Island Reunion

Delos, Greece, April 25, 1976. It's a quick stop on the way to Turkey.

Mule's Ear

Santorini, Greece, April 1976. I'm trying for a better shot.

Close-up Reunion

Athens, Greece, April 16, 1976. We continue to explore the Parthenon.

Tablecloth

Mykonos, Greece, April 1976. I bought the tablecloth the woman is holding.

"She wanted students to see it all."

My beloved high school English teacher, Sister Angele, died last week. Some of the reflections at her wake stirred up memories. 

Although I don't share Sister Angele's love of travel, touring Greece with her was a great experience. She was a tolerant chaperone who left us on a long leash as we explored Greece and Turkey. We dodged serious trouble a couple of times. Our group also avoided some of our responsibilities. For instance, we all carried assignments overseas because we had homework. I was supposed to read Vanity Fair during that trip expressly for Sister Angele's class. I started reading the book on the plane ride home.

When we returned to school, Sister Angele pulled me aside into the hallway outside of her classroom. She warned me not to detail our "escapades" to classmates. Sister Angele's message and tone were stern, but her head posture and glint conveyed an appreciation of the mischief.

Santorini, Greece, April 1976. Sister Angele is the teacher who required us to memorize and recite the prologue to Canterbury Tales in Middle English. She taught me not to fear public speaking, and she introduced me to the study of the Middle Ages. She thereby started two threads that ran through my life.

The First View

Athens, Greece, April 1976. This was my first photo of Athens as we rode the bus from the airport to the hotel.

Side-Street Reunion

Athens, Greece, April 1976. There's not much to do here.

Trap

Mykonos, Greece, April 25, 1976.  You imagined yourself relaxing in an idyllic island retreat.

Keeping her cool.

River Forest, Illinois, November 1975. I served one year as a "photographer" for the high-school yearbook. Here, I captured the amazing nun* who taught our AP English class. She's also the woman who organized and chaperoned that trip to Greece. I credit her with refining my understanding of culture.

*The women who ran the high school were "sisters," not "nuns."

Baskets Reuion

Athens, Greece, April 16, 1976. Some of the shops target primarily tourists.

Monastic Reunion

Osios Lukas, Greece, April 16, 1976. The monastery even makes tourists feel contemplative.

Color Pop

Delos, Greece, April 25, 1976. Poppies frame most everything on the island.

Soles

Athens, Greece, April 16, 1976. It's easy to skip some of the shops along the tourist drag.

Side Street

Levadia, Greece, April 15, 1976. We're in Levadia to visit the Oracle of Delphi, but I am intrigued by the town's foot traffic.

Bullish

 
Knossos, Crete, April 20, 1976. Some things in the museum are familiar.

Watch your back.

Delphi Archaeological Museum, Delphi, Greece, April 16, 1976. This snapshot shows part of the East Frieze of the Siphnian Treasury. The frieze illustrates the Trojan War. Here's the entire piece.

Historical Hairstyles

Janet Stephens is the hairstyle archaeologist.

Videos here. Brava!

(I love the simple style Ms. Stephens sometimes sports.)

This storm is big enough to have a name.

Draco is aiming for the Midwest.

What do you think of when you read the name, "Draco?" Do you picture a dragon because you studied Latin? Or do you jump to Greece because you are an historian? Or do you turn to law because Draco was the first "lawgiver?" Or do you combine all three reasons and pop right to "Draconian?"

The weatherfolk probably had fun naming the first, named blizzard. Why did they skip the alphabetical process used for hurricanes?

Verona, Wisconsin, December 2009. We are ready for the big one.

It's orthodox to pose for tourists.

Osios Lukas, Greece, April 15, 1976. A kind priest accommodates my request for a photo as we tour the monastery.

Taxi

Lindos, Rhodes, Greece, April 21, 1976. There's no better way to see the island.