JAMES WOOLSEY And PETER VINCENT PRY

Over the past three days, North Korea has launched six short-range guided missiles or projectiles in tests that landed in the Sea of Japan. The launches were of a piece with Pyongyang's springtime custom of muscle-flexing, undertaken to extract concessions from the West in exchange for stopping the provocations. The Obama administration would do well to ignore these minor fireworks and focus on the much greater threat of a long-range North Korean missile carrying a nuclear warhead.

So far President Obama has seemed content to parry North Korea's thrusts, much as his White House predecessor did. The George W. Bush administration did not distinguish itself in recognizing, or acting on, the danger from North Korea. Last month, in a worrying sign of similar detachment, Mr. Obama essentially dismissed the Defense Intelligence Agency conclusion that North Korea has probably been able to fit a nuclear warhead on a missile. He certainly did not suggest that he would consider a pre-emptive strike to halt the North Korean nuclear program.

The president may want to rethink that position.

Much has happened since 2006, when former Secretary of Defense William Perry and now-Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter urged President Bush to pre-emptively destroy North Korea's long-range Taepodong 2 missile on its launch pad in a surgical strike with conventional weapons. Writing in the Washington Post, they advocated drawing "a line in the sand" against North Korea's test of a missile designed to deliver nuclear weapons against the United States.

Two years later, Messrs. Perry and Carter were still advocating such a strike against any North Korean attempt to test an intercontinental missile: The "Administration has tried to play down the mounting danger posed by North Korea," they wrote in 2008, and critics "say that a pre-emptive strike is too risky. But if the U.S. is ever going to defend a line in the sand with North Korea, that is the least provocative way to do it, and next time will only be riskier."

Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

A military vehicle carrying what is believed to be a Taepodong-class missile Intermediary Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM).

Mr. Bush didn't follow their good advice, and today Mr. Obama faces a more serious and imminent nuclear-missile threat from Kim Jong Un's regime. Since 2006, North Korea has had at least three apparently successful nuclear tests and orbited a satellite, thus fulfilling the basic technological needs for an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear warhead against the U.S.

Miniaturizing a warhead to fit on a missile is not an overwhelming technical obstacle. Far greater technological challenges are building and testing nuclear weapons and developing a long-range missile that can send a satellite into orbit. Compared with these feats, warhead miniaturization is easy.

North Korea needs only one ICBM capable of delivering a single nuclear warhead in order to pose an existential threat to the U.S. The Congressional Electromagnetic Pulse Commission, the Congressional Strategic Posture Commission and several other U.S. government studies have established that detonating a nuclear weapon high above any part of the U.S. mainland would generate a catastrophic electromagnetic pulse.

An EMP attack would collapse the electric grid and other infrastructure that depends on it—communications, transportation, banking and finance, food and water—necessary to sustain modern civilization and the lives of 300 million Americans.

EMP effects can be made more powerful and more catastrophic by using an Enhanced Radiation Warhead. This is a low-yield nuclear weapon designed not to create a devastating explosion, but to emit large amounts of radiation, including the gamma rays that generate the EMP effect that fries electronics.

The EMP Commission warns that, "Certain types of relatively low-yield nuclear weapons can be employed to generate potentially catastrophic EMP effects over wide geographic areas, and designs for variants of such weapons may have been illicitly trafficked for a quarter-century." An EMP attack could plunge our electricity-powered civilization into a blackout lasting months or years.

One problem is that the Obama administration canceled the only two U.S. boost-phase interception programs, declining even to fund further study of boost-phase or space-based defensive systems. All U.S. Ballistic Missile Early Warning radars and interceptors are currently positioned and located to intercept a missile strike in the middle or the late part of its trajectory, coming from the north polar region.

However, North Korea has shown the ability to launch toward the South Pole and send its satellite into orbit across the south polar region. The U.S. currently has no missile defense assets, no early warning radars and no interceptors devoted to stopping a missile coming from the south. Where a satellite can go, a nuclear warhead can also go. North Korea orbited its satellite at an altitude optimum for an EMP attack on the contiguous 48 United States.

A surgical strike to prevent North Korean development of an ICBM has never been more urgent. Such a strike would draw a necessary line in the sand for North Korea—and Iran. The U.S. should also follow the good example of its allies in South Korea, Taiwan, Israel and the United Kingdom and harden its electric grid against EMP attack.

Mr. Woolsey, a former CIA director, is chairman of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a venture partner with Lux Capital. Mr. Pry is executive director of the Task Force on National and Homeland Security and served on the congressional EMP commission.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324482504578455451910706908.html#printMode

OK Tornado Prayers - “When you pray, move your feet.”

There is an African proverb that says: “When you pray, move your feet.” 

While there is immense value to listening and being still in prayer and seasons when waiting is what is being asked of us; as this proverb implies, prayer also involves response and action. 

It is much like love. Love is more than words spoken from our mouths. It must be lived out in the patterns and actions of our lives.

How To Use Clipping Masks (And Not Layer Masks) in Photoshop

http://www.howtogeek.com/57159/how-to-use-clipping-masks-in-photoshop/

How To Use Clipping Masks (And Not Layer Masks) in Photoshop

Layer Masks, like many parts of Photoshop, are rarely used because they aren’t intuitive or immediately easy to grasp. Learn about them in this How-To, with our video tutorial, and read how and why “Layer Masks” are so different.

They provide an interesting way to dynamically transform text, brush strokes, vectors, or any sort of layer with ease, and really aren’t very hard to use or understand. Simply read on to see how you can start incorporating Clipping Masks into your Photoshop technique.

Demonstrating Use of Clipping Masks (Video)

The lead image was made using a clipping mask on a text layer, and this video of the method used can be helpful dispelling the confusion around how that works. In addition to this, check out additional description of how they work in the section below.

What is a Clipping Mask?

Clipping Masks are not terribly complex, but unless you understand what they’re going to do, you may become very confused when you apply one.

As a demo, begin with a blank empty document, then create a text object. We’re going to create a clipping mask cut to the opaque pixels of the text object.

Create a new layer over your text layer and fill it with anything. For demonstration purposes, you can navigate to Edit > Fill and use a pattern fill in your upper layer.

Right Click the layer you put on top of your text, and select “Create Clipping Mask.”

Clipping masks, as you can see, mask the image to the opaque pixels of the bottommost layers. While many typography buffs may object, you can use this to fill your text with all manner of interesting things, while keeping it fully editable.

How is a Layer Mask Different?

If you’ve worked with Layer Masks or Vector masks before (which HTG readers may remember reading about) you might not understand why you would want to use a Clipping Mask when a Layer Mask works perfectly well. In many cases, this is true, but each one is a tool, and any tool has specific uses.

Layer Masks are extra channels that hide information for the attached layer. In other words, they’re like a grayscale image that makes parts of its layer opaque, and other parts transparent.

Because the mask is attached to a layer separate from anything else, it can be moved independently, and will not change dynamically the way a clipping mask can. This is not good or bad—they are simply separate tools from one another with differences worth noting. While both of them can be used for similar functions, they are completely separate, and can accomplish radically different things.

http://techcrunch.com/2013/05/19/google-glass-year-in-review/

Google Glass Year In Review

It’s been a little over a year since Google started teasing something it called “Project Glass.” The futuristic, wearable computer that would change the way that you interact with the world was nothing more than a series of rumors for months before it was “formally introduced” in April 2012. Not known for hardware and not having a current bonafide physical device that was popular among consumers, many opined that this was Google’s way of begging for attention. It might have been, and it definitely worked.

In 13 months, Glass has gone from Star Trek fantasy to reality. It’s been quite the whirlwind of activity.

The “wearable computing” age is upon us, and it’s been widely reported that Apple was working on a watch, therefore many assumed that Google was working on a similar device to keep up. This was not the case and Google’s co-founder Sergey Brin took special interest in the Glass project and has been leading the charge going back to when the prototype weighed about eight pounds in August 2011.

Let’s take a stroll down memory lane, because a lot has happened over the past year in Glassland.

IT’S REAL(ISH)

The video from Google itself got sent people’s imaginations into overdrive. It was called “One day…” and gave us a glimpse into the life of a daily user of what Google had up its sleeve. We now know that the “One day…” reference had more to do with what the product could become, not what it would be in its first iteration:

The user experience in this video is aspirational at best, as the current iteration of Glass is more of a complement and utility to your day, rather than the augmented reality “enhancer” as this video demonstrates. Still, the elements that make Glass handy are all there, taking calls, getting directions and taking pictures from a new point of view.

Immediately after the video, and public admonishment that the project was real, the press wondered out loud if Apple should compete and that other companies should stand up and take notice. We also now know that the rumored final name for the device, Google Eye, isn’t likely. Good thing, because it sounds way creepier than Glass. We’ll get to more “creepiness” later.

It was clear that Glass was getting a lot of attention, both positive and negative, from the start. EvenJon Stewart did a parody about them.

OK, NOW THEY’RE REALLY REAL(ISH)

Before Google’s I/O developer conference in 2012, Sergey Brin started showing Glass off to folks like Gavin Newsom. This is the first time that we found out that Glass had a trackpad that would let you scroll through its UI, even though we didn’t know what that UI looked like yet.

Even Google CEO Larry Page got into the act, wearing his pair at the Google Zeitgeist event in London. Was Page making important company decisions without us knowing, using his futuristic eyewear? Probably not, but it was cool to think about.

HOLY CRAP, THEY’RE REALLY REALLY REAL(ISH)

At Google I/O 2012, developers sat in the Moscone Center not knowing what to expect from the company that has been using its advertising business to fund all types of cool projects. After all, who would have thought that a search and advertising company could actually pull off something like Gmail? Or a web browser? And now a driving car? A pair of glasses? Crazy talk. Well, on June 27, 2012, Google fed into that crazy talk with…a crazy stunt.

The man at the helm of Google X and Project Glass, Sergey Brin, pulled off a stunt so memorable, that many of us in attendance still don’t fully understand what we saw.

Brin jumped out of a zeppelin wearing Glass, and participated in a live video Hangout the entire time:

After that, a bunch of people hopped onto bikes and drove into the keynote auditorium. The audience looked at one another, as if to say, “Did this just really happen?”

It was indeed Google’s “Apple moment.”

After Brin took the stage, we were left to wonder if he would then go into full Oprah mode and tell us all to check under our seats for a pair of Glass that would be our very own. Nope. At I/O 2012, the “Glass Explorer Program” was announced, and the first 2,000 attendees that wanted to pledge to pay $1,500 for the opportunity to develop apps for the Glass platform could.

There was no date given for when the device would be shipped, but nobody cared. These things were real(er). Think about it, developers signed up to pay $1,500 for a device that they had never even touched. I was one of them, and even I felt silly. There was something about the cadence that Google had been marching to up to I/O that year that felt right.

Bloggers got to try Glass on for a few seconds, but didn’t get to do anything with them. The hypefest was on. Our founder, Michael Arrington, had a fun, and grounded, thought after the announcement:

“I can imagine in a couple of years we’ll all be wearing these at events. Then a couple of years after that maybe we’ll look back and think we all looked like idiots.”

Perhaps.

THEY’RE REAL(ER)(ISH)

After I/O, Google started communicating with its Glass “Explorers” about all of the device happenings, introducing its skunkworks team along the way. Those who joined the program at the conferencewould get to participate in Hangouts, attend conferences and get exclusive news on Glass. In retrospect, Google set itself up for people to start making fun of those clamoring for the device, whom are affectionately/unaffectionately referred to as “Glassholes.” You see, whenever something is only available to a select group of people, those not inside of that group tend to lash out a bit. Sure, there are those who think that Glass will never amount to anything, but those on the fence had no choice but to attack. It’s kind of like high-school.

As the months went on, the press flirted with Glass, as more and more Googlers starting wearing them on campus. Stories aboutMicrosoft’s “Glass” plans and a reminder ofApple’s wearable tech patents were peppered in, too.

In late 2012 and early 2013, Hackathons were announced, Brin rode the subway wearing Glass and its API, dubbed Mirror, was introduced at SXSW.

OK, GLASS. YOU’RE REAL.

In April, a group of heavyweights in Silicon Valley announced a partnership called “The Glass Collective.” Developers who wanted to build things for Glass, without ads or any means to make actual money, could visit either Google Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz or Kleiner Perkins, and if their project was interesting enough, they could get funding from all three.

It was at that event that Google Glass team member, Steve Lee, let it slip that developers would soon be receiving invitations to pick their pair of Glass up from Mountain View, Los Angeles or New York City. They could have them shipped, but that’s no fun. Glass was officially real.

In just a few days after that Collective event, the first pairs of Glass for developers were coming off of the production line, the Mirror API guidelines were posted, its companion app for Android was released and full specs were released for the first time.

This “moonshot” that Google had been cooking up in its super-secret X Labs were going to see the light of day, outside of Google’s campus’. People just then started to realize that certain folks would be meandering around town with cameras on their face, and focused solely on how the device would affect them…the ones not wearing the device. The ones not in the “club.” A quick search for the term “Google Glass privacy” shows the same story written by hundreds of reporters, most of them never having worn the device.

I was able to pick up my pair of Glass on April 17th, and it’s interesting to see what the device really is in its current state, as opposed to what we saw in the video released last year. We did a “day in the life” video, showing what I was seeing on the display:

While it’s not as “pretty” as Google’s first teaser video, the elements are all there. In its current state, Glass is a utility that allows you to do some of the things that your smartphone does now. The difference with Glass is that you can do these things hands-free, quicker than before and in a less socially disruptive way.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR GLASS?

For a period of time, we’ll see the same types of stories about how creepy Glass is. At this year’s I/O, none of Google’s executives wore the device on stage or while walking around the Moscone Center. It was its way of turning the “lens” onto developers and saying “It’s time to make this yours.” Still, we heard about people wearing Glass in the bathroom, as if to remind us that not everyone is ready to feed into the hype of the device.

It’s hard to argue with the point that the Glass platform is the most interesting one for developers to iterate upon since Apple’s introduction of the App Store. For the first time in years, these developers are getting a chance to re-imagine their existing services, or build new ones, for a new device. Glass isn’t perfect and will only be as good as the apps that are developed for it.

During this year’s I/O, Twitter, Facebook and a slew of others announced their own Glass apps. The Facebook app is great, while the Twitter app will need more work. As I’ve continued to wear the device while I’m not at the computer, I’m finding myself trying to get away from all of the crazy and unnecessary notifications that I get on my phone and desktop. The Twitter app, for example, sends me mobile updates that I’ve subscribed to, @ replies and direct messages. This simply won’t fly, and Glass users are going to need more granular controls for what pops up on their displays. It’s early though, and these are good learning experiences.

No matter what you think about Glass, you have to admit that the past year has been a good one for Google and its fancy, futuristic device. From a secret pet project to developer-only playground, it will be fascinating to see what happens next in Glassland. There’s no telling when the device will be available for everyday consumers, but I can guarantee that it won’t be until developers have had ample time to explore the possibilities. I do know one thing: If you’re really worried about being spied on by someone wearing Glass, don’t be. You’re not that interesting.

Great Pop Hits for Memorial Day Weekend

The Friends of Distinction - "Love or Let Me Be Lonely" (1970) -

The Friends of Distinction are an American vocal group best known for their late 1960s hits, "Grazing in the Grass", "Love or Let Me Be Lonely", and "Going in Circles". Founded by Harry Elston and Floyd Butler, The Friends of Distinction also included Jessica Cleaves and Barbara Jean Love (plus Charlene Gibson, who replaced Love during her pregnancy).



A classic by the Kinks

If Pool Pump Starts Losing Pressure and You See Air Bubble in Pool Jets...

If pool pump starts losing pressure...

Symptoms:

1. Pump has occasional difficulty priming.

2. Strainer pot window (top lid) shows a lot of churning and bubbling instead of even flow of water through it to pump.

3. Air bubbles are coming out of return jets steadily.

You have a suction side leak somewhere. 

Air bubbles in pool means air leak on suction side - the front side - going into pump.

Reason: 

Suction (intake) or front side of pump is where water is being pulled into pump, along with air.  

Air is being sucked into suction (front or "in") side of pump, usually not the discharge side (out) with air getting into system before pump propeller.  

After pump propeller, water is forced out to discharge side and on to water filter.

Top 3 reasons:

1. Is water level in pool high enough? 

2. Is strainer pot lid on tight? Is its O ring seated OK? Is its O ring lubricated sealed OK?  Remove any debris that might be obstructing lid.

3. Check any unions (fittings) between pool return and knurled fitting going into pump.  Disassemble this fitting, check its O ring, it needs to seat into union, inside the groove.  Make sure flange is tight on back of nut.  Pull plumbing apart and seat O ring into groove.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUMJdNyQM5o

www.poolschool.us

http://www.troublefreepool.com/pump-losing-pressure-t35511.html

http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/

http://www.poolcalculator.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFLWDYVZAno

1950s Television and Music: "Theremin" demonstrated on "You Asked for It"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Asked_for_It

Greek Isles Guide

http://www.avidcruiser.com/port-profiles/europe/mediterranean/greece/santorini/

Santorini, Greece

One of  the most touristy, visited and crowded islands in Greece, Santorini still has a lot to offer if you ditch the crowd and find a place that you can claim for your own.

Part of the Cyclades, Santorini forms a “ring shape” that offers visitors fantastic views of the typical villages with white houses perched on the edge of the cliffs that ring the island’s rim.

The center of the ring is called Caldera, Santorini’s main natural attraction. Many visitors make their way to Nea Cameni Island, located in the Caldera a few minutes away by boat. Once there, you can climb to the top of the island or swim in a hot spring.

Many people believe that when the central part of the volcano sunk it took the legendary city of Atlantis with it.

Beautiful views from Oia village. © Luciano Travassos

When Your Ship Arrives In Santorini

The captain and the local pilot will decide where to drop anchor, as in some places the sea is not shallow enough for the anchor the reach the bottom. Now comes the tricky part: Many ships will actually drop anchor twice. That’s because Santorini has two ports: Athinios and Fira.

Skunas (local boats that are used as tenders) will first take guests to Athinios for organized tours. The tours will finish in Fira, where guests can stay in town or take the cable car back to the port of Fira, where they’ll take theskuna back to the ship. Athinios itself is of little interest for tourists, and taxis are almost impossible to get there, unless you have made previous arrangements.

If you are not on a tour, you will have to wait until the ship moves to another location, near to Fira, drops anchor again, and than take the skuna to the little port of Fira. From there, you can take the cable car up the hill to Fira, which is the biggest town on Santorini. You can also walk from the port to the town or ride a donkey, which can be an adventure.

One way to get from the port to Fira.© Luciano Travassos

It may take as long as two hours from the time the guests on tour have disembarked the ship until the time you reach Fira— depending on the conditions. So if you want to take advantage of your time in Santorini, I recommend you to take a tour. It is a much easier way to start your day. Sounds a little bit complicated but by the time you are there, it will make sense.

Getting Around Santorini

The easiest way to explore Santorini is by “quad bike” or “scooter”, I prefer the quad bikes because they are easier to drive. There are many rental places, where you can hire one for the day or if you prefer you can rent a car but traffic sometimes can be a little busy and parking also. Buses and taxis are available but limited.

Fira, Oia & More

Fira or Thira is the main town, and it’s also the busiest and most commercial. You can easily explore Fira’s narrow streets on foot, or if you are not in a mood to face the uneven cobbled stones alleys and dodge the other visitors, you can find a nice terrace and enjoy lunch with one of the best views in the world. It’s worth skipping lunch on the ship. You’ll find excellent restaurants in Fira or anywhere in Santorini.

Recharge your batteries with a view like this one. Oia. © Luciano Travassos

The Museum of Prehistoric Thera and the Archeological Museum are both located in Fira. The town also boasts many other museums and art galleries, but what you will find most are shops and restaurants. From souvenirs to beautiful jewelry, you could spend a small fortune here.

Fira serves as an excellent gateway of things to come, but don’t spend too much time here, because Santorini has a lot more to offer.

Make your way to Oia (pronunced Ia). Located approximately 8 miles northwest of Fira, Oia has a powerful and seductive appeal, and arguably, the most beautiful views of the island.

After browsing for souvenirs during my visit, I stopped in a little café with a view and asked for a delicious Frappucino while planning what to do next. I hardly wanted to move the view was so attractive.

Traveling southeast, you will pass Fira and continue for about 5 miles until you reach the village of Pyrgos. The village has amazing views and recently has reached its moment with big tourism development. On the main road of the island, you will have the opportunity to stop along and take wonderful photos.

You may want to stop at one of the “tavernas” for lunch, if you haven’t done that before now, and try the local wines with a plate of olives, feta cheese and local appetizers.

There are a few other villages, which are great for a photo stop but not as appealing as the three main villages I’ve mentioned. You can check out Fitostefani and Imerovigli, both very near Fira, or Akrotiri where the eponymous Archeological Site is located but unfortunately closed. You still can see some impressive wall paintings in Akrotiri.

Beaches In Santorini

You’ll find beaches in Santorini in the south of the island.

The Red Beach, Perissa, Perivolos and Kamari are the most popular beaches on Santorini. The Red Beach is only reachable by foot from a parking lot nearby. All beaches have chairs and umbrellas for rent, and all have dark volcanic sand (black or gray), which can be very hot in the summer.

Perivolos is the longest and most popular beach, with many restaurants and hotels.

You can also practice water sports, snorkeling and swimming, since the water temperature is always inviting.

Island view. © Luciano Travassos

Don’t Miss

The village of Oia and island drives are the best things to do while in Santorini. Fortunately, you can visit Oia in the morning on the ship’s tour and visit the island in the afternoon.

Keep in mind if there is more than one ship in Santorini, you might have to stand in  line for the cable car to return to the port to take your tender back to the ship. The cable car ride itself takes only five minutes, but the lines can be quite long. Allow yourself some extra time.

If you’d rather walk, follow the path connecting Fira to the port downhill. It takes approximately 30 minutes, and you will have to share the narrow path with the donkeys. You can ride a donkey back too. After visiting Santorini several times, I decided to ride a donkey. It was an unforgettable experience, but I am not certain I would do it again.

If you are on tour, the guides will give you a cable car ticket that you can also use for the donkey ride, but the donkey owners will expect a tip.

Enjoy Santorini. No doubt, you’ll want to return here one day.

Luciano Travassos

http://www.ricksteves.com/tvr/greekisle111c_scr.htm

Greek Islands

See more travel details for recommendations highlighted in bold, excerpted from Rick's guidebooks.

Hi, I'm Rick Steves. For twenty summers I've traveled Europe with my travel writing and teaching in mind. Making lots of mistakes and taking careful notes, In the hopes you learn from my mistakes rather than your own. In this series we're exploring the best of Europe.

This time we're in Greece, we'll tour popular Santorini – an island on the lip of a still active volcano. We'll enjoy being a tourist in its quintessential white-washing villages, visit an archaeological dig on one of its ancient cities, and swim on its black sand beach. Then we'll cruise the Aegean to the island of Samos, where we'll tour its sights by moped and ponder the ruins of an ancient temple before resting in a quiet fishing village. And finally we'll feast and frolic far from the crowds on tiny  Lipsi.

Greece lies between Italy and Turkey on the Mediterranean Sea.  Starting in Athens, we'll take an overnight ferry to the island of Santorini.  Then we'll sail east to the island of Samos, and finish with a side-trip to obscure isle of Lipsi.

It's by ship that people have island-hopped the Aegean for centuries. This overnight boat from Athens to Santorini offers tickets in several classes. Deck class is cheapest and can mean literally on the deck. For a few extra dollars an airplane-type seat can make life considerably more comfortable. And for even more comfort, try first class.

Along with soft chairs and tables, you can be assured of some sleep in a stateroom. Our cabin has a window and a private shower. Cheaper cabins offer a shower down the hall. By the way, even passengers without a stateroom can go down to the cheap cabin deck and grab a free hot shower.

Greek ferries are reasonably priced. In fact, this all-night cruise including beds in a comfortable stateroom is costing us less than what we paid for our hotel in Athens last night. While speedy travelers can fly from Athens to the major Greek Isles, we're in the Aegean to relax, feel the breeze, and have a little adventure. For me, that's best done on the ferry boats.

Sunrise and our Greek island dream come true — Santorini. Thousands of years ago this was one island, a volcano named Thyra. 1500 years before Christ a huge eruption blew away most of the island, leaving a flooded crater surrounded by five small islands.

Today, Santorini — one of the remaining islands — is a lip of the crater, lined with tourists. For 3500 years the volcano has destroyed a series of island settlements — the latest in 1956 when it toppled 2000 houses. Yet, locals still build and tourists still come. Why? Those who visit will understand.

Luckily, we're arriving here in mid-September, just after the peak summer months. Although this looks pretty busy, most of the students have gone home.

And hungry local entrepreneurs are eager to talk us into following them to their beautiful little pension.

Looks like we have our rooms. With mini-buses and mini-pickups, pension operators shuttle new arrivals to their accommodations. Up-scale travelers generally arrive by air and stay at one of the many rental villas or posh hotels.

Santorini's main town, Thyra, is an exotic white-washed town offering the quintessential Greek island experience.

Tourists come year after year to soak up the sun, and stroll the tiny lanes of this town perched 700 hundred feet above the sea. So what if Santorini's a little touristy. That's not necessarily bad. There's lots of shopping, English menus, fruity drinks, and plenty of British and Scandinavian fellow travelers. We all enjoy the spectacular physical setting and unmatched views ironically created by the volcano.

But don't let being a tourist get in the way of enjoying some authentic Greek treats...

Yogurt and honey is a wonderful local treat. Greek yogurt comes plain and super creamy. A little honey mixed in and I'm one happy hedonist.

One of the advantages of a tourist hot spot, can be the very convenient tours. Even for the most independent-minded travelers, there are times when an organized bus tour is a fine way to spend half a day.

At noon our bus leaves for the five-hour tour of the highlights of Santorini..... This tour includes, a visit to the ancient ruins of Akrotiri, a little free time on one of the island's best black sand beaches, plenty of information and a ride to the summit of the island for a grand view.

Up here, beginning in the 18th century, the monks in the monastery preserved and taught the Greek language and culture during centuries of Turkish occupation.

On the road again, on our way to Akrotiri.

Without wheels we'd still be back in Thira. The tour gives the island an air-conditioned once-over-lightly and gets us home in time for dinner.

And there it is, Akrotiri, the highlight of this tour. Akrotiri is the most impressive dig I've seen in the entire Aegean — including anything on Crete. This was a large city. With only about 1/30th of the city unearthed, much archeological work remains.

An advanced civilization thrived here from 2000 BC until about 1500 BC when the island exploded in one of the largest volcanic eruptions in the history of the planet. The boom from the eruption was heard in Scandinavia and was followed by months of darkness.

The city revealed beneath the thick layers of ash and pumice shows a plan not too different from present-day villages on Santorini. Narrow streets widen here and there into squares. Houses line the streets, some three and possibly four stories high.

To date the only intact room to be uncovered contained this fresco of lilies or papyrus and swallows. It's an idyllic spring scene of flirting birds and spring blossoms explained by the guide with the help of color photos of the originals.

One mural details a great sea battle. These young boxers evidently shaved their heads and sported long locks of curls.

And the fishing must have been pretty good.

Some believe this may have been the lost civilization of Atlantis. And many figure it was a tidal wave created by this eruption that swept away the Minoan civilization on the island of Crete, just 75 miles south of here. Probably the tidal wave disrupted their merchant fleet and with it the Minoan economy.

Carbon dating shows the Minoans survived the tidal wave but steadily declined over the next several centuries. Since archeologists found no bones and no jewelry they figured that the inhabitants of Akrotiri, expected the volcanic eruption and fled the island before it blew. The ash- and the mud-covered remains of a once busy community are all that's left.

Our last stop is the beach...

A reminder of its volcanic past, Santorini has a great black sand beach. One of the best swimming spots on the island.

You can get good swimming and sunbathing weather on the Greek islands through October. So that gives us.... about seven more weeks.

But we won't spend it all here. Tempting as it might be to become a runaway beach bum, we've got other fish to fry and other islands to hop.

Tourist money keeps the Greek Islands afloat. Greek Island travel agencies are eager to help you with tours, moped rentals, boat tickets, and flights.

We need to line up our boat ride to Samos. Since there are many competing boat companies and agencies, one line can't tell you all your options. For all the information under one roof, we're going to the port authority.

The man in the port office has all the schedules — that's his job. He tells me the best boat for us leaves tomorrow at four. OK! Our travel chores are finished, now we can relax.

On Santorini, itineraries are tossed into the sea and couples have only one appointment to keep. The sun's daily reminder that the Greek Islands are a place for romance.

Your experience in Greece is shaped by when you visit. Summer break is one long college party: crowded, expensive and hot. A cruise today cuts through the same waters that great galleys patrolled during Greece's Golden Age.

In the fifth century BC, Athens expanded its control throughout the Aegean, uniting cities and islands into the short-lived Delian League. At its peak, 300 war ships, manned by 60,000 oarsmen plied these waters, taking slaves, and collecting taxes from the island-dotted Aegean.

Since there's no direct connection from Santorini to Samos, we're sailing from Santorini to Paros, a hub in the Greek island ferry system, and connecting to Samos. From Samos we'll side trip to the tiny island of Lipsi, which doesn't even show on most maps.

Any time of year, island-hopping is easiest if you stick to a series of islands served daily from Athens. Going against the flow — like going from Santorini to Samos — can cause needless frustrations.

We have a few hours to kill here in Paros before catching our night boat to Samos. It's morning and we've arrived on Samos, one of the larger Greek islands. By Aegean standards, it's lush, historic, and not too touristy.

It's a short hop to the Turkish mainland. Samos town, the main city, is easy. Several decent hotels line the harbor front.

From here it's easy to plan a variety of island excursions and activities.

And a public phone makes it easy to take care of some travel details.  While cell phones are becoming popular with travelers, those watching their Euros do just fine with the payphones. Like all of Europe, Greece has phased out the old fashioned coin-operated public telephones in favor of vandal-resistant card operated booths.

These cards have nothing to do with the various American phone cards. You buy these locally, usually at a kiosk or the post office. Smart travelers do lots of chores by telephone.

And with a phone call, we lined up our transportation for today — mopeds. If you can ride this is a cheap and breezy — if a bit dangerous — way to explore Samos.

You'll find mopeds for rent on nearly every Greek island. My wife and I usually share one, but with these gutless wonders, our producer John and I each got one.

We'll be checking a monastery, an ancient temple and a great beach town, before returning to Samos town. That's about 25 miles.

With the moped we can get a feel for life outside the town. These mopeds are like bikes with a motor. They seem simple, but take it easy — travelers take a lot of spills.

By the side of the road this tiny family chapel reminds us how religion permeates the Creek culture. In the Greek Orthodox religion, all members of the church — laymen, priests, bishops — are considered equal in importance.

The family chapel is a sanctuary where God's love of man and man's love of God can be expressed on a daily basis. As you ride, you'll notice your map lists as many monasteries as towns — like the Spiliani monastery which welcomes guests.

The original monastery, in a cave at this site, dates to the 11th century. The cave is cool and quiet . . .refreshing after the hot and noisy road. Life in a Greek Orthodox monastery is simple and ascetic. The monks are mostly laymen, not clerics, who devote themselves to meditation and prayer to achieve a union with Christ.

Monasteries dot the island landscapes. In a cave much like this on the next island, Patmos, the evangelist John wrote the book of Revelations, the last book in the Bible.

Below the monastery lies the town of Pythagorio, which sits on top of the ancient capital of the island. This was called Tigani until 1956 when the name was changed to honor the island's most famous son — the pre-Socratic philosopher Pythagoras.

 Best remembered today for his contribution to mathematics, his disciples spread beliefs that also treated slaves humanely, the sexes as equal, and animals with respect. Samos was one of the most important islands in the ancient world — a center of learning. But only a few remnants of past greatness remain.

Outside of Pythagorio is the Temple of Hera. Not much is left. Originally a large temple with two rows of columns — 133 in all — only one still stands.

Early Greeks believed that Hera, queen of the gods and wife and sister to Zeus, was born near here. Twice a year in ancient times, large numbers of celebrants came from the sea by the Sacred Way, passing huge statues, as they came to worship the powerful goddess.

On to the Beach! The town of Kokkari is ideal for two saddle sore easy riders or any weary traveler. This laid back beach almost requires relaxation.

The town is a great place to settle in plenty of dhomatio, that's Greek for Bed and Breakfast, the best skipping rocks I've seen in ages, and no shortage of fisherman who have graduated from mending nets to flipping worry beads...what a fine place to end our exploration of Samos.

Dawn and we're really heading off the beaten path. We're on a hydrofoil to Lipsi. Lately hydrofoils are offering a speedy alternative for island hopping. They're half as relaxing, twice as fast, and double the cost.

When it comes to finding a un-touristy island, the trick is to find one just big enough to have regular boat service, but not big enough to have a promotional budget. Lipsi fills the bill.

Most visitors don't spend the night, but Lipsi has just enough commerce to keep us fed and watered. And there's our island home.

My best Greek memories are in towns with no hotels. No hotels? That's okay; we're staying in an extra room at Anna's house, sort of a Greek B and B. This "domatio" is simple, cheap, and very real.

Entrepreneurial enterprise reaches even the small islands. Daytrippers from a tour boat bring out the local dancers.

In a place like Lipsi, you won't find a menu. This is a fun opportunity to take advantage of the friendly Greek tradition of welcoming customers into the kitchen to see what's cooking.

Have some fun. Sample what you like. Ordering this way, you know exactly what you're getting. Tsatziki is a refreshing cucumber, garlic, yogurt dip for your bread. This could be a meal in itself. But with so much looking so good, let's call that an appetizer.

Greek cooking has changed little since the time of Plato, who gravely discussed such questions as what kinds of fish should be baked and what kinds boiled. Other classical writers describe the addition of herbs like oregano, basil, dill, and mint to the lamb and vegetable dishes still popular today. And then as now, a meal was a social occasion — eating alone only to be tolerated if no other option existed.

Residents like to relax on the small, private town square. You'll find a sleepy taverna and a local partner ready and willing to play you a game of Backgammon — the national pastime.

Lipsi's more remote beaches are an hour's hike away. Normally, these pick-ups are happy to be your taxi. Local legend has it that this island is where Calypso held Odysseus as a love captive for seven years. Hmmm. I suppose these romantic beaches establish the right atmosphere for the legend. This is pure Greek paradise.

Well, we've seen a lot of the Greek Isles. From the romantic white-washed villages of Santorini, to the sleepy fishing villages of Samos, to theses remote beaches of Lipsi,  and with some of the most relaxing cruising inbetween, we've seen why these 'jewels of the Aegean' are so popular.

I'm Rick Steves and this is happy travels.

See more travel details for recommendations highlighted in bold, excerpted from Rick's guidebooks.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g189458-c96694/Corfu:Greece:Half.Day.Cruise.Ship.Visitors.html

Corfu: Half-day cruise ship visitors

There are many cruise ships that visit Corfu every day, stopping here for a few hours, mostly from 9am to 5-7pm  as part of a Mediterrenean cruise.

Corfu Port is located very close to the Historic Corfu center, some may even like to walk from the cruise ship pier, out the port entrance and to their left ,by the seaside. Others may take the free bus dropping them off close to the center or may even get a taxi, available outside the passenger terminal.

Since visitors will only have a few hours available to see Corfu, it is best to stick to town, or closeby, unless they take an organized bus tour, that will pick them up at the port and at the end it will drop them off at the pier. You would not want to miss your departure time, would you? 

A usual question is : "which beach should one choose to go for these few hours?"  ,and the answer is that most of the good sandy beaches are located on the other side of the island, so it is either sightseeing around Corfu Town, or go to a beach and not have time for anything else.

For the first choice, you can walk around the historic town center, along it narrow streets, the "cantounia", do some shopping, visit a couple of museums, one of them being the Asian Art Museum at the Old Palace, on the left of the Spianada square. Also  visit the Old and/or the New Fortresses, on top of them you will enjoy the scenery. Sit down and have a refreshment or a ice coffee at the Liston cafeterias and later pick a taverna that serves local dishes and enjoy your lunch.  If you like to squeeze in a short visit to Achilleion or Palaiokastritsa, a 20min drive outside Corfu town, do that first, and have the taxi  drop you off close to the center, so you can best organize your remaining time, until you have to get back on the ship

For the lovers of fishes and reptiles, any way you visit Paleokastritsa,  the  Corfu Aquarium is a real experience. The collection of the international  reptiles is excellent and very well chosen, exactly what you expect to see from a  well organised local aquarium. The mediterranean fish collection is also infrequently selected and in combination with  the excellent service of the staff, the Corfu Aquarium provides a memorable experience for both children and adults.

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attracti...

  If you are a beach type, then you have to visit Glyfada or Kontogialos( below Pelekas village),  but even if it will cost you a bit more to go there by taxi ( best if there are 4 persons to share it), it's better to take one, than using the Green Buses (Suburban bus) which will waste a lot of your valuable time on shore.. If you like to take the bus, the Bus Station is close to the Port, you can walk there in 5 min. Green buses serve the whole island rather efficiently, south and north part, but traffic and frequent stops will double your journey time.

If you care for tasting local wine along with local food & delicacies, you may book to visit "Ambelonas Corfu" - a family owned vineyard with a panoramic view, wild nature, flower, herb and vegetable garden.

Where cruise ships dock: The main ferry port of Santorini, called Athinios, cannot accommodate large vessels, so most cruise ships either put down anchor in the caldera, just below Fira, or 1 - 2 miles away from the old port.	Transfer from the cruise ship to the old port Passengers are brought to land (pier at Skala) with tenders (small boats). By request, they can transfer the passengers to Athinios Ferry port.	The Cruise Port of Santorini

At the Old Port (Skala Pier)

At this small harbour you will find Duty-free stores, restaurants, taverns and small shops where you can buy souvenirs or traditionsl local products. From Skala, there are three ways to reach at the top of the cliff which is 260 metres above sea level, cable car (daily, 6.30am-10pm, every 20 mins, €5/£4.15), mule ride (€5/£4.15), or a tough hike up 580 steps (following the same path as the mules). Skala was an old port serving the Santorini before the bigger port of Anthinios took over. This old port became a tourist hub of sort, a small town of seaside cafés, boat rental agencies and trinket shops. During summer times, there are tours going to the nearby volcano and hot springs.

Cable Car - Teleferik - Funicular

Getting to the Cable car you need to walk up quite a few steps, the steps are low and long, but gradually get steeper. When reaching the Cable car, there are steps up to the station, then steep steps onto the cable car itself, so be warned.	The Funicular travels up the path and in three minutes time you are comfortable in the beautiful town of Fira, at an altitude of 220 metres.	The journey itself only takes a couple of minutes. Be warned, if you haven't a head for heights this is not for you. The cars are quite tiny, and the descent is steep, but you will appreciate the views of the rock formations, and Fira, clinging to the edge of the cliffs.

See Our Interactive Map

View santoriniPort.com in a larger map

Port Authority

Santorini Port Authirity: Branch office
84700 FIRA , SANTORINI , GREECE
Tel.: +30 22860 22239
Fax: +30 22860 23778

Santorini Port Name:

The ferry port name of Santorini is Athinios. The Athinios port is where the ferries dock. The cruise ship port does not have a name, but it is known as old port, or skala.

Santorini Port Location

The port is located below Fira, the capital of Santorini Greece.

Santorini Private Photographer

Book a private photographer in Santorini and create memories that last for your whole life.
http://www.santorini-photographer.com