Firá ( el, Φηρά, pronounced ) is the modern capital of the Greek Aegean island of

Santorini Santorini ( el, Σαντορίνη, ), officially Thira (Greek: Θήρα ) and classical Greek Thera (English pronunciation ), is an island in the southern Aegean Sea, about 200 km (120 mi) southeast from the Greek mainland. It is the ...

(Thera). A traditional settlement,http://www.visitgreece.gr Greek National Tourism Organisation "Firá" derives its name from an alternative pronunciation of "Thíra", the ancient name of the island itself. 12063 - Santorin - Fira de nuit

Fira is a city of whitewashed houses built on the edge of the high

caldera A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcano eruption. When large volumes of magma are erupted over a short time, structural support for the rock above the magma chamber is ...

on the western edge of the semi-circular island of Thera. The two main museums of interest are the

Archaeological Museum of Thera The Archaeological Museum of Thera is a museum in Fira, Santorini, Greece. It was built in 1960 to replace an older one which had collapsed by the 1956 Amorgos earthquake. Its collection houses artifacts that begin from Proto-Cycladic marble f ...

, east of the cable car entrance, and the

Museum of Prehistoric Thera The Museum of Prehistoric Thera ( el, Μουσείο Προϊστορικής Θήρας) is located in Fira, on the island of Santorini in Greece. It was built on the site of the old Ypapanti Church which was destroyed in the 1956 Amorgos earthq ...

at the southeast corner of the White Orthodox Cathedral of Ypapanti , built on the site of an earlier church destroyed in the

1956 Amorgos earthquake The 1956 Amorgos earthquake occurred at 03:11 UTC on July 9. It had a magnitude of 7.7 on the moment magnitude scale and a maximum perceived intensity of IX on the Mercalli intensity scale. The epicentre was to the south of the island of Amorg ...

. The town also hosts a number of churches, including the Cathedral of Ypapanti and the

Three Bells of Fira The Three Bells of Fira ( gr, Τρεις καμπάνες των Φηρών), officially known as The Catholic Church of the Dormition, is a Greek Catholic church on the island of Santorini. The church is known for its blue dome, three bells and v ...

. Access to Fira is mainly by roads on its eastern side, climbing from its port via the zigzag footpath on foot or on donkeys, or by riding the steep

cable car Cable car most commonly refers to the following cable transportation systems: * Aerial lift, such as aerial tramways and gondola lifts, in which the vehicle is suspended in the air from a cable ** Aerial tramway ** Chairlift ** Gondola lift *** Bi ...

from its lower terminal by the port. The central square of Fira is called

Plateia Theotokopoulou Plateia or Platia (''πλατεία'') is the Greek word for town square. Most Greek and Cypriot cities have several town squares which are a point of reference in travelling and guiding. In traditional societies like villages and provincial comm ...

, with a bus and taxi station, banks, and pharmacies. From Fira there is a panoramic view of the long

from southern Cape Akrotiri to northern Cape Ag. Nikolaos, plus the volcanic island Nea Kameni at the center with Thirassia Island. Large cruise ships anchor in the small harbor between Nea Kameni and Fira.

References

External links

* Santorini Populated places in Thira (regional unit) {{SAegean-geo-stub