1. My Dream Destination
My Dream Destination
As a person who loves to dream about exotic places, I often browse the net just to look for
beautiful pictures from all over the world. But there are no other images that I love the most than
those of Santorini in Greece.
The first time I saw one of the photographs at TrekEarth capturing the white little houses that
scattered all over the island which had the expansive view of the Aegean sea in contrasting
bright white and navy blue, I couldn’t help but thinking how it’d feel like to really be there.
Surprisingly enough, not many people of whom I’ve conversed with have actually ever heard
about this place. They know of Greece but they know nothing about the island. Even in
Discovery Travel & Adventure Channel program called ‘Seductive Seaside Resorts’ – which I
bought because I was thrilled to see any motion pictures of Santorini when it was mentioned at
the back of the DVD cover – Santorini was placed at the lowest rank, which was no. 10, and that
was ironic considering that Amankila Resort in Bali was placed further up the higher scale at no.
2!
But I fall in love with the simplicity of it so much that not even the glitzy night lights and the
designer shops in New York or Paris can tempt me with. Some people might favour Paris for its
Worked by: Selma Loku

2. My Dream Destination
romantic atmosphere, or Rome for its ancient sculptures and paintings, but it is Santorini that
really captures my heart all the time.
It’s not so much the exoticity of it that really enchants me, but the idea that this volcanic island is
filled with houses that are so uniformly monochromatic when looked from afar, as if all the
dwellers have had some sort of agreement not to use any other paints to paint their residencies in
any other colors except white, blue, and various hues of yellows and oranges. And the uneven
path that goes up and down along the houses makes it seem like there are so many things to be
explored there, and that anywhere you turn, the view of the Aegean Sea welcomes you always.
When I used to work in the corporate company and there was one of those occasional days when
I got so stressed out, I’d secretly browse images of Santorini (which I’d saved obsessively like
there was no tomorrow) and all of a sudden, life didn’t feel so difficult anymore. If I could just
imagine myself opening that door and see that deep blue sea stretching out to nowhere …
And then there was that one night during the weekend when I was home alone, flicking at the TV
channels randomly until I settled on HBO where it was showing a movie about four girls who
apparently could fit into the same pair of jeans despite the differences on their body shapes.
That’s right, I’m talking about The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, the movie adaptation of
the novel written by Ann Brashares. And in that movie, Lena the Greek girl went to Santorini for
her summer holiday and fell in love with a Greek boy called Kostas who was absolutely
Worked by: Selma Loku

3. My Dream Destination
gorgeous but who cares about the boy? I was drooling at the fact that I got to see Santorini in all
its glory being featured in an enjoyable movie that had become my all-time favorite movie ever.
I’d been obsessing about this island ever since. It was my secret, my ultimate dream destination
that got me thinking, “Even if I do end up going there someday… it would be fun to be going
there with the person who loves it as much as I do.” As silly as it sounds to some people, and
despite the fact that I’d probably won’t get there until I’m 50, I do believe that everyone must
have a dream, no matter how silly it may seems, it’s so much better, as the saying goes, to have a
dream than not having any at all.
I was still pondering (most of the time, obsessing of course) over this idea, until I met my
soulmate. And guess what? It was his dream destination too. Still is. Sometimes when I’m all
depressed and losing my perspective in life, I often ask him whether we would actually get there.
But he, being the positive person he is, without fail will always say the same thing, over and over
again, “Yes, we will.”
Someday, we’ll get there.
Worked by: Selma Loku