Deke continues to hopefully heal in the Electra Palace Hotel. The poor man is splinted and ready to go home; we depart for Salt Lake City in a couple of days. Deke encouraged me to get to the Acropolis since it is so near. As I began my ascent up the hill, I felt a heavy sadness. My husband, with whom I came to celebrate our anniversary, was in the hotel room with a fractured patella; there was no seeing the Acropolis up close together. I have no Aristotle quote today; I guess that I am grumpy. I took a lot of photographs; I hope that you enjoy them. Yasas, Monique... read more

Deke and I awoke to a rainy day in Athens; there was a lot of thunder and lightning and I mentioned to Deke that perhaps Zeus was angry. It was really quite dramatic to experience in the shadow of The Acropolis. Deke went out to run some errands, and came back hurting and limping; he had fallen on wet, slick marble in the plaza area at Athens Center Office Complex and hurt his knee and back. The pain was so great, we decided that we should ask for a consultation with a physician. The physician came to our hotel room, and arranged for an x-ray technician to come to the room as well. We discovered that Deke had a fracture at the inferior part of the patella; Deke would be immobile. Throughout the night, medical folk ... read more

Last night Deke and I, while walking to a restaurant for dinner, saw a beautiful site. It appeared that a couple was renewing their vows, inclusive of not only a red carpet, but of fireworks as well. From what our guide Leftelis said, Santorini is a big wedding and vow-renewal destination. I suppose that in a sense, Deke and I have renewed our vows by taking this trip to Greece to celebrate our three-year anniversary. Though I suffer from motion sickness, I felt that I just had to take a tour of a couple of volcanic islands; I thought that the tour might entail a ferry ride; instead I learned it was a catamaran tour. We left from the southern part of Santorini, and the waters were very rough. I did what the crew and captain ... read more

I awoke before dawn and was treated to what I can only describe as a rainbow dawn. At the horizon was a layering of color above the Aegean and the city of Oia. Skaros, ever present before our balcony, appeared to be waiting patiently anticipating the full rise of the sun. It was the beginning of another sporadically windy day in Imerovigli. Our breakfast server, Marinos, didn’t disappoint us; he is always entertaining when he shows up. Deke wanted to take it easy again. Sometimes, I miss Deke when I embark upon an excursion out when he wants to stay in. I have come to think of our times together and our times apart as, “the dance of together and away.” We seem to do this dance better than most, but it still takes a measure ... read more

The staff at Astra Suites Hotel arranged for us to have a private tour of Santorini by car. Deke was running a little late, but eventually we met our driver, Lefteris. Lefteris is a young, handsome man who said that he enjoys his work, though he was at one time, working two jobs. I mentioned that George, the waiter at The Myconian Ambassador Hotel, was sending home part of his wages to his parents. Lefteris stated that from time to time, he does as well. I have been impressed with the quality of young people here willing to care for their parents monetarily. It has been just the opposite for me; my dad, “The Count,” and my mom, “Mamma S,” have helped me in times of financial troubles. Outside of economic concerns, I think there is ... read more